2 Timothy 2:19

2 Timothy 2:19. The foundation of God standeth sure. The Greek requires, ‘ The strong (or firm) foundation of God stands fast.' What is this ‘strong foundation'? And what is the imagery employed? The idea was, as we have seen, a familiar one with St. Paul, and is referred sometimes to Christ Himself (1 Corinthians 3:11), sometimes to good works (1 Timothy 6:19). Here it would seem to represent the thought that God's unchanging truth is the foundation of His Church.

Having this seal. The figure is probably drawn from the practice of engraving inscriptions on one or both sides of the foundation stone. So in Revelation 21:14 the names of the twelve apostles are found on the twelve foundations of the mystical Jerusalem.

The Lord knoweth them that are his. Not as expressing the knowledge that flows from an inscrutable decree, but, as in 1 Corinthians 8:3; 1 Corinthians 13:12; John 10:14, the knowledge, implying love and approval, which Christ has of those who are truly His. This represents one side of the life of the believer, but, lest men interpret the truth wrongly, the other side also needs to be put forward, and that is found in personal holiness. Every one who names the name of the Lord, who speaks of Christ as His Lord, and therefore calls himself a Christian, is bound by so doing to depart from iniquity. Though not a quotation, we may perhaps recognise an echo of the ‘Depart ye, depart ye' of Isaiah 52:11.