“The husbandman that laboureth, must bee first partaker of the fruites.”
1611 King James Version (KJV)
2:6 Unless he labour first, he will reap no fruit.
2Ti 2:6 The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits. The farmer has the first right to the fruits. Three illustrations, that of the soldier, the athlete, and the farmer are here given (2Ti 2:4-6). They all bear on the life of Timothy. ``All three must deny themselves and suffer, in order to receive the reward. The soldier denies himself the world; the athlete obeys rigid laws; the husbandman labors and waits for a reward. So you must be content to deny yourself, to suffer, and to wait for your reward.''