1 Timothy 3 :: English Standard Version (ESV)

Qualifications for Overseers

1Ti 3:1The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.

1Ti 3:2Therefore an overseer[fn] must be above reproach, the husband of one wife,[fn] sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,

1Ti 3:3

1Ti 3:3not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.

1Ti 3:4

1Ti 3:4He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive,

1Ti 3:5

1Ti 3:5for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?

1Ti 3:6

1Ti 3:6He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil.

1Ti 3:7

1Ti 3:7Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

Qualifications for Deacons

1Ti 3:8

1Ti 3:8Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued,[fn] not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain.

1Ti 3:9

1Ti 3:9They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.

1Ti 3:10

1Ti 3:10And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless.

1Ti 3:11

1Ti 3:11Their wives likewise[fn] must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.

1Ti 3:12

1Ti 3:12Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well.

1Ti 3:13

1Ti 3:13For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

The Mystery of Godliness

1Ti 3:14

1Ti 3:14I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that,

1Ti 3:15

1Ti 3:15if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.

1Ti 3:16

1Ti 3:16Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:
He[fn] was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated[fn] by the Spirit,[fn]
seen by angels,
proclaimed among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory.

See the ESV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).

ESV Footnotes

(3:2)

Or bishop; Greek episkopos; a similar term occurs in verse 1

(3:2)

Or a man of one woman; also verse 12

(3:8)

Or devious in speech

(3:11)

Or Wives likewise, or Women likewise

(3:16)

Greek Who; some manuscripts God; others Which

(3:16)

Or justified

(3:16)

Or vindicated in spirit

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For more information on this translation, see the ESV Preface.