What is the condemnation in I Timothy 5:11-12?
Question:
Mr. Hamilton,
Do you by chance know what I Timothy 5:11-12 fully means in its context? I was wondering because it has something to do with promises. I was talking to someone about these verses, though, and we weren’t sure what is meant by “incurring condemnation” in this instance. Would it have been wrong for the women to remarry? And if they did, would they have had to divorce their new husbands to be right with God? I know this is kind of complicated, and I know you would probably say that their pledge is much more serious since it was to the church and would have several witnesses (if my understanding is correct). I was just wondering if you could provide any clarity on this.
Answer:
If a woman’s husband dies, she is free to marry another (Romans 7:2-3). In I Timothy 5:11-15, Paul urged younger widows to remarry. In I Corinthians 7:39-40, Paul states that widows can remarry, but he does not give blanket approval to any marriage. The marriage must be in accordance with the Lord’s will. The one she is marrying must have the right to be married (Matthew 19:9), and the marriage must not hinder her service to God (Matthew 6:33). This also matches Paul’s concern in I Timothy 5:11-12 over the possibility that younger widows, in their eagerness to remarry, may cast off their faith.
The problem was that young widows had too much time on their hands (I Timothy 5:13) and were getting involved in gossip. Since they were young, they would still desire the pleasures in this world (I Timothy 5:11), which might pull them away from their faith (I Timothy 5:9). Rather than have a potential cause for scandal, they should marry "and give the enemy no occasion for reproach" (I Timothy 5:14). All of this explains why widows younger than 60 or who have family are not put on the list for care by the church.
Our commitment to the Lord when we become Christians is the most logical pledge ("first faith") Paul refers to. However, some commentators assume that the churches provided aid to widows in exchange for a pledge to serve the church. The problem is that this is an assumption that can't be proven from the Scriptures. Besides, the Greek text literally says "the first faith."
Nothing says that the marriage has to end. It is the leaving of the faith that must be corrected.
