KNOWN AS THE MOTHER & GRANDMOTHER OF TIMOTHY
Acts 16:1; 2 Timothy 1:5; 3:14, 15
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Then he went on to Derbe and Lystra,
where there was a disciple name
Timothy, the son of a believing Jewish
woman, but his father was a Greek.
Acts 16:1
Timothy’s mother is Eunice and his grandmother is Lois. They are two devout Jewish ladies living in Lystra where there is a Greek dominance in the population. The husband of Lois is not mentioned indicating the probability he was of Greek origin. Scripture is silent as to the identity of Lois’s husband and Eunice’s father. Eunice also married a Greek and together they had a son who was given the Hebrew name Timothy which means “one who honors God.”
How these devout Jewish women came to be married to Greek men probably has to do with the Diaspora where Jews were dispersed among the nations. There have been Greek speaking Jewish communities since the 4th century BC. Lystra is one of these cities in the Roman province of Galicia. Lystra’s population consisted of Roman soldiers who were over both Greeks and Jews. It is now part of modern-day Turkey but at that time was known as Asia Minor.
Strangely, in a male-dominated society, such as Timothy was raised in, he is identified with his mother and grandmother and not his father, which would have been the custom of that day.
Lois and Eunice lived in an immoral society with Eunice married to an unbeliever. Nothing is mentioned of him other than he was a Greek. It is assumed he was dead by the time Paul met these two ladies and the young lad, Timothy.
Even though the two ladies lived in a Godless society, it appears, they didn’t let their circumstances deter them from living an obedient, God-fearing life. It is believed Lois, Eunice, and Timothy were converted to the Christian faith during Paul’s first visit to the city of Lystra.
Lois and Eunice apparently instilled the Old Testament scrolls in Timothy. Thus, with Paul’s teaching of Christ, he is able to convert this family. Their knowledge of the Old Testament scrolls appears to have prepared them to accept Paul’s deliverance of the Gospel and quickly accepted Jesus as the long, awaited Messiah.
Whether Timothy was converted under Paul’s teaching of the Gospel or under the influence of his mother and grandmother is unknown. What is known is he had a Godly upbringing leading him to believe in Christ Jesus and become the protégé of the Apostle Paul.
Lois and Eunice may have been loving but strict with their rearing of Timothy. As mentioned, it is believed Timothy’s father died while he was still young. Thus, Timothy seems to have struggled with a timid and reserved nature. It is implied he was somewhat insecure about his youthfulness.
Lystra seems to have been the first location the Apostle Paul reached out to the Gentiles with the Gospel without going to the Jewish population first. Lystra appears to have had no synagogue which meant there were less than ten Jewish men living within the community, as this is what it took to establish a synagogue.
The people of Lystra were thought to be ignorant and superstitious people. Paul healed a life long cripple at Lystra and the population from that point on considered him and Barnabas pagan gods come down from heaven in the form of men. Barnabas, they reconciled to be “Zeus” the supreme ruler of the gods, as well as lord of the sky and rain. Paul, on the other hand, was considered “Hermes”, the son of Zeus and was associated with luck, shepherds, athletes, thieves, and merchants.
This is the atmosphere of foreign gods Timothy would have been surrounded with if it had not been for his mother and grandmother teaching him the Old Testament scrolls. Since Paul mentions these two ladies by name it is assumed he knew them personally.
Timothy being from Lystra and Paul from Tarsus and the two cities not being far from each other, it has been bantered around that perhaps Paul was related to this family. He appears to be very knowledgeable of the family and their faith. If indeed, Timothy’s father had died while he was still a youth, it would make sense that Paul looked upon him as a spiritual son. This is only speculation as Scripture is silent as to whether there was a family relationship or simply a spiritual one.
On Paul’s second journey to Lystra, Eunice and Lois had the great joy of seeing the “fruit of their labor”, as Paul chose Timothy for his companion in his missionary work. Timothy does indeed leave Lystra and joins Paul and Silas on the second missionary journey.
But as for you, continue in what
you have learned and firmly believed,
knowing those from whom you
learned, and that from childhood
you have known the sacred
Scriptures, which are able to
instruct you for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 3:14, 15
Timothy is reminded that he was acquainted with the sacred Scriptures from childhood. These teachings were instilled in Timothy probably from birth, as the Israelites had been commanded to do in Deuteronomy 6:7 and that is “repeat them to your children.” The only way these Old Testament scrolls could have been instilled in Timothy was if his mother and grandmother had them instilled in each of them.
They would have been unable to teach something they did not know but Paul makes clear these two fully understood and knew Scripture. They, more importantly, acted upon them producing more for the Kingdom of God than they ever knew or could have imagined.
These two raised a son and grandson in faith that God could and would use him to carry on God’s word. It is safe to say they did not imagine how significant their teaching this young boy would become. But, by faith, they continued teaching him day by day. As a result, God is still today, using the fruit of their labor to teach us the importance of being Godly mothers and Godly grandmothers.
After Paul’s reference to Lois and Eunice in his second Epistle to Timothy they are not mentioned again. Timothy is the first “second generation” Christian mentioned in the New Testament. As mentioned, he is the protégé of Paul and becomes the pastor of the church at Ephesus.
…so My word that comes from My
mouth will not return to Me empty,
but it will accomplish what I please and
will prosper in what I send it to do.
Isaiah 55:11
Because of the faithfulness in teaching their son and grandson, Lois and Eunice helped mold a Godly man. Because of Paul taking Timothy under his wing and teaching him the Gospel account of Jesus, everyday for over 2,000 years the ministry of Timothy has made changes in this fallen world.
These two women are only known by their relationship to their son and grandson Timothy, but what an amazing relationship it was. Interestingly, even though there are other grandmothers in Scripture the term “grandmother” is only used in connection to Lois.
Scripture is silent concerning any other information about these two women. What is very important is what we can learn from these two very special ladies. That is the necessity to teach others, be them children, grandchildren, or a complete stranger on the street. What God has entrusted to us we are commanded to share with others so that God’s word will not return to Him empty.
Something to consider:
If you want to touch the future,
touch a life.
Unknown
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