1 Timothy 6:9 ("senseless and hurtful desires")

Greek (NA28): οἱ δὲ βουλόμενοι πλουτεῖν ἐμπίπτουσιν εἰς πειρασμὸν καὶ παγίδα καὶ ἐπιθυμίας πολλὰς ἀνοήτους καὶ βλαβεράς, αἵτινες βυθίζουσιν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους εἰς ὄλεθρον καὶ ἀπώλειαν.

I want to concentrate on ἐμπίπτουσιν εἰς πειρασμὸν καὶ παγίδα καὶ ἐπιθυμίας πολλὰς ἀνοήτους καὶ βλαβεράς in this blog post. For a discussion of 1 Timothy 6:9-10 that makes other parts its focus, see https://fosterheologicalreflections.blogspot.com/2021/01/1-timothy-69-10-analysis.html

ἐμπίπτουσιν εἰς πειρασμὸν-the verb here which occurs 7x in GNT passages is the present active indicative 3rd plural of ἐμπίπτω: compare 1 Timothy 3:6-7.

καὶ παγίδα-

καὶ ἐπιθυμίας πολλὰς ἀνοήτους καὶ βλαβεράς-Thomas Lea thinks the desires of a materialistic person are "foolish" (ἀνοήτους) because instead of benefitting the one who aspires to be rich, they wind up damaging the covetous person: the harm might be spiritual and/or material, but one probably cannot make that determination based on the language here. See 1,2 Timothy, Titus (NA Commentary).

This Pauline counsel likewise illustrates the potential harm that desire can bring to those who covet money or the things it can buy. Some desires are righteous, proper, and fitting, but other desires are ungodly, harmful and amount to covetousness or inordinate longings for what does not rightfully belong to us: "the lusts involved elements of what was foolish as well as what was hurtful" (so C.J. Ellicott, A Critical and Grammatical Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles, page 93).

William Mounce (Pastoral Epistles, WB Commentary): "Although ἐπιθυμία, 'passion,' can describe something that is good, in the PE it always describes strong sinful desire (cf. discussion of its verbal cognate in the Comment on 1 Tim 3: 1). In this case the passions are described as ἀνόητος, “foolish,” and βλαβερός, “harmful.” ἀνόητος occurs elsewhere only in Titus 3: 3 where Paul describes the pre-Christian state of people as being foolish. It is the opposite of σοφός, “wise” (Rom 1: 14), and is used elsewhere in the expression 'O foolish Galatians/ men' (Gal 3: 1 [cf. 3: 3]; cf. Luke 24: 25). J. Behm adds that its emphasis here is more moral than intellectual (TDNT 4: 962). βλαβερός occurs only here in the NT (cf. cognate verb in Luke 4: 35; Mark 16:18)."

Pastoral Epistles, Volume 46 (Word Biblical Commentary) (Kindle Locations 15568-15574). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.