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From: 1 Timothy 2:1-8
God Desires the Salvation of All
Men at Prayer, Women at Prayer
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Commentary:
1. St Paul here establishes regulations for the public prayer of all the faithful; it
is up to Timothy, as head of the church of Ephesus, to specify these in detail,
and to preside over them. He refers to four types of prayer; however, since the
first three are almost synonymous, he is probably just stressing the key impor-
tance of prayer in the Christian life. St Augustine uses this text to explain the
various parts of the Mass: “We take as ‘supplications’ those prayers which are
said in celebrating the Mysteries before beginning to bless (the bread and wine)
that lie on the table of the Lord. We understand ‘prayers’ as meaning those pra-
yers that are said when (the offering) is blessed, consecrated and broken for dis-
tribution, and almost the whole Church closes this prayer with the Lord’s prayer
[...]. ‘Intercessions’ are made when the blessing is being laid on the people [...].
When this rite is completed and all have received this great Sacrament, the
whole ceremony is brought to an end by ‘thanksgiving’ — which is also the word
which concludes this passage of the Apostle’s” (”Letter 149”, 2, 16).
St Paul orders that prayers be said for all, not just for friends and benefactors
and not just for Christians. The Church helps people keep this command by the
Prayers of the Faithful or at Mass when “the people exercise their priestly func-
tion by praying for all mankind” and “pray for Holy Church, for those in authority,
for those oppressed by various needs, for all mankind, and for the salvation of
the entire world” (”General Instruction on the Roman Missal”, 45).
2. This desire to lead “a quiet and peaceful life” does not in any way imply a rela-
xation of the demands St Paul makes in other letters. He specifically says that
prayers have to be said “for kings and all who are in high positions” because they
are responsible for ensuring that civil law is in line with the natural law, and when
it is citizens are able to practise religious and civil virtues (to be “godly and re-
spectful”). Rulers have a heavy responsibility and therefore deserve to be prayed
for regularly.
St Paul’s instruction to pray for kings and others is particularly interesting if one
bears in mind that when he was writing this letter, Nero was on the throne — the
emperor who instigated a bloody persecution of Christians. St Clement of Rome,
one of the first successors of St Peter at the see of Rome, has left us touching
evidence of intercession for civil authority: “Make us to be obedient to your own
almighty and glorious name and to all who have rule and governance over us on
earth [...]. Grant unto them, O Lord, health and peace, harmony and security,
that they may exercise without offense the dominion you have accorded them
[...]. Vouchsafe so to direct their counsels as may be good and pleasing in your
sight, that in peace and mildness they might put to godly use the authority you
have given them, and so find mercy with you” (”Letter to the Corinthians”, 1, 60-
61).
If one bears in mind the injustices and brutality of the world in which Christians
lived when St Paul wrote this letter, the tone of his teaching shows that Christia-
nity has nothing to do with fomenting political or social unrest. The message of
Jesus seeks, rather, to change men’s consciences so that they for their part can
change society from within by working in an upright and noble way. The Church,
through its ordinary magisterium, teaches that “the political and economic run-
ing of society is not a direct part of (the Church’s) mission (cf. “Gaudium Et
Spes”, 42). But the Lord Jesus has entrusted to her the word of truth which is
capable of enlightening consciences. Divine love, which is her life, impels her to
a true solidarity with everyone who suffers. If her members remain faithful to this
mission, the Holy Spirit, the source of freedom, will dwell in them, and they will
bring forth fruits of justice and peace in their families and in the places where
they work and live” (SCDF, “Libertatis Conscientia”, 61).
3-4. God’s desire that all should be saved is a subject which appears frequently
in the Pastoral Epistles (cf. 1 Tim 4:10; Tit 3:4), and so he is often given the title
of “Savior” (cf. note on 1 Tim 1:1-2). Here it is given special emphasis: pray for
all men (v. 1), particularly those in high positions (v. 2), that all may be saved (v.
6).
Since God wants all men to be saved, no one is predestined to be damned (cf.
Council of Trent, “De Iustificatione”). “He came on earth because “omnes homi-
nes vult salvos fieri”, he wants to redeem the whole world. While you are at your
work, shoulder to shoulder with so many others, never forget that there is no
soul that does not matter to Christ!” (St. J. Escriva, “The Forge”, 865).
God desires man to be free as intensely as he desires his salvation; by making
man free he has made it possible for man to cooperate in attaining his last end.
“God, who created you without you,” St Augustine reminds us, “will not save
you without you” (”Sermon”, 169, 13).
In order to attain salvation, the Apostle lists as a requirement that one must
“come to the knowledge of the truth”. “The truth” is firstly Jesus (cf. Jn 14:6; 1
Jn 5:20); knowledge of the truth is the same as knowing the Christian message,
the Gospel (cf. Gal 2:5, 14). The human mind needs to come into play if one is
to be saved; for, although affections, emotions and good will are also involved,
it would be wrong to give them so much importance that the content of the truths
of faith is played down. As the original Greek word suggests, this “knowledge”
is not just an intellectual grasp of truth: it is something which should have an im-
pact on one’s everyday life; knowledge of the faith involves practice of the faith.
“The Church’s essential mission, following that of Christ, is a mission of evange-
lization and salvation. She draws her zeal from the divine love. Evangelization is
the proclamation of salvation, which is a gift of God. Through the word of God and
the Sacraments, man is freed in the first place from the power of sin and the po-
wer of the Evil One which oppress him; and he is brought into a communion of
love with God. Following her Lord who ‘came into the world to save sinners’ (1
Tim 1:15), the Church desires the salvation of everyone. In this mission, the
Church teaches the way which man must follow in this world in order to enter
the Kingdom of God” (SCDF, “Libertatis Conscientia”, 63).
5. Verses 5 and 6 compress a series of statements into the rhythmic format of
a liturgical hymn, a kind of summarized confession of faith containing the truths
one needs to believe in order to be saved (cf. v. 4).
“One mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus”: the Apostle lays
stress on Christ’s humanity, not to deny his divinity (which he explicitly asserts
elsewhere: cf. Tit 2: 13) but because it is as man particularly that Christ is me-
diator; for if the function of a mediator is to join or put two sides in touch, in this
particular case it is only as man that he is as it were “distant both from God by
nature and from man by dignity of both grace and glory [...], and that he can
unite men to God, communicating his precepts and gifts to them, and offering
satisfaction and prayers to God for them” (”Summa Theologiae”, III, q. 26, a. 2).
Christ is the perfect and only mediator between God and men, because being
true God and true man he has offered a sacrifice of infinite value (his life) to re-
concile men to God.
The fact that Jesus is the only mediator does not prevent those who have
reached heaven from obtaining graces and helping to build up the Church’s holi-
ness (cf. “Lumen Gentium”, 49). Angels and saints, particularly the Blessed Vir-
gin, can be described as mediators by virtue of their union with Christ: “Mary’s
function as mother of men in no way obscures or diminishes this unique media-
tion of Christ, but rather shows its power. But the Blessed Virgin’s salutary influ-
ence on men originates not in any inner necessity but in the disposition of God.
It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ” (”Lumen Gentium”,
60).
6. “Ransom”: in the Old Testament God is said to ransom or redeem his people
particularly when he sets them free from slavery in Egypt and makes them his
own property (cf. Ex 6:6-7; 19:5-6; etc.). The liberation which God will bring
about in the messianic times is also described as redemption (cf. Is 35:9) and
implies, above all, liberation from sin: “he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities”
(Ps. 130:8). The same idea occurs in this verse: Jesus “gave himself” in sacrifice
to make expiation for our sins, to set us free from sin and restore to us our lost
dignity. “Unceasingly contemplating the whole of Christ’s mystery, the Church
knows with all the certainty of faith that the Redemption that took place through
the Cross has definitively restored his dignity to man and given back meaning to
his life in the world, a meaning that was lost to a considerable extent because
of sin” (Bl. John Paul II, “Redemptor Hominis”, 10).
“At the proper time”: God’s plan for man’s salvation is eternal, it did not start at a
particular time; however, it unfolds gradually in God’s good time (see the note on
Eph 1:10).
8. The raising of the hands at prayer is a custom found among both Jews (cf. Ex
9:29; Is 1:15; etc.) and pagans; it was also adopted by the early Christians, as
can be seen from murals in the Roman catacombs.
External stances adopted during prayer should reflect one’s inner attitude: “we
extend our arms”, Tertullian explains, “in imitation of the Lord on the Cross; and
praying we confess Christ” (”De Oratione”, 14). St Thomas Aquinas, referring to
liturgical rites, comments that “what we do externally when we pray helps to
move us internally. Genuflections and other gestures of that type are not plea-
sing to God in themselves; they please him because they are signs of respect
whereby man humbles himself interiorly; similarly, the raising of the hands signi-
fies the lifting of the heart” (”Commentary on 1 Tim, ad loc.”).
Everyone should pray regularly (vv. 1-2) and be sure to have the right dispositions;
men need to make sure that they do not approach prayer with their thoughts full
of earthly ambition; and women need to be sure vanity does not creep in. “Holy
hands” refers to the need to pray with a calm conscience, free from anger and
spite. We already have our Lord’s teaching that “if you are offering your gift at
the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother,
and then come and offer your gift” (Mt 5:23-24).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.