Now we know that the Law is good, if a man uses it in the way it should be used,

Yet for this very cause I obtained mercy, so that in me, the chief of sinners, Jesus Christ might display all his boundless patience as an illustration for those who should later believe in him, and so gain life eternal.

Of whom is Hymeneus and Alexander; whom I have delivered to Satan, that they should not be taught to blaspheme.

I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings should be offered for all men,

whose will it is that all men should be saved, and come into full knowledge of the truth.

which gave himself a ransom for all men, that it should be testified at his time;

My wish, then, is that in every place the men should offer prayer, lifting up holy hands, free from anger and disputation;

Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves modestly and appropriately and discreetly in proper clothing, not with [elaborately] braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive clothes,

A woman should learn in silence with full submission.

But I do not allow a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man [in the assembly], but she should remain quiet.

The minister should be a man of blameless character; he should be husband of but one wife; he should live a sober, self-restrained, orderly life; he should be hospitable, skilled in teaching;

he should be a man who rules his own household well, and keeps his children ever under control and thoroughly well behaved.

nor must he be a new convert; for fear he should be elated with pride, and so involve himself in the same ruin as the devil.

He should also have a good reputation among outsiders, lest he fall into reproach, and into a snare of the devil.

Deacons, likewise, should be worthy of respect, not hypocritical, not drinking a lot of wine, not greedy for money,

They should keep holding on to the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience.

They, too, should first be tested till approved, and then, if they are found above reproach, they should serve as deacons.

Women [i.e., probably the deacons' wives], in the same way, should be serious-minded [i.e., dignified], not gossips, [but] sober-minded [see verse 2] and trustworthy in everything.

Deacons should be husbands of one wife, managing their children and their own family affairs well.

I am writing this to you in case I should be detained, to let you see how you ought to behave in the household of God??he Church of the everliving God, the pillar and mainstay of the truth.

For everything created by God is good, and nothing should be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,

But you should have nothing to do with those worldly myths [See 1:4] and superstitious tales [often] told by old women. Instead, train yourself for living a godly life.

Let no one despise your youth; instead, you should be an example to the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

But if any widow has children or grandchildren, they must learn to practice godliness toward their own family first and to repay their parents, for this pleases God.

Those are the points on which you should dwell, that there may be no call for your censure.

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

and be well spoken of for her kind actions. She should have brought up children, have shown hospitality to strangers, have washed the feet of her fellow Christians, have relieved those who were in distress, and devoted herself to every kind of good action.

But you should exclude the younger widows from the list; for, when they grow restive under the yoke of the Christ, they want to marry,

Now at the same time, they also learn to be idle as they go from house to house; and not only idle, but also gossips and busybodies [meddlers in things that do not concern them], talking about things they should not mention.

If a Christian woman has widowed relatives, she should help them, and let the church be free from the burden, so that it can help the widows who are really dependent.

Elders who do their duties well should be considered as deserving twice the salary they get especially those who keep on toiling in preaching and teaching.

For the Scripture says [Deut. 25:4], "You should not put a muzzle on the ox while it tramples over the grain." And [Luke 10:7], "The worker deserves his wages."

You should rebuke in front of everyone [in the church] those elders who continue to sin, so that the rest [of the congregation] will be afraid [of sinning].

In like manner also the good works [of some] are previously manifest; and it is not possible that what they have besides should be concealed.

All those people who are under the reins of slavery [i.e., in subjection to someone] should consider their own masters as deserving of full respect, so that God's name and [His] teaching will not be spoken against [i.e., by unbelievers].

Those who have believing masters are not to be disrespectful toward them because they are brothers [in Christ], but they should serve them even better, because those who benefit from their kindly service are believers and beloved. Teach and urge these [duties and principles].

But if we have [enough] food and clothing, we will [i.e., should] be content with that.