NT Text: 1 Timothy 5:18
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Direct Quotation
Connection Method(s): Analogy
Significance: Paul introduces this citation with the explicit formula "the Scripture says" (legei gar hē graphē) and quotes Deuteronomy 25:4 verbatim: "You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain." This is the same Deuteronomic text Paul had already applied in 1 Corinthians 9:9 using a qal wahomer argument — if God cares about oxen being fed while they work, how much more should laborers in the gospel receive material support? The application is analogical rather than typological: the principle of allowing a worker to benefit from his labor, established in the Mosaic agricultural law, applies a fortiori to elders who labor in preaching and teaching. Paul treats the Deuteronomic command as embodying a universal principle of justice rooted in God's character.