First Epistle to Timothy, Chapter 3
1 Timothy 3 RSV - Revised Standard VersionChapter 3 of 1 Timothy—Revised Standard Version (RSV)
- ¶ The saying is sure: If any one aspires to the office of bishop, he desires a noble task.
- Now a bishop must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, dignified, hospitable, an apt teacher,
- no drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and no lover of money.
- He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way;
- for if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how can he care for God’s church?
- He must not be a recent convert, or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil;[a]
- moreover he must be well thought of by outsiders, or he may fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.[b]
- ¶ Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for gain;
- they must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.
- And let them also be tested first; then if they prove themselves blameless let them serve as deacons.
- The women likewise must be serious, no slanderers, but temperate, faithful in all things.
- Let deacons be the husband of one wife, and let them manage their children and their households well;
- for those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
- ¶ I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so that,
- if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth.
- Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion:
¶ He[c] was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated[d] in the Spirit,
seen by angels,
preached among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory.
FOOTNOTES
- ^ Or slanderer
- ^ Or slanderer
- ^ Greek Who; other ancient authorities read God;others, Which
- ^ Or justified
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