2 Timothy 4:16 (GNV)

Passage

At my first answering no man assisted me, but all forsooke me: I pray God, that it may not be laide to their charge.

Nearby Context

2 Timothy 4:14 Alexander the coppersmith hath done me much euill: the Lord rewarde him according to his workes.

2 Timothy 4:15 Of whome be thou ware also: for he withstoode our preaching sore.

2 Timothy 4:16 At my first answering no man assisted me, but all forsooke me: I pray God, that it may not be laide to their charge.

2 Timothy 4:17 Notwithstanding the Lord assisted me, and strengthened me, that by me the preaching might be fully beleeued, and that al the Gentiles should heare: and I was deliuered out of the mouth of the lion.

2 Timothy 4:18 And the Lord will deliuer me from euery euil worke, and will preserue me vnto his heauenly kingdome: to whome be praise for euer and euer, Amen.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "first", "answering", "assisted", "forsooke", "pray", "laide", and "charge". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "first" and "answering", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "Of whome be thou ware also for..." into verse 17's "Notwithstanding the Lord assisted me and strengthened...", so "first" and "answering" 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 "first" and "answering" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.