Table of Contents

Series Editors’ Preface ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

Historical Overview 1

The Interpretations 4

Areas of Interpretive Interest 8

The Commentary 14

1 1 Timothy 1 16

The Salutation (1:1–2; 2 Tim. 1–2; Titus 1:1–4) 17

The Opponents: Speculators (1:3–7; 4:1–5, 7; Titus 3:9) 19

The Opponents: On the Law (1:8–11) 23

“Paul” (1:12–17; Titus 3:3–4) 25

The Opponents: Excommunication (1:18–20; 2 Tim. 2:17; 4:14–15) 27

2 1 Timothy 2 32

The Church: Politics (2:1–2; Titus 3:1) 33

Theological Speculation: Christ as Mediator (2:4–6) 36

Women: Silence in the Church (2:8–14) 39

3 1 Timothy 3 49

The Church: Bishops and Deacons (3:1–13; 5:1, 17; Titus 1:5–9) 49

Theological Speculation: The Mystery (3:14–16) 59

4 1 Timothy 4 64

The Opponents: End Times (4:1–10; 2 Tim. 3:1) 65

5 1 Timothy 5 73

Women: Widows (5:1–10) 74

The Church: Elders (5:17–22; Titus 1:5) 83

Timothy (5:23–25) 86

6 1 Timothy 6 89

The Church: Slaves (6:1–2; Titus 2:9) 90

The Church: Wealthy Christians (6:6–10, 17–19) 95

Theological Speculation: God’s Dwelling and Being (6:12–16; 1 Tim. 1:17) 104

The Opponents: Dissent (6:2b–5, 20, 2 Timothy: 12, 14) 110

7 2 Timothy 1 114

The Thanksgiving (1:3–7) 115

Timothy: Ordination (1:6–8; 1 Tim. 1:18, 4:14–15) 117

Theological Speculation: God’s Plan (1:9–10; 4:1, 8; 1 Tim. 6:14; Titus 1:2; 3:4–5) 120

“Paul” (1:13–18; 4:11, 19) 125

8 2 Timothy 2 129

The Church: Pauline Succession (2:1–2) 129

The Church: Christian Soldiers (2:3–7) 132

“Paul”: The Gospel (2:8–10) 138

Theological Speculation: Divine Consistency (2:11–13; Titus 1:2) 139

The Opponents (2:14–18) 145

The Church: A Large House (2:19–26) 147

9 2 Timothy 3 153

The Opponents: Home Breakers (3:1–9) 154

“Paul”: Suffering (3:10–13) 158

The Church: Scripture (2:14–17) 160

10 2 Timothy 4 168

The Opponents: Entertaining Teachers (4:1–4) 168

“Paul”: The Good Fighter (4:6–8; cf. 1 Tim. 1:18; 6:12; 2 Tim. 2:5) 175

Conclusion and Greetings (4:9–22) 184

11 Titus 1 189

The Salutation (1:1–4; 2 Tim. 1:9) 190

The Opponents: Cretan Liars (1:9–16) 191

12 Titus 2 203

The Church: A Household Code (2:2–10) 203

Theological Speculation: Christ the God (2:11–14) 206

13 Titus 3 213

The Church: Baptism (3:1–11) 214

The Opponents: And Also Some Friends (3:10–11, 13) 218

Conclusion 226

Brief Biographies 230

Bibliography 236

Index of Biblical References 252

General Index 256

About the Author

Jay Twomey is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of Cincinnati. He specializes in the reception of the Bible, and particularly Paul, in literary, cultural, and political contexts.

Reviews

"It is hard to represent the wealth of material contained in each of these two volumes. Both for the seasoned scholar and the preacher looking for fresh inspiration there is much to challenge and enliven the understanding of the biblical texts. These are two superb volumes." (The Expository Times, 2011) "This is a fine addition to the Blackwell Bible Commentary series . . . Twomey has given us an excellent commentary, lucid and elegantly written, further enriched by inclusion of interpreters from his own field of English literature: Chaucer, Charlotte Bronte, Thomas Hardy and Jeanette Winterson. " (Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 2011) "Overall this is an excellent guide to the very significant and varied reception history of the Pastoral Epistles. The volume testifies to the role the Pastorals have had in shaping the church and at times wider culture too, and makes accessible in one volume the evidence for this highly significant role." (JTS, 9 April 2011) "The Blackwell Bible Commentaries are a rare and valuable treasury of information, and Jay Twomey's volume on the Pastoral Epistles is a fine addition to this series. From Augustine, Aquinas, Calvin, and the Wesleys to Mary Astell, Amiri Baraka, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Jeanette Winterson (among a great many others), these biblical writings have been developed, transformed, and opposed in many ways and for many purposes. Twomey's survey further delineates the enduring power of the biblical canon to both stimulate and control "a steadily continuing history of complex and contradictory readings." George Aichele, Adrian College (retired) “Jay Twomey straddles the fields of biblical studies and literary studies with enviable ease. He is familiar with the history of biblical interpretation, both critical and pre-critical, but that is only the beginning. In addition to the more usual ecclesiastical and theological suspects, he is able to adduce a wonderfully diverse range of literary authors, over several centuries, who cite the Pastoral Epistles or allude to them, which imparts a rare richness to his reception history.” Stephen D. Moore, Drew University
“A rich feast to suit every palate. Commentators from deep in the past stand side by side with those who trouble the texts in the present, especially feminist, queer and cultural counter-readings. In Twomey's hands the Pastoral Epistles emerge as sites of tension and struggle; in other words, they come to life and engage. A real bonus is Twomey's ability to write well. It is a lucid, finely written text that draws the reader in.” Roland Boer, Monash University