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NASB | 1 Timothy 3:2 An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 1 Timothy 3:2 Now an overseer must be blameless and beyond reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, |
Bible Question: What does this verse (1 Tim. 3:2) mean when it says an elder of the church must be 'the husband of but one wife'? Does it mean that the elder must be married only once (no marriage is allowed even if the wife dies), or that the elder must be married to one wife at a time (polygamy is forbidden), a single person cannot be an elder in the church, or the elder must prove to be faithful to his wife, being a 'one-woman man' ? |
Bible Answer: Clarification of text 1 Tim 3:2 An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 1 Tim 3:2 *the husband of one wife.* "Literally in Greek a 'one-woman man.'" *Since* (not if) the literal Greek is "one-woman man," then Paul is NOT even using the words "husband" or "wife." Since the literal Greek is "one-woman man" and NOT "husband of one wife", a more literal translation would be: "An overseer, then, must be above reproach, a one-woman man, temperate..." Please, let's stop arguing over words that do not even appear in the original Greek of the text. |