The Library Left Behind
The Apostle Paul, sometime during the early to mid-60s, as he sat in his Roman prison cell, wrote the closing lines of what proved to be his final epistle, Second Timothy.
The apostle knew he was soon to die: “I am already being poured out, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” But even as he briefly reflects on the “crown of righteousness” he is sure of receiving from “the righteous Judge,” Paul is preoccupied with the active ministry. He has just dispatched Crescens, Titus, and Tychicus to ministries to the east.
Meanwhile, there is still so much yet to be done at Rome, and only Luke is with him. Can Timothy come, please, and bring Mark along? They would need to hustle; Paul knew well, it was important to start before the winter storms that began in October (Acts 27:9).
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor emeritus of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and the author of numerous books, including, most recently, Out of Step with God: Orthodox Christian Reflections on the Book of Numbers (Ancient Faith Publishing, 2019).
subscription options
Order
Print/Online Subscription
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Order
Online Only
Subscription
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
more from the online archives
30.2—March/April 2017
Our Path to Holiness Runs Straight Through Calvary by Robin Phillips
30.6—Nov/Dec 2017
on Benedict XVI on the Fairest of the Sons of Men by Michael Martin De Sapio
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
