1 Timothy 3
3
Qualifications for Overseers
1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to overseer's position, he desires a good work. 2 Therefore, the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, competent in teaching, 3 not given to wine, not violent, but gentle, peaceable, not loving money, 4 managing his* own household well, keeping his children in disciplined submission with all dignity 5 (but if anyone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), 6 not a new convert, lest he become inflated with arrogance and fall into the condemnation that befell the devil.* 7 Furthermore, he must have a good testimony with those outside, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the trap of the devil.
Qualifications for Deacons
8 Deacons, likewise, must be dignified, not double-tongued, not indulging in much wine, not fond of ill-gotten gains, 9 holding the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let these also be tested first; then let them serve if they are blameless. 11 Women, likewise, must be dignified, not slanderous, sober-minded, faithful in all things. 12 Deacons must be husbands of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. 13 For those who have served well acquire a good standing for themselves and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
The Mystery of Godliness
14 I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you soon. 15 But if I am delayed, I am writing so that you may know how one ought to conduct himself* in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth. 16 And undeniably great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was proclaimed among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.
Notes
4 Greek the . Here, the Greek definite article functions pronominally, corresponding contextually to the English possessive his. So also v. 5
6 Greek condemnation of the devil
15 Or oneself, as the clause is understood in a generic sense
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Copyright © 2026 Michael Adeyemi Adegbola. This Scripture text is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).
