for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.
Paul makes this command to meet a perverse objection: some think we need only pray for believers and the Church, and why concern ourselves with strangers? He cuts through that reasoning and orders us to pray for all men without exception, not limiting our prayers to the body of the Church alone.
AI summary
Commenting on 1 Timothy 2:1-15
Prayer for all men, even kings who persecute us, flows from the very nature of Christian faith. Paul gives no fixed form, trusting the Spirit to guide; he sets only the general heads: supplications to avert evil, prayers for good, intercessions for others, thanksgiving for mercies received. This diffusive charity marks us out from every sect.
AI summary
Commenting on 1 Timothy 2:1-8
Prayer for rulers, whether Rome's emperor or the proconsuls who administered the provinces, was commanded precisely because some thought it unlawful to intercede for heathen persecutors. This directly opposed the Jewish practice of cursing the Gentiles and praying only for themselves. We pray that their hearts, being in God's hand, may be turned toward justice.
AI summary