9. The number in this place must mean the list of those who were to be relieved out of the church's stock, and in this infant state of the church, no officers having to appearance been appointed but a very short time before this, it is not probable that there could be a want of many women in any office. It is, therefore, the more probable that this was merely a list of poor widows, as proper objects of charity: though there seems to be no good reason why widows, who had had only one husband, should have any preference on that account, if their circumstances were equally distressing; whereas, if they held any office, the having been the wife of one man might be thought more reputable, and entitle them to more consideration than the having been wife to several.* But, indeed, any circumstance that made them appear more respectable, whether they were in, or out of office, would entitle them to more consideration in all respects.

10. It seems, from this circumstance, that particular regard was had to those widows who had been in a state of affluence, and who had extended to others that charity of which they now stood in need themselves.

12. As the apostle mentions these widows casting off their first faith, it is evident, that it was not merely their marrying again, of which the apostle expresses his disapprobation, but their marrying unbelievers, by which they were in danger of being induced to abandon the profession of Christianity.

Having damnation, should have been rendered being condemned, or deserving censure. Maintaining such widows out of the public funds would, therefore, have been improper.

13. Being maintained at the expense of others, and having no proper employment at an age when they were capable of it; this idle, improper conduct might naturally be expected from them, and to this the church was to give no encouragement.

14. It is evident, from this, that the apostle had no objection to second marriages, as such, since he advises them, in the case of young widows, rather than they should live idle at the expense of the society.

15. That is, have behaved improperly, and abandoned the profession of Christianity.

17. It was not expected that all the elders of a church should teach; but notwithstanding this, they might be very well employed in attending to the good order of the society. These persons, however, would not in general require any assistance from the society. But those who actually gave

* See Doddridge.

their time and labour to the church, so as to give little or no attention to any other business, by which they might maintain themselves, would have a natural right to a maintenance from those to whom their time and labour were devoted. Here the word honour evidently signifies maintenance.*

20. This shews how attentive the early Christians were to the good conduct of the members of their societies, and in their situation among unbelievers, it was peculiarly necessary; but it is certainly highly proper even in our circumstances. All Christians are to mind not only their own things, but in some measure also the things of others, so as to provoke to love and to good works. It is a bad symptom of the decline of the spirit of religion, when the members of Christian societies consider themselves as entirely detached from each other, and feel no interest in their good or bad conduct.

21. This is speaking according to the oriental style, considering God as a great prince, attended by his angels or ministering servants.† As acting under the inspection of this great Being, thus magnificently attended, Paul gives this solemn charge to Timothy.

22. [Lay hands, &c.] That is, do not ordain any person to an office in a Christian church, without duly considering his qualifications, lest you should make yourself answerable for his misconduct.

23. This little circumstance shews the apostle's character in a pleasing light, as attentive to the health and comfort of his friend and fellow-labourer, but it certainly gives us no idea of his writing from any supernatural inspiration; for this could not be necessary, for one man to give his advice to another. As this has no connexion with either what goes before or what follows, and indeed interrupts the course of the apostle's exhortation, some think, and probably enough, that he wrote it in the margin of his letter, after it was finished, and that it was afterwards taken into the text,+ and in an improper place.

24. That is, some men's faults are conspicuous to all, but those of others are not discovered so soon.

25. That is, they cannot escape a diligent search.

See Mede (Dis. xix.), p. 72; Doddridge.

On this sense of the passage Mr. Lindsey remarks, "that when God is joined with other beings in the most solemn manner, no equality can be inferred from such a conjunction." Apol. (Ch. iii.) p. 121. "Chosen Messengers, that is, the apostles of Christ, who were chosen to bear testimony to his resurrection." Impr. Vers.

"By the mistake of some early transcribers." Knatchbull in Doddridge.

VI. The apostle now closes his epistle with a variety of miscellaneous directions and advices, repeating some things which he had mentioned before, on which he may therefore be supposed to have laid particular stress.

1. That is, that such slaves as have not obtained their liberty, pay due obedience to their masters, whose property they are.

As the Jews were great boasters of their liberty, and held it to be even unlawful to be subject to any other nation, and as the Gnostic teachers at Ephesus, as well as at Corinth, appear to have been Jews, it is probable that they extended the same imaginary privileges to the converts to Christianity from the Gentiles, and they taught them, that being now of so much more consequence than they had been before, they were in the eye of God fully entitled to their civil liberty. That such a doctrine as this was maintained by some teachers of Christianity, may be clearly inferred from this and other passages in the apostolical epistles. Now, had this been generally understood to be the genuine doctrine of Christianity, it is easy to perceive what an obstacle it must have proved to the reception of it, as it would have armed all free-men against it. The apostle therefore informs Timothy, and the Christian church at Ephesus through him, that Christianity makes no change whatever in the civil condition of men, magistrates, or subjects, free-men or slaves. He clearly gives them to understand that all moral obligations, arising from the outward conditions of men, continue the same as before; nay, that the peculiar duties of slaves, as well as those that were incumbent on other classes of men, were enforced by additional considerations, every man acting as in the sight of God, and discharging his duty so as to be approved by that great Being, who has thought proper, for wise reasons, to place him in the station he occupies, whatever it be.

2. There is ambiguity in the phrase partaking of the benefit,* since some may understand it of the benefit or blessings of the gospel, but it is more probable that it refers to the benefit of their service; and therefore, the sense will be, that Christian slaves should be more careful to discharge their duty to those masters who are Christians. They should particularly respect them on that account, and serve them with greater cheerfulness.

3. From the apostle's passing immediately from his direction concerning slaves, to his admonitions concerning the Gnostic teachers, against whom he had warned Timothy

See Doddridge.

before, it is very probable that this doctrine of the exemption of Christian slaves from servitude had been held by them.

4.* Pride and conceit were among the chief characteristics of the Gnostics, in all ages. They were in fact philosophical persons who despised the vulgar; but theirs being a false philosophy, when it became incorporated with Christianity, it was a source of much corruption of the genuine principles of true religion, from which the latter is not even now thoroughly freed.

5. We cannot suppose that any persons ever seriously maintained that the acquisition of wealth was godliness or virtue; but they might be as attentive to it as if they had thought it to be as valuable as godliness; or they might make a gain of godliness, making their harangues or set speeches in favour of it for hire, which appears to have been the case with the Gnostic teachers at Corinth; for they cultivated eloquence as well as science. From this circumstance of the attention that these Gnostic teachers gave to gain, the apostle takes occasion to make some excellent observations on the subject, and to urge the duty and the wisdom of moderation in the pursuit of wealth.

10.† Here again we see an avaricious temper joined with false principles of Christianity.

13. [Who quickeneth all things.] That is, who will raise the dead and judge the world.

[Witnessed a good confession.] Notwithstanding his cruel persecution and sufferings, which were as great as any that his followers can be called to endure.

15, 16. There is a disorder in the construction of this sentence, contained in these two verses, which may occasion the misunderstanding of them. The true meaning I apprehend to be as follows:-Having mentioned the appearance of Jesus Christ, or his second coming to raise the dead and judge the world, the apostle says, which appearing, he, viz. almighty God, who is the only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, &c. shall shew or manifest ; that is, this great event, which is yet future, will become

* "S. Paul décrit ici les Rabbins et les faux docteurs, qui les imitoient, aussi bien que ceux qui confondoient la philosophie payenne avec la doctrine de Jesus-Christ." Le Clerc. See Doddridge; Bowyer.

† See Doddridge. "L'avarice est appellée avec bien de la justice et beaucoup de raison la racine de tous les maux; et les crimes odieux auxquels cette passion basse et violente porte les hommes ont fait faire à un Poëte (Æneid. iii. 56) cette exclamation si connuë,

Quid non mortalia pectora cogis

Auri sacra fames?"

M. Roques (on Gehazi), VI. p. 54.

present, being brought forward in its due time by that great Being who has promised it, and who has power to fulfil all his promises.

20. Here again the apostle alludes to the false and specious philosophy of the Gnostic teachers, which he had mentioned so often before.

TITUS.

TITUS, to whom this epistle was addressed, was a Gentile, converted by Paul, probably at Antioch, and one who accompanied him from that place to Jerusalem, whither he was sent, together with Barnabas, to carry a charitable contribution to the poor of that place. This was A. D. 43, about three years after the gospel had been preached to the Gentiles, and yet, as Paul observes, he would not suffer Titus to be circumcised, notwithstanding the very strong prejudices of the Jewish Christians at that time in favour of their ceremonies,† and though he had ordered Timothy to be circumcised, on account of his mother being a Jewess. After this we find Titus occasionally in the company of Paul, in the same capacity as Silas, Timothy, and some others, viz. to assist him in preaching the gospel, to be sent to particular places for that purpose, or to be fixed for some time where it was judged that they might be employed to advantage. The station of Titus was in the island of Crete, as that of Timothy, when Paul wrote to him, was at Ephesus.

These two epistles to Timothy and Titus resemble one another in many particulars, so that they seem to have been written in similar situations of things; Timothy having been appointed to regulate the church at Ephesus, and to ordain proper officers there, and Titus to do the same in Crete. They had likewise both of them the same difficulties to struggle with, from the false teachers of those times, who appear to have been Jewish Gnostics; being at the same time zealous for the law of Moses, and yet tinctured with the principles of that specious philosophy which made matter to be the source of all evil, and led them to disbelieve the doctrine of a resurrection. Teachers of this

* See Le Clerc; Lardner, VI. p. 34; Doddridge; Bowyer.

+ See Gal. ii. 1-5.

"Some Cretans were present, Acts ii. 11, and it is probable that these brought the Christian religion along with them into Crete. St. Paul spent some time in that island, on his journey to Rome, Acts xxvii. 8, and probably neglected not to sow the good seed of the gospel." Michaelis's Introd. Lect. (Sect. cxlii.) p. 310.