2 Timothy 4:13Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

By felonion he here means a garment, though some understand it as the case in which the books were kept. Why did he need books when he was preparing to depart to God? They were very necessary, so that he might hand them over to the faithful. Thus they would have them in place of his teaching. All the faithful probably felt a great loss then, especially those who were present at his end and enjoyed the sight of his face. He asks for the felonion so that he will not need to take it from someone else. Do you see how much concern he had for this?

"When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and the books." Here the Apostle speaks of clothing. He asks for it so that he will not need to take from others. For everywhere he takes great care not to be in need of others. Some, however, think that this was a box or case in which the books lay. Why did he need books when he was preparing to depart to God? So that he might hand them over to the faithful, that they might have them in place of him. "Especially the parchments." They probably contained something more valuable.

The cloak and the parchment books, which I left there when it was revealed to me in Troas that I should go preach in the regions of Macedonia (Acts 16:8-10), bring with you when you come.

Where did Paul get a cloak? Since he was from Tarsus, whose inhabitants were admitted into alliance with the Romans, so that they were called Roman citizens, they necessarily had a curia. According to Roman custom, they entered it clothed in the paenula, a traveling cloak.

By "parchment books" the Apostle meant scrolls. This is what the Romans called prepared skins. In ancient times the Divine Scriptures existed in scrolls, and the Jews have them so even to the present day.

"The cloak which I left with Carpus at Troas, bring when you come." The cloak is an outer garment. It was probably needed in view of burial. "And the books, especially the parchments." There were books made of other material as well. But he asks especially for these, in order to entrust them to certain believers in Rome, so that they might use them instead of his personal teaching and for consolation.

"The cloak which I left at Troas." Φελόνης is the Latin paenula, a kind of sleeveless cloak with a hood for the head, used in bad weather against rain and snow. Some, however, understand it as a bag for books. "Bring also the books, especially the parchments." In antiquity people wrote on parchment made from skin and carried it in the form of scrolls rolled into tubes. The Apostle is speaking of these parchment scrolls. Small trimmed sheets of parchment or other material, for example papyrus, sewn and fastened together, formed a book.

The Apostle Paul, informing Timothy of his own approaching death, asks him to come to him quickly. He says how all except Luke have abandoned him. He gives Timothy certain instructions for the journey, tells of the help from God that was shown to him after his first interrogation in court, and commands him to greet Priscilla and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. He also sends greetings from certain Roman brethren.

The Apostle’s instructions are authoritative. Concerning Tychicus, he says that he has sent him with this epistle to Ephesus, as if in Timothy’s place. He commands Timothy to bring Mark with him, relying on his filial obedience. Saint John Chrysostom observes, “The Apostle asks for Mark not for his own comfort, but for the ministry of the Gospel. He does this so that no disturbance should arise among the faithful because of his death. His many disciples, being present, would quiet the disturbance and comfort those grieving over his end. For among those who had believed in Rome there were probably honorable men.” The reference to the felonion, an insignificant outer garment used as protection from dampness and cold, testifies to the need in which Paul found himself.

In the following reports about himself and his work, the Apostle appears to us as one who has in no way lost courage, even in view of his approaching death. For example, he remembers the cloak left in Troas and some books that he needed. Speaking of his first appearance at trial or interrogation, he notes that no acquaintances or friends were seen around him. According to Roman custom, such people supported the accused with their voices. But the Lord helped him instead. He had promised to give His apostles the power of the Holy Spirit, so that they might stand firm at trial (Mt 10:19-20). Thus the preaching of the Gospel was fulfilled. Proclaimed in the world city, before representatives of world authority, it reached, so to speak, its culminating point.

The felonion is an outer garment whose material varied according to the season, while its form remained the same. It protected against dust, rain, dampness, and cold. Setting out for Macedonia (see 1 Tim 1:3) and Achaia, the Apostle again passed through Troas. There, with Carpus, he left the extra burden, intending to return soon, as he had supposed (see 1 Tim 3:14). But circumstances so developed that, instead of Ephesus, he had to go to Rome as a prisoner. The felonion became necessary, and so he instructs him to bring it. Carpus is not mentioned elsewhere in Scripture. If this is the same man commemorated on May 26, then tradition, Hippolytus, says that he was a disciple and companion of Saint Paul.