NT Text: 1 Timothy 5:18
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Analogy
Significance: In 1 Timothy 5:19, Paul instructs Timothy not to entertain an accusation against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses, echoing the Deuteronomic requirement that capital charges require multiple witnesses (Deut 17:6; cf. Deut 19:15). While the explicit quotation formula in 5:18 introduces the Deuteronomy 25:4 citation, the multiple-witness principle in the immediate context (5:19) draws on the broader Deuteronomic legal framework. The analogical application transfers the OT judicial safeguard — designed to protect against false testimony in capital cases — to the ecclesial context of accusations against church leaders. The escalation pattern is notable: if such care was required in civic jurisprudence, how much more in the governance of God's household.