Survey
of the Letters of Paul: 1 Timothy
1:9
1 Timothy 1:9
Knowing this, that
the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the
lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for
sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of
fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,
Verses 9 and 10 really go together
as a single statement.
The Law was not made for the righteous man but for [and
here is the list:]
1. Lawless
2. disobedient
3. Ungodly
4. Sinners
5. Unholy
6. Profane
7. Murderers of fathers
8. Murderers of mothers
9. Manslayers
...then from verse 10 below...
10. Whoremongers
11. Them that defile themselves with mankind
12. Menstealers
13. Liars
14. Perjured persons
15. Any other thing that is contrary to sound
doctrine.
Knowing this - That is, “If anyone knows, or admits
this, he has the prover view of the design of the
law.” The apostle does not refer particularly to
himself as knowing or conceding this, for then he
would have uses the plural form of the participle (see
the Greek), but he means that anyone who had
just views of the law would see that that which he
proceeds to specify was its real purpose. ~Barnes
Notes
Knowing this - He indeed escapes the curse of the
Law, and therefore does not abhor it, who fleeing
and avoiding those things which the Law condemns,
gives himself with all his heart to observe it: and
he does not make a vain babbling of outward and
curious matters.
~Geneva Bible Translation Notes
The law is not made for a righteous man - There has
been great variety in the interpretation of this
passage. Some suppose that the law here refers to
the ceremonial laws of Moses (Clarke,
Rosenmuller, Abbot); others to the denunciatory
part [accusing; threatening] of the law (Doddridge
and Bloomfield); and others that it means that
the chief purpose of the law was to restrain the
wicked. It seems clear, however, that the apostle
does not refer merely to the ceremonial law, for he
specifies that which condemns the unholy and
profane; the murderers of fathers and mothers; liars
and perjured persons. It was not the ceremonial law
which condemned these things, but the moral law. It
cannot be supposed, moreover, that the apostle meant
to say that the law was not binding on a righteous
man, or that he was under no obligation to obey it -
for he everywhere teaches that the moral law is
obligatory on all mankind.
To suppose also that a righteous man is released
from the obligation to obey the law, that is, to do
right, is an absurdity. Nor does he seem to mean, as
Macknight supposes, that the law was not given for
the purpose of justifying a righteous man - for this
was originally one of its designs. Had man always
obeyed it, he would have been justified by it. The
meaning seems to be, that the purpose of the law was
not to fetter and perplex those who were righteous,
and who aimed to do their duty and to please God. It
was not intended to produce a spirit of servitude
and bondage. As the Jews interpreted it, it did
this, and this interpretation appears to have been
adopted by the teachers at Ephesus, to whom Paul
refers. The whole tendency of their teaching was to
bring the soul into a state of bondage, and to make
religion a condition, of servitude. Paul teaches, on
the other hand, that religion was a condition of
freedom, and that the main purpose of the law was
not to fetter the minds of the righteous by
numberless observances and minute regulations, but
that it was to restrain the wicked from sin. This is
the case with all law. No good man feels himself
lettered and manacled by wholesome laws, nor does he
feel that the purpose of law is to reduce him to a
state of servitude. It is only the wicked who have
this feeling - and in this sense the law is made for
a man who intends to do wrong. ~ Barnes Notes
The law is not made for a righteous man - There is a
moral law as well as a ceremonial law: as the object
of the latter is to lead us to Christ; the object of
the former is to restrain crimes, and inflict
punishment on those that commit them. It was,
therefore, not made for the righteous as a
restrainer of crimes, and an inflicter of
punishments; for the righteous avoid sin, and by
living to the glory of God expose not themselves to
its censures. This seems to be the mind of the
apostle; he does not say that the law was not Made
for a righteous man, but ου κειται, it does not Lie
against a righteous man; because he does not
transgress it: but it lies against the wicked; for
such as the apostle mentions have broken it, and
grievously too, and are condemned by it. The word
κειται, lies, refers to the custom of writing laws
on boards, and hanging them up in public places
within reach of every man, that they might be read
by all; thus all would see against whom the law lay.
~Adam Clarke
law is not made for a righteous man — not for one
standing by faith in the righteousness of Christ put
on him for justification, and imparted inwardly by
the Spirit for sanctification. “One not forensically
amenable to the law” [Alford]. For
sanctification, the law gives no inward power to
fulfil it; but Alford goes too far in speaking of
the righteous man as “not morally needing the law.”
Doubtless, in proportion as he is inwardly led by
the Spirit, the justified man needs not the law,
which is only an outward rule (Romans 6:14;
Galatians 5:18, Galatians 5:23). But as the
justified man often does not give himself up wholly
to the inward leading of the Spirit, he morally
needs the outward law to show him his sin and God’s
requirements. The reason why the ten commandments
have no power to condemn the Christian, is not that
they have no authority over him, but because Christ
has fulfilled them as our surety [One who has
contracted to be responsible for another, especially
one who assumes responsibilities or debts of another]
(Romans 10:4). ~Jamieson, Fausset, Brown
[JFB]
Now the verses mentioned in the JFB:
Romans 6:14
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are
not under the law, but under grace.
Galatians 5:18
But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the
law.
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no
law.
Romans 10:4
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness
to every one that believeth.
Lawless and Disobedient
For the lawless - To bind and restrain them. The
word here used means, properly, those who have no
law, and then those who are transgressors - the
wicked. It is rendered transgressors in Matthew
15:28; Luke 22:37, and wicked, Acts 2:23; 2
Thessalonians 2:8. ~Barnes Notes
The lawless - Ανομοις· Those who will not be
bound by a law, and acknowledge none, therefore have
no rule of moral conduct. ~Adam Clarke
And disobedient - Those who are insubordinate,
lawless, refractory. The word properly means those
who are under no subjection or authority. It occurs
in the New Testament only here, and Titus 1:6, Titus
1:10, where it is rendered unruly, and Hebrews 2:8,
where it is translated not put under; that is, under
Christ. ~Barnes Notes
Disobedient - Ανυποτακτοις· Those who
acknowledge no authority; from α, negative, and
ὑποτασσω, to subject; they neither acknowledge law,
nor executive authority, and consequently endeavor
to live as they list; and from such dispositions all
the crimes in the following catalogue may naturally
spring. ~Adam Clarke
Disobedient — Greek, “not subject”; insubordinate;
it is translated “unruly,” Titus1:6, Titus 1:10;
“lawless and disobedient” refer to opposers of the
law, for whom it is “enacted” (so the Greek, for
“is made”). ~Jamieson, Fausset, Brown
Lawless and disobedient - by the "lawless" are
meant, not the Gentiles, which were without the
written law, but such who have it, and despise and
reject it, and live not according to it, but
transgress it: and "the disobedient" design such who
are not subject to it: who are sons of Belial,
children without the yoke; who cast the law of the
Lord behind their backs; who are not, nor can they
be subject to it, without the powerful and
efficacious grace of God. Now the law lies upon, and
against such persons, as an accusing, terrifying,
cursing, and condemning law, ~John Gill
Ungodly
and Sinners
For the ungodly - Those who have no religion; who do
not worship or honor God. The Greek word occurs in
the following places, in all of which it is rendered
ungodly; Romans 4:5; Romans 5:6; 1 Timothy 1:9; 1
Peter 4:18; 2 Peter 2:5; 2 Peter 3:7; Judges 1:15.
The meaning is, that the law is against all who do
not worship or honor God. ~Barnes Notes
Ungodly - Ασεβεσι· The irreligious - those who
do not worship God, or have no true worship; from α,
negative, and σεβω, to worship. For sinners,
ἁμαρτωλοις those who transgress the laws; from α,
negative, and μαρπτω, to hit the mark. This has been
elsewhere explained. ~Adam Clarke
Ungodly, and for sinners - by the "ungodly" are
intended, such as are without God in the world, who
neither fear God, nor regard man, who neglect and
despise the worship of God, and say to him, depart
from us, Job 21:14 and by "sinners" are designed
notorious ones, who are exceeding great sinners,
always sinning, making sin their constant business
and employment; on and against these the law lies:
~John Gill
And for sinners - The word used here is the common
word to denote sinners. It is general, and includes
sins of all kinds. ~Barnes Notes
Ungodly and ... sinners — Greek, he who does not
reverence God, and he who openly sins against Him;
the opposers of God, from the law comes.
~Jamieson, Fausset, Brown
Unholy and Profane
Unholy - “Those who are regardless of duty to God or
man,” Robinson, Lexicon. The word occurs in the New
Testament only here, and in 2 Timothy 3:2. It has
particular reference to those who fail of their duty
toward God, and means those who have no piety; who
are irreligious. ~Barnes Notes
Unholy - Ανοσιοις· Persons totally polluted -
unclean within, and unclean without; from α,
negative, and ὁσιος, holy. ~Adam Clarke
Profane - Βεβηλοις· Such who are so unholy and
abominable as not to be fit to attend any public
worship; from βε, denoting privation or separation,
and βηλος, a threshold or pavement, particularly of
a temple. Our word profane comes from procul a fano,
“far from the temple.” When the ancients, even
heathens, were about to perform some very sacred
rites, they were accustomed to command the
irreligious to keep at a distance; hence that saying
in a fragment of Orpheus: -
“I will speak to whom it is lawful; but these doors,
O, shut against the profane.” ~Adam Clarke
Unholy and profane - such are unholy persons,
who are destitute of inward principles of truth and
holiness, and who live unholy lives and
conversations; and "profane" persons are those who
profane the name of the Lord by cursing and
swearing, and who profane his day, doctrines, and
ordinances, and live dissolute and profane lives,
being abandoned to all sin and wickedness; these
three couples of wicked men, expressed in general
terms, seem to have respect greatly to the moral
part of the four precepts of the decalogue, as the
following particulars do to the other six: ~John
Gill
Unholy and profane — those inwardly impure, and
those deserving exclusion from the outward
participation in services of the sanctuary; sinners
against the third and fourth commandments.
~Jamieson, Fausset, Brown
And profane - This does not necessarily mean that
they were profane in the sense that blasphemed the
name of God, or were profane swearers - though the
word would include that - but it means properly
those who are impious, or who are scoffers; notes,
Hebrews 12:16. The word occurs only in the following
places, in all of which it is rendered profane: 1
Timothy 1:9; 1 Timothy 4:7; 1 Timothy 6:20; 2
Timothy 2:16; Hebrews 12:16. A man who treats
religion with contempt. mockery, or scorn, would
correspond with the meaning of the word. ~Barnes
Notes
Murderers
For murderers of fathers - The Greek properly means
a “smiter of a father” (Robinson), though
here it undoubtedly means a parricide. This was
expressly forbidden by the law of Moses, and was a
crime punishable by death; Exodus 21:15. It is said
to have been a crime which the Roman law did not
contemplate as possible, and hence that there was no
enactment against it. It is, indeed, a crime of the
highest order; but facts have shown that if the
Romans supposed it would never be committed, they
did not judge aright of human nature. There is
no sin which man will not commit if unrestrained,
and there is in fact no conceivable form of crime of
which he has not been guilty. ~Barnes Notes
Murderers of fathers - Πατραλῳαις. The murderer
of a father or a mother, notwithstanding the deep
fall of man, and the general profligacy of the
world, has been so rare, and is a crime so totally
opposite to nature, that few civilized nations have
found it necessary to make laws against it. Yet,
such monsters, like the most awful and infrequent
portents, have sometimes terrified the world with
their appearance. But I think the original does not
necessarily imply the murder of a father or of a
mother; πατραλῳας comes from πατερα, a father, and
αλοιαω, to strike, and may mean simply beating or
striking a father or mother: this is horrible
enough; but to murder a parent out-herods Herod.
~Adam Clarke
Murderers of mothers - A still more atrocious and
monstrous crime, if possible, than the former. We
can conceive nothing superior to this in atrocity,
and yet it has been committed. Nero caused his
mother to be murdered, and the annals of crime
disclose the names of not a few who have imbrued
their own hands in the blood of those who bare them.
This was also expressly forbidden by the law of
Moses; Exodus 21:15. ~Barnes Notes
For murderers of fathers, and murderers of
mothers - though there is no law that expressly
mentions this, yet is beyond all doubt a breach both
of the fifth and sixth commands; and if cursing
parents, and disobedience to them, were punishable
by the law with death, then much more the murder of
them; see Leviticus 20:9 though the words will bear
to be rendered, "for strikers of fathers, and
strikers of mothers"; and so the Syriac and Arabic
versions render them, and against this there was an
express law, Exodus 21:15. According to the Pompeian
law, one guilty of parricide [killing of parents]
was to be sewed up in a sack with a dog, a cock, a
viper, and an ape, and cast into the sea, or into a
river: ~John Gill
Manslayers
For manslayers - This word occurs nowhere else in
the New Testament. It means a homicide - a murderer.
The crime is expressly forbidden by the law; Exodus
20:13; Genesis 9:6. ~Barnes Notes
Manslayers - Ανδροφονοις· Murderers simply; all
who take away the life of a human being contrary to
law. For no crime, unless it be murder, should any
man lose his life. If the law did not speak
differently, I should not scruple to say that he
whose life is taken away, except for murder, is
murdered. ~Adam Clarke
Manslayers - guilty of the murder of any man,
which was always punishable with death, and was a
breach of the sixth command; see Genesis 9:6. ~
John Gill
Manslayers — sinners against the sixth
commandment. ~Jamieson, Fausset, Brown
Further Study:
the law: Romans 4:13, Romans 5:20, Romans 6:14;
Galatians 3:10-14, Galatians 3:19, Galatians 5:23
the lawless: 2Thessalonians 2:8
disobedient: Romans 1:30; Titus 1:16, Titus 3:3;
Hebrews 11:31; 1 Peter 2:7, 1 Peters 3:20
the ungodly: 1 Peter 4:18
profane: Jeremiah 23:11; Ezekiel 21:25; Hebrews 12:16
murderers: Leviticus 20:9; Deuteronomy 27:16; 2 Samuel 16:11,
2 Samuel 17:1-4; 2 Kings 19:37; 2 Chronicles 32:21; Proverbs 20:20;
Proverbs 28:24, Proverbs 30:11, Proverbs 30:17; Matthew 10:21
manslayers: Genesis 9:5-6; Exodus 20:13, Exodus 21:14;
Numbers 35:30-33; Deuteronomy 21:6-9; Proverbs 28:17; Galatians 5:21;
Revelation 21:8, Revelation 22:15