There are three interpretations of 1 Timothy 2:12-15 concerning the role of women in the church. Both letters to Timothy were written to help him deal with an uprising of false teachers in the Ephesian church. These false teachers are Hymenaeus, Alexander, and Philetus. These men were either influencing some rebellious women or being influenced by them.
1 Timothy 2:12 (NLT) I do not let women teach men or have authority over them. Let them listen quietly. 13 For God made Adam first, and afterward, he made Eve. 14 And it was not Adam who was deceived by Satan. The woman was deceived, and sin was the result. 15 But women will be saved through childbearing, assuming they continue to live in faith, love, holiness, and modesty.
- The first interpretation is that only men should be leaders, period, and Adam was made to lead Eve, so the church should be run explicitly by male leaders only.
- The second is that women cannot hold full authoritative positions, such as pastors or bishops, but can speak in church as ministers of the gospel in an evangelistic role.
- The third is that this instruction was specific to the Ephesus church because particular women were either influencing or being influenced by false leaders, Hymenaeus and Alexander, who corrupted them. Evidence of this is in the first chapter.
This is how Paul starts his arguments in 1 Timothy:
1 Timothy 1:3 (NLT) When I left for Macedonia, I urged you to stay there in Ephesus and stop those whose teaching is contrary to the truth. 4 Don’t let them waste their time in endless discussions of myths and spiritual pedigrees. These things only lead to meaningless speculations, which don’t help people live a life of faith in God. 5 The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. 6 But some people have missed this whole point. They have turned away from these things and spend their time in meaningless discussions. 7 They want to be known as teachers of the law of Moses, but they don’t know what they are talking about, even though they speak so confidently.
Later in the letter, it becomes apparent that some wealthy women are treating church meetings as a fashion show to showcase their social status. This would have given them the impression that they could usurp authority and be disrespectful, looking down on others with haughty eyes. In the normal course of society, women of their status would never be caught dead around poor people, orphans, and slaves, yet this is what the Kingdom of Heaven looks like.
Additionally, some young, wealthy widows idled away their days gossiping and causing strife (1 Tim 5:11-15). Moreover, wealthy widows were taking food from the widow food distribution program, so Paul had to set some boundaries in 1 Timothy 5. Paul concludes that widows who were old, poor, and destitute (no adult children) could receive food, and even then, they had to be active members of the church, helping other members. Paul didn’t have a problem with women learning, but their behavior was obnoxious and disruptive to the service.
In addition to the issue of false teachers, there are some other layers to this. Back then, young Jewish women were not allowed to pursue education, so it was up to their husbands to teach them, and they were not in a position to teach. So it makes sense that if most women are uneducated in the study of the Torah, then they shouldn’t be teaching it; this was the framework of the Jewish culture back then (and in some Orthodox communities today).
In 1 Corinthians 14:35, Paul says, “Women should be silent during the church meetings. It is not proper for them to speak. They should be submissive, just as the law says. 35 If they have any questions, they should ask their husbands at home, for it is improper for women to speak in church meetings.”
This wasn’t a universal law, as evidenced by Paul’s instruction to women to uncover their heads while “praying and prophesying” in 1 Corinthians 11:5, both of which require women to speak aloud. The context in 1 Corinthians 14 was the lack of education for women, which led them to ask questions to the point that it disrupted service. Hence, their husbands, who are likely literate, are responsible for studying with their wives at home. In the modern world, more communities across the globe have literate women, so this wouldn’t apply to Christians in these communities today, who have equal access to education for both sexes.
Furthermore, Ephesus, where the letter to Timothy was written, was the home to the cult of Diana (Artemis in Greek). This is a Greek goddess of hunting and the wilderness, and she was also associated with chastity. The gnostic false teachers that Paul mentions in the letter (Hymenaeus, Alexander, and Philetus) were likely teaching syncretism with pagan ideas. Paul mentions that some forbade meat and marriage in 1 Timothy 4:1-3, women from that cult would have been anti-marriage because they believed that virginity some spiritual power superior to Christians. Also, many religions like Buddhism teach that eating meat is an act of lower spirituality, so forsaking meat and marriage was being taught as an ascetic practice that made one more enlightened, which is in contrast to the need for Faith in Christ to be saved. Idol makers who made money manufacturing statues of Diana/Artemis in this same city were angry at Paul and started a riot to have him killed in Acts 19:23-41. So there are women from this cult bringing outside doctrine to the Ephesian church, and Timothy was sent to correct that.
Lastly, if Paul had a problem with women teaching in general, then why did he endorse Priscilla’s involvement in teaching Apollos in Acts 18:24-28? In Acts 18, Paul meets Priscilla and her husband Aquila in Corinth (Achaia). They are refugees from Rome who fled because of an expulsion of Jews by Claudius Caesar. They become believers in Christ and assist Paul in preaching. They followed Paul from Corinth to Ephesus and settled there. While there, a newly converted Messianic Jewish Egyptian named Apollos had just arrived in Ephesus. He was a good preacher, but there were things he didn’t know, so Priscilla and Aquila helped refine his knowledge and encouraged him to go to Corinth, where he won many debates against the Jews in Achaia. It’s possible that, since Priscilla was from Rome and not Judea, she had the opportunity to study the Bible, despite being a woman, which would have put her in a position above other Jewish women in more conservative communities. Priscilla and Aquila were also leaders of the house church in Ephesus (1 Cor. 16:19, 2 Tim. 4:19), and Paul even says they risked their lives for him at one point (Rom. 16:2-4). Priscilla was clearly educated and in a position to aid Paul in evangelism; if she were just a passive wife and not a minister, then the text would have just mentioned Aquila. We don’t even know Peter’s wife’s name in Scripture; all we know is that Jesus healed his mother-in-law. Yet Priscilla’s role in spreading the gospel was significant enough to merit mention in Paul’s story in Acts and in three of his letters.
As you can see, this issue extends beyond just the disrespectful women in the church of Ephesus. We must consider the context of the whole letter. Context, whether historical, cultural, or linguistic, is key to understanding what we read in the Bible. God has provided the Holy Spirit and the human resources to understand these things, so that we can learn what the Scriptures are saying.
All believers are commissioned to speak the gospel, including women, as stated by Paul in Galatians 3:23-29 and by Peter, who quotes the prophet Joel about the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:16-21 (Joel 2:28-32).
Joel 2:28 “Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. 29 In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on servants—men and women alike.”
The modern structure of pulpits and pews differs significantly from that of the past. Back then, except for some Messianic Synagogues, believers primarily met in houses and catacombs and were a part of city-wide and regional networks of small groups. They always had to be wary of Roman and Jewish authorities who would have them arrested. In some cases, widows with large houses would host the group and lead in prayer, worship, and other activities. Even in those cases, some argue that a male would have been the spiritual head of the group. However, the hostess has authority over her actual household and is responsible for keeping things organized for the group in general, so there may have been variations.
In a house meeting, anyone can speak to or pray for another person, regardless of gender. Women aren’t to sit in absolute silence. In the second view, it’s more about letting men be the leaders and women supporting them in any way possible, including speaking on their behalf if necessary. As long as the men speak the truth, the women will also tell the truth, because the men will lead. If the men are false, then the women will be false. In the third view, women can lead, but they are held to the same accountability standards as any male leader. Paul directly addresses bad teaching from male leaders, such as Hymenaeus and Alexander (1 Tim 1:20).
Some women held specific jobs and special positions in the 1st-century churches mentioned by Paul, such as Junia (Romans 16:7) and Priscilla (Acts 18:26). Phoebe and Priscilla are examples of the second interpretation of 1 Timothy 2:12-15. Pheobe is called a patroness in Romans 16:2, meaning she was in charge of certain affairs. Priscilla and her husband Aquila both ministered to Apollos in Acts 18. Although 1 Timothy 3:12 primarily discusses deacons and their wives, it is clear from Phoebe in Romans 16:1-2 that women also functioned as deaconesses. 1 Timothy 3:12 refers to male deacons who are married, and for them to be respectful husbands. This aligns with the qualifications of male leaders mentioned throughout the chapter, which state that married male deacons should follow the example of the proper elders described earlier. It doesn’t bar single men and women from being deacons. Deacon is derived from the Greek word diákonos, meaning “servant.” It’s not a magical term for a church leader, and therefore not explicit to men. This shouldn’t be a problem even for someone who believes women should never lead as pastors, since ‘deacon’ means ‘servant,’ and everyone is called to serve the kingdom.
Lastly, if the KJV translated the word deacon from 1 Timothy 3:12 the same way it is translated in Romans 16:1, it would simply say, “Let the servants be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.” Or we could leave the word servant in its transliterated form, “deacon” in Romans 16:1, and it would say, “I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a deacon of the church which is at Cenchrea:”
One thing to keep in mind is that modern Bibles are translations of translations, and sometimes, later translators interpret specific passages differently based on their own beliefs. Oftentimes, like with any language, there are a few different ways to translate one word or another. Sometimes, the definitions chosen may not always take into account the cultural and historical context of the original script or may be influenced by the culture of the period in which the translation is made.
Resources:
Artemis Greek Goddess
On the Artemis/Diana Cult
Women reading the Torah in Orthodox Judaism
“Girls were not generally educated in the synagogue schools. They were trained at home in household arts in preparation for marriage.” [Tenney, Merrill C.. New Testament Survey (p. 174). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition. ]
An Overview of 1 Timothy by the Bible Project
Women Deacons