7

sleep together: Greek κοίτην (*koitēn*), literally 'bed.' The same word is rendered 'promiscuity' (plural) in Romans 13:13 and 'bed' in Hebrews 13:4 ('let the bed be undefiled'). The manuscript reads κοινήν ('common') in place of κοίτην, yielding 'a common table, but not a common [table]' — which is nonsensical. The conjecture κοίτην, accepted by most modern editors, is supported by the Greek idiom pairing τραπέζῃ καὶ κοίτῃ (*trapezē kai koitē*, 'table and bed') attested in Herodotus. A scribe likely softened the text to avoid the sexual reference. Early Christians were accused of sexual promiscuity at their communal meals (see Athenagoras, *A Plea for the Christians* 3; Tertullian, *Apology* 7). The author's response is pointed: they eat together, but do not sleep together.