2 Timothy 3:13 (DBY)

Passage

But wicked men and juggling impostors shall advance in evil, leading and being led astray.

Nearby Context

2 Timothy 3:11 persecutions, sufferings: what [sufferings] happened to me in Antioch, in Iconium, in Lystra; what persecutions I endured; and the Lord delivered me out of all.

2 Timothy 3:12 And all indeed who desire to live piously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

2 Timothy 3:13 But wicked men and juggling impostors shall advance in evil, leading and being led astray.

2 Timothy 3:14 But *thou*, abide in those things which thou hast learned, and [of which] thou hast been fully persuaded, knowing of whom thou hast learned [them];

2 Timothy 3:15 and that from a child thou hast known the sacred letters, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, through faith which [is] in Christ Jesus.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wicked", "juggling", "impostors", "shall", "advance", "evil", "leading", and "astray". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wicked" and "juggling", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "And all indeed who desire to live..." into verse 14's "But thou abide in those things which...", so "wicked" and "juggling" 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 "wicked" and "juggling" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.