EasyEnglish Bible 2018
1 Timothy 3:11
11Deacons' wives must live good lives, so that people respect them. They must not say bad things against people. They must think carefully about how they live. People should know that they are honest in everything they do.
1 Timothy 3:11 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.
- New International Version (NIV)In the same way, the women are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things.
Context of 1 Timothy 3:11
9They must completely believe the true message that God has shown us about Christ. They must be sure in their minds about it. 10Before anyone becomes a deacon, you must first test their character. If they are good enough, then let them serve God as deacons. Deacons' wives must live good lives, so that people respect them. They must not say bad things against people. They must think carefully about how they live. People should know that they are honest in everything they do. 12A deacon must be the husband of one wife. He must take care of his children and everyone who lives in his house. 13If a deacon serves God's people well, then people will respect him as a good person. He will become strong to tell people about his faith in Christ Jesus.
Read all of 1 Timothy 31 Timothy 3:11 word by word
Γυναῖκας ὡσαύτως σεμνάς, μὴ διαβόλους, νηφαλίους, πιστὰς ἐν πᾶσιν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for 1 Timothy 3:11
- Leviticus 21:7A priest must not marry a woman who has left her husband. He must not marry a woman if men have paid her to have sex with her. He must not marry a woman whose husband has sent her away. A priest must be holy.
- Ezekiel 44:22Priests must not marry a widow, or a woman whose husband has sent her away. They may only marry Israelite women who have never had sex. Or they may marry a widow whose husband had been a priest.
- Luke 1:5There was a man whose name was Zechariah. He lived when Herod was king of Judea. Zechariah was a priest and he belonged to a group of priests from the family of Abijah. He had a wife called Elizabeth. She also was from the family of the priest called Aaron.
- 1 Timothy 3:4He must take care of his own family. His children must obey him and respect him.
- Psalms 15:3He says nothing bad against other people. He does nothing that will hurt his friends, nor does he insult them.
- Psalms 50:20You say bad things about your own brother, and you speak against your own family!
- Psalms 101:5If anyone secretly speaks against his friend, I will destroy them. If anyone is proud and they boast about themselves, I will send them away from me.
- Proverbs 10:18If you hate somebody but you try to hide it, you are telling lies. And if you say false things about other people, you are a fool.
- Proverbs 25:13When a faithful servant takes a message for his master, his master will have peace in his mind. It will keep him cool, like snow in the middle of summer.
- Jeremiah 9:4Be careful of your friends. Do not even trust your brothers! They will always try to cheat you. All your friends will speak lies about you.
- Matthew 4:1Then the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness. While he was there, the Devil came to him. He tried to cause Jesus to do wrong things.
- John 6:70Jesus replied, ‘I have chosen the 12 of you. But one of you is a servant of Satan!’
- 2 Timothy 3:3They will not be kind to other people, but they will like to quarrel. They will tell lies to hurt other people. They will be unable to control themselves properly. They will be cruel and they will hate anything that is good.
- Revelation 12:9Michael and his angels threw the great dragon out of heaven. The dragon is called the Devil or Satan. He is the snake who has been there since long ago. He tells lies to deceive the whole world. They threw him down to the earth, together with all his angels.
- 1 Timothy 3:2For that reason, a leader of the church must live a life that everyone knows is good. He must be the husband of one wife. He must think seriously about how he lives and he must control himself well. He must be someone that people respect. He must be happy to have visitors in his home. He must be a good teacher.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:6So we must watch carefully. We should be like people who stay awake. We should not be like other people who are sleeping.
Commentaries on 1 Timothy 3:11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11Even so must their wives be grave - I believe the apostle does not mean here the wives either of the bishops or deacons in particular, but the Christian women in general. The original is simply: ̔ · Let the women likewise be grave. Whatever is spoken here becomes women in general; but if the apostle had those termed deaconesses in his eye, which is quite possible, the words are peculiarly suitable to them. That there was such an order in the apostolic and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11Even so must their wives be grave - Chrysostom, Theophylact, Grotius, Bloomfield, and many others, suppose that by the word “wives,” here, ( ͂ gunaikas), the apostle means “deaconesses.” Clarke supposes that it refers to women in general. The reason assigned for supposing that it does not refer to the wives of deacons, as such, is, that nothing is said of the qualifications of the wives of bishops - a matter of as much importance as that of the character…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-13Verses 8-13 The deacons were at first appointed to distribute the charity of the church, and to manage its concerns, yet pastors and evangelists were among them. The deacons had a great trust reposed in them. They must be grave, serious, prudent men. It is not fit that public trusts should be lodged in the hands of any, till they are found fit for the business with which they are to be trusted. All who are related to ministers, must take great care to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11the women (or the women deacons, or their wives): The Greek word can mean women or wives. Supporting the interpretation of their wives, 3:8–13 discusses male deacons. Switching to "women deacons" here would change the context. However, there might have been women deacons in the early church (see Romans 16:1). If so, this verse might parallel 1 Timothy 3:8.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1111. their wives--rather, "the women," that is, the deaconesses. For there is no reason that special rules should be laid down as to the wives of the deacons, and not also as to the wives of the bishops or overseers. Moreover, if the wives of the deacons were meant, there seems no reason for the omission of "their" (not in the Greek). Also the Greek for "even so" (the same as for "likewise," 1Ti 3:8, and "in like manner," 1Ti 2:9), denotes a transition to…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Timothy 3:11
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Timothy 3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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