The aim of your instruction must be love that springs from a pure heart and from a good conscience and from a sincere faith.

but he must remember that the Law is not enacted for a good man, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the irreligious and sinful, for the godless and profane, for parricides and murderers,

To do this you must hold firmly to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck in regard to the faith.

who gave himself as a ransom on behalf of all men. This must be our testimony, as opportunities present themselves;

Now I want the men to offer prayer at any meeting of the church; and let the hands they lift to heaven be holy ??they must be free from anger and dissension.

Likewise the women are to dress in suitable apparel, with modesty and self-control. Their adornment must not be with braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive clothing,

A married woman must learn in quiet and in perfect submission.

I do not permit a married woman to practice teaching or domineering over a husband; she must keep quiet.

So the pastor must be a man above reproach, must have only one wife, must be temperate, sensible, well-behaved, hospitable, skillful in teaching;

[He must] not be a drunkard or a fighter, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not wanting to get money by questionable [or, dishonest] means.

He must manage his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity [keeping them respectful and well-behaved]

He must not be a new convert, or else becoming conceited he may incur the doom the devil met.

He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, or else he may incur reproach and fall into the devil's trap.

Deacons, too, must be serious, sincere in their talk, not addicted to strong drink or dishonest gain,

but they must continue to hold the open secret of faith with a clear conscience.

And they must also be tested first; if they prove blameless, then they can serve as deacons.

The deaconesses too must be serious, not gossips; they must be temperate and perfectly trustworthy.

A deacon too must have only one wife, and manage his children and household well.

But if I am delayed, [I am writing] in order that you may know how one must conduct oneself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and mainstay of the truth.

This is what you must urge and teach.

Widows who really need it must be supported from the funds.

But if a widow has children or grandchildren, they must first learn to practice piety in the treatment of their own families, and to pay the debt they owe their parents or grandparents, for this is acceptable to God.

No widow under sixty years of age should be put on this roll. A widow must have had but one husband,

must have a reputation for doing good deeds, as bringing up children, being hospitable to strangers, washing the feet of God's people, helping people in distress, or devoting herself to any sort of doing good.

But the younger widows you must not enrol; for as soon as they begin to chafe against the yoke of Christ, they want to marry,

As it is, some widows have already turned after Satan. ??16 Any believer, man or woman, who has widowed relatives, must give them relief; the church is not to be burdened with them; she has to relieve the widows who really need relief.

If any believing woman has widows, she must help them, and the church must not be burdened, in order that it may help those [who are] truly widows.

The elders who lead well must be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor by speaking and teaching.

For the Scripture says, "You must not muzzle an ox when he is treading out the grain," and, "The workman deserves his pay."

Those guilty of sin must be rebuked before all, as a warning to the rest.

I testify before God, and Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that you must guard these things without prejudice, doing nothing by partiality.

All who are under the yoke of slavery must esteem their masters to be deserving the highest respect, so that the name of God and our teaching may not be abused.

Those who have Christian masters must not pay them less respect because they are brothers; they must serve them all the better, because those who get the benefit of their service are believers and so are dear to them. These are the things that you must continue to teach and urge them to do.

If we have food and clothes, we must be content with that.

But you, as a man of God, must be fleeing always from these things; you must constantly strive for uprightness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.

Impress on those who are rich in the present age that they must not be haughty nor set their hopes on riches--that unstable foundation--but on God who provides us richly with all things for our enjoyment.

They must be beneficent, rich in noble deeds, open-handed and liberal;