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If God had told us this maybe we wouldn't have anything to disagree on. Would his mother have baptized him as an infant when his father was not a believer if she hadn't circumcised him? I don't know!
Yes, Timothy was half and half (Acts 16:1). His mother, grandmother, and Timothy himself were most probably converted during Paul’s first missionary journey (2 Tim 1:5), by Paul himself—though his mother and grandmother had a great influence upon him….. We see his conversion IMHO in Paul’s ministry because of Paul’s reference to him as his ‘spiritual child” (1 Cor 4:17; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2). Since, all this happened IMHO on the 1st missionary journey the timing would be very close to his mother’s conversion, et. al.….

Additionally, Timothy had learned the Jewish Scriptures (2 Tim 3:14-15, O.T.) from his childhood forth (though his father was a Gentile) thus making me think he was baptized very early on at/after his mother's conversion. Additonally he (1) was not circumcised at 8 days of age, (2) there is no record of either his conversion or baptism later in church records, and (3) his name “Timotheus” itself means “honoring or worshipping god” (originally a heathen name, but adopted by early Christians and Jews with changed reference to “the God”).

PS: Jewish tradition has it that there were "checkers" at the door of the Temple who would yes, check you, to insure you would not pollute the holy place, being non-circumcised. Thus, the purpose of the circumcision was to gain access and literally be all things to all men.....


Reformed and Always Reforming,