1st Timothy


  1. Authorship
    1. One of the three pastoral letters Paul wrote towards the end of his life 
      1. the others being 2 Timothy and Titus
      2. They are called pastoral epistles because it is thought Timothy and Titus were pastors in their respective churches. 
      3. The letters contain instructions for effective leadership in the church.
  2. Timothy: Paul's Friend and Co-worker
    1. Timothy was an important co-worker, and dear friend of Paul. 
    2. Background
      1. Born in Lystra, the son of a Greek father and Jewish mother, 
      2. Timothy was instructed in the Jewish faith by his mother Lois, and his grandmother Eunice (2 Tim 3:15). 
      3. Converted to Christianity by Paul during his first missionary journey shortly after his mother and grandmother became Christians (2 Timothy 1:5).
    3. Characteristics
      1. Much younger than Paul (1 Timothy 4:12), 
      2. A reserved and timid young man (1 Cor 16:10; 2 Tim 1:7), 
      3. Frequently ill (1 Tim 5:23). 
      4. Dependable and trustworthy (1 Tim 4:12; 2 Tim 4:9,21). 
    4. Relationship to Paul:
      1. Paul was very close to Timothy 
        1. This is evident from the way he speaks about him: 
          1. "my true son in the faith" (1 Tim 1:2) 
            1. "loyal child," NRSV; "my own son in the faith," KJV
          2. "dear son" (2 Tim 1:2)
            1. "beloved child," NRSV; "dearly loved son," KJV 
      2. Timothy joined Paul and Barnabas on their second missionary journey, 
        1. after Paul had circumcised him, 
        2. Paul did not want Timothy's lack of circumcision to be a stumbling block to the Jews. 
      3. Timothy traveled and worked with Paul in Asia Minor and Macedonia, 
      4. Until he stayed in Ephesus and became the pastor of the church
        1. Timothy probably functioned as an apostolic representative
      5. Paul names Timothy as a co-sponsor in six of his letters 
        1. but clearly distinguishes his position as an apostle from that of Timothy, a fellow believer and brother. 
        2. 2 Corinthians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:1; Philemon :1 
  3. Purpose and Content of 1 Timothy
    1. Paul left Timothy in charge of the church at Ephesus (1:3) in order to:
      1. refute false teachings (heresy)
      2. supervise the affairs of the church. 
    2. Paul's letter was to encourage and help Timothy in this task.
    3. Problems causing controversy and tension within the church (1:3-7)
      1. Judaizers 
        1. We’ve talked quite a bit about these people in our study of Galatians
      2. False teachers
        1. spreading heresies related to the law, 
        2. promoting Jewish myths based on obscure Bible verses
        3. influencing wealthy women and destroying house churches
      3. Gnosticism
        1. a certain form of asceticism (a rejection of physical pleasure)
        2. Its central teaching—the spirit is entirely good and physical matter is entirely evil. 
        3. five important errors:
          (from the NIV Study Bible introduction to 1 John)
          1. The human body, which is matter, is therefore evil. It is to be contrasted with God, who is wholly spirit and therefore good.
          2. Salvation is the escape from the body, achieved not by faith in Christ but by special knowledge (the Greek word for “knowledge” is gnosis, hence Gnosticism).
          3. Christ’s true humanity was denied in two ways: 
            1. Some said that Christ only seemed to have a body, a view called Docetism, and 
            2. others said that the divine Christ joined the man Jesus at baptism and left him before he died. This view is the background of much of 1 John (see 1:1; 2:22; 4:2–3 and notes).
          4. Since the body was considered evil, it was to be treated harshly. This ascetic form of Gnosticism is the background of part of the letter to the Colossians (see Col 2:21,23 and notes).
          5. Paradoxically, this dualism also led to licentiousness (living for pleasure). The reasoning was that, since matter—and not the breaking of God’s law (1Jn 3:4)—was considered evil, breaking his law was of no moral consequence.
        4. The Gnosticism addressed in the NT was an early form of the heresy, not the intricately developed system of the second and third centuries. In addition to that seen in Colossians and in John’s letters, acquaintance with early Gnosticism is reflected in 1,2 Timothy, Titus, and 2 Peter and perhaps 1 Corinthians.
      4. Others tried to get rich by teaching the gospel (6:5); 
        1. This still happens all the time
      5. Others were engaged in "godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge" (6:20). 
    4. Paul gives Timothy instructions to help him deal with these heretics and also to restore unity and order within the community. 
      1. focused on the organization and administration of the church by Timothy. 
      2. “Heresy”—wrong thinking. Ideas which go against the agreed upon teachings of the church.
    5. A Summary Outline of First Timothy
      1. Salutation (1:1, 2)
      2. Warning against false teachers, (1:3-11)
        1. The Nature of the Heresy (1:3-7)
        2. The Purpose of the Law (1:8-11)
      3. The Lord’s grace to Paul (1:12-17)
      4. The Purpose of Paul’s Instructions to Timothy (1:18-20)
      5. Instruction concerning the Administration of the Church (ch2-3)
        1. Public Worship
          1. Prayer in public worship (2:1-8)
          2. Women in public worship (2:9-15)
        2. Qualifications for Church Officers (3:1-13)
          1. Overseers (3:1-7)
          2. Deacons (3:8-13)
        3. Purpose of these instructions (3:14-16)
      6. Methods of Dealing with False Teaching (4:6-16)
        1. False Teaching Described (4:1-5)
        2. Methods of Dealing with it Explained (4:6-16)
      7. Methods of Dealing with Different Groups in the Church (5:1-6:2)
          1. The older and younger (5:1-2)
          2. Widows (5:3-16)
          3. Elders (5:17-25)
          4. Slaves (6:1-2)
      8. Miscellaneous Matters
        1. False Teachers (6:3-5)
        2. Love of Money (6:6-10)
        3. Charge to Timothy (6:11-16)
        4. The Rich (6:17-19)
      9. Concluding Appeal (6:20-21)
    6. As in his letter to the Corinthians, Paul uses the customs of his day and the practices already in use in the churches (1 Corinthians 11:16) to organize the life of the church. 
      1. Paul's instructions regarding the community structure at Ephesus resemble the structure of Jewish synagogues. 
      2. A leader and a board of elders did administrative work and settled disputes. 
      3. They ran community charity efforts, both the raising and distribution of money 
    7. We identify the specific problems needing addressing from the instructions themselves. 
      1. False Teachers
      2. How women conducted themselves in public worship
      3. Leadership in the church (Elders and Deacons)
      4. Care for elderly and widows
      5. Members who caused division in the church. 
    8. Paul is concerned primarily about the advancement of the gospel
      1. To this end, he organizes the church
      2. and is concerned with the reputation of the church with the outside community. 
        1. hence is instructions to women (next section)
  4. Context of 1 Tim 2:11-15 – The New Roman Woman
    1. All content and examples taken from: Paul and the “New Roman Woman” at Ephesus by Steve Robbins © 2009
    2. All meaning is context dependent
      1. Two contexts
        1. historical
        2. literary
      2. Example
        1. “With hocked gems financing him, our hero bravely defied all scornful laughter that tried to prevent his scheme.
          You eyes deceive you, he had said, an egg not a table correctly typifies this unexplored planet.
          Now three sisters sought proof, forging along sometimes through calm vastness, yet more often over turbulent peaks and valleys.
          Days became weeks as many doubters spread fearful rumours about the edge.
          At last, from nowhere, welcomed winged creatures appeared, signifying momentous success.”
        2. Our ability to interpret this passage greatly increases with some basic background information relating to its context.
        3. The same is true when trying to understand Scripture.
          1. We can interpret passages wrongly (and do damage to the church and others) without knowing the correct setting.
    3. We will look at three major influences to the context of 1 Tim 2
      1. The New Roman Woman—cultural 
      2. The Ephesian cult of Artemis—cultural 
      3. The purpose of the letter: to stop false teaching—literary 
    4. The New Roman Woman
      1. Previous ideals in Greek and Roman society (before mid 1st century BC)
        1. Ideal wife was ‘modest’
          1. chastity (i.e. doesn’t sleep around) and self-restraint
        2. Husbands were expected to be unfaithful; but it was required of wives to be chaste.
      2. Changes in Roman law meant to increase economic justice for wives had unintended consequences (around 44 BC)
        1. Property of wives no longer automatically transferred to their husbands on marriage.
        2. Women allowed to terminate their marriage and receive back a portion and in some cases the entire dowry; and they could have their own property.
        3. This led to financial independence and new social freedoms
          1. Many used the new freedoms inappropriately
          2. Sought sexual freedom previously reserved for men
      3. The popularity of this lifestyle throughout the empire led to a destabilization fo the Roman household. This was such a concern that Emperor Augustus passed laws against certain practices of these women and financial incentives for getting married and having children. It also included dress codes for how respectable women were to dress in contrast to adulterers, high-class prostitutes, and others.
        1. Roman law distinguished between the traditional modest wife and the ‘new Roman woman’ by means of appearance.
          1. defined by apparel and adornment
        2. i.e. in 1st century Rome, “you were what you wore.”
      4. From the writings of philosophers and statesmen, we have a depiction of the lifestyle of one of these married women:
        1. immoral
        2. preoccupation with physical beauty
          1. lavish with jewelry: gold, pearls, cosmetics
          2. desire to hide pregnancy
        3. extravagant and immodest dress
          1. rejection of conventional dress code 
            1. apparel, adornment, hairstyles
            2. symbolized rejection of sexual modesty, respect, and faithfulness to one’s husband.
          2. not just slightly expensive 
            1. 15 years wages for a dress
        4. use of contraceptives to avoid pregnancy (or abortion if unsuccessful)
          1. desiring to be free of the restraints of raising a family
        5. pursuit of wealth, and social life at the expense of the family
        6. Outspoken
          1. the mobility of women to function publicly in commercial, political, legal, and rhetorical matters often took the form of:
            1. speaking up boldly and brashly in public settings
            2. asserting opinions and teachings in front of men and husbands
              1. drastically different than the man having complete control over all in his household
          2. Juvenal the satirist (one of Paul’s contemporaries), wrote:
            Let the wife, who reclines with you at dinner, not possess a rhetorical style of her own, let her not hurl at you in whirling speech the well-rounded syllogism. Let her not know all history. Let there be some things in her reading which she does not understand. I hate the woman who is always consulting and poring over the grammatical treatise of Palaemon, who observes all the rules and laws of correct speech, who with antiquarian zeal quotes verses that I never heard of and corrects her ignorant female friend for slips of speech that no man need trouble about: let her husband at least be allowed to make his solecisms [slips in syntax] in peace.
      5. It would be a concern among Christian leaders of this era that some women would behave in a similar fashion in the house churches.
      6. On the positive side, some used their freedom constructively:
        1. women became benefactors for community improvements
        2. women could occupy government posts
        3. women played an important role in financing and spreading early Christianity
    5. Cult of Artemis
      1. The temple of Artemis was the center of the civic and religious life of Ephesus
        1. much like the Temple in Jerusalem
        2. temple of Artemis was the largest building in ancient times
        3. one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
      2. Women of Ephesus may have been influenced by the cult of Artemis in which the female was exalted and regarded as superior to the male
        1. Artemis was one of the children of Zeus. 
        2. Instead of taking a lover from among the God’s, she took a human consort.
      3. It’s difficult to believe that the epicenter of this powerful cult had no effect on the women, and perhaps also the men, of the Ephesian church.
        1. Though the interpretation does not depend on this influence.
    6. Purpose of 1 Timothy: Stop the False Teaching!
      1. The letter both begins (1:3-7) and ends (6:20-21) with a charge from Paul to Timothy to stop the false teachers and counteract their teaching.
        1. Theme is picked up multiple times in the book.
          1. explicitly: 1:3-7, 18-20; 4:1-5, 6-10; 6:2b-10, 20-21
          2. and there are other references to false teaching, myths and genealogies, myths, demonic doctrines, opposition leaders all over the short letter.
      2. Effects of false teachers
        1. disruption, arguments and disputes
        2. Paul describes them as liars and hypocrites, immoral, and motivated by greed
        3. A solid 50% of 1 Timothy is about false teaching. 
        4. Surely, there is a connection between this theme and the fact that women get a great deal of attention in the letter 
          1. more than any other N.T. letter
      3. False teachers are finding their best audience among “gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth”.
        1. Interestingly: Paul’s advice to the single and widowed Ephesian women is in stark contrast to that of his advice to the single and widowed Corinthian women give several years earlier.
        2. To the Ephesians: get married and have kids
        3. To the Corinthians: it’s better to not get married
        4. There must be something about context in regards to the differing advice
    7. Interpretation of 1 Tim 2:8-15
      1. Timothy’s assignment is to stop the false teaching, which is leading to practices which threaten to destroy the public reputation of the gospel and the church.
        1. facilitate the worship service in such a way that enhances rather than discredits the gospel.
        2. Paul’s advice will line up with what advances the gospel in a given place at a given time.
      2. 1 Timothy 2:9-10
        I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.
        1. uses the same terminology as the historical-cultural context of the new Roman woman.
        2. They receive the disproportionately large treatment in the letter because 
          1. they are being used by the opponents to subvert the church
          2. their dress and demeanor threatens the integrity of the church’s witness to outsiders
        3. In the first century a woman’s dress signaled either chastity and fidelity or promiscuous availability
          1. elaborate hairstyles, jewelry, and extravagant clothing were the uniform of the new Roman woman
            1. conveyed her sexual availability, freedom of expression, and insubordination.
          2. your outward adornment and inward character were considered the outer and inner dimensions of the same reality.
            1. you were what you wore
      3. 1 Timothy 2:11-12
        A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be silent.
        1. Paul commands the women to learn in a quiet, peaceful demeanor in full submission
          1. just like all male disciples do from their rabbis
            1. “quietness” and “submission” are not negative qualities in the context of learning.
          2. “silent” = en hesychia 
            1. is usually translated as quiet when used by Paul
            2. When Paul wants to say “silence,” meaning absence of speech, he uses sigao (Rom. 16:25; 1 Cor. 14:28, 30, 34)
          3. Given the verbal aggression of the new Roman woman, Paul is saying she has to learn just like everyone else—quietly.
        2. Paul’s order for meek and submissive behavior probably finds its setting with women who were disrupting worship by commandeering the teaching and authority of the meetings.
          1. Paul’s principle at work: what advances the gospel.
        3. “assume authority” over a man = Greek term authentein (“to have/exercise authority” or “to dominate/domineer”)
          1. basically is saying “I do not allow women to dominate men”
          2. this is not a “women” issue but a “false teaching” issue
            1. Paul restricts the women in question to combat heresy in Ephesus
        4. Paul could not have been referring to an absolute prohibition on women teaching.
          1. Older women were to teach younger ones (Titus 2:3-4);
          2. Priscilla and Aquila taught the educated and eloquent Apollos (Acts 18:26)
          3. Junia was an apostle (Romans 16:7)
          4. women prophesied God’s current word to their congregations (1 Cor. 11:5; 14:31; Acts 21:9)
          5. Paul designated not only Silas, Timothy (Romans 16:21; 1 Thes 3:2), Titus (2 Cor 8:23) and Mark (Col 4:10)—who exercised various gifts of inspired speech—as “co-worker” but he also used the same word for Priscilla, Euodia, and Syntyche (Phil. 4:3)
          6. Paul calls Phoebe a diakonos, a term used to refer to Christian workers engaged in teaching and preaching
          7. there are no gender distinctions made in the exercise of gifts, including that of teaching (Rom 12:7; 1 Cor. 12:28; 14:26)
      4. 1 Timothy 2:13-14
        “        For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner.”
        1. Paul is addressing something particular to the Ephesian situation
          1. Paul’s point is not a general principle that women are more easily deceived than men
          2. The deception of woman by Satan has been repeated in the church of Ephesus.
          3. He uses the same story to talk about the Corinthian church (male and female) being deceived by false teachers
      5. 1 Timothy 2:15
        “        But women will be saved through childbearing-- if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.”
        1. the new Roman woman avoided marriage and pregnancy (by contraception and abortion)
        2. If women draw on the power of Christ to exhibit the virtue of modesty, they will help rather than hinder the gospel and the church.
        3. in this setting that looks like:
          1. fidelity in marriage
          2. bearing and raising children
          3. learning like all good students (quite and submissive)
          4. serving others (producing good works)
  5. Applications for us: How are we to apply Paul's instructions to Timothy to our church life today? 
    1. Most of what we read in Timothy we can apply fairly quickly and easily using common sense. 
    2. However, when confronting any text of Scripture, we must ask ourselves which words apply to us today and which words are limited to their particular historical contexts
      1. Basic Examples:
        1. Jesus tells his disciples to wash each other’s feet (John 13:14-15). Most evangelicals interpret this as a call to serve one another.
        2. Paul commands believers to greet each other with a holy kiss (Rom 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12; 1 Thess. 5:26). We normally apply this in our culture with handshakes or hugs.
      2. Examples for 1 Tim.:
        1. There are significant differences in our culture and means of provision in our current society that justify applying the text differently in some cases.
          1. How many churches support their widows over sixty years of age who are distinguished by good works but have no family to support them (1 Tim. 5:3, 9-10)
          2. How many churches bring members under discipline for not providing well for relatives in this category (5:8, 16)
          3. How many require their younger widows to remarry, have children and manage their homes well
        2. It’s embarrassing how long it took Christians to realize they were not to follow the 1 Tim 6:1-2 about slavery anymore.
      3. Examples from 1 Tim 2:8-15
        1. Paul tells men to lift up holy hands in prayer (v8)
        2. He restricts women’s hairstyles, jewelry, and clothing (v9)
        3. Paul says women’s respectability and salvation depend on their childbearing (v15)
          1. in contrast to his advice to the Corinthian women to stay single (1 Cor. 7:8; 7:20, 24, 26-28, 34-35, 39-40)
        4. How can we say the verses before and after are all limited based on cultural relevance and then not say v11-12 are not?
          1. If we interpret consistently, either all of this section is culturally conditional regarding its application to our situation or it is not.
        5. Paul’s advice to women in 1 Timothy is for a specific time, in a specific place, in a specific context.
          1. Paul was concerned with the impact of the gospel on the non-believing society around him.
          2. He was making policies for the church in light of what advanced the Gospel in that region.
    3. There are, however, differences between churches about what the church may do in terms of worship and church order. 
      1. The role of women is a rather large divide in Western Christianity in the 21st century.
        1. 1 Tim 2:8-15 plays a rather large role
          1. This passage has 25 interpretive difficulties and people’s opinions are varied in its applications.
        2. Many in the Christian Reformed Church are split as to whether women should be able to hold church offices:
          1. Deacon
          2. Elder
          3. Pastor
      2. In deciding how to apply Scripture, some churches follow the regulative principle: 
        1. This principle states that Scripture regulates church worship and order in such a way that we may only do what it explicitly allows; 
          1. If Scripture is silent on an issue, we may not do it.
        2. This principle is followed in some circles but generally not in Reformed churches.
          1. Aside: we generally interpret Scripture as revealing God as opposed to containing God.
        3. This principle is rarely followed consistently because the Bible doesn’t mention anything about all sorts of various technology advancements available to us today.
      3. Some churches claim that they simply do what the Bible says (by which they imply that they literally follow the Bible’s commands)
        1. To my knowledge, that is never the case. We ALWAYS make judgments regarding the cultural appropriateness of texts. 
        2. We are always interpreting the Bible through a set of lenses given to us by our culture.
          1. Tradition
          2. Denomination
          3. Country of origin
          4. Socio-economic background 
          5. Race
          6. Political persuasion
          7. Experience
          8. etc
Lesson Activities

1. 1 Timothy reading questions..

Read 1 Timothy and answer the reading questions. I suggest 2 chapters a night.

2. Outline of 1 Timothy

Re-read 1Timothy and outline Paul's instructions regarding orderly worship, and the qualifications for elders and deacons (chs 2, 3, and 5). Why does Paul deal with these issues?

3. Reformulation

Have students write a brief expository essay explaining their understanding of the Bible's teaching on "women in office" or some other topic related to worship or church life. Maximum length: 150 - 200 words.