1 Timothy

About Widows

Do not rebuke an older man; instead, advise him as if he were your father. Treat the young as your brothers,

the elder women as mothers, and the young girls as your sisters, with great purity. 

Take care of widows who are truly widows. 

If a widow has children or grandchildren, they should first learn their family duties and provide financial support to their parents. This is proper and pleases God. 

A true widow is one who, when left alone, has placed her hope in God, praying day and night and asking him for help. 

On the contrary, a widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives. 

Warn them about this so they may be blameless. 

Those who do not care for their own, especially their household, have denied the faith and are worse than unbelievers.

Let no one be put on the list of widows unless she is sixty years old and has been married only once. 

She must be commended for her good works and the education of her children, practiced hospitality, washed the feet of the saints, helped the suffering, and practiced other good deeds. 

Do not accept younger widows; they may have other desires than for Christ and want to marry; 

then they deserve condemnation for breaking their first commitment. 

Besides, they form the habit of being idle, going from house to house. And it is not just idleness! They become gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. 

So I want young widows to marry and have children, to rule their household and give adversaries no grounds for criticism. 

For some have already strayed to follow Satan. 

If any Christian woman has widows in her family, let her assist them; in this way, the church will not be burdened and may help those who are truly widows.

Elders or Presbyters

Let the elders who preside well receive double compensation, especially those who work in preaching and teaching.

Scripture says: Do not muzzle the ox while it threshes grain, and: The worker deserves to be paid. 

Do not accept accusations against an elder unless two or three witnesses support them. 

Reprimand publicly those who do sin, as a warning to others.

I urge you, in the presence of God, Christ Jesus, and the holy angels, to follow these rules fairly, without making any distinctions. 

Don’t ordain anyone hastily; and don’t participate in others’ sins. Keep yourself pure from blame. 

Don’t drink only water; include a little wine to aid your digestion due to your frequent illness.

Some people’s sins are public even before they are examined; others’ sins are only known later on. 

Likewise, good deeds are hard to overlook, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.