Introduction to

1 Timothy

Author

The first word of the letter follows the custom of the day by naming its author: “Paul” (1:1). Acts 16 tells of the beginning of his association with Timothy, whom Acts mentions elsewhere (Acts 17:14–15; 18:5; 19:22; 20:4). Paul names Timothy in all of his letters except Galatians, Ephesians, and Titus. The pair worked in close and fruitful connection for well over a decade, and 1 Timothy was likely written near the end of that era.

In the last two centuries some scholars have doubted Paul’s authorship of 1 Timothy (along with 2 Timothy and Titus; see Introduction: Author of those letters). Some allege that the words and style of 1 Timothy are different from that of other known Pauline letters. They claim that 1 Timothy does not fit into the historical order of Paul’s life, or they assert that the setting, which the author of 1 Timothy assumes and many of the letter’s details, are fictitious.

Others question the factual basis and wisdom of this skepticism. How did the church for some 1,800 years fail to detect a so-called forgery? Available evidence suggests that early Christians rejected letters falsely claiming to be apostolic; their commonsense policy was an application of 2 Thess 2:2.

Any claim made in a biblical document can be doubted, including Paul’s authorship of 1 Timothy. Yet plausible responses have been advanced to answer skeptical queries. Perhaps most important, the strong autobiographical tone (beginning with the first word) underlying much that is found in 1 Timothy justifies optimism that the apostle Paul was its author, whether directly or with the assistance of a scribe. The study notes on this letter’s features and teachings assume that the letter originated with Paul.

Recipient

As the opening words indicate (1:2), Paul writes to Timothy, a native of Lystra (in modern Turkey). Perhaps it was there that Paul led Timothy to Christian faith, as the apostle calls him his “true son in the faith” (1:2; see note there). Timothy was called “a disciple” and was admired by fellow believers when Paul called him to join him and Silas on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:1–2). Since Timothy’s mother was Jewish (Acts 16:1; his father was not), it was both ethical and expedient to have him circumcised to avoid offending Jewish sensibilities while engaging in missionary work among them (Acts 16:3).

Timothy was party to the evangelization of Macedonia and Achaia (Acts 17:14–15; 18:5) and was present for much of Paul’s Ephesian ministry (Acts 19:22). He was with Paul on travels between various sites of Paul’s church-planting activity, accompanying him, e.g., from Ephesus north to Macedonia and then back southward to Asia Minor on Paul’s return to Jerusalem with a monetary collection for the Judean churches (Acts 20:1–6). Timothy was with Paul in the Roman imprisonment from which Paul wrote the Prison Letters (Phil 1:1; Col 1:1; Phlm 1).

Timothy’s association with Paul continued after the apostle’s release (following Acts 28). At Paul’s direction Timothy became a resident in Ephesus and served in a central church leadership role (1 Tim 1:3) that was similar to that of Titus (Titus 1:5). At the end of Paul’s second Roman imprisonment, Paul asked Timothy to visit him (2 Tim 4:9, 21). Timothy himself experienced imprisonment and release (Heb 13:23). While Timothy was not an apostle in the sense that Paul and others were, the events he witnessed and the teaching he received from the apostolic generation mark him as a key leader and as a primary bridge between the apostolic and subsequent periods.

Date, Place of Composition, and Destination

There are no definite clues indicating when Paul wrote 1 Timothy, but little in this letter hinges on knowing the exact year it was written. Paul did not involve Timothy in his work until ca. AD 51, so 1 Timothy must have been written after that. A few have proposed that Paul wrote it shortly after he wrote 1 Corinthians. During this time Paul traveled into Macedonia (1 Cor 16:5; cf. 1 Tim 1:3). Others trace the letter to the time after Paul’s first Roman imprisonment (ca. AD 60–62) and subsequent release. There is no reason why Paul could not have struck out for Macedonia then, too, and that time frame seems the most plausible. Paul writes regarding Timothy’s pastoral oversight of churches in and around Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3).

Acts 19 portrays Ephesus as robustly venerating the occult and broadly opposing the gospel’s progress. A few years later Paul foresaw trouble there arising in the form of treacherous leaders who would pervert the truth and subvert the churches by forming enclaves of disciples who would affirm aberrant teachings (Acts 20:29–30). 1 Timothy warns against just such tendencies and developments. It also urges Timothy to vigilance and to the grueling, exacting labor of ministry practiced by Paul himself (Acts 20:31, 35).

Challenges

Contemporary scholarship continues to scrutinize 1 Timothy’s authorship, its historical and social setting, its overall teaching in conjunction (and sometimes in contrast) with 2 Timothy and Titus, its doctrines of Christ and salvation, its relation to known Pauline letters, and its implications for topics like ethics, ministry, and the doctrine of the church generally. Other perennial issues include Paul’s teaching on women in ministry (2:9–15) and the opponents about whom Paul warns Timothy from start (1:3) to finish (6:20–21).

Purpose

This letter is not a formal treatise with a single explicit thesis. The tone and substance are both friendly and profoundly pastoral. We can infer that Paul writes to keep Timothy stable and confident in his current location, to exhort him to battle valiantly for gospel truth in keeping with his calling (1:18), to preserve decorum in public worship (ch. 2), and to select good pastors and deacons (3:1–13). In general, Paul aims to give Timothy counsel and tools that will promote godly conduct among members of “God’s household” (3:15), the church. Paul also deals with more specific and local aims, like dealing with end-times circumstances (ch. 4) and caring properly for widows, the elderly, and slaves (5:1—6:2a).

Genre

1 Timothy is undoubtedly a letter, as indicated by its opening and closing. It is written not to a group but to Timothy personally, whom Paul addresses by name three times (1:2, 18; 6:20). In the Greek there are some 41 second-person singular verb forms and 14 second-person singular pronouns. Grammatically and rhetorically, this is a missive from one named individual to another. While the form is a conventional Hellenistic letter, an unusual and highly significant feature is the author’s claim to be “an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope” (1:1). For Christian readers, this lends a divine dimension and authority to the discourse that transcend any conventional genre.

Paul wrote with a particular situation in mind, but the letter is by no means limited in its implications to the person and situation Paul addressed. Paul customarily wrote while conscious of his apostolic status and the authority of his teaching for “all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 1:2; see 1 Cor 4:17; 7:17). Paul urges Timothy to affirm doctrines and practices that were universal among early Christian congregations. God’s people have hallowed these same doctrines and practices in all generations since.

Canonicity

The “canon” is the collection of writings found in the Bible. Early Christian writings like 1 and 2 Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp quote from, allude to, or reverberate in 1 Timothy. Writers from later generations like Irenaeus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, and Eusebius clearly regarded 1 Timothy (along with 2 Timothy and Titus) as Pauline and, in that sense, canonical. Writers who seem to have ignored or looked askance at 1 Timothy (e.g., Tatian, Marcion) were not widely received and regarded in their day. In general, including 1 Timothy in modern Bibles reflects the most widespread ancient conviction that it is as much a Pauline production as his other 12 letters in the canon.

Themes and Theology

While statistics alone do not tell everything, the dozen most frequently repeated significant words in 1 Timothy (with their number of occurrences) are God (22), faith (19), Christ (15), Jesus (14), faithful (11), person (10), woman or wife (9), teaching (8), godliness (8), word (8), widow (8), and truth (6). Paul is preoccupied with God, Jesus the Christ, and their implications for confessing Christians with regard to their everyday lives and their relations with others. Paul also models a mentoring tie to Timothy, impressing on him the high standards required for church leaders (3:1–3). It is important to avoid needlessly contentious or combative behavior (1:4; 4:3, 7; 6:4–5). However, at times conflict is unavoidable. Money should be used in godly ways (6:5–10, 17–19). Fidelity to apostolic doctrine and the gospel is nonnegotiable (1:10b–11; 2:5–7; 4:6, 11, 16). Pastoral leadership, like all Christian expression and action, should be suffused with love (1:5; 4:12; 6:11).

Outline

I. Paul’s Greeting (1:1–2)

II. Rallying Timothy’s Resolve (1:3–20)

A. Timothy Charged to Oppose False Teachers (1:3–11)

B. The Lord’s Grace to Paul (1:12–17)

C. The Charge to Timothy Renewed (1:18–20)

III. Order in Church and Life (2:1—6:2a)

A. Instructions on Worship (2:1–15)

B. Qualifications for Overseers and Deacons (3:1–13)

C. Reasons for Paul’s Instructions (3:14—4:16)

D. Widows, Elders, and Slaves (5:1—6:2a)

IV. Final Clarification and Exhortation (6:2b–21)

A. False Teachers and the Love of Money (6:2b–10)

B. Final Charge to Timothy (6:11–21)