What does 1 Timothy 5:8 mean?

Paul likely had the entire church in mind in the previous verse. Here, he turns more directly to individuals, particularly men. Those who can provide for their families are obligated to do so. Paul repeats the theme he used in verse 4, beginning with a conditional statement. More specifically, Paul directed his command in verse 4 toward people caring for members of 'their own household." While it may not be possible for one person to care for every relative, even unbelievers in Paul's day understood that a child's responsibility is to care for their widowed mother.

The second half of the condition in this verse provides the consequences, consisting of two parts. First, those who fail to reasonably support their own families are said to have "denied the faith." Paul mentioned two men who had denied the faith in 1 Timothy 1:19–20. He also spoke about the subject of denying Christ in 2 Timothy 2:12–13 and denying Christ's spiritual power in 2 Timothy 3:5. Christ's command is for believers to love one another (John 15:12) and that those who love Christ should follow His commands (John 14:15). It stands to reason, then, that a person cannot claim to be committed to following Christ when they choose not to care for their own families.

For the same reason, professing Christians who refuse to care for a widowed family member are considered "worse than an unbeliever." This was the ultimate shame for Timothy's audience. To be called an unbeliever would be insult enough; to be called "worse than an unbeliever" is a purposefully derogatory statement. Being cold and callous towards one's family is bad enough. To do this while dragging down the name of Christ, and Christianity, is truly despicable. This is intended to show Timothy and his church members the vital importance of caring for one's immediate family.