"This letter also reminds Timothy of the prophetic character of his office (1:12-20) and encourages him in his exercise of it (4:6-16). The central passage of the letter (3:14-16) expresses the principal motive that should guide the conduct of Timothy-preservation of the purity of the church's doctrine against false teaching. On this same note the letter concludes (6:20-21)."
"This letter also reminds Timothy of the prophetic character of his office."
1 Timothy 1:12-20
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
12 I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he considered me trustworthy in appointing me to the ministry. 13 I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and an arrogant man, but I have been mercifully treated because I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief. 14 Indeed, the grace of our Lord has been abundant, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 15 This saying is trustworthy[a] and deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of these I am the foremost. 16 But for that reason I was mercifully treated, so that in me, as the foremost, Christ Jesus might display all his patience as an example for those who would come to believe in him for everlasting life. 17 To the king of ages,[b] incorruptible, invisible, the only God, honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
Responsibility of Timothy.[c]
18 I entrust this charge to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophetic words once spoken about you.[d] Through them may you fight a good fight 19 by having faith and a good conscience. Some, by rejecting conscience, have made a shipwreck of their faith, 20 among them Hymenaeus[e] and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.
Footnotes
1:15 This saying is trustworthy: this phrase regularly introduces in the Pastorals a basic truth of early Christian faith; cf. 1 Tm 3:1; 4:9; 2 Tm 2:11; Ti 3:8.
1:17 King of ages: through Semitic influence, the Greek expression could mean “everlasting king”; it could also mean “king of the universe.”
1:18–20 Timothy is to be mindful of his calling, which is here compared to the way Barnabas and Saul were designated by Christ as prophets for missionary service; cf. Acts 13:1–3. Such is probably the sense of the allusion to the prophetic words (1 Tm 1:18). His task is not to yield, whether in doctrine or in conduct, to erroneous opinions, taking warning from what has already happened at Ephesus in the case of Hymenaeus and Alexander (1 Tm 1:19–20).
1:18 The prophetic words once spoken about you: the Greek may also be translated, “the prophecies that led (me) to you.” It probably refers to testimonies given by charismatic figures in the Christian communities. Fight a good fight: this translation preserves the play on words in Greek. The Greek terms imply a lengthy engagement in battle and might well be translated “wage a good campaign.”
1:20 Hymenaeus: mentioned in 2 Tm 2:17 as saying that the resurrection has already taken place (in baptism). Alexander: probably the Alexander mentioned in 2 Tm 4:14 as the coppersmith who “did me a great deal of harm.” Whom I have handed over to Satan: the same terms are used in the condemnation of the incestuous man in 1 Cor 5:5.
"and encourages him in his exercise of it (4:6-16)."
1 Timothy 4:6-16
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Counsel to Timothy.
6 [a]If you will give these instructions to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound teaching you have followed. 7 Avoid profane and silly myths. Train yourself for devotion, 8 for, while physical training is of limited value, devotion is valuable in every respect, since it holds a promise of life both for the present and for the future. 9 This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance. 10 For this we toil and struggle,[b] because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the savior of all, especially of those who believe.
11 [c]Command and teach these things. 12 Let no one have contempt for your youth,[d] but set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity. 13 Until I arrive, attend to the reading,[e] exhortation, and teaching. 14 Do not neglect the gift you have, which was conferred on you through the prophetic word[f] with the imposition of hands of the presbyterate. 15 Be diligent in these matters, be absorbed in them, so that your progress may be evident to everyone. 16 Attend to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in both tasks, for by doing so you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.
Footnotes
4:6–10 Timothy is urged to be faithful, both in his teaching and in his own life, as he looks only to God for salvation.
4:10 Struggle: other manuscripts and patristic witnesses read “suffer reproach.”
4:11–16 Timothy is urged to preach and teach with confidence, relying on the gifts and the mission that God has bestowed on him.
4:12 Youth: some commentators find this reference a sign of pseudepigraphy. Timothy had joined Paul as a missionary already in A.D. 49, some fifteen years before the earliest supposed date of composition.
4:13 Reading: the Greek word refers to private or public reading. Here, it probably designates the public reading of scripture in the Christian assembly.
4:14 Prophetic word: this may mean the utterance of a Christian prophet designating the candidate or a prayer of blessing accompanying the rite. Imposition of hands: this gesture was used in the Old Testament to signify the transmission of authority from Moses to Joshua (Nm 27:18–23; Dt 34:9). The early Christian community used it as a symbol of installation into an office: the Seven (Acts 6:6) and Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:3). Of the presbyterate: this would mean that each member of the college of presbyters imposed hands and appears to contradict 2 Tm 1:6, in which Paul says that he imposed hands on Timothy. This latter text, however, does not exclude participation by others in the rite. Some prefer to translate “for the presbyterate,” and thus understand it to designate the office into which Timothy was installed rather than the agents who installed him.
"The central passage of the letter (3:14-16) expresses the principal motive that should guide the conduct of Timothy-preservation of the purity of the church's doctrine against false teaching."
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
14 I am writing you about these matters, although I hope to visit you soon. 15 But if I should be delayed, you should know how to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth. 16 Undeniably great is the mystery of devotion,
Who[a] was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated in the spirit,
seen by angels,
proclaimed to the Gentiles,
believed in throughout the world,
taken up in glory.
Footnotes
3:16 Who: the reference is to Christ, who is himself “the mystery of our devotion.” Some predominantly Western manuscripts read “which,” harmonizing the gender of the pronoun with that of the Greek word for mystery; many later (eighth/ninth century on), predominantly Byzantine manuscripts read “God,” possibly for theological reasons.
"On this same note the letter concludes
(6:20-21)."
1 Timothy 6:20-21
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
VI. Final Recommendation and Warning[a]
20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you. Avoid profane babbling and the absurdities of so-called knowledge. 21 By professing it, some people have deviated from the faith.
Grace be with all of you.
Footnotes
6:20–21 A final solemn warning against the heretical teachers, with what seems to be a specific reference to gnosticism, the great rival and enemy of the church for two centuries and more (the Greek word for “knowledge” is gnōsis). If gnosticism is being referred to here, it is probable that the warnings against “speculations” and “myths and genealogies” (cf. especially 1 Tm 1:4; Ti 3:9) involve allusions to that same kind of heresy. Characteristic of the various gnostic systems of speculation was an elaborate mythology of innumerable superhuman intermediaries, on a descending scale (“genealogies”), between God and the world. Thus would be explained the emphasis upon Christ’s being the one mediator (as in 1 Tm 2:5). Although fully developed gnosticism belonged to the second and later centuries, there are signs that incipient forms of it belonged to Paul’s own period.
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