A church leader must be without fault; he must have only one wife, be sober, self-controlled, and orderly; he must welcome strangers in his home; he must be able to teach;

he must be able to manage his own family well and make his children obey him with all respect.

He must be mature in the faith, so that he will not swell up with pride and be condemned, as the Devil was.

A priest shall not marry a woman who has been a prostitute or a woman who is not a virgin or who is divorced; he is holy.

not a widow or a divorced woman or a woman who has been a prostitute. He shall marry only a virgin from his own clan.

No priest may marry a divorced woman; he is to marry only an Israelite virgin or the widow of another priest.

Didn't God make you one body and spirit with her? What was his purpose in this? It was that you should have children who are truly God's people. So make sure that none of you breaks his promise to his wife.

During the time when Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife's name was Elizabeth; she also belonged to a priestly family.

A church helper must have only one wife, and be able to manage his children and family well.

I have chosen him in order that he may command his sons and his descendants to obey me and to do what is right and just. If they do, I will do everything for him that I have promised."

Then Elkanah went back home to Ramah, but the boy Samuel stayed in Shiloh and served the LORD under the priest Eli.

Eli was now very old. He kept hearing about everything his sons were doing to the Israelites and that they were even sleeping with the women who worked at the entrance to the Tent of the LORD's presence.

Why, then, do you look with greed at the sacrifices and offerings which I require from my people? Why, Eli, do you honor your sons more than me by letting them fatten themselves on the best parts of all the sacrifices my people offer to me?

I, the LORD God of Israel, promised in the past that your family and your clan would serve me as priests for all time. But now I say that I won't have it any longer! Instead, I will honor those who honor me, and I will treat with contempt those who despise me.

On that day I will carry out all my threats against Eli's family, from beginning to end.

I have already told him that I am going to punish his family forever because his sons have spoken evil things against me. Eli knew they were doing this, but he did not stop them.

he must be able to manage his own family well and make his children obey him with all respect.

For if a man does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of the church of God?

Young people who obey the law are intelligent. Those who make friends with good-for-nothings are a disgrace to their parents.

For there are many, especially the converts from Judaism, who rebel and deceive others with their nonsense.

We urge you, our friends, to warn the idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.