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1 Timothy 5

Paul ties the church’s care and leadership to family responsibility, tested character, and judgment free from favoritism.

Paul instructs Timothy about caring for people and overseeing church life. He begins with respect across age and sex, then sets out responsibilities toward widows, distinguishing family support from the assembly’s care for those left without help. He describes qualifications for enrolling widows and addresses support for elders, accusations against them, and public correction. Timothy must act without favoritism and avoid haste in appointing leaders. Paul also addresses Timothy’s stomach trouble before closing with observations about hidden sins and good works.

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1Don’t rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father; the younger men as brothers;
2the elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, in all purity.
3Honor widows who are widows indeed.
4But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them learn first to show piety toward their own family and to repay their parents, for this is acceptable in the sight of God.
5Now she who is a widow indeed and desolate, has her hope set on God and continues in petitions and prayers night and day.
6But she who gives herself to pleasure is dead while she lives.
7Also command these things, that they may be without reproach.
8But if anyone doesn’t provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
9Let no one be enrolled as a widow under sixty years old, having been the wife of one man,
10being approved by good works, if she has brought up children, if she has been hospitable to strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet, if she has relieved the afflicted, and if she has diligently followed every good work.
11But refuse younger widows, for when they have grown wanton against Christ, they desire to marry,
12having condemnation, because they have rejected their first pledge.
13Besides, they also learn to be idle, going about from house to house. Not only idle, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things which they ought not.
14I desire therefore that the younger widows marry, bear children, rule the household, and give no occasion to the adversary for insulting.
15For already some have turned away after Satan.
16If any man or woman who believes has widows, let them relieve them, and don’t let the assembly be burdened, that it might relieve those who are widows indeed.
17Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and in teaching.
18For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox when it treads out the grain.” And, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.”
19Don’t receive an accusation against an elder except at the word of two or three witnesses.
20Those who sin, reprove in the sight of all, that the rest also may be in fear.
21I command you in the sight of God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the chosen angels, that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing by partiality.
22Lay hands hastily on no one. Don’t be a participant in other people’s sins. Keep yourself pure.
23Be no longer a drinker of water only, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities.
24Some men’s sins are evident, preceding them to judgment, and some also follow later.
25In the same way also there are good works that are obvious, and those that are otherwise can’t be hidden.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
1 Timothy 5:8This warning makes care for one’s household a matter of faithfulness within Paul’s instructions about supporting widows.
1 Timothy 5:10A widow’s record of service matters for enrollment, with hospitality and care for afflicted people among the named qualifications.
1 Timothy 5:17Paul connects honor for elders with faithful oversight and teaching, then grounds their material support in Scripture.
Where this chapter reaches

Paul quotes the command about an unmuzzled ox from Deuteronomy and a saying about workers’ wages also found in Luke, grounding support for elders in both. The same ox command appears in 1 Corinthians, where it also supports providing for those who serve through gospel work.

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After reading the whole chapter

What stands out about how Paul divides responsibility for widows between relatives and the assembly?

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How do the closing verses about hidden conduct shape your reading of Paul’s warnings against haste and favoritism?

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Questions people ask about 1 Timothy 5

What does double honor mean in 1 Timothy 5:17?

The phrase includes respect and material support for elders who lead well, with particular attention to those who teach. Verse 18 explains the instruction through an ox allowed to eat while working and a laborer receiving wages. The text does not set a salary or require twice another person’s pay.

Why does Paul refuse to enroll younger widows in 1 Timothy 5?

Paul connects enrollment with being at least sixty and having a record of faithful service. He warns that younger widows may abandon their first pledge and fall into idle gossip. He encourages remarriage, so marriage itself is not condemned. The precise pledge and the full duties of enrolled widows remain unstated.

What does 1 Timothy 5:8 mean about providing for your family?

The warning occurs within instructions about widows whose children or grandchildren can support them. Paul treats neglect of dependent relatives as a denial of professed faith and directs families to help so the assembly can care for those without support. The passage does not identify poverty or inability to earn as faithlessness.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).