The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Timothy — Section 67

~o that there is nothing strange in th11,t of in an efficient ancl exemplary mnnner raiee<I the deaooness being coupled with it. The a m1m to high e•timation in the Church, and return in ver. 12 to the male deacon is in so gave him confidence in confessing tho favour of understanding" the women" of the faith of Jeeus Christ both by word and deed. deaoonesl!08, as showing that the subject of Gain to themselves (,r,p,,rornvvTa.,); acquire the diaoonate was not done with. Chry- by purchase or otherwise. Frequent in the sostom (who says, "He is speaking of those LXX.; but only elsewhere in the New who hold the rank of dee.oonesses ") and all Testament in Acts xx. 28. Boldneaa ( 1ra~~11- the ancient oommentators, and De Wette, a-lav); very common in the New Testament Wiesinger, Wordsworth, Alford, and Ellicott (comp. Aote iv. 13, 29, 31; Eph. vi. 19; among the modems, so understand it (see Phil. i. 20, et.c.), where it is especially applied following notes). Grave (a-,µv,h; see ver. 8, to boldness in preaching the gospel of Christ. uote). Not slanderers (µ¾, /iu1/36>.ovs, corre- This seems to imply tl.mt St. Paul contem- sponding to the µ7) li,>.6')'ovs of ver_ 8). This plated preaching as a part of the dee.con's use of ouf/3oll.os, which is the cle.ssiaal one, work. We know that Philip the dee.con and is peculiar in the New Testament to the Stephen the deacon were both preachers. pastoral Epistles (see 2 Tim. iii. 3; Titus ii Ver. 14:.-To oome unto thee; to Ephesus, 3). Temperate ( "'l</>G),.iovs ; see ver. 2, note). where Timothy wu (ob. i. 3). It corresponds here to the µ1/ oYvq, ,roll.ll.cp 1rpotr<Xo'"u of ver. 8. Faithful in all things Ver. 15.-Men olll}ht to beha'De themae1.vea (.,..,,-.,.,h Iv ,raa-w). This seems to reler for thou oughtest to behave thyself, A. V. To specially to their being the almoners of the behave thyself (a.va.o-Tp•<t>•o-Ba.,); variously Churoh charities, and so favours the explana- rendered, both in the A.V. and the R.V., ''to tion of "women" as meaning deaconesses. he.ve one's conversation," "to live," "to pass n,.,-.,-6, means especially "trusty" (Matt. ( one's time)," "to be used" (Heh. x. 33 J. xxiv. 45; nv. 21; Luke xii. 42; xvi 10, It is literally "to go up and down " a given et.c.). place, " backwards and forwards," hence "to Ver. 12.-Deaco1UI for the ~ A.V.; dwell in it." The substantive d.va.a-Tpo</>-li, in huabanda for the husbanth, A. V. XUBbands the thirteen places where ii occurs in the of one wife (see above, ver. 2, note). Ruling, New Test&ment. is always rendered "con- etc. (,rpoHT'Taµ,vo,); literally, being at the versation" in the A.V.; in the R.V., "man- /u,ad of, presiding oi,er (see ver. 4, note). In ner of life," "life," "issue of life,'' "manner Rom. xii 8 and l Thess. v. 12 it is applied to of living," "behaviour,'' "living." It is a the spiritna.l ntler, the ,.,.[.,-,ccn-os or 1rp•a-/3v- favourite word in the two Epistles of St. .,..pos, of the Church. Elsewhere only in the Peter, where it occurs eight times. .The hoUBe of God. This phrase here denotes, as pastoral Epistles ( above, ven. 4 and 5 ; <:11. it is explained in the following words, the v. 17; TitUB iii 8, 14). Their own hoUBea Church on earth. So Heh. iii. 6, "Christ as (above, ver. 5). "Their own" ie in contrast a Son over hie house; whose house e.re we,'' t.o " God', house." where the reference is to Numb. xii. 7, "My Ver. 13.-Serr,ed well a, deaoom for med servant Moses . . . ia faithful in all mine the office of a deacon well, A.V.; gain to house." The Churoh of the living God. Here themsel-oe, a good 8tanding for purchase t-0 is ag&in a somewhat remarkable resemblance tliemBel'Des a good degree, A. V. Served . . . to the phraseology of the Epistle to the u deaooD.S (li,a.,cov/ia-rwru); e.s in ver.10. In Hebrews," Ye are come unto Mount Zion, this technical sense only found in these two and unto the city of the living God, . . . to pe.ssages; which well agrees with the late the general assembly and Church of the date of this Epistle, when the technical sense Firetbom " (Heh. xii. 22, 23). Howevrr, of li,cucovor was established. Gain to them- the phraseology is not peculiar to the Epistle selves e. good st!I.Ilclillg. The sense of the to the Hebrews. Thus we read in 2 Cor. vi. pa811e.ge depends a good deal upon the_ exact J 6 "Ye are the temple of the living God." mee.ning of /3a.6µ6r. In 1 Sam. v. 4, 5, 1n the The phre.se, "the living God," occurs seven LXX., {3o.6µ6r is the rendering of ]1;~!:l times in St. Paul's Epistles, and four times (rendered at8pwv in Ezek. iL 3; x. 4), a some- in the Epistle to the Hu brews. It occur& what unu•ual word for a "threshold." In three times in the Gospels, once in the Acts t Kings xx. ~. 10, 11, it is the rendering of of the Apostles, and once in th1> Revelation. ,7';,p_i::i, "a degree on the sun-diul." This Here it is used by St. Paul to enhance the latter IIE:tlms to suit better the verb 1r,p,1ro,- obligation to II holy and blameless walk in oiivra,, they gi.iu or acquire, which sugge~ts those who have the oversight of hie Church. the idea of advanrem.ent. It does not follow The pillar and ground of the truth. 8ome that St. Paul bad in his mind their advance- apply these wordK to Timothy himself (Gre- ment from tbt> "inferior office" to "the gory of Nyssa, Gregory Ne.zianzen, Basil, l,igher mini~tries in the Church" (Ordination and others cited by A Iford), after the analo~y Service); he 1n&y merely have meant to say of GaL ii 9, where Jamea, Cephe.8, and John tt...t the diicliarg1: of ihe dutit:e of 11, dee.con aro aid to be " pillars" ( a-Tv>,.o, ). 11,nd Bev. CB, W. 1-16.] THE FIRST EPISTLE TO TIMOTHY. 5/i