INTRODUCTION
This Epistle was written not long after Paul had left Ephesus for Macedonia; but it is a matter of debate as to when this was, some holding that it must have been about the time of the great riot which drove the Apostle from the city; others that it was nearer the time of his second and last imprisonment at Rome.
Timothy is first mentioned as living at Lystra, Act_16:1. His mother, Eunice, was a Jewess, 2Ti_1:5; his father was a Greek. He was early the subject of pious influence, 2Ti_3:14-15. He was well spoken of by his fellow-believers, and became the intimate friend and companion of the Apostle.
The Epistle was designed to instruct him how to deal with false teachers, how to conduct public worship, and to urge him to cultivate all those qualities which would better equip him for the discharge of his important duties.
OUTLINE OF THE FIRST EPISTLE TO TIMOTHY
The Church and Its Ministry
THE CHARGE CONCERNING THE CHURCH
“A GOOD MINISTER OF JESUS CHRIST,”
His Bearing toward Elders and Widows
10. When are elders to be accounted worthy of double honor?
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CHURCH
Let the elders who perform the duties of their office well be considered doubly worthy of honor [and of adequate financial support], especially those who labor faithfully in preaching and teaching.
For the Scripture says, You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain, and again, The laborer is worthy of his hire. [Deu_25:4; Luk_10:7]
Listen to no accusation [presented before a judge] against an elder unless it is confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses. [Deu_19:15]
As for those who are guilty and persist in sin, rebuke and admonish them in the presence of all, so that the rest may be warned and stand in wholesome awe and fear.
I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the chosen angels that you guard and keep [these rules] without personal prejudice or favor, doing nothing from partiality.
Do not be in a hurry in the laying on of hands [giving the sanction of the church too hastily in reinstating expelled offenders or in ordination in questionable cases], nor share or participate in another man’s sins; keep yourself pure.
Drink water no longer exclusively, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.
The sins of some men are conspicuous (openly evident to all eyes), going before them to the judgment [seat] and proclaiming their sentence in advance; but the sins of others appear later [following the offender to the bar of judgment and coming into view there].
So also, good deeds are evident and conspicuous, and even when they are not, they cannot remain hidden [indefinitely].
Comments by
F.B.Meyer
on
1 Timothy 5:17-25
IMPARTIAL AND KINDLY SUPERVISION
A man of years was always to be honored, and if he were called to rule in the church, he was to be treated with double honor; but none should be appointed to that sacred office hastily or with partiality. Purity, gravity, and abstinence from alcohol were prime requisites in a Christian minister then, as they are now. It is clear from 1Ti_5:23 that the Apostles and their helpers practiced total abstinence, or there had been no need for that special injunction to Timothy.
It is clear also from 1Ti_5:17-18 that the early Church was encouraged to support its ministers. The Apostle quotes the words of our Lord, to maintain this contention, Mat_10:10; Luk_10:7. The character of a minister might not be lightly aspersed. If anything had to be said, the informant must lodge his complaint in the presence of witnesses, who could be witnesses against him, if the charge were found to be baseless and frivolous. But public wrongs must be met by public rebuke that any suspicion of favoritism might be disarmed. No man, however, should be called to the sacred and responsible position of presbyter, unless he had been tested and approved. In forming judgments of the fitness of men for office, we must not judge wholly by appearance-good or bad, 1Ti_5:24-25
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