longing to see you, remembering your tears, that I may be filled with joy;
Parallel Translations
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longing to see you, remembering your tears, that I may be filled with joy;
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desyrynge to se the myndfull of thy teares: so that I am filled with ioye
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Desiring to see thee, mindefull of thy teares, that I may be filled with ioy:
Cross-references (18)
Passages linked to 2 Timothy 1:4 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 2 Timothy 4:9 Be diligent to come to me soon,
- Philippians 1:8 For God is my witness, how I long after all of you in the tender mercies of Christ Jesus.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:17–3:1 But we, brothers, being bereaved of you for a short season, in presence, not in heart, tried even harder to see your face with great desire, because we wanted to come to you—indeed, I, Paul, once and again—but Satan hindered us. For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Isn’t it even you, before our Lord Jesus at his coming? For you are our glory and our joy. Therefore when we couldn’t stand it any longer, we thought it good to be left behind at Athens alone,
- 2 Timothy 4:21 Be diligent to come before winter. Eubulus salutes you, as do Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers.
- Psalms 126:5 Those who sow in tears will reap in joy.
- Isaiah 61:3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion, to give to them a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of Yahweh, that he may be glorified.
- Jeremiah 31:13 Then the virgin will rejoice in the dance; the young men and the old together; for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.
- John 16:22 Therefore you now have sorrow, but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.
- John 16:24 Until now, you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full.
- Acts 20:19 serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears, and with trials which happened to me by the plots of the Jews;
- Acts 20:31 Therefore watch, remembering that for a period of three years I didn’t cease to admonish everyone night and day with tears.
- Acts 20:37-38 They all wept freely, and fell on Paul’s neck and kissed him, sorrowing most of all because of the word which he had spoken, that they should see his face no more. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
- Romans 1:11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, to the end that you may be established;
- Romans 15:30-32 Now I beg you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in your prayers to God for me, that I may be delivered from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my service which I have for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, that I may come to you in joy through the will of God, and together with you, find rest.
- Philippians 2:26 since he longed for you all, and was very troubled because you had heard that he was sick.
- 1 John 1:4 And we write these things to you, that our joy may be fulfilled.
- Revelation 7:17 for the Lamb who is in the middle of the throne shepherds them and leads them to springs of life-giving waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
- Revelation 21:4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more. The first things have passed away.”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (15 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 4 Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of…
4 Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy;
Ver. 4. Being mindful of thy tears] Timothy was a man of many tears, so was David, Paul, Luther, Bradford, of whom it is said, that he did seldom eat but be bedewed his trencher with tears, and that few days passed him without plenty of tears shed before he went to bed:-Αγαθοι δ αριδακρυες ανδρες.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain There was a great brotherly love amongst primitive Christians,…
There was a great brotherly love amongst primitive Christians, so as the apostle often expresseth his desire to see such Christians as were at a distance from him, Rom 1:11; 1Th 2:17; but he expresseth aparticular reason of his desire to see Timothy, remembering the
tears he shed at his parting from him and the rest, Act 20:37,38; besides the desire he had by his presence to satisfy him, and give him occasion of joy, with which he also should be filled; unless he speaketh of the joy he promised himself when he saw Timothy, upon his seeing the improvement he had made both of his graces and gifts in the ministerial office.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain Observe here, The vehemency of affection which our apostle…
Observe here, The vehemency of affection which our apostle expresses towards Timothy; he desired, greatly desired, to see him, and with the sight of him to be filled with joy.
Note, That though we must love all Christians, with a sincere love, yet we may love some Christians with a more fervent love than others; choice and useful Christians, endearing and endeared friends, may and must be beloved above others: I desire greatly to see thee, &c.
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Observe farther, St. Paul declares how mindful he was of Timothy’s tears; perhaps a flood of tears were shed at their last parting one from another. The best of men have a propension to weeping, and upon occasion, have shed tears; so had Jacob, Joseph, David, and Christ himself. True goodness promotes compassion; good men ever have been, and are men of tender and compassionate dispositions.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Greatly desiring to see thee,.... In his former epistle…
Greatly desiring to see thee,.... In his former epistle he had desired him to stay at Ephesus, there being some work for him to do, which made it necessary he should continue; but now having answered the apostle's purpose, and he standing in need of him at Rome, being without any assistant there, some having left him, and others were left by him in other places, and others were sent by him elsewhere; and it having been some time since he saw Timothy, he longed for a sight of him:
being mindful of thy tears; shed either at the afflictions and sufferings of the apostle, of which Timothy, being his companion, was an eyewitness, and he being of a truly Christian sympathizing spirit, wept with those that wept; or at their parting from each other, as in Act 20:37
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that I may be filled with joy; at the sight of him, and not at the remembrance of his tears; for the last clause is to be read in a parenthesis, and these words stand not connected with that, but with the preceding part of the text. The apostle intimates, that a sight of his dearly beloved son Timothy would fill him with joy amidst all his troubles and afflictions he endured for the Gospel: this is an instance of hearty, sincere, and strong affection.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Being mindful of thy tears - Perhaps frequently shed,…
Being mindful of thy tears - Perhaps frequently shed, as well as at the apostle's last parting with him.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 4. Being mindful of thy tears] Whether the…
Verse 4. Being mindful of thy tears] Whether the apostle refers to the affecting parting with the Ephesian Church, mentioned Ac 20:37, or to the deep impressions made on Timothy's heart when he instructed him in the doctrine of Christ crucified, or to some interview between themselves, it is not certainly known. The mention of this by the apostle is no small proof of his most affectionate regards for Timothy, whom he appears to have loved as a father loves his only son.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Greatly desiring to see thee; - see 2Ti 4:9,…
Greatly desiring to see thee; - see 2Ti 4:9, 2Ti 4:21. It was probably on, account of this earnest desire that this Epistle was written. He wished to see him, not only on account of the warm friendship which he had for him, but because he would be useful to him in his present circumstances; see the introduction, Section 3.
Being mindful of thy tears - Alluding probably to the tears which he shed at parting from him. The occasion to which he refers is not mentioned; but nothing is more probable than that Timothy would weep when separated from such a father and friend. It is not wrong thus to weep, for religion is not intended to make us stoics or savages.
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That I may be filled with joy - By seeing you again. It is easy to imagine what joy it would give Paul, then a prisoner, and forsaken by nearly all his friends, and about to die, to see a friend whom he loved as he did this young man. Learn hence, that there may be very pure and warm friendship between an old and young man, and that the warmth of true friendship is not diminished by the near prospect of death.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain desiring--Greek, "with yearning as for one much missed."
desiring--Greek, "with yearning as for one much missed."
mindful of thy tears--not only at our parting (Act 20:37), but also often when under pious feelings.
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that I may be filled with joy--to be joined with "desiring to see thee" (Rom 1:11-12; Rom 15:32).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 4. Mindful of—That is, recollecting thy tears, shed some…
4. Mindful of—That is, recollecting thy tears, shed some time since, probably when Paul first left him at Ephesus to depart to Macedonia. 1Ti_1:3. That I refers back to see thee.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 4. being mindful of thy tears] At the close…
4. being mindful of thy tears] At the close we must suppose of the visit paid him by St Paul in accordance with the intention expressed 1Ti_3:14. It seems very awkward to insert this clause as a subordinate parenthesis ‘with a faint causal force,’ ‘longing to see thee, as I remember thy tears in order that I may be filled with joy’; but this must be the effect of R.V. rendering. And again there is difficulty in either rendering of the participle in 2Ti_1:5 with this construction; (1) A.V. ‘when I call to remembrance’ present, whereas we ought to read the aorist (2) R.V. ‘having been reminded,’ implying that there had been some occasion or messenger to give such news, of which we have at least no other hint. It is better to follow Drs Westcott and Hort in putting a comma after ‘tears’ and joining 2Ti_1:4-5 thus, ‘that I may be filled with joy in being reminded.’ The thought underlying this phrase ‘to be filled with joy,’ ‘to have one’s joy fulfilled,’ is, as Dr Westcott puts it in 1Jn_1:4, that the fulfilment of Christian joy depends upon the realisation of fellowship. This fellowship may be with bodily presence, as 2Jn_1:12; Joh_3:29; or without, as Joh_15:11; Joh_16:24; Joh_17:13; 1Jn_1:4, ‘these things we write that our joy may be fulfilled.’ The joy of the apostle is secured by his ‘little children’ realising full fellowship. Similarly the thought here is an echo of St Paul’s feelings expressed 5 or 6 years before to his Philippian ‘beloved ones,’ and the expressions are an echo too. Through that letter ran the theme ‘gaudeo: gaudete’; in that, with a wonderful tenderness and delicacy St Paul shews them that ‘unity,’ ‘brotherly love,’ is ‘the one thing lacking’ to perfect their joy: the one thing that to hear of or see in them will fulfil his too. Compare Php_1:3-8; Php_2:1-2; Php_4:4. Through this letter runs the theme ‘fidem servavi: serva’; and with the same considerate love St Paul makes the appeal to his timid son to be ‘strong in the faith’ turn first on the fulfilment of his own joy which will result.
The final conjunction ‘in order that’ depends then formally on ‘I give thanks in my supplications,’ really on the whole affectionate yearning and praying spirit of 2Ti_1:3-4.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (4) Greatly desiring to see thee.—In view of that…
(4) Greatly desiring to see thee.—In view of that violent death which, at this time a close prisoner, he saw was imminent, the memory, too, of the tears of his friend made him long yet more earnestly to see him once again on earth.
Being mindful of thy tears.—Shed probably by Timothy when his aged master had last taken leave of him. It is likely that the clouds of danger which were gathering thickly round St. Paul towards the close of his career had oppressed the brave-hearted Apostle with a foreboding of coming evil, and had invested the last parting with Timothy with circumstances of unusual solemnity. St. Paul had affected others besides Timothy with the same great love, so that tears were shed by strong men when he bade them farewell. (See the account of the leave-taking of the Ephesian elders at Miletus, Act_20:37-38—“And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul’s neck, and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more.”)
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There is no necessity for Hofmann’s singular, but rather far-fetched, theory here that the tears were simply an expression for Timothy’s intense sorrow at hearing of the Apostle’s arrest and close imprisonment, which sorrow St. Paul was made acquainted with in a letter. The tears, according to Hofmann, were those “welche Timotheus brieflich geweint hat.”
That I may be filled with joy.—When he meets Timothy again.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Longing for greatly desiring, A.V; remembering for being mindful…
Longing for greatly desiring, A.V; remembering for being mindful of, A.V
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Greatly desiring to see thee.
2Ti_1:4
Greatly desiring to see thee.
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Things of like nature desire union
Two flames will become one, and two rivers, if they meet, willingly make but one stream. And are not all the faithful baptized with fire, and of the like temperature and condition? A faithful man affecteth nothing above the Lord; His image is the only object of his love; and does not every good man in part resemble that, and carry it about with him? Do not the sparkles of grace and wisdom appear in their faces? Is there not a kind of Divine influence in their speeches? They in some measure resemble their father, as dear children; and from the contrary ground the wicked are an abomination to the just. They will build up one another in their holy faith, consult for the good of the Church, and tell one another what the Lord hath done for their soul; yea, the very sight of a good man in the morning, a dream of him in the night, will make one walk with more cheerfulness all the day following. The face of the faithful is like the loadstone, it conveyeth strength to many, and yet is never the weaker, poorer; and as the one is reputed a great wonder in nature, so is the other as great a wonder in grace. (J. Barlow, D. D.)
The coming of an absent friend
The chilling cold of winter makes the summers sun more pleasant; so doth long absence a friends personal presence. (J. Barlow, D. D.)
The faithful found in companies
And here may the profane learn a lesson or two, if they please, for this is the true cause why the faithful, like pigeons, flock to the house of God, and are to be found there in troops and companies. Is not that the congregation of the saints, and the royal exchange, where they all meet together? Again, they may see why some sigh in soul and desire to be loosed. For their best friends be gone to heaven before them, and Christ is absent from them (Php_3:20). (J. Barlow, D. D.)
Mindful of thy tears.
Tears
He seems not merely to speak of the former tears of Timothy shed at bidding Paul farewell (for tears are usually elicited at parting, comp. Act_20:37), but of his habitual tears under the influence of pious feeling. In this respect also he had him like-minded (Php_2:20) with himself. Tears, the flower of the heart, indicate either the greatest hypocrisy or the utmost sincerity. (J. A. Bengel.)
The power of tears
There is no power that man can wield so mighty as that of genuine tears. The eloquence of words is powerful, but the eloquence of tears is far more so. What manly heart has not been often arrested by the genuine sobs of even some poor child in the streets. A childs tear in the crowded thoroughfare has often arrested the busy merchant in his hurried career Coriolanus, who defied all the swords in Italy and her confederate states, fell prostrate before the tears of his mother: Oh, my mother, thou hast saved Rome, but lost thy son. (D. Thomas, D. D.)
Tears described
Tears have been described as the blood of the wounds of the soul, the leaves of the plant of sorrow, the hail and rain of lifes winter, the safety-valves of the heart when too much pressure is laid on, the vent of anguish-showers blown up by the tempests of the soul.
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 4. Greatly desiring to see thee. There is something…
4. Greatly desiring to see thee. There is something pathetic in this language. The lonely prisoner calls to him the tears of Timothy at their last parting, and feels a yearning desire to see and counsel him face to face once more.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 1:4 Paul begins urging Timothy to come to him…
1:4 Paul begins urging Timothy to come to him (see study note on 1:5-14). • your tears: The two may have last parted when Paul was transferred to Rome under arrest (cp. Acts 20:37-38; 21:12-14).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.