Hymenaeus (biblical figure)

Hymenaeus (fl. 50–65, 1 Timothy 1:20, 2 Timothy 2:17) was an early Christian from Ephesus, an opponent of the apostle Paul, who associates him with Alexander and Philetus.

In 1 Timothy 1:20, Hymenaeus is included in the "some" who had put away faith and a good conscience and who had made shipwreck concerning faith. The apostle adds that he had delivered Hymenaeus and Alexander to Satan, that they might learn not to blaspheme. Some have viewed this statement as similar to 1 Corinthians 5:5, where Paul commands the church to expel a member engaging in sexual immorality, in the hopes that his spirit would eventually be saved as a result of this discipline.

Hymenaeus and Philetus are included among persons whose profane and vain babblings will increase towards more ungodliness, and whose teaching "will spread as a cancer" (2 Tim 2:17, NLT). The apostle declares that Hymenaeus and Philetus are examples of those just described, and he adds that those two persons "concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already, and overthrow the faith of some." Then, for the guidance of Timothy, he goes on to say the seal upon the foundation of God is, "The LORD knows those who are his,” and “All who belong to the LORD must turn away from evil" (2 Tim 2:19, NLT).

The inference intended is, that though Hymenaeus and Philetus had professed their faith in Christ, they did not turn away from evil. There is no doubt in regard to the identity of this Hymenaeus with the person of the same name in 1 Tim. Accordingly, the facts mentioned in the two epistles must be placed in the following order: That though Hymenaeus had,

The error, therefore, of Hymenaeus and his two companions would amount to this: They taught that "the resurrection is past already," circa 50AD–65AD, and that there would be no future resurrection, but that all that resurrection means is that the soul awakes from sin. This teaching of Hymenaeus had been so far successful: it had "overthrown the faith of some" (2 Tim 2:18).

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