word. Their authoritative function is especially stressed in the Pastoral Letters, where they are depicted as those who transmit “sound doctrine” (1 Tim 1:10; 2 Tim 4:3) and pass on the tradition of the apostles to the church (2 Tim 2:2). There is no excuse for weak teaching in the church, as Paul pointed out to Timothy (2 Tim 1:6–7; 2:15; 4:2). The threefold purpose of the leaders in verse 12 centers on the task of helping the church to grow, with reference