2 Timothy 3:5 (DBY)

Passage

having a form of piety but denying the power of it: and from these turn away.

Nearby Context

2 Timothy 3:3 without natural affection, implacable, slanderers, of unsubdued passions, savage, having no love for what is good,

2 Timothy 3:4 traitors, headlong, of vain pretensions, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God;

2 Timothy 3:5 having a form of piety but denying the power of it: and from these turn away.

2 Timothy 3:6 For of these are they who are getting into houses, and leading captive silly women, laden with sins, led by various lusts,

2 Timothy 3:7 always learning, and never able to come to [the] knowledge of [the] truth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "having", "form", "piety", "denying", "power", "turn", and "away". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "having" and "form", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "traitors headlong of vain pretensions lovers of..." into verse 6's "For of these are they who are...", so "having" and "form" 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 "having" and "form" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.