God’s Word for You
2 Timothy 4:8 victory wreath of the righteous
by Pastor Timothy Smith on Monday, July 13, 2026
8 Beyond that, there is stored up for me the victory wreath of the righteous, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
When a runner crosses the finish line of a race and is the first to do so, he already knows that he will win first prize, but that the race is not over for the others who are still running. He will need to wait to receive his award. This explains Paul’s statement that the victory wreath of the righteous, which is already his, will not be given to him until the resurrection on Judgment Day; it is what awaits him on Judgment Day. Until then, his body will wait in the grave for the resurrection, and his soul, which will be taken immediately to heaven, will at last rejoin his body in the resurrection after a peaceful rest in heaven filled with praise for God and reunion with other spirits of righteous believers.
This “victory wreath of the righteous” is the reward given for those who have received the righteousness Christ gives (imputes) to all those who have faith in him. This is not a metal crown, but in Greek “stephanos” (στέϕανος) is a victory wreath “woven of oak, of ivy, of parsley, of myrtle, of olive leaves; and when it was not intended for a victor but for festal joy, it is made of flowers; violets or roses.”
On Judgment Day, the righteous are pronounced righteous by the verdict of God, and also the Judge, who is Christ, will declare the righteous to be righteous, just as he will declare the wicked to be unrighteous, and these verdicts will be recognized by everyone: angels, demons, saved mankind condemned mankind, and the devil himself. All will agree that these are true and absolutely just judgments. For before him, “every knee will bow” (Isaiah 45:23; Romans 14:11). And Isaiah goes on to say: “All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. But in the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and will exult” (Isaiah 45:24-25).
When I was a runner in my school days, I had a friend who was always the first one across the line in our cross country races. Then he would turn around, and jog back through the crowd to find those of us who were still running. We were two, three, or even five minutes behind, but as we came around the last corner and started the last dash for the finish line, there would be my friend Scott, cheering the rest of us on along with our coach. “You can do it! Kick it in! Give it all you have!” and many other things were shouted in those days. Paul’s words here are like the encouragement of our coach and our friend Scott. Without any judgment for anyone’s later or humbler status, the Apostle cries out to the rest of us: “Keep going! Keep it up! Keep at it!” For Paul does not just claim the victory wreath as his own. He knows better than that. It will be awarded “also to all who have loved his appearing.” Paul, then, is not talking about any victory of his as an apostle, but his victory as a Christian. This is not a passage that describes degrees of glory in heaven. Instead, it encourages every Christian to recognize that our righteousness comes through faith, not through our actions. For our victory is in believing in and loving the “epiphany” or appearing of Jesus Christ, which is to say, his physical presence on earth during his years of ministry. This is the faith that says, “The Gospel account is true: The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (John 1:14), he came healing (Matthew 4:24), teaching (Luke 4:36), and laying down his life to atone for our sins (1 John 2:2). He displayed his sacrifice by allowing himself to die, having to be removed from the cross by his friends (Luke 23:52-53), and displayed his divine majesty by rising from the dead and appearing to many (Mark 16:9-14).
In that first appearing, Christ did not come as a judge, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:17). He came to rescue all mankind from the guilt and power of sin, and all who put their faith in him will rise up on the Last Day to be judged as his righteous people, the friends whom he invites into his Father’s house (John 14:2). “Blessed are all who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb! These are the true words of God” (Revelation 19:9).
My wife’s father proclaimed: “The crown of righteousness belongs to you and to me—reserved in heaven by Jesus for each of us who believes in him. It is a glorious crown, a crown of salvation for us. May each one of us lift our voices with the Apostle Paul and in happiness shout, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award me on that day!’” (Sermon by Rev. John P. Meyer, August 18, 1991).
These words are the end of the main part of Paul’s letter. Some personal remarks are still to come, but he has concluded this part with his own frame of mind: He is looking forward to everything that is in store beyond this earthly life. He is giving almost all of his thought and certainly all of his faith and hope in his fast-approaching arrival at the open gates of heaven, and everything from that moment and into all eternity: “A traveler pondering the road ahead, who sends his soul onward while his body and bones will decay.”
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. To receive God’s Word for You via e-mail, please visit the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church website.