1 Timothy 4:6–16

Verse 7. Old wives’ fables. [2] Some understand the groundless traditions of the Jews; others the ridiculous fictions of Simon Magus and his followers. In the Greek they are called profane fables. Witham.

Verse 8. Some think Saint Paul alludes in this verse to the corporal exercises of wrestlers, which procured them but a little short renown, whereas the works of piety have a more lasting reward. Menochius. Tirin.—Corporal exercises of temperance, mortification, and so forth are good, but not to be compared with the spiritual virtues of charity, piety, and so forth D. Bernard.

Verse 10. Of all men, and especially of the faithful, who have received the grace of faith. Witham.

Verse 12. Let no man despise thy youth. That is, let thy behaviour be such that no one can have occasion to despise thee. He seems then about the age of forty. Witham.

Verse 13. Attend to reading, and so forth He recommends to him the reading of the Holy Scriptures; which, says Saint Ambrose (l. 3. de fid. c. vii.) is the book of priests. Witham.

Verse 14. Neglect not the grace. The Greek seems to imply the gifts of the Holy Ghost, given by the sacraments, [3] by prophecy; which may signify, when the gift of preaching or of expounding prophets was bestowed upon thee.—With the imposition of the hands of the [4] priesthood. Some expound it, when thou didst receive the order of priesthood, or wast made bishop: but the sense rather seems to be, when the hands of priests of the first order (that is of bishops) were laid upon thee, according to S. Chrysostom. Witham.—Saint Augustine sayeth that no man can doubt whether holy orders be a sacrament; and that no one may argue that he uses the term improperly, and without due precision, he joineth this sacrament in nature and name with baptism. Cont. Ep. Parmen. l. 2. c. xiii. Saint Ambrose on this verse understands in the words imposition of hands, all the holy action and sacred words done and spoken over him when he was made a priest; whereby, says the saint, he was designed to the work, and received authority that he durst offer sacrifice in our Lord’s stead unto God.