2 Timothy 3:9 (DBY)

Passage

But they shall not advance farther; for their folly shall be completely manifest to all, as that of those also became.

Nearby Context

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

2 Timothy 3:8 Now in the same manner in which Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, thus these also withstand the truth; men corrupted in mind, found worthless as regards the faith.

2 Timothy 3:9 But they shall not advance farther; for their folly shall be completely manifest to all, as that of those also became.

2 Timothy 3:10 But *thou* hast been thoroughly acquainted with my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, endurance,

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.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "advance", "farther", "folly", "completely", "manifest", and "became". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "advance", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "Now in the same manner in which..." into verse 10's "But thou hast been thoroughly acquainted with...", so "shall" and "advance" 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 "advance" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.