2 Timothy 3:16

2 Timothy 3 is the third chapter of the Second Epistle to Timothy in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The letter is traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle, the last one written in Rome before his death (c. 64 or 67), addressed to Timothy. However, most biblical scholars believe that it and the other Pastoral Epistles are the work of an anonymous follower, writing after Paul's death in the first century AD. This chapter contains a charge to Timothy to keep away from heterodoxy, and use Paul's steadfast faith under persecution as an example to contrast the opponents' characters, while continuing to follow the teachings of the Scriptures. Text The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 17 verses. Textual witnesses Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are: Codex Sinaiticus (AD 330–360) Codex Alexandrinus (400–440) Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (c. 450; complete) Codex Freerianus (c. 450; extant verses 6–8; 16–17) Codex Claromontanus (c. 550) The heresy in Ephesus in prophetic perspective (3:1–9) Paul paints a picture of the false teachers as 'actual deviants from the norm established by his gospel' who, as a result, endanger the faith of themselves and their followers. A lengthy list of their vices spans verses 2-4. Among the terms listed is (blasphēmoi), translated in some places as "blasphemers", but also as "abusive".