2 Timothy 4:4 (KJV)

Passage

And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Nearby Context

2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

2 Timothy 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

2 Timothy 4:4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

2 Timothy 4:5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.

2 Timothy 4:6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "turn", "away", "ears", "truth", "turned", and "fables". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "turn", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "For the time will come when they..." into verse 5's "But watch thou in all things endure...", so "shall" and "turn" 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 "shall" and "turn" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.