³ “‘Each of you must respect your mother and father, and you must observe my Sabbaths. I am the LORD your God.

¹⁶ A kindhearted woman gains honor, but ruthless men gain only wealth.

⁴ He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full ^[a] respect. ⁵ (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) ⁶ He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. ⁷ He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap. ⁸ In the same way, deacons ^[b] are to be worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. ⁹ They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. ¹⁰ They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons. ¹¹ In the same way, the women ^[c] are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.

Footnotes:

^[a] 1 Timothy 3:4 Or him with proper

^[b] 1 Timothy 3:8 The word deacons refers here to Christians designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in verse 12; and in Romans 16:1 and Phil. 1:1

^[c] 1 Timothy 3:11 Possibly deacons’ wives or women who are deacons

¹⁷ Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.

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The Devotional Bible © 2003 Thomas Nelson, Inc