"having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme." (v. 19-20)
After Paul charges Timothy to "fight the good fight" of faith, he states that one fights this battle by having faith and having a good conscience. Interestingly enough, Paul uses these same two words in verse 5 when he states that the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, good conscience and a sincere faith.
Evidently, Hymenaeus and Alexander did not have a pure heart, a good conscience, or a sincere faith. Since these attributes can only be exhibited by believers who are being controlled by the Holy Spirit, we can conclude that either, (1) these men were not believers but thought they were or tried to disguise that they were, or (2) they had fallen away for a season of their lives.
Either way, Paul, somewhat shockingly, states that these men have suffered spiritual shipwreck, and therefore, he has handed them over to Satan because of their blasphemy. What does this mean?
Judging by Scripture's explanation of how church discipline should be carried out, I'm assuming that these men had been accosted previously by Paul, and were unrepentant. The only time Scripture even comes close to instructing in handing believers over to Satan is when Jesus remarks that if a brother refuses to listen, "let him be like a heathen." In other words, let him go his own way, or as Paul states, "hand over to Satan."
What is the reason for this treatment? If Hymanaeus and Alexander are truly believers and ministers of the Gospel, they will repent and rejoin the flock. Sometimes standing up for the faith involves making decisions that may shock or irritate people. However, in the long run it may be the most loving act you can do for both the church and the unrepentant brother who needs to be desperately reconciled to Christ.
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