Writing from a Roman prison to the Philippians about A.D. 60, Paul spoke of his plans to visit that church, and in his note to Philemon he even requested a place to stay. While it is difficult to know the actual course of events that followed, it is possible he was acquitted at a first trial and fulfilled his hope to revisit eastern Mediterranean lands.
Some scholars doubt an acquittal, noting the absence of explicit evidence for it. And some doubt a journey eastward, given Paul's hope of going to Spain after Italy (see Rom. 15:24, 28). However, his acquittal may be implied by a number of passages besides those in Philippians and Philemon. II Tim. 4:16 speaks of a "first answer" (literally, "first defense"), making it possible the apostle was freed after one trial and later was tried again. I Tim. 1:3, along with II Tim. 4:20 (mentioning that Trophimus stayed behind in Miletus), may indicate a visit to Ephesus, Macedonia, and Miletus distinct from Paul's travels there in Acts 20 (in which Trophimus continued with Paul). Also, Titus 1:5 may imply a longer stay in Crete than the brief visit of Acts 27. Thus, a journey to Philippi by way of Ephesus is possible—if indeed Paul was released from prison.
Paul's authorship of the "Pastoral Epistles" (I and II Timothy and Titus) is also doubted by many scholars. The Pastorals seem to lack, at points, Paul's strong and vigorous style, and they use many words that appear nowhere else in Paul's letters. But the apostle's own thought and expression may shine through at least portions of these letters addressed to his trusted companions Timothy and Titus.
Assuming these epistles are authentic and that Paul made a final journey eastward, his first letter to Timothy (and also the letter to Titus) may have been written somewhere along the way. A devoted companion to the apostle through many trials, Timothy was most likely a seasoned Christian, although Paul sometimes refers to his youth and calls him in I Tim. 1:2, "my own son in the faith." Paul advises him in verses 3-11 to retain his ministerial position—in spite of opposition—in order to preserve the purity of Christian teaching. Some teachers of the law where Timothy lived had wandered into foolish talking; and the apostle thus stressed the need for love flowing from a pure heart, a good conscience, an unassumed faith. Timothy was to move on fearlessly with his duties and "war a good warfare" (v. 18).
Chapter 3 of this letter includes Paul's great guidelines for the character of an overseer of church affairs, or, as the King James Version puts it, "a bishop." The apostle goes on to decry erroneous forms of teaching and practice, particularly rigid asceticism. The true goal lies in training for godliness, which "is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come" (4:8).
Timothy may have seemed, to some, younger in years than his responsible position would have required. But Paul encouraged him not to let anyone despise his youth, and to remain faithful, "for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee" (v. 16). And in the final chapters of I Timothy, Paul deals with provision for elder church members, with appointing worthy officers and improving relations between slaves and their masters. Condemning wranglings devoid of the truth and worldly greed of gain, the apostle advises: "Flee these things; and follow after righteousness....Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called" (6:11, 12).
We are not certain of the route Paul took after sending I Timothy. But his letter to another companion, Titus, suggests a visit (at some stage) to Crete. Paul eventually left Crete to winter in Nicopolis (thought to be on the Adriatic coast of Greece); and after his departure he may have written the letter to Titus, who had remained in Crete (see Titus 1:5;3:12).
In the epistle itself Paul again discusses church administration and qualifications for those in authority. He placed special emphasis upon Titus's own example, "that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you" (2:7,8). In concluding, the apostle urged orderly conduct for the Cretans but also pointed out that salvation stems, in the final analysis, from the love of God.
At some stage in this last Mediterranean journey of Paul—if, indeed, he made such a trip—the apostle may have stayed at Troas, Corinth, and Miletus (see II Tim. 4:13,20)—and perhaps other cities where he had founded churches. Some scholars believe that eventually Paul spent his last years in Rome. Whether he returned willingly or under arrest (or had never left the city), it is possible he was affected by Emperor Nero's persecutions of Christians in about A.D. 64.
Writing his second letter to Timothy, Paul was apparently in prison—indeed, in close confinement and ill treated as a criminal (see 2: 9). It is unclear whether Paul's first defense preceded this confinement and resulted in acquittal, or whether it was part of a single trial he faced at the end of his career. In any case, like Jesus during Peter's denial, Paul was deserted by friends. Yet echoing the words of Stephen at his martyrdom, Paul wrote, "I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge." And he was not deprived of consolation in his extremity: "The Lord stood with me, and strengthened me" (4:16,17).
From the outset of II Timothy Paul was looking beyond the shadows of death, which seemed to be closing around him, to the light of continued life (see 1:1). He urged Timothy also not to be ashamed to endure affliction for the benefit of the gospel. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (v. 7). Paul himself was turning to Christ Jesus, "who hath abolished death" and brought to light both life and immortality (v. 10; see 2:8-11).
As the epistle closes, Paul considers the possible close of his own ministry. He writes (literally translated): "Already I am pouring out my life, and the time of my departure has arrived" (4:6). While he had been forsaken by nearly everyone, the faithful Luke was still at his side. The apostle asked Timothy also to join him before winter, bringing Mark with him, and the precious rolls of parchment left at Troas—perhaps containing the Holy Scriptures. Paul adds, in what may be his last recorded words (v. 22): "The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen."
Thus Paul went on to face what many feel was execution under the persecutions of Nero, sealing with martyrdom a life of untold service to his fellowmen. For this, the greatest missionary apostle of the Christian faith, he who had brought the healing and saving message of the gospel to Jew and Gentile, bond and free, how well might an epitaph be written in his own words (4:7, 8): "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day."
[This article concludes the series.]
