1 Timothy 6.7-We Have Brought Nothing Into This World And Thus We Will Take Nothing Out
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Wednesday September 28, 2011
1 Timothy: 1 Timothy 6:7-We Have Brought Nothing Into This World And Thus We Will Take Nothing Out
Lesson # 129
Please turn in your Bibles to 1 Timothy 6:3.
Paul in verse 7 presents the basis for his previous statement in verse 6 by teaching that we all entered this world possessionless and we leave this world in the same way.
1 Timothy 6:3 If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, 4 he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions 5 and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. 6 But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. 7 For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. (NASB95)
“For we have brought nothing into the world” is composed of the accusative neuter singular form of the adjective oudeis (οὐδείς) (oo-theese), “nothing” and then we have the post-positive conjunction gar (γάρ) (gar), “for” and this is followed by the first person plural aorist active indicative form of the verb eisphero (εἰσφέρω) (eese-farowe), “we have brought” and then we have the preposition eis (εἰς) (eece), “into” and its object is the articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun kosmos (κόσμος) (koez-moce), “the world.”
The conjunction gar is causal meaning that the word is introducing a clause the presents the basis for Paul’s statement in 1 Timothy 6:6 that combined with contentment, godliness is a means of superior gain.
Now here in verse 7, gar introduces a statement that teaches that we all enter this world without possessions and we will also leave this world in the same way.
Therefore, here in 1 Timothy 6:7, the conjunction gar indicates that this statement in 1 Timothy 6:7 is the basis or the reason for his statement in 1 Timothy 6:6.
Thus, Paul is saying that combined with contentment, godliness is a means of superior gain “because” or “based upon the fact” that we entered this world without possessions and we will leave this world in the same way.
The verb eisphero means “to bring in” and is used with the entire human race as its subject since the third person plural form of the word reflects this statement’s proverbial character.
The verb speaks of birth.
So the word is saying that “we brought” nothing into this world.
This statement in 1 Timothy 6:7 was proverbial in character and echoed Jewish wisdom and conventional wisdom as reflected by the fact that Philo and Seneca use this statement.
This statement is very well documented in the ancient world (Seneca Ep. 102.24-25; Horace Odes 2.14.21; Propert. 4.4.13). It also echoes Job 1:21 and Ecclesiastes 5:15.
Job 1:21 He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” (NASB95)
Ecclesiastes 5:15 As he had come naked from his mother’s womb, so will he return as he came. He will take nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can carry in his hand. (NASB95)
The Lord Jesus taught this same principle in Luke 12:16-21.
Luke 12:16 And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. 17 And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ 18 Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.” 20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ 21 So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (NASB95)
The adjective oudeis means “absolutely nothing” and functions as a substantive as a negative reference to an entity.
In our context, the word refers to material possessions and wealth.
It stands in the emphatic position in the sentence.
The word itself is emphatic.
Thus the word emphatically negates the idea that any member of the human enters human existence with material possessions and wealth.
Paul is saying we brought “absolutely nothing” into this world.
The noun kosmos means “world” and refers to the human race or in other words, the sphere of human existence.
It is the object of the preposition eis, which functions as a marker of entrance into a particular state or condition indicating entrance into human existence or condition.
1 Timothy 6:7 For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. (NASB95)
“So we cannot take anything out of it either” is composed of the conjunction hoti (ὅτι) (owe-tee), “so” and this is followed by the negative particle oude (οὐδέ) (oo-theh), “not either” which is negating the meaning of the aorist active infinitive form of the verb ekphero (ἐκφέρω) (ek-feh-rowe), “take out” and then we have the accusative neuter singular form of the indefinite pronoun tis (τις) (teece), “anything” and this is followed by the first person plural present middle indicative form of the verb dunamai (δύναμαι) (thee-nah-meh), “we can.”
The conjunction hoti is used in a consecutive sense meaning that it is introducing a statement that presents the result or the consequence of the previous statement that we brought absolutely nothing into this world.
This would indicate that Paul is teaching that we entered this world with absolutely nothing “consequently” we will leave this world with nothing.
Logically speaking, if we entered this world with absolutely nothing, we are going to leave in the same way.
So hoti is introducing a statement that presents the logical conclusion that can be derived from the previous statement that we brought absolutely nothing into this world.
In other words, if we brought absolutely nothing into this world, we can logically conclude that we will depart this world with absolutely nothing as well.
If babies bring absolutely no possessions into this life, then the logical result is that they bring absolutely nothing out of this life when they die.
In fact, experience makes clear that babies bring no possessions into this world and it is obvious that when people die, they leave their possessions behind.
The negative particle oude, which is composed of the negative particle ou, “never” and the conjunction de, “and,” and thus is rendered, “neither, nor.”
Oude is used with the adjective oudeis, “absolutely nothing,” which emphatically negates the meaning of the verb eisphero that appears earlier in the sentence in the previous statement.
Oude is negating the meaning of the verbs dunamai and ekphero.
Together, oude and ou form a correlative clause that combines the verbs eisphero and dunamai and ekphero together.
They serve to connect two concepts: (1) Members of the human race brought absolutely no possessions into this world with them at birth. (2) Members of the human race have no ability to take anything out of this world at death.
The verb dunamai means, “to have the capacity, to be able to do something, to have the ability to something.”
The verb’s meaning is emphatically negated by the negative adverb oude, “never.”
Therefore, together, they denote we brought absolutely nothing into this world so logically, “neither do we have the capacity or ability to” take anything out of this world at death.
They denote that we are powerless to bring anything out of this world with us at death.
The present tense of the verb dunamai is a “gnomic present,” which is used for a general timeless fact or spiritual axiom, or an eternal spiritual truth.
This indicates that we brought absolutely nothing into this world so logically neither do we, “as an eternal spiritual truth” have the ability to take anything out of this world at death.
The middle voice of the verb is an indirect middle meaning that Paul is saying that we brought absolutely nothing into this world so logically neither can we, “for our own benefit” take anything out of it.
The verb ekphero means “to take out” and is used with the human race as its subject and material possessions or wealth as its object.
The verb refers to physical death.
Therefore, Paul is saying that we brought absolutely nothing into this world so logically, for our own benefit, do we, as an eternal spiritual truth, have the ability “to take” anything “out.”
The indefinite pronoun tis refers to unidentified material possessions and unidentified amount of wealth.
It is used in a negative statement and means “anything.”
So Paul is saying that we brought absolutely nothing into this world so logically speaking, we, for our own benefit, are, as an eternal spiritual truth unable to take “anything” out.