Lives of Scripture

Eunice is named once in Scripture, in Paul's second letter to her son Timothy: "I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well" (2 Timothy 1:5). No episode or action of hers is recorded -- only Paul's confident testimony that her faith was genuine, and that it was passed down through two generations of women before taking root in Timothy himself. Paul's language elsewhere describes Timothy as having known the sacred writings from childhood (2 Timothy 3:15), a formation that most naturally traces back to the home Eunice and Lois provided. Acts identifies Timothy's mother as a believing Jewish woman married to a Greek father (Acts 16:1), consistent with Paul's description here, though that verse is not among this entry's cited references. Eunice's entire biblical portrait consists of this single commendation, yet it credits her with something Paul considered worth naming directly to the young leader she raised: a faith sincere enough to be handed on.