61 1 Timothy

359

1 TI MOTHY

3:2

Timothy's responsibility 18 19

20

1 TIMOTHY

Address

1

From Pau l, a pos tle of C hrist Jes us appo inted by the co mma nd" of God our sa viour" a nd of C hrist Jes us our hop e, -to T imothy, true chil d of m ine in the fai th; wishi ng you grace, mercy a nd peace from G od th e Fat her a nd from C hrist Jesus our Lo rd .

I

Suppress the false teachers

4 :7 ; 6:4.2 0 2 'I'm 2: 14. 16. 23: 4:4 1' t 1: 14 ; ~ :9

IF '/ (I j

n 12f + G a 5:23 R m 1:29 1-

Rv IS: 13

IjI

II

6:3 T t 1:9,1 3 1" / :/ 4 2 C o 4:4 1 T h 2:4 Tt 1:3: 2: lJ

10 11

6

12 13

7

14

15

We know, of course, th at the Law ' is good , bu t o nly provided it is tr eat ed 8 like a ny law,! • in th e understa nd ing tha t law s are not fram ed for people wh o 9 are good ." O n the co ntrary , th ey ar e for cri m ina ls and revo lutionaries, for the irreligiou s a nd the wicked , for the sacrilegio us a nd the irreverent ; th ey ar e fo r peop le who kill their father s or mo the rs a nd for murder ers, - fo r th ose wh o ar e 10 imm o ral with wo me n o r with boy s o r with men, for lia rs a nd for perjurer s- an d for eve rything else tha t is contrary to the sou nd tea chin g" - that goes with the I I Good News of th e glo ry o f th e blessed God, th e gos pel tha t was ent ru sted to me. Paul on his own calling

I th an k C hr ist Jes us our Lo rd, who has given me stre ngth, and who j udged me faith ful eno ugh to ca ll me into hi s service ' even thoug h I used to be Ac 8:3 ·" a blasph em er and did all I co uld to inju re a nd discredi t th e faith . Mercy, ho wever, A c 3:1 7 + was shown me , beca use unt il I beca me a believer I had been ac ting in igno rance; I n 16:2 1 C o 15: 10 and the grace of our Lo rd filled me with faith a nd with the love that is in Christ .1:/ : 4:9 Mt 9:13p Jes us . • Here is a sayi ng tha t you can rely on: a nd nob ody sh oul d do ubt : that Tt 3:H 2 P 3: 15 C h rist Jesu s ca me into th e wo rld to save sinne rs. I myself am the greatest of them; / Co / 5:9 a nd if mercy has bee n shown to me, it is because Jes us C hrist mea nt to ma ke .2 Th 3:7 + me the grea test evidence o f h is inex haustible patience fo r all the other peo ple 6: 16 T b lJ:6 who wo u ld lat e r have to tru st in him to come to ete rnal life.• To the eternal Ps 145: lJ Rm 16:27 + K ing , the un dying, ' invisib le a nd onl y God , be honour a nd glory for ever a nd Co l 1:15 ever. A men.

2 Tm 4:7

2 Tm 2:17 : 4:14 I Co 5:5 +

Ba 1:11

¥~A3:I -H 1: 1+

i;g~:2J+

JZg'8,3J~ tgt,28p

bit~:15 ~~5l26 ~ J~h I J Ga 2:7

Women in the assembly

T he purpo se of the La w Rm 7:7 ,

II

As I as ked yo u whe n I was lea vin g for Macedo nia, plea se sta y a t Ephesus, to insist that certa in peo ple sto p teac hing stra nge doctrines -a nd ta king noti ce of myt hs a nd endless genca log ies ;- th ese t hings are on ly likely to ra ise irre leva nt d oub ts instead of furt hering the design s of God" whi ch a re revea led in fai th . T he o nly purpose o f this instru ction is that there should be love, co m ing o ut of a pur e heart , a clear co nscience a nd a sincere faith. •T here are so me peopl e wh o have go ne o ff the st ra ight course a nd ta ken a road that lead s to emp ty speculat ion; - t hey clai m to be doctors o f the Law but th ey under st and neither the arg umen ts th ey a re using nor the o pin ions they a re up holding.

2

My adv ice is" that, first of all, the re should be prayers offered for everyone -petit ions, intercessions and tha nksgiving-·and especially for kings and others in authority, b so that we may be able to live religious and reverent lives 1 in peace a nd quiet. -To do thi s is righ t, and will please God our sa viour: -he 5 wants eve ryo ne to be sa ved ' and rea ch full knowledge of the truth . • For there is o nly one God, an d there is o nly o ne mediator between God and mankind, himself a man , C hrist Jesus, - who sacrificed himself as a ransom for the m a ll. 7 He is the evidence o f this, sen t at the appoi nted time," and ·1 have been named a herald a nd apo stle of it and-I am telling the truth and no lie-a teacher of the fai th an d the truth to the pa ga ns . In ever y place, th en , I want th e men to lift their han ds up re verently in prayer , with no anger or ar gu me nt. I

R m I :)

4:14+

Liturgical prayer

THE FIRST L ETTER FROM PAUL TO T I M OT H Y

P h 3:20 T t 1:3 Ac /6: /

Ti mothy, my so n, th ese ar e the instructions that I a m giving yo u: I a sk yo u to re me m ber the wo rds once spoke n over you by the prophets," and taking th em to heart to figh t lik e a good soldier ' with faith and a good co nscience for your weapons , So me pe ople have put con scien ce aside and wrecked their faith in consequence . ·1 me an men like Hy me naeus and Alexander, whor- ~ have handed over to Satan to teach them not to be blasphemous.

12

13

14

15 16 17

Similarly, I direct that wo me n a re to wear suitable clothes a nd to be dressed I P 3:2-4 qu ietly a nd modestly, without braided hair or gold and jewellery or expensive Is 3:16f clothes; their ado rn ment is -to do the sort of good works that are pr oper for 14:34women who profess to be relig ious . • During instruction, a wo ma n should be I Co 35 quiet and respectful. ·1 am not giving permission for a woman to teach or to Gn3:/6 25:24 tell a ma n wha t to do . A wo man ought not to speak, ·because Adam was sr 1 Go 11:3. 12 formed first and Eve aft er wards, -and it was not Adam who was led as tray but Gn8-2:/8 .2 Jf: the woman wh o was led astray a nd fell into sin .• Nevertheless, she will be saved 3:12-13 by ch ild bea ring,' provided she lives a modest life and is co nstant in fa ith and I C o 13:13 + love a nd h oliness. The elder-in-charge

1'1 1:6-9

3

1:15+

Here is a say ing that you can rely on : To wa nt to be a presid ing elder " is to want to do a noble wor k. -T hat is wh y the pr esident mu st hav e an impecca ble

a. Var. 'the pro mise'. pa rt played by the 'prop hets' when the college of elders b . Paul har dly ever uses the title 'saviour' in his laid their hands on his head, Ac 13: 1-3 : 11:27 + . oth er letters, En 5:23 ; Ph 3:20, but in the Pastor al 2 a . ' My ad vice is' : var. 'Ad vise' . Letter s he makes use of it both when referri ng to the b. Ne ro was empe ror when this was written: the Fa ther, I Tm 2:3 : 4:10 : Tt 1:3 ; 2:10 : 3:4, and when end of the verse probab ly reflec ts Pa ul's apprehensions referring to Chris t, 2 Tm 1: 10 : Tt 1:4 : 3:6. ab out wha t the future would brin g. On Pau l's po litical c. Ge nealogies of O.T. patriar chs and heroes con- loya lty, er, R m 13:1-7.

r:'~ ~ f-

f-

;::

::. :r:

n.

OJ UJ J:

2 Tm 2:24

1

str ucted by Jewish writers in the same style as those in the Book of Jubf/ees. d . ve r. (V u lg.) ' the build ing-up of God's house' . e. The ' Law of Moses'. r. Lit. ' Now the Law is good if anyone uses it lawfully', I.e. without asking it to be more than Jt claims to be. g, Seen as a penal code, the aim of the Law is to make pro vision not for the righte ous, bu t for offenders , by thr eateni ng, acc using an d punishing them. h. One characteristic of the Pastoral Letters is this insistenc e on 'sound doctrine ', cr. 6:3 ; 2 Tm 1:13; 4:3; Tt 1:9, 13: 2:1.8. I, Lit. 'faithf ul ls the word (or 'sayjng')': this is one of the character istic phrases of the Pastoral Letters,

c. T his is a state ment with enormous theolog ical implic ations, and it provides the correct interpretation of some passa ges in the letter to the Chr istians at Rome .

,~

.

n.

~

cf. Rm 9:18,21. d . C f 6: 13. By his willinaness 10 die for t he whole

human race Chr ist showed the human ra ce that God wanted everybody to be saved . He was the Fat her 's ' witness' all th ro ugh his life, but never so supremely as at the mome nt of his execution . (The Greek wor d for 'w itness' is the same as for ' martyr t.) e. It Is not clear whether Pau l is implying that women ar e saved by the 'o ne-body' relationship with their ma rr lase par tners or whether childbearing itself, as the medi ation of life and the brin ging up of children, constitutes a vocation. He may Quite eas ily have been cr. 3:1; 4:9: 2 Tm 2: 11: Tt 3:8. thinking specifically of the 'false teachers' who I. Lit. ' incorruptible' or 'im per ishab le' ; var, (Vulg.) condemned ma rr iage, 4:3. ' ~ ·, ; :"'\ o r t a l ' . 3 a . T he word 'epl scopos' Coverseer' , ' supervisor' or ' president") ha s not yet acquired the same meaning as k, Here and in 4: 14 Pau l reminds Timothy of the 'bishop', cr. T I I :5f+ .

";'Z

"I '

.,,

"Itr~'

3:3 3:12 Tt 2:6 +

1 TIMOTH Y

]60

character. He must not have been married mor e than once, an d he must be temperate, discreet and cou rteou s, hospitable and a good tea cher; - not a heavy drinker, nor ho t-tempered, but kind an d peaceabl e. must no t be a lover' of mon ey. • He mus t be a ma n who manages his own fami ly well and brings his chi ldren up to obey him and be well-behaved: - how.can any man who does not understan d how to ma nage his own family have responsibility for the ch urch of G od? • He should not be a new convert, in case pri de might turn h is head and then he might be con demn ed as the devil was condemned. • It is also necessary th at people out side the Churc h shoul d speak well of him , so that he never gets a bad repu tation an d falls int o the devil 's tra p.

He

3:12

1 C o 1:2 +

1 Co 5:12+

]6/ 12 3

13 4

14

5

15 6

16

7

1 TI MO TH Y

5:1 4

Do not let people disr egard you becau se you ar e young, but be an exa mple to all the believers in the way you speak and behave, and in you r love, your faith and you r puri ty. • Ma ke use of the time unt il I arrive by read ing to the people, preaching and teach ing. •You have in you a spiritual gift which was given to you when the prophets spoke and the body of elders laid their hands on YOU; d do not let it lie unused.• Think ha rd about all this, and put it into practice, and everyone will be able to see how you are ad vancing. -Take great care ab out what you do and what you teach ; always do thi s, and in this way you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.

1 Co 16:11 Ga 5:22 2 Th 3:7+ Tt 2:7-8.15

6:11

Ga 5:22 +

1:18+ Mt 9: 18; 19:13 Lk4:40 A c 6:6; 8:17: 9-12; 19:6 : 28:8 2 Tm 1:6 ; 2:2 Heb 6:2

Pastoral practice Ac 6:1-6

1 P 5:2

Rm 16:25 +

3:2,4

Deacons

1

In the same way, deacons must be respectab le men whose word can be trusted, moderate in the amou nt of wine th ey d rink an d with no sq ual id greed for money.• They must be conscientious believe rs in the mystery of the faith. They are to be examined first , an d on ly admitted to serve as deacons if ther e is nothing against them . -I n the sam e way, the wome n I> must be respectable, not gossips but sober and quite reliable. •Deaco ns must not have been married mo re than once, and must be men who manage thei r chi ldren and familie s well.· T hose of the m who ca rry o ut the ir duties well as deacons will earn a high standing for themselves an d be rewar ded with great assur ance in their work for the faith in Chr ist Jesus.

8

J Co 1:2 +

Eo 2:20 +

Heb 3:6 Rm 16:25-1-

At the momen t of writing to you, I am hoping tha t I may be with you soo n; bu t in case I shoul d be delaye d, I wanted you to know how people o ught to behave in God 's family-s-that is, in the Church of the living Go d, which upholds the truth and keeps it safe . •Without any do ubt, the mystery of our religion is very deep indeed:

In 1:14

In 16: 10 Eo 3:10 1 P 1:12 Mk 16:19 Ac 1:2. 11

12

2 T m 2:15

J

1:4+

I 1:15 + 1:1+

The Spi rit has explicitly sai d that du ring the last times" there will be so me who will desert the faith an d choose to listen to deceitful spirits and doc tr ines th at co me fro m the devils; -and the cause of this is the lies told by hypocrites whose consciences are bra nded as tho ugh with a red -hot iron :" -t hey will say marriage is for bidde n, and lay dow n rules a bout a bstai ning from foods which God created to be accepted with th ank sgiving by all wh o believe an d who know the truth. ' •Every thi ng G od has crea ted is good, and no food is to be rejected , provided grace is said for it: -the word of God an d th e pra yer ma ke it holy. If you put all this to the brothers, you will be a good serva nt of Christ Jesus and show that you ha ve really digested the teachi ng of the faith and the good doc tr ine which you have always followed.• Have nothing to do with godless myths an d old wives' tales . Train yourself spiritua lly. ·-Physical exerc ises are useful eno ugh , but the useful ness of spirituality is unlimited , since it holds out the reward of life here and now and of the future life as well' ; -t hat is a saying that you can rely on and nobody should doubt it. • J mean that the point of all our toiling and battli ng is t hat we have put our tru st in the living God a nd he is the saviour of the whole human race but particularly of all believers. •T his is what you a re to enforce in your teac hing.

3 4

13

6 7

14

8

15 9

16

10

11 12 13

14

False teachers MI24:23-24 Ac 20:29 -30 2 Tm 3: 1; 4:3 Tt 1:10 Heb 1:1-2 2 P 2:1 : 3:3 1 I n 2: 18: 4:1 Col 2:16 -23 2:4 G n 9:3 Gn 1:31 + I Co 1O:25r. 30 r Mt15:Jlf Rm 14:14.20

Lv 19:32 Tt 2:2

Widows

11

He" was made visible in the flesh, attested by the Spi rit, seen by ang els, proclaimed to the pagans, believed in by the world, take n up in glory."

Rm 1:3-4

Do no t speak ha rshly to a man older tha n yoursel f, but ad vise him as you would your own fath er ; trea t the younger men as brothers -and older women as yon would your mo ther. Always treat you ng women with.propriety, as if they were sisters.

10

The Church and the mystery of the spiritual life Tt 1:7

5

4

2

3

10 11

Be considerate to widows; I mean those who are truly widows ." •If a widow has children or gra ndc hildren, they are " to learn first of all to do their duty to their own families and repay their debt to their parents , becau se thi s is what pleases G od . • But a woman who is really widowed and left without an ybody can give herself up to God and con secrate all her da ys and nights to petit ions and prayer. -T he one who thinks only of pleasure is already dead while she is still alive: •remind them of all this, too , so that their lives may be blam eless. Anyo ne who doe s not loo k after his own rela tion s, especially if th ey are living with him, has rejected the faith and is worse than an unbel iever. Enrolment as a widow is permissible onl y for a woman at least sixty years old who has ha d onl y one hu sband . •She mu st be a woman known for her good wor ks and for the way in which she has brought up her children, shown hospitality to strangers and was hed the sain ts' feet, ' helped people who are in tro ub le and been active in all kinds of good work . •Do no t accept youn g wido ws becaus e if their na tural desires get stronger th an th eir dedication to Christ, they want to marry again, -and then people con demn them for being unfaithful to the ir or iginal pr omise ." -Besides, the y learn how to be idle and go roun d from ho use to house ; and then, not merely idle, they learn to be gossips and medd lers in ot her people's affairs, and to chatter when they would be better keeping quiet. I think it is best for young widows to ma rry aga in' an d have children and a home b. This instr uction is probably int ende d for the deaconesses, cf. R m 16:1. rather than for the wives of dea con s. c. H e, i.e. C hrist: many a utho rit ies re.s. Vul g.) re ad 'It', t.e. the ' mystery' , cf. Co l 2:3 -t- . Pau l is quot ing part of an ear ly Ch rist ia n hymn, cf. 6:15-16: 2 Tm 2:11· 13; Ph 2:6-11. A lso cr. Eo 1:3-14 ; 5:14; Col 1:15-20 . d.'a ttes ted (lit. ' justified' ) by the Sp irit': the ho liness and divinity of C hrist wer e pro ved by the fact tha t he ros e in glory, cf. R m 1:4+ . 'T aken up in glory ' , i.e. a t th e ascension. 4 a . On the crisis that will characteri se th e 'las t times' cr.2 Th 2:3-12; 2 Tm 3:1; 4:3-4 ; 2 P 3:3 ; Jude 18. Also cf Mt 24:6fp : Ac 20:29-30. As. eschat ologtcally, the 'Jast tim es' hav e already beg un, Rm 3:26 +, we are a lrea dy Hving In this final epoch of cr isis, cf. 1 Co 7:26; Ep 5:6 ; 6:13 ; Jm 5:3; 1 3n 2:18 ; 4:1 .3 ; 2 3n 7; Mt 26:41. b, Lit . 'Havin g bee n m arked with a red -h ot bra nding iron on thelr own co nscience' , I.e, branded li ke runaway slav es. c. Th e rejection of marriage was to be o ne -of th e hallmarks of G nos ticism: dietary reg ulat ions were more specifically Jewish .

'imposit ion of ha nds' can be the rite for tr ansmitting grace or a ch ar -i sm , Heb 6:2, or it can be th e gesture used when blessing , Mt 19:15, o r curing, M t 9:18p ; M k 6:5; 7:32; 8:23-2 5 : 16:18; Lk4:40; 13:13: A c 9:12. 17 ; 28:8, or imparting the Holy Spir it to the newly bap tised , Ac 1:5 + . It can also be th e rite for conse cra ting a person for a particular public fu ncti o n, Ac 6:6; 13:3. as in this passage a nd 5:22 +; 2 T m I:6. Since the day on wh ich he received the imposition of hands . Timothy has had a perma nent charism Carace-stn ') th at consecrates him to his ministry. F or the part played by th e 'pr o phets' , cf. I T m 1:18. 5 a . T hree cat esor tes of widows are m entioned her e: those who do not need assistance from the C hurch sinc e th ey have relations to loo k after them , v, 4 : t hose who are ' true wid ows' because th ey hav e no one to loo k aft er th em, and whom the Church is obliged to help, vv. 3-5, 16 ; an d those who (whether help ed by the Church o r not) ar e call ed by th e Church to fu lfil cer tain officia l funct ions . Widow s in this third ca tegory ha ve to satisfy Quite severe regulations. vv. 9~1 5 . b . v ee. (Vu lg.) 'sh e is' . c . T he no rmal co ur tesy th en shown t o guests. d. Li t. 'f or setting aside (their) first fai th ' , i.e. their vow or promise to co nsec rate the mse lves to God . d. Lit . 'a spiritual gift given by means of prophecy e . Ma de wiser by experience, Paul modifies what with imp osition of hands by the body of elde rs '. The he had said , 1 Co 7:8,40 .

Lk 2:37 Rv 3:1

I-

>=

In 13:14 A c 9:13 + 1 Co 7:8

:;

:r: o,

m

w

:r:

~ o,

~

~z

"I "

..,

11, ,I'

5:1 5 T I 2:E

Tt 1:5 +

1 Th 5:12 + D1 25:4 Lk 10:7

I C 0 9:9

3 In 8

D r 19:J 5

M' 18:16 2 Col3 :1

Si 31:28

Mt 5:16 Mt 1O:26p

1 TIMOTH Y

3 62

to look afte r, and not give the enemy any chance! to raise a scandal about them; th ere are a lready so me who have left us to follow Sat an. -If a C hristian woma n has widowed relat ives, she should support them and not mak e the Church bear the expense but ena ble it to suppo rt those who are genuinely widow s.

3 63 14

I~ 15

The elders Th e elders who do thei r work well while they ar e in charge are to be given double cons iderat ion," especia lly those who are assi duous in preaching an d teaching. -As scriptur e says: You must not muzzle un ox when it is treading out the corn; an d agai n: The work er deserves his pay ." -Ne ver acce pt any acc usation br ought against an elder unless it is supported by two or three witnesses. • If any of them ar e at fault , reprimand them publicl y, as a warning to th e rest. • Before G od, and befor e Jesus C hrist and the angels he has chosen, I put it to you as a du ty to keep these ru les impartially and never to be influenced by favo ur itism . Do not be to o quick to lay hands on any man,' and never make yourself an accomplice in anybody else's sin; keep yourself pure. You should give up d rinking only water and have a little wine for t he sake of yo ur digestion and the frequent bouts of illness that you have. T he faults of some peo ple are obvious long before anyon e makes any complaint abo ut them, while ot hers have fau lts that are not discovered until afte rwards . -I n the same way, the good t hat people do can be obvious; but even when it is not , it ca nnot be hidden for ever.

17

16

18 19 20 21 17

22 18 23

19

24

25

20

21

Slaves Rm2:2H : 6: 151 I Co 7:21 22 Ep 6:5-8 C o l 3:22-25 T12:6 L 9-10

6

All slaves 'under the yoke' must have unqualified respect for their ma sters, so that the name of G od and our teaching are not bro ught into disre pute . Slaves whose masters are believers are not to thi nk any the less of th em beca use they are brot hers ; on the contrary, they sho uld serve t hem all the better, since those who have the benefit of their serv ices are believers and dear to G od."

T IM O T H Y

6 :2 1

the duty -of doin g all that you have been to ld , with no faults or failures , unt il the Appearing! of our Lo rd Jesus Christ , who at the due time will be revea led by God, the blessed and only Ruler of all, the King of kings and th e Lord of lords, who alone is immortal, whose ho me is in inaccessible light , whom no man has seen and no ma n is able to see: to him be honour and everlast ing po wer. Ame n. Rich Christians Warn th ose who are rich in th is world 's good s that they are not to loo k dow n on other people ; and not to set their hopes on money, which is untrustworthy, but on G od" who, out of his riches , gives us all that we need for our happi ness. Te ll the m that they are to do good, and be rich in good work s, to be generous and willing to share- · this is the way they can save up a good ca pital sum for the future if they wa nt to make sure of the o nly life that is real. Final warning and conclusion My dea r T imo th y, tak e great care of all that has been ent rusted to you." Have no thing to do with th e poin tless philosophical discussions and antagonistic beliefs of the 'knowledge' which is not knowledge at all; •by adopting this , some have gone right away from the faith . Gr ace be with you.'

1: 10 +

.tl·~ fl

1:4 +

Rm 1:29 -1

Tb 4 :21 J b 1:2 1 0 0 5:14 Ps 49 : J7

[I

M 16 :24 Ttl :11

2 Tm 4:1 2 T rn 2:22 I Co 13:13 --G a 5:22 ; Tt2: 2 2 Tm 4:7

2:6 " I n 13;36-37

R v 17:14

1 In 1:5 + Ex 33:20+ In 1:17- 18 + 1:17

L k 12:17-21 Jm 1: 10

M ,6: 20 Ph 4 :17

1:4+ 2Tm 1:12. 14: 2:2 : 3:14 Tt 2:1

l= ::;; J:

n,

co

w

J:

~

6

8

r. Li t. 'so as to give no oc casion for reviling to the great examp le of how a follower of Christ should 10

one who opposes' ; this co uld refer to Satan, but Paul may t-e refer rin g to un fr iendly, ant i-Christ ian nei ghbours. g. Lit . ' let th em be deem ed wo r thy of being paid

Timothy 's vocation recalle d But, as a man dedicated to God, you must avo id all th at. You must aim to be saintly and religiou s, filled with faith an d love, patient and gentle . • Fight the goo d fight of the faith and win fo r yourself the eternal life to which you were called when yo u made your profession and spo ke up for the truth« in front of man y witnesses. • Now , before G od the source of all life and before Jesus C hr ist, wh o spoke up as a witne ss for the truth in fron t of Po ntius Pilate,' I put to you

Dl lO:17 2 M 13:4 Ps 136:3

I

T he true teacher and the false teache r T his is what you are to teach them to believe and persuade them to do. Anyone who teaches anything different , and does not keep to the sound teac hing which is that of ou r Lord Jes us Christ, the doctrine which is in acco rda nce with tr ue religion, -is simply igno rant and must be full of self-conceit-with a craze for questionin g everythi ng and arguing a bout words. All that can come of th is is jealousy, contention, abuse and wicked mistrust of one another ; -and une ndi ng disputes by peop le who are neith er rational nor informed and imagine th at religion is a way of maki ng a profit. -Religion, of cou rse, does bring larg e profits, but o nly to those who are co ntent with what they have. •We bro ught nothing into the world, and we ca n take nothing out of it ; -but as long as we have food and clothing, let us be content with that. •Peop le who lon g to be rich ar e a prey to temptati on ; they get trapped into all sor ts of foo lish b an d dange rous ambit ion s wh ich even tually plunge them into ruin and destructi o n. •'The love of mon ey is the root of all evils" and there are so me who, pu rsuin g it, have wandered away fro m the faith, and so given thei r souls any num ber of fatal woun ds.

2 T m4: 1.8 He b 9:28

I I

12

13

do uble honou r' (or 'd oubly paid'). h. Var . 'his keep' , cf. M t 10:10 . I. I.e. to co nfer a func tion in the Churc h, cr. 4:14 + . Some writers have considered this a reference to a gestu re ma de when absolving sinners. 6 a . Or 'a nd dear brothers' . b, ' trapped' , var. (V ulg .) 'trap ped by the devil in their own temptations'. 'f oolish '; Vu lg , ' useless' , c. A contemporary pr overb . d . Whe n had T imothy 'spoken u p fo r the tr uth'? Perh ap s at his bap tism, or poss ibly when he was consecrated to the minist ry. e . Whe n he declared hi mself to be the messianic King and the revealer of Truth, Jn 18:36-37 . T his is the

n, ~

pr oclaim his faith, whether at his bapt ism or when faced wit h pers ecu tion . f , T he word 'epipha ny' t'aooeertna', used in 2 Th 2:8 with refere nce to the Grea t Rebe l) is adopted in t he Pa stora l Letters in preference to ' parousia' ('Co ming ' , 1 Co 15:23 -t- ) , or 'apocalypse' Crevea tina', 1 Co 1 : 7 4· ) ~ as the techn ical term here ; 2 Tm 4:1, 8 : Tt 2:13 ; Heb 9:28, both fo r the manifest at ion of Christ in his eschatological tr iumph , and a lso , 2 T m 1:10; cf. Tt 2:11: 3:4, for his man ifesta tion in the results of his ac tion as sav io ur. g . Var. (Yu lg.) 'the living G od ' . h. Th e faith tha t has been entr usted to him: this is one of the main the mes of the Pastora l Letters. L ' you', plura l ; var . (Vul g.) 'yOU' singu la r. Add . (Vuh;:.)' Amen'.

'? Z "I .

::> -,

iii It'