“he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions” (1 Timothy 6:4).
Anyone who takes part in an online forum or unmoderated “comments” section of an Internet site will surely encounter some (or all) of the qualities mentioned here in 1 Timothy 6:4: “…an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions” (NIV).
While such things may represent little more than an annoyance to the members of an online community, a teacher or preacher who exhibits the qualities of 1 Timothy 6:4 can inflict lasting spiritual injury upon others. Some of those negative characteristics from 1 Timothy 6:4 include the following…
- Pride: “Doctrinal error is seldom merely a case of being innocently mistaken. There is almost always some degree of culpability. The false teachers in Ephesus were conceited (lit., ‘puffed up’), with inflated egos (cf. 1Ti_1:7). Such a one understands nothing.” (1)
- Unhealthy obsessions: 1 Timothy 6:4 employs a medical analogy that points to an excessive and vicious fondness for something, (2)
- Disputes and arguments over words: This refers to the quarrels that arise from insignificant details that have little or nothing to do with the matter under discussion.
- Envy: Envy involves a feeling of unhappiness or disapproval when others are favored or successful.
- Strife: This is a quality that relates to contentions, rivalries, or discord with others.
- Reviling: This word is associated with “slander, detraction, [or] speech [that is] injurious to another’s good name.” (3)
- Evil suspicions: Those who automatically assume the worst about others are those who might fall into this category.
These are the qualities that fail to “…help people live a life of faith in God” (NLT) as mentioned earlier in 1 Timothy 1:4. We can also borrow a cautionary message from Jesus regarding these behaviors…
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them” (Matthew 7:15-20).
(1) John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, Bible Knowledge Commentary [p.746]
(2) See G3552 noseo https://www.billmounce.com/greek-dictionary/noseo
(3) G988 blasphemia Thayer’s Greek Lexicon https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/lexicon.cfm?bn=63&ot=KJV&page=1&strongs=G988&t=YLT