1 Timothy 3:5

5 For if a man cannot manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church?

1 Timothy 3:5 Meaning and Commentary

1 Timothy 3:5

For if a man know not how to rule his own house
Which is an affair of less importance, and more easy to be done; not requiring so much resolution, prudence, care, and thought:

how shall he take care of the church of God?
preside over it, rule in it, provide for it, and see that everything is in its proper place, and done according to the will of God. The argument is from the lesser to the greater.

1 Timothy 3:5 In-Context

3 He must not be a heavy drinker or be violent. He must be gentle, not quarrelsome, and not love money.

4 He must manage his own family well, having children who respect and obey him.

5 For if a man cannot manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church?

6 An elder must not be a new believer, because he might become proud, and the devil would cause him to fall.

7 Also, people outside the church must speak well of him so that he will not be disgraced and fall into the devil’s trap.