The passage
      v1. Paul now gives his final charge to Timothy. Because we live in the presence of God and of Christ, who is the judge of all those living and dead at his return, because Christ will return to gather to himself those who are his, and because the new age of God's kingdom, of his eternal reign, has dawned, "I give you this charge" - "I adjure you by his coming appearance and his reign." Christ the judge of the living and of the dead is a dominant idea in the New Testament, particularly in Paul's epistles, Act.17:31, Rom.2:17, 1Cor.4:5.
      v2. Paul gives his charge in the form of five imperatives. The first imperative, "preach", sets the overall theme of the charge. Timothy is to preach the truths of God's Word. He must be ready, willing and able, to do this at every possible opportunity, whether the time seems right or not. This preaching must seek to "correct" (reprove, discipline Christian behavior), "rebuke" (censure, expose evil) and "encourage" (exhort, appeal to the conscience). Timothy's preaching must be undertaken with all persistence and forbearance and must fully cover Biblical truth.
      v3. Paul warns Timothy of the day that is coming, and is in a sense already here, when some believers will go after false teachers. These teachers proclaim truths which are to the liking of the congregation, rather than truths that align with the gospel. The hearers are caught up in this falsehood because they like to hear sermons which tickle their interest, rather than shape their will. They have drifted from the faith and don't want their faithless lives disturbed.
      v4. On the one hand, these believers who like their thinking tickled with sweet nothings rather than their wills shaped to the image of Christ, are no longer willing to listen to the exposition of Biblical truth; on the other hand, they are always happy to hear how they can advance their Christian walk by means of their own wisdom or effort, rather than by grace through faith.
      v5. Returning to detail a number of final exhortations, Paul makes the point that Timothy is not like the false teachers and their disciples. Timothy must not be caught up in the spirit of the age, rather he must continue to be wide awake, vigilant, alert - "keep your head." Timothy must also endure the trouble that will come his way because of his faithful attention to the Word; he must "do the work of an evangelist." Clearly Timothy is not a gifted evangelist, but at least he can work at it, even if it is not his gift. He must discharge his Word-ministry faithfully.

Ministers of the gospel
      There are certain passages in scripture that clergymen love to preach on when addressing other clergy. In conservative evangelical circles, our passage for study is one of the hot favorites. In fact, I remember my principal at theological college saying that the reason he didn't invite parish clergy to preach at chapel was that they nearly always chose to speak on this passage. I'm sad I haven't been invited back to preach as I would love to preach on it just for a stir.
      Anyway, what we have here is a charge to a young minister, a precise 9 point sermon based on 9 imperatives. It does break the three point rule, but as long as the preacher doesn't spend fifteen minutes on each point then this list of do's not only has the power to shape a church's ministry, but the congregation's expectation of that ministry.
      It is fascinating to note, not only what is in the charge, but what is not in it. The charge clearly focuses on the delivery of an effective Word ministry. Timothy is struggling against false teachers and so it is only natural that Paul underline the preaching/teaching element in ministry. None-the-less, it is still interesting that the charge is devoid of matters of people management, marketing, social welfare, official public duties ....., all the stuff that is so central to full-time Christian ministry today.
      So then, what are the elements of this charge to young ministers:
        i] Preach the Word. All other exhortations in Paul's charge are sub points of this exhortation. Communicating the Word of God is the central ministry of the church. Note how Paul gives weight to this charge in v1 and how Timothy is to do it in all situations, whether positive or not.
        ii] Stick at the business of communicating the Word of God. A minister faces many diversions, particularly when it comes to preparation. Maintaining a Word-ministry focus is essential.
        iii] Censure. Through the preaching and teaching of the Word, reprove those who have fallen into sin.
        iv] Warn. Again, through the church's Word ministry, rebuke those who are falling away from faith.
        v] Exhort, appeal to, encourage, the faint hearted.
        vi] Maintain a well-balanced ministry. Given all the pressures facing ministry today, the preacher must strive to give the business of communicating God's Word its proper place.
        vii] Bear opposition patiently, but firmly.
        viii] Do the work of an evangelist. We may not be gifted evangelists, but at least we can give it a go.
        ix] Fully carry out these duties.

v2
      khuxon (khrussw) imp. "preach [the word]" - proclaim. "Herald", "proclaim forcefully", is the first of five imperatives that make up the "charge". It sets the dominant theme of the charge as evidenced by the qualifying phrase "with great patience ......." Preach Biblical truth, proclaim the gospel.....
      episthqi (efisthmi) imp. "be prepared" - be ready, on hand, at it, at one's task.
      eukairwV akairwV "in season and out of season" - Qualifying adverbs of the verb "be prepared." "Keep at it when the time is right, but also when it's not right." The "not right time" is when Biblical preaching is not appreciated possibly due to the congregation having drifted from genuine faith, cf. v3.
      elegxon (elecw) aor. imp. "correct" - rebuke, reprove. Used elsewhere of reproving one who sins.
      epitimhson (epitimaw) imp. "rebuke" - censure. Expose and stop sin.
      parakaleson (parakalew) imp. "encourage" - urge, exhort. The sense of "appeal to" picks up on the "preach" theme.
      en pash/ makroqumia/ "with great patience" - with all long-suffering. This prepositional phrase qualifies the preaching. It is to be done with persistence and forbearance.
      didach/ (h) "careful instruction" - [all] teaching. Full instruction.

v3
      gar "for" - The reason for the charge is now stated, namely, the propensity of believers to fall away from the faith and so desire preaching that reflects their non-standing in Christ.
      kairoV "time" - The period referred to in v2 which is unfavorable, "out of season".
      oJte "when men" - when. Here, the temporal particle also takes on the task of a relative pronoun, "when they" = those who have drifted from the faith.
      ouk anexontai (anecomai) fut. "will not put up with [sound doctrine]" - they will not bear, endure, forbear. Here in the sense of "will not willingly listen to."
      uJgiainoushV didaskaliaV "sound doctrine" - healthy teaching. Teaching that is in accord with the gospel, cf. 1Tim.1:10-11.
      alla "instead" - but. The adversative heralds a contrast.
      episwreusousin (episwreuw) fut. "they will gather around them" - will accumulate, heap up. They will gather to themselves, accumulate, teachers that will not disturb their own weakened faith.
      kata "to suit" - according to
      taV idiaV epiqumiaV eJautoiV "their own desires" - their own lusts of themselves. They determine who will teach them on the basis of the teaching being acceptable to them.
      knhqomenoi (knhqw) pas. part. "what their itching [ears want to hear" - tickling [the ear], feeling an itching [ear], having itching [ears]. The phrase takes a figurative meaning: having a curiosity that looks for interesting bits of information found in the message of the false teachers, BAGD. eg. a series of sermons on sex delivered at the evening youth service!!

v4
      men ...... de "-" - This construction produces a contrast, "on the one hand they will turn ..........; on the other hand, they will turn aside to myths"
      apostreyousin (apostrefw) fut. "they will turn [their ears] away" - turn away. They will not listen.
      thV alhqeiaV (a) "the truth" - Paul gives us a third descriptive of the Christian message, "the word", "sound doctrine" and now "the truth", information that is absolute.
      ektraphsontai (ektrepw) fut. pas. "turn aside" - will be turned aside, changed.
      touV muqouV (oV) "myths" - Although the word means "myths" or "fables", Paul is probably using it in a figurative sense to debunk the heresy of the false teachers. The false teaching is most likely a form of Jewish Christian nomism that promotes sanctification by obedience. See notes 2Tim.3:10-17, v13, re "the imposters."