2 Tim 1,7, Cowardice, and the Specter of Betrayal: The Intersection of Intertextuality and Paronomasia

This article explores the opening exhortation to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1, with a particular focus on 1,7 as an admonition whose gravity has been missed. Close examination of 2 Tim 1,7 reveals it to be an intertextual rewriting of Rom 8,15 intentionally complicated by an instance of wordplay (paronoma...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Towner, Philip H. 1953- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Peeters 2020
In: Biblica
Year: 2020, Volume: 101, Issue: 4, Pages: 577-601
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B New Testament / Bible. Timotheusbrief 2. 1,7 / Bible. Timotheusbrief 2. / Bible. Römerbrief 8,15 / Bible. Deuteronomium 31 / Timothy Biblical character / Intertextuality / Wordplay
IxTheo Classification:HA Bible
HC New Testament
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Summary:This article explores the opening exhortation to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1, with a particular focus on 1,7 as an admonition whose gravity has been missed. Close examination of 2 Tim 1,7 reveals it to be an intertextual rewriting of Rom 8,15 intentionally complicated by an instance of wordplay (paronomasia). The subtle wordplay produces a second stage of intertextuality that leads to the tradition of Joshua’s succession of Moses (Deuteronomy 31) and the formulaic language of commissioning. But the resonance reaches beyond this tradition to another web of texts that, especially when translated into Greek (LXX), form a dark topos taken up with the relation between cowardice and unbelief (the cowardice topos). Once the intertextual ground has been covered and the cowardice topos observed, the admonitory nature of 2 Tim 1,7 can be seen: the intertextual remembrance, which of course includes the heroic figure of Joshua and his faithfulness, nonetheless issues a dire warning, calling to mind the consequences of unbelief and cowardice as it raises the specter of betrayal.
ISSN:2385-2062
Contains:Enthalten in: Biblica
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.2143/BIB.101.4.3289121