1 Timothy 3:2

A church leader has to be this sort of man, – He has to be a really good man, so that nobody can ever say that he does bad things. – He can only have one wife, and he can’t sleep with any other woman, like a husband sleeps with his wife. – He has to have good sense and do things properly. – He can’t be the sort of man that lets himself go and then does wild things. – He has to be friendly to other people, even if he doesn’t know them. – He has to be good at teaching people. –

Plain English Version

In The King James Version

A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;

In Context

1I’m writing about church leaders now. You sometimes hear people say, “If anybody wants to be the person that leads God’s people, that’s a very important job that they want to do.” And that’s right. So you have to be very careful about the person you pick to be a leader.

3He can’t be a drunken man, or a man that gets into fights. – He has to be a quiet man that is not hard on people. – He can’t be a man that loves money. –

Read all of 1 Timothy 3

Cross References

Romans 12:13If any of God’s people need anything, you have to give them whatever you can. If they are visiting your town, and they need somewhere to stay, let them stay at your place.

1 Timothy 3:10You need to try them out before you make them church helpers, so first give them some little jobs to do, and if they do them properly, and if nobody complains about them, then you can make them helpers in the church. –

1 Timothy 5:9So you can make up a list. Write down the names of all the widows that the church has to help. But only put a widow on the list if she is over 60 years old, and only if she always stayed with her husband and never went off with another man.

Titus 1:6Now I want to tell you what church leaders have to be like. They have to be really good people, so that nobody can say anything bad about them. A church leader can only have one wife, and he can’t sleep with any other woman, like a husband sleeps with his wife. His kids have to believe in God, and they have to do the right things and not get into trouble. His kids have to do what he says.

Matthew Henry on 1 Timothy 3:2-8

Duties of Bishops and Deacons. ( a. d. 64.) 1 This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; 3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; 4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; 5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study 1 Timothy 3:2