“A woman should learn
in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have
authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And
Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a
sinner. But women will be saved through childbearing – if they continue in
faith, love and holiness with propriety”
(1 Timothy
2:11-15, NIV)
First, keep this in mind: the
context of these verses is Paul’s
instructions on worship service. And, remember that throughout the New
Testament, the Christian home – husband and wife – is a picture of the union
between Jesus Christ and His bride, the church (refer Ephesians 5:22-33). The man
is the type of Christ and the woman is the type of the church. Ephesians 5:24
says, “Now as the church submits to
Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.” This context
and text are reasons why for the strict instruction in these verses.
If you read 1 Corinthians
14:33-35, you’ll understand that women during Paul’s time were creating a
disturbance or disorder in the public worship services by “speak in the church,” which I assumed that they questioned
negatively about what was being preached. Some commentaries say that these women
of Ephesus were new converts and thus have little experience. And due to the Jewish
male-dominated society of the time, the women were not allowed to study and
thus having little knowledge of the truth (that was why if you study false
teachings, cults, or ancient religions, most of the leaders were women. See 2
Timothy 3:1-9). Here Paul outlines two main theological reasons why he “do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man”:
#1 First, the order of creation gives headship to the
man (Genesis 1-2). “For Adam was formed first, then Eve.” This doesn’t mean
man is superior to woman in creation, but man was given the place of priority,
and God intends that it should remain so. #2
Secondly, the woman was the one who falls into sin first. “And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was
deceived and became a sinner.” The fall in the Garden of Eden
(Genesis 3) was disastrous as a result when the woman first took a place of
leadership that was never meant for her. Had Eve remained in the place of “quietness and full submission” to Adam, the fall might
never have taken place. Therefore, the woman is instructed to take the place of
a learner (quietness) and one of subjection (full submission) to the man.
Now… we are told
in the Scripture that the woman is not to teach or exercise authority over the
man and remember this is part of Paul’s instructions for worship service. This doesn’t
eliminate women from teaching at all or writing books that help men or being in
full-time ministry or teaching their children. I learned a great deal about
Christian living, knowledge of the Scripture, and examples of lives from women
in my life like Annette, Kim Cheng, and my mother. Timothy was taught about the
faith from his mother and grandmother (2 Timothy 1:5). Among Paul’s co-workers were great women like Priscilla, Euodia, and Syntyche. Most of them
held positions of responsibility in the church. And are you not amazed by
faithful women like Ruth, Esther, and Deborah in the Old Testament? Superb! Years ago, I concluded that in
salvation, discipleship, and status as God’s children, we – men and women – are equal.
But in matters of headship and leadership, men should take the lead. If family,
church, or organization doesn’t work properly, men are to be the first to take responsibility
not women!
About the last verse
(v.15), I have to admit, I’m still confused and don’t know which interpretations
or believes I should hold. For sure the woman should continue to “live in faith, love, holiness and modesty” (NLT).
Readers, either you agree with me or not,
Lord, I try to be as faithful to your Word as
possible.
I’m not afraid of men, but forgive me if I put errors
in your Word. Amen.
THINK BIG.
START SMALL. GO DEEP.
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