SEV Biblia, Chapter 5:23
No bebas de aquí adelante agua, sino usa de un poco de vino por causa del estmago, y de tus continuas enfermedades.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - 1 Timothy 5:23
Verse 23. Drink no longer water, but use a little wine] The whole of this verse seems, to several learned critics and divines, strangely inserted in this place; it might have been, according to them, a note which the apostle inserted in the margin of his letter, on recollecting the precarious state of Timothy's health, and his great abstemiousness and self-denial. I believe the verse to be in its proper place; and, for reasons which I shall adduce, not less necessary than the directions which precede and follow it. But it may be necessary to inquire a little into the reasons of the advice itself. The priests under the Mosaic law, while performing sacred rites, were forbidden to drink wine: Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever through your generations; Lev. x. 9; Ezek. xliv. 21. It was the same with the Egyptian priests. It was forbidden also among the Romans, and particularly to women and young persons.
PLATO, Deuteronomy Legibus, lib. ii., edit. Bip., vol. viii., page 86, speaks thus: ar ou nomoqethsomen, prwton men, touv paidav mecriv etwn oktwkaideka toparapan oinou mh geuestai;- meta de touto, oinou men dh geuesqai tou metriou, mecri triakonta etwn? -tettarakonta de epibainonta etwn, en toiv xussitioiv euwchqenta, k. t. l. "Shall we not ordain by law, in the first place, that boys shall not, on any account, taste wine till they are eighteen years old? In the next place, we should inform them that wine is to be used moderately till they are thirty years old. But when they have attained the fortieth year, then they may attend feasts; for Bacchus has bestowed wine upon men as a remedy against the austerity of old age, thv tou ghrwv austhrothtov edwrhsato ton oiuon farmakon, wst anhban hmav, kai dusqumiav lhqhn gignesqai, malakwteron ek sklhroterou to thv yuchv hqov, kaqaper eiv pur sidhron enteqenta, gignomenon? that through this we might acquire a second youth, forget sorrow, and the manners of the mind be rendered softer, as iron is softened by the action of the fire." But wine, according to the assertions of some, was given to men as a punishment, that they might be rendered insane: o de nun legomenov uf hmwn, farmakon epi tounantion fhsin aidouv men yuchv kthsewv eneka dedosqai, swmatov de ugieiav te kai iscuov? page 100. "But we have now said that it is, on the contrary, medicine; and was given that the soul might acquire modesty, and the body health and vigour." From Athenaeus we learn that the Greeks often mingled their wine with water; sometimes one part of wine to two of water; three parts of water to one of wine; and at other times three parts of water to two of wine. See his Deipnosophistae, lib. ix. "Among the Locrians, if any one was found to have drunk unmixed wine, unless prescribed by a physician, he was punished with death; the laws of Zaleucus so requiring. And among the Romans, no servant, nor free woman, oute twn eleuqerwn oi efhboi mecri triakonta etwn, nor youths of quality, drank any wine till they were thirty years of age." Deipnosoph., lib. x. c. 7, p. 429. And it was a maxim among all, that continued water-drinking injured the stomach. Thus Libanius, Epist. 1578. peptwke kai hmin o stomacov taiv sunecesin udroposiaiv? "Our stomach is weakened by continual water-drinking." From chap. iv. 12, we learn that Timothy was a young man; but as among the Greeks and Roman the state of youth or adolescence was extended to thirty years, and no respectable young men were permitted to drink wine before that time; allowing that Timothy was about twenty when Paul had him circumcised, which was, according to Calmet, in the year of our Lord 51, and that this epistle was written about A. D. 64 or 65, then Timothy must have been about thirty-five when he received this epistle; and as that was on the borders of adolescence, and as the Scripture generally calls that youth that is not old age, Timothy might be treated as a young man by St. Paul, as in the above text, and might still feel himself under the custom of his country relative to drinking wine, (for his father was a Greek, Acts xvi. 1,) and, through the influence of his Christian profession, still continue to abstain from wine, drinking water only; which must have been very prejudicial to him, his weak state of health considered, the delicacy of his stomach, and the excess of his ecclesiastical labours.
As Timothy's life was of great consequence to the Church of God at Ephesus, it was not unworthy of the Spirit of God to give the direction in the text, and to mingle it immediately with what some have called more solemn and important advice. 1. It was necessary that the work should be done in the Church at Ephesus which the apostle appointed to Timothy.
2. There was no person at Ephesus fit to do this work but Timothy. 3.
Timothy could not continue to do it if he followed his present mode of abstemiousness. 4. It was necessary, therefore, that he should receive direction from Divine authority relative to the preservation of his life, and consequently the continuation of his usefulness, as it is not likely that a minor authority would have weighed with him.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 23. Drink no longer water , etc.] Though it was commendable in him to keep under his body, as the apostle did, by abstemious living, and not pamper the flesh and encourage the lusts of it, and so preserve purity and chastity; yet it was proper that he should take care of his health, that it was not impaired by too much severity, and so he be incapable of doing the work of the Lord. And it seems by this, that his long and only use of water for his drink had been prejudicial to his health: wherefore the following advice was judged proper: but use a little wine ; some, by a little wine, understand not the quantity, but the quality of the wine; a thin, small, weak wine, or wine mixed with water; and so the Ethiopic version renders the words, drink no more simple water, (or water only,) but mix a little wine; though rather the quantity is intended, and which is mentioned. Not as though there was any danger of Timothy's running into an excess of drinking; but for the sake of others, lest they should abuse such a direction, to indulge themselves in an excessive way; and chiefly to prevent the scoffs of profane persons; who otherwise would have insinuated that the apostle indulged intemperance and excess: whereas this advice to the use of wine, was not for pleasure, and for the satisfying of the flesh, but for health, for thy stomach's sake ; to help digestion, and to remove the disorders which might attend it: the Ethiopic version renders it, for the pain of the liver, and for thy perpetual disease; which last might be a pain in his head, arising from the disorder of his stomach: the last clause we render, and thine often infirmities ; or weaknesses of body, occasioned by hard studies, frequent ministrations, and indefatigable pains and labours he endured in spreading the Gospel of Christ.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 17-25 - Care must be taken that ministers are maintained. And those who ar laborious in this work are worthy of double honour and esteem. It in their just due, as much as the reward of the labourer. The apostl charges Timothy solemnly to guard against partiality. We have grea need to watch at all times, that we do not partake of other men's sins Keep thyself pure, not only from doing the like thyself, but from countenancing it, or any way helping to it in others. The apostle als charges Timothy to take care of his health. As we are not to make ou bodies masters, so neither slaves; but to use them so that they may be most helpful to us in the service of God. There are secret, and ther are open sins: some men's sins are open before-hand, and going befor unto judgment; some they follow after. God will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and make known the counsels of all hearts Looking forward to the judgment-day, let us all attend to our prope offices, whether in higher or lower stations, studying that the nam and doctrine of God may never be blasphemed on our account __________________________________________________________________
Greek Textus Receptus
μηκετι 3371 υδροποτει 5202 5720 αλλ 235 οινω 3631 ολιγω 3641 χρω 5530 5737 δια 1223 τον 3588 στομαχον 4751 σου 4675 και 2532 τας 3588 πυκνας 4437 σου 4675 ασθενειας 769
Vincent's NT Word Studies
23. Drink no longer water (mhketi udropotei). The verb N.T.o . o LXX. Rend. be no longer a drinker of water. Timothy is not enjoined to abstain from water, but is bidden not to be a water-drinker, entirely abstaining from wine. The kindred noun uJdropothv is used by Greek comic writers to denote a mean-spirited person. See Aristoph. Knights, 319.
But use a little wine (alla oinw oligw crw). The reverse antithesis appears in Hdt. i. 171, of the Persians: oujk oinw diacreontai ajll' uJdropoteousi they do not indulge in wine but are water-drinkers. Comp. Plato, Repub. 561 C, tote men mequwn - auqiv de uJdropotwn sometimes he is drunk - then he is for total-abstinence. With a little wine comp. much wine, ch. iii. 8; Tit. ii. 3.
For thy stomach's sake (dia stomacon). Stomacov N.T.o . o LXX. The appearance at this point of this dietetic prescription, if it is nothing more, is sufficiently startling; which has led to some question whether the verse may not have been misplaced. If it belongs here, it can be explained only as a continuation of the thought in ver. 22, to the effect that Timothy is to keep himself pure by not giving aid and comfort to the ascetics, and imperilling his own health by adopting their rules of abstinence. Observe that oinov here, as everywhere else, means wine, fermented and capable of intoxicating, and not a sweet syrup made by boiling down grape-juice, and styled by certain modern reformers "unfermented wine." Such a concoction would have tended rather to aggravate than to relieve Timothy's stomachic or other infirmities.
Thine often infirmities (tav puknav sou asqeneiav). This use of often as an adjective appears in earlier English. So Chaucer: "Ofte sythes" or "tymes ofte," many times. Shakespeare: "In which my often rumination wraps me in a most humorous sadness " (As you like it, IV. i. 19). And Ben Jonson:
"The jolly wassal walks the often round." The Forest, iii.
Even Tennyson:
"Wrench'd or broken limb - an often chance In those brain-stunning shocks and tourney-falls." Gareth and Lynette.
Puknov often, very common in Class. Originally, close, compact, comp. Lat. frequens. In this sense 3 Macc. iv. 10, tw puknw sanidwmati the close planking of a ship's deck. In N.T., except here, always adverbial, pukna or puknoteron often or oftener, Luke v. 33; Acts xxiv. 26. Asqeneia weakness, infirmity, only here in Pastorals. In the physical sense, as here, Luke v. 15; viii. 2; John v. 5; Gal. iv. 13. In the ethic sense, Rom. vi. 19; viii. 26.
Robertson's NT Word Studies
5:23 {Be no longer a drinker of water} (meketi hudropotei). Present active imperative (prohibition) of hudropotew, old verb (from hudropotes, water drinker, hudwr, pinw), here only in N.T. Not complete asceticism, but only the need of some wine urged in Timothy's peculiar physical condition (a sort of medical prescription for this case). {But use a little wine} (alla ainwi oligwi crw). Present middle imperative of craomai with instrumental case. The emphasis is on oligwi (a little). {For thy stomach's sake} (dia ton stomacon). Old word from stoma (mouth). In Homer throat, opening of the stomach (Aristotle), stomach in Plutarch. Here only in N.T. Our word "stomach." {Thine often infirmities} (tas puknas sou asqeneias). puknos is old word, dense, frequent. In N.T. only here, #Lu 5:33; Ac 24:26. asqeneias = weaknesses, lack of strength (#Ro 8:26). Timothy was clearly a semi-invalid.
