1 Timothy 1:18-20 “18 This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, 19 holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, 20 among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.”

What do we know about those two?

• 2 Timothy 2:17-18 “Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some.”
• 2 Timothy 4:14-15 “Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.” Alexander may be the same Alexander from Acts 19:21-34; which would mean he at one point recognized and adhered to solid doctrine.

Do we see Paul doing this anywhere else in the New Testament?

• 1 Corinthians 5:1-5 “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father's wife. And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you. For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.”

What this was, and was not:

• It was not common. In both the NT cases, we see people knowingly and continually engaging in sin, which is starting to damage the faith of the church (1 Corinthians 5:6-7).
• It’s consistent with God’s high standards for response to sin. “Tolerating sin is sinful” - John Piper. (1 Corinthians 5:9-12)
• It was Paul removing the willfully sinful people from the blessing and support of the church. It’s church discipline, where the unrepentant offending parties are dealt with according to the principles Jesus taught in Matthew 18.

Do we see this concept of “handing someone over to Satan” anywhere else in Scripture?

• Job 2:1-6 “Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. And the Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still holds fast his integrity, although you incited me against him to destroy him without reason.” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.”
• What was the result of this? Job 42:1-6. Satan’s attacks become a means to sanctify Job and bring God glory.

Going back to Paul, we see this same truth. 2 Corinthians 12:7 “Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.”

And who has the power?

Do not make the mistake of thinking that this means Satan somehow has more power than God

God gave permission to Satan to attack Job. In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul pleaded with the Lord to remove Satan’s thorn. And Paul uses the phrase “with the power of Christ” in 1 Corinthians 5. Consider also Matthew 10:28. So what we may see as horrible, unbearable suffering, if it results in saving people from Hell, will be entirely worth it and meaningless in comparison. Paul is placing the two into proper church discipline with the hope that it leads to repentance and a return to truth.