1 Timothy 1

Introduction

First Timothy chapter 1 opens Paul's first letter to his young protege Timothy, who has been left behind in Ephesus to deal with a growing problem of false teaching. The chapter sets the tone for the entire letter: it is an urgent, personal charge from an aging apostle to his spiritual son, combining doctrinal instruction with pastoral warmth. Paul writes with the authority of one who was commissioned by direct command of God and Christ Jesus, and his opening words immediately pivot from greeting to the central crisis — certain people in the Ephesian church have turned away from sound teaching and are promoting speculative myths and genealogies rather than the faithful stewardship of God's work.

The chapter moves through five natural sections: Paul's greeting (vv. 1-2), a warning against false teachers in Ephesus (vv. 3-7), a discussion of the proper use of the law (vv. 8-11), Paul's deeply personal testimony of grace (vv. 12-17), and a concluding charge to Timothy to fight the good fight of faith (vv. 18-20). The theological heart of the chapter is verse 15 — one of the Pastoral Epistles' five "trustworthy sayings" — which declares that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Paul's own conversion from violent persecutor to apostle serves as the supreme illustration of this truth, and his doxology in verse 17 erupts from that personal experience of mercy. The chapter thus weaves together the letter's major concerns: sound doctrine, the danger of false teaching, the gospel of grace, and the personal responsibility of church leaders.

Paul's Greeting (vv. 1-2)

Notes

• ἀπόστολος ("apostle") — Paul identifies himself not merely as a teacher or elder but as an apostolos, "one sent with authority." This is important in the context of the letter because Paul is about to ask Timothy to confront false teachers; Timothy's authority derives from the one who sent him, and Paul's authority derives from the one who sent Paul.

• κατ᾽ ἐπιταγὴν ("by command") — The word ἐπιταγή is a strong term denoting an official order or decree, not a mere request. Paul's apostleship is not self-appointed or conferred by any human council; it is a direct commission. The same word appears in Titus 1:3, where Paul's preaching is "by the command of God our Savior." This language elevates the letter from personal correspondence to something carrying divine authority.

• Σωτῆρος ("Savior") — Paul applies the title "Savior" to God the Father in verse 1, which is somewhat unusual in his letters outside the Pastoral Epistles. In the wider Greco-Roman world, Sōtēr was a title regularly bestowed on emperors and benefactors. Paul's use of it for God directly challenges the imperial cult: the true Savior is not Caesar but the God of Israel. Paul then calls Christ Jesus "our hope" — a striking title found only here in the New Testament. Christ is not merely the one who gives hope; He is Himself the content and ground of that hope.

• γνησίῳ τέκνῳ ἐν πίστει ("genuine child in the faith") — The adjective gnēsios means "legitimately born, genuine," the same word used of Titus in Titus 1:4. Timothy is Paul's spiritual son — not by biology but by conversion and discipleship. The phrase en pistei ("in faith") defines the sphere of this father-son relationship: it is a bond forged by shared faith in the gospel.

• The greeting includes "mercy" (ἔλεος) alongside the more standard "grace and peace" — a feature found in Paul's letters to Timothy (2 Timothy 1:2) but not in his letters to churches. The addition of "mercy" may reflect the particularly personal and pastoral nature of the correspondence, and it anticipates the theme of divine mercy that will dominate Paul's autobiographical testimony later in the chapter (vv. 13, 16).

Warning Against False Teachers (vv. 3-7)

Notes

• ἑτεροδιδασκαλεῖν ("to teach different doctrine") — This compound verb appears only in the Pastoral Epistles (here and 1 Timothy 6:3). It is formed from heteros ("other, different") and didaskalein ("to teach"). The word does not merely mean "to teach wrongly" but "to teach something different" — a different gospel, a different doctrine from what Paul and the apostles delivered. The very formation of the word assumes there is a standard body of teaching from which these teachers have deviated. I translated it as "teach different doctrine" rather than "teach false doctrines" (BSB) to preserve the force of the Greek compound, which emphasizes the difference from apostolic teaching rather than labeling it as false in the abstract.

• μύθοις καὶ γενεαλογίαις ἀπεράντοις ("myths and endless genealogies") — The word μῦθος in the Pastoral Epistles refers to speculative religious tales or fabricated traditions, not myths in the modern literary sense. The "genealogies" are likely elaborate tracings of ancestry or angelic lineages drawn from Jewish interpretive traditions. The adjective ἀπέραντος ("endless, interminable") appears only here in the New Testament and underscores the pointless, never-ending character of these speculations. The same warning appears in Titus 1:14 ("Jewish myths") and Titus 3:9 ("foolish controversies and genealogies").

• οἰκονομίαν Θεοῦ τὴν ἐν πίστει ("God's stewardship/plan that is by faith") — The word οἰκονομία can mean either "stewardship" (the task of managing God's household, as in 1 Corinthians 9:17) or "plan/arrangement" (God's saving plan or economy). Some manuscripts read οἰκοδομίαν ("edification, building up") instead, which would yield "the building up of God which is by faith." The reading oikonomian is better attested and more likely original. I translated it as "God's plan of salvation" to capture the sense that these myths and genealogies distract from the divine arrangement for saving humanity — the gospel received through faith.

• τέλος τῆς παραγγελίας ("the goal of the charge") — The word τέλος means "end, goal, purpose" — not "termination" but "aim." The παραγγελία ("charge, command, instruction") is a military term for an order passed down through the ranks. Paul's charge to Timothy — and through Timothy to the Ephesian church — is not mere rule-keeping. Its ultimate aim is love. This is a powerful corrective: the false teachers produce speculation, but sound teaching produces love.

• The three sources of this love — καθαρᾶς καρδίας ("pure heart"), συνειδήσεως ἀγαθῆς ("good conscience"), and πίστεως ἀνυποκρίτου ("unhypocritical faith") — form a comprehensive picture of inner integrity. The adjective ἀνυπόκριτος literally means "without hypocrisy" (from a- plus hypokrisis, "play-acting"). The false teachers lack all three: their hearts are impure (driven by ego), their consciences are compromised (v. 19), and their faith is theatrical rather than genuine.

• ἀστοχήσαντες ("having missed the mark") — From ἀστοχέω, a verb built from a- (privative) and stochos ("target, mark"). The imagery is of an archer who aims but misses. These teachers have not merely wandered aimlessly; they aimed at the goal (love, conscience, faith) and failed to hit it. The same verb recurs in 1 Timothy 6:21 and 2 Timothy 2:18.

• νομοδιδάσκαλοι ("law-teachers") — This compound noun appears only three times in the New Testament (here, Luke 5:17, Acts 5:34). In Luke and Acts it describes legitimate Jewish teachers of the Torah. Here Paul uses it ironically: these people want to be Torah experts, but they understand neither the content of what they say nor the subjects they pronounce upon so confidently. Their ambition exceeds their comprehension.

The Proper Use of the Law (vv. 8-11)

Notes

• καλὸς ὁ νόμος ("the law is good") — Paul affirms the goodness of the Mosaic law, using the adjective kalos ("good, noble, beautiful") rather than agathos ("morally good"). This echoes Romans 7:12, 16 where Paul declares the law "holy, righteous, and good." The issue is never whether the law itself is defective but whether it is used properly. The false teachers in Ephesus were misusing the law as a platform for speculation rather than employing it for its divinely intended purpose.

• νομίμως ("lawfully/legitimately") — There is a deliberate wordplay: the nomos ("law") must be used nomimōs ("lawfully"). This play on words, difficult to reproduce in English, emphasizes that the law has a proper sphere of application. I translated it as "lawfully" to preserve the English wordplay with "law," though "legitimately" (BSB) also captures the sense.

• δικαίῳ νόμος οὐ κεῖται ("the law is not laid down for the righteous") — The verb κεῖμαι ("to lie, to be laid down, to be appointed") is used here in a legal sense: the law is "enacted" or "established" not for the person who is already righteous but for the person who violates it. This does not mean the righteous person has no relationship to the law, but that the law's restraining and convicting function targets those who transgress it.

• The vice list in verses 9-10 is carefully structured. The first six terms come in three pairs: "lawless and rebellious," "ungodly and sinners," "unholy and profane." These pairs broadly correspond to violations of the first table of the Ten Commandments (duties toward God). Then the list shifts to specific sins that roughly follow the second table (duties toward others): πατρολῴαις καὶ μητρολῴαις ("those who strike fathers and mothers") corresponds to the fifth commandment (honor your parents); "murderers" to the sixth; "sexually immoral" and "men who practice homosexuality" to the seventh; "slave traders" to the eighth (stealing persons); "liars" and "perjurers" to the ninth (false witness). This Decalogue structure suggests that Paul is deliberately showing how the law functions: it identifies and condemns specific transgressions.

• ἀρσενοκοίταις ("men who lie with men") — This compound noun is formed from ἄρσην ("male") and κοίτη ("bed," used euphemistically for sexual intercourse). The word almost certainly derives from the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) translation of Leviticus 18:22 and Leviticus 20:13, which prohibit a man (arsēn) lying in the "bed" (koitē) of a woman with another male. Paul appears to have coined or adopted this compound to describe men who engage in sexual intercourse with other men. The word also appears in 1 Corinthians 6:9. I translated it as "men who practice homosexuality" to reflect the male-specific nature of the Greek compound.

• ἀνδραποδισταῖς ("slave traders/kidnappers") — From andrapodon ("slave," literally "man-footed," i.e., a human taken as chattel). An andrapodistēs was someone who kidnapped free persons to sell them into slavery, or who traded in slaves. This was considered one of the most heinous crimes in the ancient world, punishable by death under both Roman and Jewish law. The eighth commandment ("You shall not steal") was understood in Jewish tradition to prohibit above all the stealing of persons (cf. Exodus 21:16; Deuteronomy 24:7).

• ὑγιαινούσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ ("healthy/sound teaching") — This medical metaphor is a hallmark of the Pastoral Epistles (see also 1 Timothy 6:3; 2 Timothy 1:13; 2 Timothy 4:3; Titus 1:9; Titus 2:1). The verb ὑγιαίνω means "to be in good health" (from the same root as English "hygiene"). Sound doctrine is not just correct; it is health-giving. False doctrine, by contrast, is a disease (2 Timothy 2:17, where Paul compares it to gangrene).

• τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς δόξης τοῦ μακαρίου Θεοῦ ("the gospel of the glory of the blessed God") — The genitive construction "of the glory" is unusual. It could mean the gospel that reveals God's glory, or the gospel that comes from the glorious God. I retained the more literal rendering "the gospel of the glory" because it preserves the weight of the Greek: the gospel is not merely a message about God but an unveiling of His radiant glory. The adjective μακάριος ("blessed, happy") applied to God is rare in the New Testament, appearing only here and in 1 Timothy 6:15. It presents God as the supremely happy, self-sufficient Being — the source of all blessedness.

Interpretations

• The meaning of arsenokoitais. The translation and interpretation of this word is among the most debated questions in contemporary biblical scholarship. The traditional interpretation, held across nearly all Christian traditions until the late 20th century, understands the word as a broad condemnation of male homosexual intercourse, based on its Levitical background. Some modern scholars have proposed narrower readings: that arsenokoitēs refers specifically to exploitative sexual practices (such as pederasty, prostitution, or the sexual exploitation of slaves) rather than to all same-sex relationships, including consensual adult partnerships. Others argue that the Levitical echo makes the term comprehensive — it condemns the act itself regardless of the social context. The debate hinges partly on whether a compound word's meaning is determined by its component parts (arsēn + koitē) or by its usage in context, and partly on broader hermeneutical questions about how Old Testament moral categories apply in the New Testament era. The parallel in 1 Corinthians 6:9, where arsenokoitai appears alongside μαλακοί ("soft ones," often understood as the passive partner in male intercourse), has been interpreted as either confirming the broad reading or as evidence of a specific cultural practice.

• The law's purpose and the Christian. Paul's statement that "the law is not laid down for the righteous" (v. 9) raises questions about the ongoing role of the Mosaic law in the Christian life. Reformed theology traditionally distinguishes three uses of the law: the usus politicus (restraining evil in society), the usus elenchticus (convicting of sin and driving to Christ), and the usus didacticus or "third use" (guiding the believer in righteous living). Lutheran theology tends to emphasize the first two uses, especially the second, and is more cautious about the third use — arguing that the law's primary function for Christians is to reveal sin and point to grace. Dispensational theology argues that believers are not under the Mosaic law at all but under the "law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2; 1 Corinthians 9:21), and that Paul here confirms the law's purpose is to restrain and convict the ungodly, not to serve as a code of conduct for the justified. New Covenant theology similarly holds that the Mosaic law as a covenant has been fulfilled and replaced, while its moral principles are restated in the New Covenant.

Paul's Testimony of Grace (vv. 12-17)

Notes

• ἐνδυναμώσαντί με ("the one who strengthened me") — The verb ἐνδυναμόω means "to fill with power, to strengthen." It is the same verb Paul uses in Philippians 4:13 ("I can do all things through him who strengthens me"). Paul's gratitude is directed not to an abstract force but to a person — Christ Jesus — who personally empowered him for ministry. The aorist participle suggests a definitive act of empowerment, likely referring to Paul's conversion and commissioning on the Damascus road.

• βλάσφημον καὶ διώκτην καὶ ὑβριστήν ("a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor") — Paul layers three devastating self-descriptions. βλάσφημος ("blasphemer") — he had spoken against Christ and His followers. διώκτης ("persecutor") — this word appears only here in the New Testament; Paul actively hunted down Christians (cf. Acts 8:3; Acts 9:1-2; Galatians 1:13). ὑβριστής ("violent aggressor, insolent man") — from hybris, this describes someone who inflicts wanton harm and humiliation on others, taking pleasure in it. The word appears elsewhere only in Romans 1:30. Paul's pre-conversion identity was the polar opposite of the love, good conscience, and sincere faith he commends in verse 5.

• ἀγνοῶν ἐποίησα ἐν ἀπιστίᾳ ("I had acted ignorantly in unbelief") — Paul does not excuse his former violence but explains why mercy was possible. His actions were committed in a state of ignorance and unbelief — he genuinely did not know that Jesus was the Messiah. This echoes the principle articulated in Luke 23:34 ("Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing") and in Acts 3:17, where Peter says the Jewish leaders acted "in ignorance." Jewish law distinguished between sins committed in ignorance (for which atonement was possible, cf. Numbers 15:27-29) and sins committed "with a high hand" (deliberate defiance, Numbers 15:30-31). Paul is not claiming innocence but explaining the ground of God's mercy.

• ὑπερεπλεόνασεν ("super-abounded/overflowed") — This verb appears only here in the entire New Testament. It is formed from hyper- ("over, beyond, exceedingly") and pleonazō ("to abound, to multiply"). Paul coins or adopts a word that strains the boundaries of language: grace did not merely abound — it super-abounded, flooding past every barrier. The idea echoes Romans 5:20: "where sin increased, grace super-abounded all the more." I translated it as "super-abounded" to preserve the extraordinary intensity of the Greek prefix.

• πιστὸς ὁ λόγος ("the saying is trustworthy") — This is the first of five "trustworthy saying" formulas in the Pastoral Epistles (also 1 Timothy 3:1; 1 Timothy 4:9; 2 Timothy 2:11; Titus 3:8). The phrase appears to introduce (or here, to introduce) a confessional statement that was already circulating in the early church — a creedal summary that Paul endorses. The addition πάσης ἀποδοχῆς ἄξιος ("worthy of complete acceptance") intensifies the commendation: this is not just reliable but deserving of unreserved embrace.

• πρῶτός εἰμι ἐγώ ("I am the foremost/first") — The word πρῶτος means "first" in rank or prominence. Paul does not say he was the worst sinner (past tense) but that he is the foremost (present tense: eimi). Many translations render this as "the worst" (BSB, NIV), but "foremost" or "chief" captures the Greek more precisely. Paul's sense of his own sinfulness does not diminish with time; if anything, the closer he draws to Christ, the more keenly he feels the weight of his past. The emphatic pronoun egō ("I myself") drives the point home.

• ὑποτύπωσιν ("pattern/prototype") — This word means "sketch, outline, model" — something that serves as a template for others to follow. Paul's conversion is not merely a personal story; it is a prototype of how Christ's patience works. If Christ saved the foremost sinner, then no one is beyond the reach of His mercy. I translated it as "pattern" to preserve the sense of a replicable model.

• The doxology in verse 17 erupts spontaneously from Paul's testimony: τῷ βασιλεῖ τῶν αἰώνων ("the King of the ages") — not merely eternal in duration but sovereign over every era of history. ἀφθάρτῳ ("immortal/incorruptible") and ἀοράτῳ ("invisible") are both alpha-privative adjectives describing what God is not: not subject to decay, not accessible to physical sight. μόνῳ Θεῷ ("the only God") affirms strict monotheism. This doxology is thoroughly Jewish in its language and theology, standing in the tradition of Old Testament praise (cf. Psalm 145:13; Isaiah 40:28).

Interpretations

• "Of whom I am the foremost." Paul's use of the present tense ("I am the foremost") has been interpreted differently. Some see it as genuine present-tense self-assessment — Paul continually views himself as the greatest of sinners even decades after his conversion, reflecting genuine Christian humility. Others read it as a rhetorical or dramatic present, equivalent to saying "I was the worst case" — using the present for vividness. Still others, particularly in the Reformed tradition, see it as a theological statement about the ongoing reality of indwelling sin: even the most mature believer remains, in himself, utterly dependent on grace. The passage has been important in debates about Christian assurance and sanctification. Does growing in holiness produce greater awareness of sin (as Paul seems to demonstrate here), or should sanctification produce increasing confidence in one's transformation?

• The "trustworthy saying" and its scope. Scholars debate whether the formula "this is a trustworthy saying" introduces what follows ("Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners") or concludes what precedes (Paul's testimony of grace in vv. 12-14). Most interpreters take it as introducing the creedal statement in v. 15b, since the formula in other Pastoral Epistles instances typically points forward. The saying itself — "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" — is one of the most concise summaries of the gospel in Scripture. It affirms the pre-existence of Christ (He "came into" the world, implying He existed before entering it), the incarnation, and the purpose of His coming (salvation). Its language echoes Jesus' own words in Luke 19:10 ("The Son of Man came to seek and save the lost") and John 3:17 ("God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him").

The Charge to Timothy (vv. 18-20)

Notes

• παραγγελίαν ("charge/command") — The same word from verse 5. Paul bookends this opening section of the letter with the same term, creating an inclusio: the charge begins in verse 3 (stay in Ephesus and stop the false teachers) and is formally entrusted to Timothy here. The military overtones of parangelia (a commanding officer's order relayed through subordinates) are picked up immediately in the warfare metaphor that follows.

• κατὰ τὰς προαγούσας ἐπὶ σὲ προφητείας ("in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you") — This refers to prophetic utterances spoken over Timothy at some earlier point, likely at his commissioning or ordination (cf. 1 Timothy 4:14, where Paul mentions "the prophecy" that accompanied the laying on of hands by the council of elders). These were not vague blessings but specific declarations about Timothy's calling and gifting. Paul invokes them to encourage Timothy: the prophetic word spoken over you confirms that you are equipped for this battle.

• στρατείαν ("warfare/campaign") — From the same root as stratiōtēs ("soldier"). Paul uses the military metaphor not of a single battle but of an entire campaign — the sustained, long-term fight to maintain sound teaching and resist false doctrine. The adjective καλήν ("good, noble") signals that this is a worthy cause. The same language recurs in 2 Timothy 4:7: "I have fought the good fight."

• ναυάγησαν ("shipwrecked") — From ναυαγέω ("to suffer shipwreck"), formed from naus ("ship") and agnymi ("to break"). The metaphor shifts abruptly from warfare to sailing: some have wrecked their faith the way a ship is smashed on rocks. Paul uses the same verb literally in 2 Corinthians 11:25 (he himself was shipwrecked three times). The image is violent and sudden — a total wreck, not a gradual drift. The cause of the wreck was pushing aside (apōsamenoi, "thrusting away") faith and a good conscience. Conscience and faith are the hull and rudder; without them, destruction is inevitable.

• Ὑμέναιος ("Hymenaeus") — Mentioned also in 2 Timothy 2:17, where Paul says he and Philetus teach that "the resurrection has already taken place," upsetting the faith of some. The naming of specific individuals is unusual and sobering — these are not anonymous threats but real people known to Timothy.

• Ἀλέξανδρος ("Alexander") — Possibly the same Alexander mentioned in 2 Timothy 4:14 ("Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm"), though the name was common and certainty is impossible.

• παρέδωκα τῷ Σατανᾷ ("I have handed over to Satan") — This severe phrase echoes 1 Corinthians 5:5, where Paul commands the Corinthian church to "hand over to Satan" the man committing sexual immorality, "for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord." The purpose is disciplinary, not damning: "so that they may be taught (paideuō) not to blaspheme." The verb παιδεύω means "to discipline, train, educate" — the language of a father correcting a child, not a judge condemning a criminal. Being "handed over to Satan" likely means excommunication — removal from the protective sphere of the church community and exposure to the hostile spiritual environment outside it. The hope is that the pain of this discipline will bring repentance and restoration.

Interpretations

• "Handed over to Satan" and church discipline. The nature and extent of this discipline has been debated. Some interpreters understand it as formal excommunication — the offenders are expelled from the congregation and thus placed back in Satan's domain (the world). Others see it as involving a more direct spiritual dimension — Paul, by apostolic authority, subjects them to satanic affliction (illness, hardship) as a corrective measure, similar to the "destruction of the flesh" in 1 Corinthians 5:5. Catholic and Orthodox traditions connect this to the development of formal penitential discipline, where serious offenders undergo a process of penance before being restored to communion. Protestant traditions generally interpret it as excommunication from the local church, emphasizing that the purpose is restorative — the goal is that they be "taught not to blaspheme," implying that repentance and restoration remain possible. The passage has also been cited in debates about the extent of apostolic authority: can local church leaders "hand someone over to Satan," or was this a unique apostolic prerogative?