How to Respond to Those Who Hurt Us

by Michael G. Brown

From TABLETALK

In 2 Timothy 4:14–15, Paul warns Timothy of an enemy of the gospel, someone who had caused him much pain. “Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.” Who was Alexander the coppersmith? It is difficult to identify this man precisely. Alexander was a common name in the first century Greco-Roman world, and there are several possibilities concerning his identity. He may have been a man in Troas of whom Paul wanted Timothy to beware. Given that Timothy would be stopping in Troas to pick up Paul’s coat and books, he should be careful to avoid him (2 Tim. 4:13). Another possibility is that this was a coppersmith in Rome, where Paul was then imprisoned, or this may have been the Alexander in Ephesus who was involved in the infamous riot (Acts 19:33). It seems most likely, though, that this was the same Alexander whom Paul mentions in his first letter to Timothy, the man in Ephesus whom Paul “handed over to Satan,” along with Hymenaeus, so that they would learn not to blaspheme (1 Tim. 1:20).

Whomever this Alexander was, he had done serious injury to Paul. Paul does not specify the nature of this “great harm,” but it seems to have been linked to his arrest and trial. He says in the next verse that “at my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me” (2 Tim. 4:16). Alexander may have brought false testimony against Paul during the first stage of his trial (what Paul refers to as his “first defense”). Paul says this man “strongly opposed our message.” This was not a fellow Christian with whom Paul had a disagreement. Paul is not expressing an unforgiving heart toward a man with whom he needed to reconcile. Rather, he identifies Alexander as a fierce opponent and bitter foe of the gospel. That is why he warns Timothy to beware of him.

It would have been easy for Paul to complain about what Alexander had done to him. We could probably sympathize with the Apostle if he had written a few lines describing what a horrible person Alexander was and how he would like to pay him back. Instead, we see the grace of God at work in Paul, and Paul’s good example to Timothy. Instead of expressing his anger toward Alexander, Paul took comfort in the fact that vengeance belongs to the Lord, and that the Lord will have his justice in the end. “The Lord will repay him according to his deeds”

 

Do you trust God to execute His vengeance, or do want to rob God of what rightfully belongs to Him by taking matters into your own hands?

 

How to Respond to Those Who Hurt Us

Fairfield Church, PCA

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