complete verse (1 Timothy 3:3)

Following are a number of back-translations of 1 Timothy 3:3:

  • Uma: “He cannot be one who is a drunk or who easily fights. He must be one who has a gentle heart, who lives in harmony with others, and one who doesn’t only desire money.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “He ought not to be habitually-drinking. He ought not to be cruel/fierce but he ought to be easily influenced to please/agree. He ought not to be quarrelsome and not to be greedy for money.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “He is not a drunkard; he does not force his own way, rather he is kind-hearted. He avoids trouble and he is not a lover of money.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “His character moreover, he must not be a drunkard and not easily-angered or quarrelsome but rather patient/gentle. He must not be greedy-for money.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “And also not habitually wanting intoxicating drink, not angry/agressive but rather nice/well-behaved, not prone-to-violent-disputing and not really wanting to acquire money.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “He shouldn’t be a drunkard. He shouldn’t be one who wants fights. He must be kind. He must know how to make peace between warring people. And not just money should he have his heart set upon.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on 1 Timothy 3:3

The positive virtues are followed by four negative ones and one positive. A bishop must not be a drunkard, which is the opposite of sobriety in the previous verse. Drunkenness was one of the vices of ancient society. Drunkard may also be expressed as “addicted to wine (or, alcoholic beverages),” “drinks too much wine,” or “drinks wine to excess.” Wine came from the juice of grapes. Sometimes the juice was served in an unfermented state, but generally it was allowed to ferment. In situations where safe drinking water was scarce if not absent altogether, wine became the common ordinary drink. Drinking a moderate amount of wine would not make a person drunk; drunkenness is caused by excessive drinking. That is why in many parts of the Bible there is teaching against drinking too much wine rather than about abstinence from wine altogether. In certain cultures today, however, where wine is unknown, it will be necessary to employ a general word for “strong drink” or “strong alcoholic beverage” rather than a specific fermented beverage made from grapes. In some cultures palm wine will be the closest natural equivalent.

The next three virtues are related to each other and should probably be taken together. Violent comes from a Greek verb that means “to strike” and thus describes a quick-tempered individual who does not hesitate to use physical force on those who annoy him. In many languages one must restructure this; for example, “a person who is quick to act from anger (or, a hot heart),” “a person who is quick to use strong force against others.” Instead of being violent, a bishop should be gentle, that is, he should treat others with patience and tolerance rather than with a domineering disposition. Furthermore, a bishop should not be quarrelsome, contentious, or “quick to argue with others.” Many languages use figurative language to describe this type of person; for example, “always have a chip on one’s shoulder,” “always ready to pick a fight.” But a bishop should rather use a peaceful and inoffensive approach (compare Good News Translation “peaceful”). In some languages, like TEV, not quarrelsome will be translated as “loves peace” or “has a peaceful manner.”

It should be noted that what are denied here are traits that are displayed by the false teachers as they are described in 6.3-5 and 2 Tim 2.22-26.

The last negative trait is that a bishop should not be a lover of money. Greed is mentioned as one of the sins of the false teachers (6.5-10). In contrast a bishop should not put monetary rewards as a primary consideration. Lover of money may also be rendered as “greedy for money,” or even figuratively as “money hungry.”

An alternative translation model for this verse is:
• He must not drink wine to excess or be quick to act from anger (or, a hot heart). Instead, he should be gentle toward others, having a peaceful manner, and must not be a lover of money.

Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to Timothy. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1995. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .