2 Timothy 3:3 (LSB)

Passage

unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, without gentleness, without love for good,

Nearby Context

2 Timothy 3:1 But know this, that in the last days difficult times will come.

2 Timothy 3:2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

2 Timothy 3:3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, without gentleness, without love for good,

2 Timothy 3:4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

2 Timothy 3:5 holding to a form of godliness, but having denied its power. Keep away from such men as these.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "for good", "unloving", "irreconcilable", "malicious", "gossips", "without", "self-control", and "gentleness". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "for good" and "unloving", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "For men will be lovers of self..." into verse 4's "treacherous reckless conceited lovers of pleasure rather...", so "for good" and "unloving" 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 "for good" and "unloving" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.