¹³Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching.

Reading Paul’s letters reveals great biographical data that help us construct the author’s movements. In this case, “Until I come” indicates the apostle was planning to visit Ephesus where Timothy was stationed (1 Tim. 1:3). He anticipated the possibility that his coming might be delayed (see 1 Tim. 3:14–15), so we surmise that is the reason for this detailed letter. This takes place after Paul’s recorded missionary tours in Acts, and, as most scholars agree, he wrote after his house arrest in Rome and before or during a presumed later incarceration. It turns out he died shortly after writing Timothy and never made it to Ephesus.

Timothy is to give priority to the public reading of Scripture. We must remember the printing press was not invented until some 1400 years later, so believers in the first century did not all have their own copy of Scriptures. Hand copies were relatively scarce since not enough time had yet passed for massive proliferation. At that time, public reading was the normal way most would take in the Word of God. Exhortation and teaching were also to be emphasized, that is, the explanation of the meaning of the Word and the urging to obey it.

The church today would do well to follow this threefold focus. Music and hymns, of course, are important, as Paul directly wrote the Ephesian believers (see Eph. 5:19). But here he wants Timothy to teach the church at Ephesus to give more considerable attention to reading, teaching, and exhortation. The absence of any mention of singing in this letter, which is overtly about conduct in the church, is a poignant argument from silence. The Word, teaching, and exhortation are the more critical focus.

Today many efforts are made to attract wayward believers and unbelievers to church services. Congregational growth conferences, seminars, books, and websites by “successful” preachers abound. But the Word of God teaches us to focus on reading the Word, teaching the Word, and obeying the Word. For as the writer of Hebrews puts it:

[T]he word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Heb 4:12)

Lord, thank You for giving us Your written Word. I honor You by being devoted to it.