TSW ~ E.W. King: Why Christian Women couldn’t teach in Ephesus

Why Christian Women couldn’t teach in Ephesus

By Eric William King

In Genesis chapter-one we find that the male and female participate equally in the image of God. "So God created man [humankind] in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them" (Gen 1:27).

First I would like to mention two important rules of the “Seven Ancient Antiochene Rules” of Biblical interpretation...which is to say “proper hermeneutics”. This rule is number 6, “Studying the Background”. Also rule number 5 which is “Grasping the Authors Intention”. Keep these in mind as we go. Let us proceed…

We are looking at 1^st Timothy 2:11-15 which says;

“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.”

The word used for “authority” here is key to understanding this. It is the Greek word authentein. Another important subject to keep in mind is the fact that Apostle Paul is writing this letter to Ephesus and to St Timothy who was residing there.

Apostle Paul’s instructions concerning women here should be understood against the cultural background of Ephesus at that time. Apostle Paul was dealing with many differing cultural backgrounds when establishing churches. St Paul states; “To the Jews I became like a Jew. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.” (1st Corinthians 9:20-23)

Regarding behavioral instructions and cultural issues we find that what St Paul instructed some churches to do would be the exact opposite instruction of what he told another church. We learn about the diversity situations of early Christianity and how they were dealt with.

Pagan Women of Ephesus

When we look at our Scripture in question, found in St Paul’s first letter to St Timothy, St Paul states that he “does not permit women to teach or have authority over a man.” We know that he is referring to Ephesus women in the Ephesus church because in another one of St Paul’s epistles (Titus 2:3) to the churches on the Island of Crete he says their women can teach. This is why proper hermeneutics should be used in teaching the Word of God. People have created complete doctrines by taking things out of context.

Before I go on with this study I would like to say to those Christians who do not believe that women should teach in the Church, please look at what the Scriptures truly say on this issue before you come to a conclusion. We find this Scripture: “He who answers before listening – that is his folly and his shame.” (Proverbs 18:13) You might just learn something new.

We notice that in 1^st Timothy 2:11-15 that right after Paul says to him: “I do not permit women to teach or have authority over man” he then immediately goes on to explain that “man was made first, and then the woman” quoting from Genesis (Torah). Why does he stress this point regarding man being created first to St Timothy? Because St Timothy was dealing with some women in Ephesus who taught that the woman was “created first” and in the pagan cults this gave some of these woman abusive powers over men. Some of these women were high-priestesses of Artemis.

It is true that many women were not allowed to speak in the Greek Religious tradition and respectable Greek women lived a very confined life. Some scholars believe that one of the reasons St Paul didn’t want the Christian women of Ephesus to teach publically is because it would make Christian women look loose….way too open for women of Greek culture. St Paul never wanted to turn anybody away from the Gospel.

Yet some of the powerful corrupt Greek women were connected to the powerful elite and these women could give orders to kill. Some scholars speculate that the stories of the Amazonian warrior women boosted the status of the Ephesian Pagan Priestesses. These powerful groups didn’t take to Christianity.

Some of these women were entering the Christian discussion and worshiping sites in Ephesus and creating troubles while other Greek women looked down on Christian women as being “loose”. Apostle Paul is basically saying; “Thus, St Timothy, for the Ephesus church be safe, do not let your women to teach.”

Another sad fact regarding the complicated issues with women at the time that this letter by St Paul was written was the fact that there were many female prostitutes, the so called priestesses of Aphrodite. So we must truly begin to understand the cultural background here.

There is also debate by theologians over the Greek word that St Paul uses here for authority – he says “or to have authority over a man”. The Greek word used here is authentein and in this context means more accurately that the women were not to usurp authority over the Christian Men teachers of Ephesus. They had the habit of interrupting and over speaking while the men taught. This Greek word here for “authority” has considerable interest among modern lexicographers and biblical scholars.The Greek word is only used once here in the entire Bible and is a bit obscure. I believe that Dibelius translates it more accurately as meaning not to “interrupt”.

Woman Saved through Child Bearing

Finally St Paul ends our text in question with: “But women will be saved through childbearing – if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.” (1^st Timothy 2:15) This statement must also be looked at in regards to its cultural setting and time. What does St Paul mean? This statement means basically that women are to help guide the church through motherhood and are in fact called to be the strong teachers of their children in the Word of God. This verse does not mean that a woman needs to give literal birth to a child to be saved. In the Christian Church there are a lot of adults who need mothering in their lives, let alone husbands.

Admittedly I believe that St Paul’s statement here results into being an idiom of sorts. There are irregularities in the sentence structure in the Greek. It is somewhat obscure also due to the brevity of the statement. It does point to the importance of the Christian woman teaching and raising children.

The older Christian women are to carry on the tradition of teaching the younger women how to do this. “Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to be teachers of what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children.” (Titus 2:3-4)

Also it was God’s original plan for every child to be raised properly by his or her mother. Having a Mother is extremely important for the Christian child. Ultimately all of us were “saved through childbearing” when Mother Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ. Amen

May you find your ultimate rest in our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ.

By Eric William King (May 12^th 2020)

Question: Are you going to a church that rejects infant baptism & rejects women teachers?