To catch up on our adventure through 1 Timothy, click here and read from the bottom post up.
"The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. [18] For the Scripture says, 'Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain,' and 'The worker deserves his wages.'"
Paul quotes two Scriptures here. The first--"Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain"--is lifted from Deuteronomy 25:4. (Paul also quotes it in 1 Corinthians 9:9.) An ox was attached by poles to a large millstone. As it walked around the millstone, its hooves trampled the grain, separating the kernels from the chaff. Meanwhile, the millstone ground the grain into flour. To muzzle the ox would prevent it from eating while it was working.
The second Scripture Paul quotes--"The worker deserves his wages"--is a little harder to nail down. Perhaps it is synthesized from the concepts in Leviticus 19:13 and Deuteronomy 24:15, or even from what Jesus taught in Matthew 10:10 and Luke 10:7.
Paul uses the term "elders" not in terms of age but referring to leaders in the church. Today we might say it refers to the paid ministers and staff of a church.
These verses are an admonition for churches to take care of their pastors and staff financially. These people have given their vocational lives to serve the church. In some cases, they have left much higher-paying jobs in the corporate world. Don't skimp on taking care of them. And honor those "who direct the affairs of the church well."
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