1 Timothychapter 3
16 verses · Paul, by tradition · AD 63 to 65 · Paul's letters
An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
Introduction
Paul, by tradition, Paul's letters, 1 Timothy Overview.
Paul now tells Timothy what kind of men should lead the church and serve it. He wrote for congregations that met in homes, where a leader's family life was open to everyone who came through the door. The chapter reads like a set of qualifications, and almost every item concerns character rather than skill. Then it lifts its eyes from the lists to the church itself and to the one it confesses. Listen for how often the household appears, both the leader's own and the household of God. Listen also for the short hymn at the close. Read it as a church learning whom to trust.
Context
- Who
- A church choosing leaders from among its own members, with no buildings, salaries, or titles to offer
- What
- The qualifications for overseers and deacons, the purpose of the letter, and a short confession of Christ that closes the chapter.
- Where
- The church at Ephesus, whose congregations met in the homes of their members.
- When
- About AD 62 to 64, after Paul's first imprisonment in Rome.
- Why
- So that Timothy would know how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God, and whom the church should appoint to lead and serve.
Historical context
There was no church building anywhere in the empire yet. A congregation met in someone's house or in a rented workshop, so the man who led was usually the man whose household hosted, and his family life was on public display to everyone who came through the door.
Show the rest of the historical context, 3 more paragraphs
Clubs and trade associations across the Greek world elected officers, kept rules, and disciplined members. Everyone knew what an association overseer did. What was unusual here was the list of qualities: almost every item is about character and household, and only one, able to teach, is a skill.
'Husband of one wife' is an idiom, and its sense is argued: a one-woman man in faithfulness, or a man not remarried after divorce, or not a polygamist. In a world where a man's outside affairs were expected and untroubling, any of these readings sets a bar the surrounding culture did not.
Hospitality was a genuine office in that world. Public inns were dangerous and often doubled as brothels, so traveling believers depended on being taken in. The leader's house was, in practice, the church's guest room.
Significance
A congregation used to choosing officers by wealth and connections was handed a different list. The question was not how much a man could give but whether his own household respected him.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
The short hymn at the end lifts the eyes off the committee work: the one they belong to appeared in a body, was vindicated, was preached among the nations. Household rules matter because that is true.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
The Overseer: Above Reproach at Home and Outside
1 Timothy 3:1-2
aspires to be an overseer: The overseer's list opens with above reproach and then the husband of but one wife. The Greek of that phrase is read three ways: married once, not a polygamist, or faithful to one wife.
1 Timothy 3:1
“Should the entreaties of your brethren induce you to take orders, I shall rejoice that you are lifted up and fear lest you may be cast down. You will say, "if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desires a good work." I know that; but you should add what follows: such a one "must be blameless, the husband of one wife, sober, chaste, prudent, well-prepared, given to hospitality, apt to teach, not given to wine, no striker but patient." … Woe to the man who goes in to the supper without a wedding garment.”
Jerome · written before 420 · LETTERS 14.8patristic
2 more voices on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
1 Timothy 3:1
“This is a trite saying - Greek, “Faithful is the word” - the very phrase which is used in 1Ti 1:15; see the notes on that verse. The idea here is, that it was worthy of credence; it was not to be doubted. If a man desire - Implying that there would be those who would wish to be put into the ministry. The Lord, undoubtedly, by his Spirit, often excites an earnest and irrepressible desire to preach the gospel - a desire so strong, that he in whom it exists can be satisfied in no other calling.”
1 Timothy 3:1
“The ministry is not a creature of the state, and it is a pity that the minister should be at any time the tool of the state. The office of the ministry was in the church before the magistrate countenanced Christianity, for this office is one of the great gifts Christ has bestowed on the church, Eph. iv.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
the husband of but one wife: Readers have long differed over this phrase. Wesley holds that it neither requires a pastor to marry nor forbids a second marriage after a wife has died. Ambrose held the stricter view that a man married twice, though guilty of no sin, was barred from the office.
1 Timothy 3:2
“And the Apostle has established a law, saying: "If any man be without reproach the husband of one wife." So then he who is without blame the husband of one wife comes within the rule for undertaking the priestly office; he, however, who has married again has no guilt of pollution, but is disqualified for the priestly prerogative.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Epistle 63patristic
3 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:2
“A bishop - Or pastor of a congregation. Must be blameless - Without fault or just suspicion. The husband of one wife - This neither means that a bishop must be married, nor that he may not marry a second wife; which it is just as lawful for him to do as to marry a first, and may in some cases be his bounden duty.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 Timothy 3:2
“A bishop then must be blameless - Our term bishop comes from the Anglo-Saxon, which is a mere corruption of the Greek επισκοπος, and the Latin episcopus; the former being compounded of επι, over, and σκεπτομαι, to look or inspect, signifies one who has the inspection or oversight of a place, persons, or business; what we commonly term a superintendent.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 Timothy 3:2
“A bishop then must be blameless,.... Or "an elder", as the Syriac version renders it; not that it can be expected that such an one should be entirely free from sin, or be blameless in the sight of God; but that he should be one, who is so before men, and has not been guilty of any notorious and flagitious crime; and particularly, is not chargeable with the vices hereafter mentioned or hinted at. So the priests under the law were to be without blemish, even in their bodies, Lev 21:17 to which the apostle may here allude.”
not dependent on wine: The overseer's test closes at home, where he must manage his own household well and keep his children under control. His household is the visible proof of his fitness for God's.
1 Timothy 3:3
“Let your breath never smell of wine, lest the philosopher's words be said to you, "Instead of offering me a kiss, you are giving me a taste of wine." Priests given to wine are both condemned by the apostle and forbidden by the old law.… Whatever intoxicates and disturbs the balance of the mind, avoid as you would wine. I do not say that we are to condemn what is a creature of God.”
Jerome · written before 420 · LETTERS 52.11patristic
2 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:3
“Not given to wine - Margin, “Not ready to quarrel and offer wrong, as one in wine.” The Greek word (πάροινος paroinos) occurs in the New Testament only here and in Tit 1:7. It means, properly, “by wine;” i. e., spoken of what takes place “by” or “over” wine, as revelry, drinking songs, etc. Then it denotes, as it does here, one who sits “by” wine; that is, who is in the habit of drinking it.”
1 Timothy 3:3
“The opposite of "patient" or (Greek) "forbearing," reasonable to others (see on Php 4:5). no striker--with either hand or tongue: not as some teachers pretending a holy zeal (2Co 11:20), answering to "not a brawler" or fighter (compare 1Ki 22:24; 2Ti 2:24, 25). not covetous--Greek, "not a lover of money," whether he have much or little (Tit 1:7).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
1 Timothy 3:4
“The fourteenth qualification of a Christian bishop is, that he ruleth well his own house; του ιδιου οικου καλως προΐσταμενον, one who properly presides over and governs his own family. One who has the command, of his own house, not by sternness, severity, and tyranny, but with all gravity; governing his household by rule, every one knowing his own place, and each doing his own work, and each work having the proper time assigned for its beginning and end.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
1 Timothy 3:4
Such a one a bishop ought to be, who has been the "husband of one wife," who also has herself had no other husband, "ruling well his own house."
Apostolic Constitutions · written before 380 · Constitutions of the Holy Apostles Book 2patristic
1 Timothy 3:5-7
how can he care for the church of God?: He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same condemnation as the devil. Pride is named as Satan's sin at Isaiah 14:12-15 and Ezekiel 28.
1 Timothy 3:5
“For if a man know not how to rule his own house,.... Which is an affair of less importance, and more easy to be done; not requiring so much resolution, prudence, care, and thought: how shall he take care of the church of God? preside over it, rule in it, provide for it, and see that everything is in its proper place, and done according to the will of God. The argument is from the lesser to the greater.”
1 more voice on this verse
1 Timothy 3:5
“For if a man know not how to rule - This is a beautiful and striking argument. A church resembles a family. It is, indeed, larger, and there is a greater variety of dispositions in it than there is in a family. The authority of a minister of the gospel in a church is also less absolute than that of a father. But still there is a striking resemblance. The church is made up of an assemblage of brothers and sisters. They are banded together for the same purposes, and have a common object to aim at.”
1 Timothy 3:6
“Realize how evil pride is from the very fact that there is no excuse for it. Other vices harm only those who commit them. Pride inflicts far more injury on everyone. I am saying all this lest you consider pride a trifling sin. What, in fact, does the apostle say? "Lest he incur the condemnation passed on the devil." The man who is puffed up with his own importance falls into the judgment of the devil.”
Jerome · written before 420 · HOMILIES 95patristic
good reputation with outsiders: Gill notes that unbelievers who scorn a minister's message still cannot help speaking well of a godly life. Wesley sees the danger in a bad past. Outsiders could rehearse a leader's former life, and that reproach could discourage him and become the devil's snare.
1 Timothy 3:7
“He ought also to have a good report - To have had a fair character in time past. From them that are without - That are not Christians. Lest he fall into reproach - By their rehearsing his former life, which might discourage and prove a snare to him.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:7
“Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without - Who are without the church; that is, of those who are not Christians. This includes, of course, “all” classes of those who are not Christians - pagans, infidels, Jews, moral people, and scoffers. The idea is, that he must have a fair reputation with them for integrity of character. His life must be in their view upright. He must not be addicted to anything which they regard as inconsistent with good morals.”
1 Timothy 3:7
“Moreover, he must have a good report of them which are without, That is, "without the church", as the Arabic version reads; for wicked men, though they dislike the principles and profession of godly ministers, and despise their office, yet cannot but speak well of their becoming life and conversation.”
Deacons Tested First
1 Timothy 3:8-10
Deacons likewise must be dignified: , not double-tongued or given to much wine or greedy for money, the overseer's temptations guarded in a second office. Acts 6:1-6 traces the office's servant title to Jerusalem's first relief crisis.
1 Timothy 3:8
“Likewise must the deacons - The term deacon, διακονος, simply signifies a regular or stated servant: from δια, through or emphatic, and κονεω, to minister or serve. See it explained in the note on Mat 20:26. As nearly the same qualifications were required in the deacons as in the bishops, the reader may consult what is said on the preceding verses. Grave - Of a sedate and dignified carriage and conduct. Not double-tongued - Speaking one thing to one person, and another thing to another, on the same subject. This is hypocrisy and deceit.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:8
“Not desirous of filthy gain - With what abhorrence does he everywhere speak of this! All that is gained (above food and raiment) by ministering in holy things is filthy gain indeed; far more filthy than what is honestly gained by raking kennels, or emptying common sewers.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 Timothy 3:8
“Their duty was to read the Scriptures in the Church, to instruct the catechumens in Christian truths, to assist the presbyters at the sacraments, to receive oblations, and to preach and instruct. As the "chazzan" covered and uncovered the ark in the synagogue, containing the law, so the deacon in the ancient Church put the covering on the communion table.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
mystery of the faith: Barnes explains that a mystery in Paul is something once hidden and now revealed. Theodore of Mopsuestia takes it here as the teaching about Christ, which Paul sets out in verse 16.
1 Timothy 3:9
“Holding the mystery of the faith - On the word “mystery,” see notes on 1Co 2:7. It means that which had been concealed, or hidden, but which was now revealed. The word “faith” here, is synonymous with “the gospel;” and the sense is, that he should hold firmly the great doctrines of the Christian religion which had been so long concealed from people, but which were now revealed. The reason is obvious. Though not a preacher, yet his influence and example would be great, and a man who held material error ought not to be in office.”
2 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:9
“Note, The mystery of faith is best held in a pure conscience. The practical love of truth is the most powerful preservative from error and delusion. If we keep a pure conscience (take heed of every thing that debauches conscience, and draws us away from God), this will preserve in our souls the mystery of faith.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 Timothy 3:9
“The mystery of faith referred to by the apostle here is the teaching about Christ, which he is about to expound in what follows.”
Theodore of Mopsuestia · written before 428 · Commentary on the First Letter to Timothypatristic
first be tested: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read the testing as a searching inquiry into a candidate's life, conducted before he is appointed. Clarke ties it to verse 6, and overseers face the same bar.
1 Timothy 3:10
“For, since it is written, "That one should first be proved, and so minister" (1 Tim. iii. 10), much more ought he first to be proved who is taken as an intercessor for the people, lest bad priests should become the cause of the people's ruin. There can therefore be no excuse, no defence against this, since it is clearly known to all how solicitous about diligent attention to this matter is the holy and excellent teacher, who forbids that a novice should accede to sacred orders (1 Tim. iii.).”
Gregory the Dialogist · written before 604 · Register of Epistles, Book 9, Epistle 106patristic
1 more voice on this verse
1 Timothy 3:10
“Let these - be proved - Let them not be young converts, or persons lately brought to the knowledge of the truth. This is the same in spirit with what is required of the bishops, 1Ti 3:6. Let no man be put into an office in the Church till he has given full proof of his sincerity and steadiness, by having been for a considerable time a consistent private member of the Church. Being found blameless - Ανεγκλητοι οντες· Being irreproachable; persons against whom no evil can be proved.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
the women must be dignified: The women of verse 11 are read two ways, as the deacons' own wives or as women serving as deacons. Phoebe at Romans 16:1 bears the same Greek title, diakonos, and both readings appeal to her.
1 Timothy 3:11
“Even so must their wives be grave - Chrysostom, Theophylact, Grotius, Bloomfield, and many others, suppose that by the word “wives,” here, (γυνᾶικας gunaikas), the apostle means “deaconesses.” Clarke supposes that it refers to women in general.”
1 more voice on this verse
1 Timothy 3:11
“Moreover, if the wives of the deacons were meant, there seems no reason for the omission of "their" (not in the Greek). Also the Greek for "even so" (the same as for "likewise," 1Ti 3:8, and "in like manner," 1Ti 2:9), denotes a transition to another class of persons.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
the husband of but one wife: Verse 13 promises those who have served well two rewards, a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. Service carries its own advance.
1 Timothy 3:12
“Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife - notes, 1Ti 3:2. Ruling their children and their own houses well - notes, 1Ti 3:4-5.”
3 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:12
“Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife,.... See Gill on 1Ti 3:2. ruling their children and their own houses well. These qualifications are the same with those of the bishop or elder; See Gill on 1Ti 3:4.”
1 Timothy 3:12
"Let the Deacons be husbands of one wife." This must be understood therefore to relate to Deaconesses. For that order is necessary and useful and honorable in the Church. Observe how he requires the same virtue from the Deacons, as from the Bishops, for though they were not of equal rank, they must equally be blameless; equally pure. "Ruling their children and their own houses well." Everywhere they are required to rule their children well, that others may not be scandalized by their misconduct.
John Chrysostom · written before 407 · Homily on 1 Timothy 11patristic
1 Timothy 3:12
“Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife - This is the same that is required of the bishops. See on 1Ti 3:2 (note) 1Ti 3:4 (note), and 1Ti 3:5 (note).”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 Timothy 3:13
“For they that have used the office of a deacon well - Margin, “ministered.” The Greek word is the same as deacon, meaning ministering, or serving in this office. The sense would be well expressed by the phrase, “deaconizing well.” The “word” implies nothing as to the exact nature of the office. Purchase to themselves - Procure for themselves; see this word explained in the notes on Act 20:28. A good degree - The word here used (βαθμός bathmos) occurs nowhere else in the New Testament.”
1 more voice on this verse
1 Timothy 3:13
“Woe to him who, when he has received a talent, has bound it in a napkin; and while others make profits, only preserves what he has received. His angry Lord shall rebuke him in a moment. "You wicked servant," he will say. "Why then did you not put my money into the bank, and at my coming I could have collected it with interest?" That is to say you should have laid before the altar what you were not able to bear.”
Jerome · written before 420 · LETTERS 14.8patristic
The House of God and the Mystery of Godliness
I hope to come to you soon: Paul writes, I hope to come to you soon, so the letter stands in for a visit still planned. The verse is the hinge between the church-order instructions and the statement of the letter's purpose in verse 15.
1 Timothy 3:14
“These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly - That is, he hoped to come there to give instructions personally, or to finish, himself, the work which he had commenced in Ephesus, and which had been interrupted by his being driven so unexpectedly away. This verse proves that the apostle Paul did not regard Timothy as the permanent diocesan bishop of Ephesus. Would any Episcopal bishop write this to another bishop?”
1 more voice on this verse
1 Timothy 3:14
“As his hope was not very confident (1Ti 3:15), he provides for Timothy's lengthened superintendence by giving him the preceding rules to guide him. He now proceeds to give more general instructions to him as an evangelist, having a "gift" committed to him (1Ti 4:14). shortly--Greek, "sooner," namely, than is presupposed in the preceding directions given to him.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
the pillar and foundation of the truth: Paul calls the church of the living God the pillar and foundation of the truth. The church holds the truth up before the world and gives it ground to stand on.
1 Timothy 3:15
“Even to the principalities and powers in heavenly places is made known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, Eph. iii. (2.) Others understand it of Timothy. He, not he himself only, but he as an evangelist, he and other faithful ministers, are the pillars and ground of truth; it is their business to maintain, hold up, and publish, the truths of Christ in the church.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
4 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:15
“But if I tarry long - Paul appears to have been uncertain how long circumstances would require him to be absent. He expected to return, but it was possible that his hope of returning soon would be disappointed. That thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself - That is, that he might have just views about settling the affairs of the church. In the house of God - This does not mean in a place of public worship, nor does it refer to propriety of deportment there.”
1 Timothy 3:15
“WE have learned from none others the plan of our salvation, than from those through whom the Gospel has come down to us, which they did at one time proclaim in public, and, at a later period, by the will of God, handed down to us in the Scriptures, to be the ground and pillar of our faith. For it is unlawful to assert that they preached before they possessed "perfect knowledge," as some do even venture to say, boasting themselves as improvers of the apostles.”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies Book IIIpatristic
1 Timothy 3:15
“PAUL'S design in this Epistle was to instruct young Timothy how he should behave himself in the Church of God, so as to discharge his office as minister, evangelist and pastor with honor to himself and profit to the people. He reminds him that the Church is the house of God and in God's own house a man ought to be upon his best behavior, for it is no light thing to draw near unto the Lord. A poor man who is called to visit a prince or king will anxiously enquire how he ought to act.”
1 Timothy 3:15
“That thou mayest know how to behave - This is the scope of the epistle. In the house of God - Who is the master of the family. Which is - As if he had said, By the house of God, I mean the church.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Note on the text · 1 Timothy 3:16
Older Bibles read "God was manifest in the flesh"; newer ones read "He who was manifested." In ancient Greek capitals the difference is two small strokes, and the deity of Christ does not rest on this verse.
The witnesses, and what each reads here
- Codex Sinaiticus, original hand · 4th centuryΟΣ, "who was manifested in the flesh." A later corrector changed it to ΘΣ.
- Codex Alexandrinus · 5th centuryDisputed for centuries. A faint stroke is visible, and scholars have argued over whether it is a genuine bar making the word ΘΣ or ink showing through from the other side of the leaf. The manuscript is a witness whose testimony has to be argued about rather than simply read.
- The Latin and Syriac versions · 4th century onwardA relative pronoun, "who" or "which", not "God." Translators working from early Greek copies did not find *theos* there.
- The Byzantine majority of Greek manuscripts · 9th, 15th centuriesΘΣ, "God was manifest in the flesh." This is the reading behind the KJV.
the mystery of godliness is great: The chapter closes on an early hymn of six lines in three pairs, tracing the Son from incarnation to ascension. The earliest Greek manuscripts read who, rendered He appeared in the flesh, while the Byzantine text behind the King James reads God.
1 Timothy 3:16
“Behold the Savior's greatness. It extends to all the world.… Go up to the heavens. See how he fills the celestial regions, "He appeared to the angels." Go down in your mind to the nether world. See that he went down there, too.… Ponder the Lord's power, how it has filled the world—that is, the heavens, the earth and the nether regions.”
Origen of Alexandria · written before 253 · Homilies on Luke, 6.9-10patristic
4 more voices on this verse
1 Timothy 3:16
“God was manifest in the flesh - In the form of a servant, the fashion of a man, for three and thirty years. Justified by the Spirit - Publicly "declared to be the Son of God," by his resurrection from the dead. Seen - Chiefly after his resurrection.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 Timothy 3:16
“THE Apostle had just reminded Timothy that the Church of the living God is the pillar and ground of the Truth of God, and he had pressed it upon him to behave himself aright in the midst of those faithful men to whom the Lord had committed the Gospel. And, lest by any means the youthful minister should think that the treasure committed to the Church was of little value, he declares that beyond all controversy it was great and precious.”
1 Timothy 3:16
“He was made sin for us, and was delivered for our offences; but, being raised again, he was justified in the Spirit; that is, it was made to appear that his sacrifice was accepted, and so he rose again for our justification, as he was delivered for our offences, Rom. iv.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 Timothy 3:16
“And, without controversy - Και ὁμολογουμενες· And confessedly, by general consent, it is a thing which no man can or ought to dispute; any phrase of this kind expresses the meaning of the original.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
How this psalm is built
The form: Two lists of qualifications, for overseers and for deacons, followed by the letter's statement of purpose and a six-line confession of Christ, as 3:16 classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| The hymn in three pairs | Verse 16 runs as six short lines of the same shape. The site's published exposition reads them as three pairs: flesh and Spirit, angels and nations, world and glory. The lines trace Christ from His appearing to His being taken up.This site's published exposition of 1 Timothy 3:16, The exposition_notes row on 1 Timothy 3:16, citing J. B. Lightfoot, Notes on the Epistles of St Paul, and Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible. | 1 Timothy 3:16 |
| The second trustworthy saying | Verse 1 opens with the formula this is a trustworthy saying, the second of three in the letter after 1:15 and before 4:9. The site's published exposition of verses 1 and 2 reads it as the opening of the section on church order.This site's published exposition of 1 Timothy 3:1 to 2, The exposition_notes row on 1 Timothy 3:1 to 2, citing John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament, and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. | 1 Timothy 1:15, 1 Timothy 3:1, 1 Timothy 4:9 |
How this chapter is built
1 more paragraph on the patterns
The chapter opens with the second of the letter's trustworthy sayings and the list for overseers in verses 1 to 7. The list for deacons follows in verses 8 to 13, with a line on women in verse 11 that is read of deacons' wives or of women who served. Verses 14 and 15 state why Paul wrote. Verse 16 closes the chapter with six short lines about Christ, set in three pairs.
This site records the readings below for this chapter. Spelling and word-order differences that change no meaning are passed over.
- "God was manifest in the flesh", two letters apart 1 Timothy 3:16, at the verse ↑
Keep studying
Studies7
Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The context
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible and Patrick Fairbairn, The Pastoral Epistles.
The form and classifications
This site's published exposition of 1 Timothy 3:16, The exposition_notes row on 1 Timothy 3:16, citing J. B. Lightfoot, Notes on the Epistles of St Paul, and Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes; Ambrose of Milan, Epistle 63; Gregory the Dialogist, Register of Epistles, Book 9, Epistle 106; J. B. Lightfoot, Notes on the Epistles of St Paul; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on 1 Timothy; John Gill; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodore of Mopsuestia, COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST LETTER TO TIMOTHY.