How does 1 Timothy 5:18 connect with Deuteronomy 25:4's teaching? Setting the Texts in View 1 Timothy 5:18: “For Scripture says, ‘Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,’ and, ‘The worker is worthy of his wages.’” Deuteronomy 25:4: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” God’s Concern for Both Oxen and Ministers • Moses’ law protects the working animal’s right to eat while laboring. • Paul applies that same principle to those who labor in gospel ministry—elders who “rule well” and “work hard at preaching and teaching” (1 Timothy 5:17). • The underlying truth: God cares for His creatures, and even more so for those who serve His people. Paul’s Use of Moses: A Living Principle • Paul affirms Deuteronomy 25:4 as divinely binding; he cites it verbatim. • He immediately places it alongside Jesus’ words in Luke 10:7 (“The worker is worthy of his wages”), treating both Old Testament and Gospel sayings as equal Scripture. • By pairing them, Paul shows: – Continuity—God’s moral concern runs from the Law through Christ. – Authority—the Mosaic command is not obsolete but fulfilled in gospel practice. – Application—if God defends an ox’s right to sustenance, how much more His servants (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:9-14). Practical Implications for Today’s Church • Financial support for pastors and missionaries is not optional generosity; it is obedience to Scripture. • Congregations should view adequate provision as a joyful act of worship, mirroring God’s own fairness. • Ministers, like the ox, are to keep “treading out the grain”—laboring diligently—without fear that their needs will be ignored. A Unified Voice of Scripture • Deuteronomy 25:4 teaches God’s justice in the smallest details. • 1 Timothy 5:18 echoes that justice, expanding it to human laborers in the church. • Together they reveal one consistent, literal message: the Lord insists that those who work—whether animal or apostle—receive their rightful share. |
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