1 Timothy 3:7

1 Timothy 3:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
• New International Version (NIV)He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

Context of 1 Timothy 3:7

5A man must know how to take care of his own family. If he cannot do that, he will not be able to take care of God's people in the church. 6A leader of the church must not be someone who has believed in Christ for only a short time. Someone like that might boast that he is great and important. Then he would receive punishment, as the Devil did. Also, people outside the church should agree that the leader is a good person. Then nobody can say anything bad against him. And so, he will not come under the Devil's power. 8In the same way, deacons must live good lives, so that people respect them. They must not be hypocrites. They must not drink too much wine. They must not want to get a lot of money for themselves. 9They must completely believe the true message that God has shown us about Christ. They must be sure in their minds about it.

1 Timothy 3:7 word by word

δεῖ δὲ καὶ μαρτυρίαν καλὴν ἔχειν ἀπὸ τῶν ἔξωθεν, ἵνα μὴ εἰς ὀνειδισμὸν ἐμπέσῃ καὶ παγίδα τοῦ διαβόλου.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Moreoverδέde · thenG1161
• heαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• mustδεῖdei · be necessaryG1163
• ·καίkai · andG2532
• haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
• a goodκαλόςkalos · goodG2570
• reportμαρτυρίαmarturia · testimonyG3141
• ofἀπόapo · away fromG575
• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• them which are withoutἔξωθενexōthen · outsideG1855
• lestἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• lestμήmē · notG3361
• he fallἐμπίπτωempiptō · to fall intoG1706
• intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
• reproachὀνειδισμόςoneidismos · reproachG3680
• the snareπαγίςpagis · trapG3803
• of the devilδιάβολοςdiabolos · devilish/the DevilG1228

Cross-references for 1 Timothy 3:7

• 1 Timothy 5:24Some people do wrong things that everyone can see clearly. When someone judges those people, everyone already knows that they are guilty. So everybody already knows that it is right to punish those people. But for other people, nobody knows about their sins until later.
• 1 Samuel 2:24No, my sons, you should not do these terrible things. The Lord's people all complain about you.
• Acts 6:3So, friends, please choose seven men from among you. You must know that each of them is full of the Holy Spirit. They must also be very wise. We will ask these seven men to do this work for us.
• Acts 10:22The men answered him, ‘The Roman officer who is called Cornelius has sent us to you. He is a good man and he obeys God's Law. All the Jewish people respect him. An angel from God told him to send us to you with a message. Then we should bring you to Cornelius's house so that he could hear what you have to say.’
• Acts 22:12In Damascus, there was a man called Ananias. He worshipped God and he obeyed our Law. All the Jews in Damascus said good things about him.
• 3 John 1:12All the believers say that Demetrius is a good person. He obeys God's true message. That also shows clearly that he is a good person. We also say the same thing about him. You know very well that what we say about him is true.
• 1 Corinthians 5:12It is not right for me to decide about people who do not belong to the church group. God will judge those people. But you should decide what is right for the people who do belong to your group. Do what the Bible says: ‘Send the bad person away from among yourselves.’
• Colossians 4:5When you are with people who do not believe in Christ, be careful how you live. Use every chance to do good things.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:12If you live in this way, other people who are not believers will respect you. Also, you will not have to ask anyone else to give you the things that you need.
• 1 Timothy 5:14So I think that widows who are still young women should marry again. Then they can have children and they can take care of their own homes. If they live well like that, the enemy of God's people will not have a chance to say bad things against us.
• 1 Corinthians 10:32Do not cause problems for other people. Whether they are Jews or Gentiles, or people who belong to God's church, live in a way that does not cause problems for them.
• 2 Corinthians 6:3We do not want anyone to think bad things about our work. So we do nothing that might cause trouble for anyone.
• 2 Corinthians 8:21Our purpose is to do only what is right. We want the Lord to see that, and people must see it as well.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:22But keep away from any kind of bad thing.
• 1 Peter 4:14People may insult you because you belong to Christ. But God will bless you when that happens. It shows that the Holy Spirit is with you. He is God's great Spirit.
• 1 Timothy 6:9But some people want to have lots of money. This causes them to do wrong things. They cannot get free from their bad ways, like an animal in a trap. They want many things for themselves. Their foolish thoughts hurt them and finally destroy their lives.

Commentaries on 1 Timothy 3:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7The sixteenth requisite is, that he should have a good report of them which are without - That he should be one who had not been previously a profligate, or scandalous in his life. Such a person, when converted, may be a worthy private member of religious society; but I believe God rarely calls such to the work of the ministry, and never to the episcopate. Them that are without are the Jews, Gentiles, and the unconverted of all kinds. For the meaning of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without - Who are without the church; that is, of those who are not Christians. This includes, of course, “all” classes of those who are not Christians - pagans, infidels, Jews, moral people, and scoffers. The idea is, that he must have a fair reputation with them for integrity of character. His life must be in their view upright. He must not be addicted to anything which they regard as inconsistent…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7Paul wanted Christians to live in a way that others outside the church could respect (see also 6:1; Titus 2:5–10). snare of the devil: might relate to the false teachers (see 1 Timothy 1:20; 5:14–15; 6:9; 2 Timothy 2:26).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. a good report--Greek, "testimony." So Paul was influenced by the good report given of Timothy to choose him as his companion (Ac 16:2). of them which are without--from the as yet unconverted Gentiles around (1Co 5:12; Col 4:5; 1Th 4:12), that they may be the more readily won to the Gospel (1Pe 2:12), and that the name of Christ may be glorified. Not even the former life of a bishop should be open to reproach [Bengel]. reproach and the snare of the…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Timothy 3:7

• Bishop
• Church
• Commandments
• Minister, Christian
• Satan

In the dictionaries

• Bishop
• Blameless
• Controversy
• Covetous
• Degree
• Hospitality
• Mystery
• Novice
• Rule
• Wife

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