“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15 HCSB).
With the advent of modern-day banking systems, paper money, credit cards, crypto-currencies, and other forms of financial exchange, it may be easy to forget that these payment methods did not exist in the New Testament era. Instead, all monetary exchanges generally took the form of metal coinage.
Much like today, first-century coins were produced by heating various metals until they reached a molten state. These metals were then poured into molds where they hardened into coins. While the size and weight of most coins were as uniform as the crude technology of the day could make them, that did little to stop unscrupulous individuals from shaving valuable slivers of these metals from these coins once they entered circulation.
One source reports that extensive governmental efforts were made to curtail this practice…
“In one century, more than eighty laws were passed in Athens, to stop the practice of shaving down the coins then in circulation.”
However, there were other individuals who chose to lead by example in this area…
“But some money changers were men of integrity, who would accept no counterfeit money. They were men of honour who put only genuine full weighted money into circulation.” (1)
These honorable financiers were called “dokimos” or “approved.” Thus, the word “approved” became synonymous with the idea of something that was genuine, honest, and authentic. This brings us to the portion of Scripture quoted here from 2 Timothy 2:15: “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (NIV)
With these things in mind, we can apply this passage in the following manner: “Don’t cut corners with the word of truth. Handle the Scriptures with honesty and integrity. Fashion yourself as a worker who will have no reason to be ashamed of when his or her work is evaluated.”
While others may pass judgment upon our work in various areas, we are ultimately responsible to seek God’s approval. The following commentator provides us with an important insight in that regard…
“It is embarrassing to do a job poorly and then to have your work examined. The Bible warns us that the work of each Christian will be examined at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10). Therefore, we have another motivation to work diligently for the Lord, so we will not be ashamed when our work is examined.” (2)
(1) Coinage information was sourced and adapted from Romans: God’s Glory. Donald Grey Barnhouse pg. 18. See here: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?t=esv&strongs=g1384
(2) Guzik, Dave, 2 Timothy 2 – Advice To A Young Pastor, C. Keeping attention on the most important things. https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/2-timothy-2/