Is money the root of all evil? What 1 Timothy 6:10 actually says

The Bible doesn't say that money is the root of all evil. The verse people have in mind, 1 Timothy 6:10, says that the love of money is the root of all evil, and most modern translations read "a root of all kinds of evil." The warning is about craving wealth, not about money itself.

It's one of several popular sayings that sound biblical but aren't quite, like "God helps those who help themselves" and "cleanliness is next to godliness".

Where is it in the Bible? 1 Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

To have coveted after money means to have craved it. Erred from the faith means wandered away from it. The picture at the end is of people wounding themselves: the grief comes from the chase itself.

"The root" or "a root"? What the Greek says

In Greek the key clause reads rhiza gar panton ton kakon estin he philargyria. You can see it word by word in the Bible Hub interlinear. Three details matter:

• Philargyria means love of money. It is built from words for love and silver, and it appears only here in the New Testament.
• Rhiza, root, comes first for emphasis and has no article. Greek has no indefinite article like the English "a," so a noun without "the" can be translated either way, and context has to decide.
• Panton ton kakon is plural: "of all the evils."

That's why most modern versions say "a root of all kinds of evil." A comparison of translations shows the NIV, ESV, NASB, NKJV, and CSB all choose "a root," while the NLT keeps "the root of all kinds of evil." The NKJV even prints "kinds of" in italics to show the words were added for clarity.

Either way, Paul isn't claiming that every sin in history grew out of greed. He's saying there's hardly any kind of evil the love of money can't lead to.

Paul may also be echoing a saying his readers already knew. A Jewish wisdom poem from around his time, the Sentences of Pseudo-Phocylides, calls the love of money "the mother of all evil" (line 42). Much later, Diogenes Laertius credited the Greek philosopher Diogenes the Cynic with calling it the "mother-city of all evils" (Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, Book VI, section 50).

Read it in context: 1 Timothy 6:5-19

In the verses just before, Paul describes false teachers who were treating religion as a way to make money. His reply turns their own phrase around.

⁵Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. ⁶But godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. ⁸And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. ⁹But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.

Perverse disputings means constant quarreling. In verse 5, gain means profit: the teachers assumed godliness was a way to get rich. Real gain, Paul answers, is godliness paired with contentment. Raiment means clothing. They that will be rich means those who want to be rich, and lusts means desires. The trap isn't having money. It's being set on getting more of it.

Later in the chapter, Paul turns to believers who already have wealth.

¹⁷Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; ¹⁸That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; ¹⁹Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

Highminded means arrogant. Ready to distribute and willing to communicate both mean generous and quick to share. In this passage Paul doesn't tell the rich to give everything away. He tells them not to look down on others, not to trust money that can vanish, and to put it to work doing good. He even says God gives us richly all things to enjoy.

What does the Bible say about money?

The same warning runs through both testaments.

Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

In the KJV, conversation means your way of life, one of several KJV words that changed meaning. Without covetousness translates a single Greek word, aphilargyros, meaning not money-loving: the same word family as 1 Timothy 6:10, negated. The reason given for contentment is God's presence, echoing his promise to Israel and to Joshua (Deuteronomy 31:6; Joshua 1:5).

No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Mammon is an Aramaic word for wealth. Jesus pictures it as a rival master that wants your loyalty. You can use money. You can't serve it and God at once.

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

Jesus said this after a man asked him to settle an inheritance dispute. He followed it with the parable of a rich farmer who planned to tear down his barns and build bigger ones, only to hear God say his life would be required that very night (Luke 12:16-21). Covetousness is greed, the constant wanting of more.

He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.

Vanity means a vapor, something empty that slips away. Loving money never ends in enough. Two verses later the writer adds that the rich man's abundance won't suffer (allow) him to sleep. If money worries are keeping you up, these Bible verses for anxiety at night may help.

⁸Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: ⁹Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.

Here vanity means falsehood, and food convenient for me means the portion I need. The writer, named in verse 1 as Agur, sees a danger at both ends. Too much can lead you to deny God. Too little can tempt you to steal. He asks for enough.

Is it wrong to be rich? Where Christians differ

Christians agree that loving money is dangerous. They differ on what faithfulness with money looks like.

• Simplicity. Some read Jesus' call to a rich man to sell everything and give to the poor (Mark 10:21) as a pattern for their own lives. They also point to his command to his disciples to sell what they have and give alms (Luke 12:33), and to the early church sharing its goods (Acts 2:44-45). Many choose to live on far less than they could.
• Stewardship. Many others read that call as aimed at one man whose wealth held his heart, and take 1 Timothy 6:17-19 as the pattern for believers who have money.
• Prosperity teaching. Some churches teach that God rewards faith and giving with financial blessing, often citing Malachi 3:10 and 3 John 2. Its "name it and claim it" strand has a lot in common with manifesting. Critics across many traditions answer with 1 Timothy 6:5 and the warnings in verses 9-10.

A pastor or trusted Christian friend can help you think it through.

How do you know if you love money?

Whatever your balance, a few honest questions can show where your heart is:

• Does "enough" keep moving further away (Ecclesiastes 5:10)?
• Would you bend the truth or cut a corner to get ahead?
• Does giving feel like a loss you resent rather than a joy (2 Corinthians 9:7)?
• Does your sense of safety rise and fall with your account rather than rest in God (1 Timothy 6:17)?

The Bible's answer: contentment and generosity

The antidote Paul gives is contentment. The word in 1 Timothy 6:6 describes having enough. Paul used a related word when he wrote that he had learned to be content whether he had plenty or was in need (Philippians 4:11-12).

Generosity loosens money's grip from the other side. Paul reminded the Ephesian elders that Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). Giving regularly, even in small amounts, is a practical way to keep money a servant rather than a master.

The bottom line

"Money is the root of all evil" drops "the love of" from 1 Timothy 6:10, and that changes the meaning. The Bible warns about loving money, not having it. When a line gets passed around as Scripture, look it up and read the verses around it. Here's how to check a verse you're not sure about.