NT Text: 1 Timothy 6:1
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Analogy
Significance: Paul warns that slaves should honor their masters "so that the name of God and the teaching may not be blasphemed" (hina mē to onoma tou theou kai hē didaskalia blasphēmētai). This echoes Isaiah 52:5 (LXX), where God laments that "my name is continually blasphemed among the nations" (di' hymas dia pantos to onoma mou blasphēmeitai en tois ethnesin). The TSK confirms this connection. In Isaiah, the blasphemy results from Israel's exile — the nations mock God because his people are oppressed, suggesting he cannot protect them. Paul reverses the causality: now it is the behavior of God's people that can cause his name to be blasphemed. The verbal parallel (blasphēmeō + onoma tou theou) is unmistakable. Paul applies the prophetic concern for God's reputation among outsiders to the practical realm of Christian conduct in a pagan social order.