2 Timothy 2:5 (KJV)

Passage

And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.

Nearby Context

2 Timothy 2:3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 2:4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

2 Timothy 2:5 And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.

2 Timothy 2:6 The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.

2 Timothy 2:7 Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "strive", "masteries", "crowned", "except", and "lawfully". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "strive" and "masteries", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "No man that warreth entangleth himself with..." into verse 6's "The husbandman that laboureth must be first...", so "strive" and "masteries" belong inside that flow. In 2 Timothy context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "strive" and "masteries" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.