An overview of women in the Bible
This comprehensive overview dives into different aspects of women in the Bible, from their role in the church to their role in marriage. Studying scripture, we’ll explore the historical and cultural context of women in the church, specifically around popular passages like 1 Timothy 2 that have been interpreted very differently among believers.
These articles will help illuminate how to reconcile contradictions in the Bible to truly understand what God’s underlying principles are when it comes to women in the church.
PART 1: What does the bible say about women leadership in the church?
There are various competing views when it comes to women leadership in the church, each pointing to their own Bible verses to support their stance. While there are a number of verses that seem to prohibit women in leadership, there are also several verses that seem to contradict those very verses (that is, women should not be in authority over men and should keep silent in church). Looking at ALL passages in the Bible on women and their role in leadership in ministry, we see inconsistency and contradictions.
When it comes to inconsistency or contradictions between passages in the Bible, it comes down to three choices: 1) conclude the Bible is contradictory and dismiss what Scripture says; 2) conclude that God is confused; 3) understand one side of this ledger is culturally conditioned. Read more here to learn how when there is inconsistency, we know there is cultural application at work. unlike God’s timeless moral truth, which will be applied consistently through Scripture throughout time.
Part 4: Understanding ‘authentein’ Greek meaning in 1 Timothy 2:12 (what women were not to do)
In addition to understanding the unique context to Ephesus, the city 1 Timothy 2 is addressed to, the second key to interpreting this verse is the uniqueness of the Greek word, αὐθεντεῖν (authentein), in 1 Timothy 2:12. This is where we see “exercise authority over” as the translation of one Greek word, authentein.
Interestingly, this word is only found one time in the entire Bible, and it’s on authority. The uniqueness of this word implies a very rare meaning, and it should tell us what was happening in Ephesus (that needed to be addressed with women and men) was also very rare. Dive deeper into what this Greek word means around authority, and understand what is truly being addressed here at Ephesus.
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Part 2: Reconciling 1 Corinthians 14 on THE role OF WOMEN in the church
In part 1 of our series on women in the church, we saw that there are passages in Scripture that contradict each other when it comes to women in leadership in the church. Knowing that God does not violate His moral principles, we know that there is one side of the ledger that is culturally conditioned. To start, we’ll look into 1 Corinthians 14 to see how these Scriptures can be reconciled.
Explore the five keys to unlocking understanding to 1 Corinthians 14, from its context to recognizing an unintended message was being sent through the actions being done. Once we understand the specific context of this passage, we see that this was written to the church in Corinth, which was having issues in its gathering due to chaos and confusion that were distracting from the actual purposes of the gathering, which are giving praise to God, getting the message out, and growing together.
Part 5: Interpreting women teaching men in church in 1 Timothy 2
The third key to understanding 1 Timothy 2 is the relationship between all the components of this passage: dress, appearance, and speech. When it comes to “not allowing women to teach men in church”, we need to first understand the context, in this case, what precedes this verse.
Diving into the context of this chapter, we see there are seven prohibitions for wives (or women, as some translate it): remain quiet, not allowed to teach, not to exercise authority over (authentein) men, wear proper clothing, no braided hair, no gold, and no pearls. Yet, only two of these seven get applied woodenly, one of which says women can’t be in authority over men, which we’ve previously shown is NOT what ‘authentein’ means.
So, if the prohibitions around detailed dress are dismissed on cultural grounds, with its application of timeless truth expressed differently today, why shouldn’t it be the same for the timeless truth underlying the speech restrictions today? Here, we’ll explore the underlying truth or principle behind the dress and speech restrictions and how they go together.
Part 3: Reconciling 1 Timothy 2 on womens’ role in the church
From the prior parts of this series on women in the church, we’ve discussed the contradicting passages in Scripture on womens’ role in ministry and concluded that God does not compromise His standards when He is out of other options (He doesn’t choose female church leaders as last resort). We also looked into the context of 1 Corinthians 14, but now we dive into the most difficult text to reconcile with broader Scripture: 1 Timothy 2.
In this part, we start with the first key to unlocking 1 Timothy 2: understanding the cultural context of Ephesus. 1 Timothy 2 is a letter written specifically to those in Asia Minor in the city of Ephesus. Ultimately, worship of the Greek goddess Artemis was interwoven into Ephesian culture and society in every way. We learn that Artemis is portrayed as an independent, strong woman who did not need male companionship, rejecting the idea of submission. This ideology began to challenge and defy God’s intention and role of man and woman relationship to one another in marriage. Moreover, Ephesus was the epicenter of Christianity and church planting, with much influence.
Part 6: Addressing the role of husband and wife in the Bible — 1 Timothy 2 is written to wives, not women
Now that we’ve learned in previous parts that the prohibitions around speech, dress, and appearance in 1 Timothy 2 are all connected to the value of modesty, with the overarching biblical principle of honoring the husband as the head of the household, there are two remaining keys to understanding 1 Timothy 2: 1) This passage is about wives, not women; 2) the significance of “permit” in 1 Timothy 2:12 around women not being permitted to teach.
Understanding that the word for woman is the exact same as for wife, women the exact same as for wives, and man the exact same as for husband, we see that there are five key indicators that 1 Timothy 2 addresses wives and husbands, not women and men. And by understanding the word “permit”, we learn that it is not a command but rather a reaction to a situation, not the language for a timeless moral command of God’s, which explains why the entire Old Testament lacks any such command.
Through this deep-dive, we learn how this passage is a culturally conditioned application of the timeless principle of submission in marriage being worked out through modesty in dress and speech. While the application of submission would look different in our culture today, submission in marriage is still the timeless moral principle we see in 1 Timothy 2, which is why we are complementarian in marriage but egalitarian in all other places outside marriage.
Shane Farmer
Serves as the Lead Pastor of Revolution Church. He and his wife, Wendy, have three sons: Josiah, Charlie, and Marshall.
Rebekah Layton
Serves as the Associate Pastor of Revolution Church. She and her husband, Josh, have one daughter, Zuriel.
Learn More About Revolution Church
Our GoalS
1. Steward Revival for Maximum Impact
We believe the tsunami of God’s next great move is approaching shore and are committed not to reject the new thing God is doing, but to participate in the full acceleration His Spirit’s moving brings. We do not exist to sustain or maintain what is, but believe status quo has got to go to make way for Kingdom advancement.
2. Sustain the Gain for a Lifetime
We seek to sustain an open heaven for a lifetime, and therefore, desire to be very diligent about the intersections of Worship and Prayer, Word and Spirit.
3. Raise Up Titans of the Faith
We feel called to pursue power over prevalence, purity over prominence and perseverance over popularity. We believe Christ commends a pure and spotless bride, not a bloated bride. We have a goal of raising up tomorrow’s spiritual giants who are wholly devoted to His person, His praise and His purposes, as we know the Lord’s eyes look throughout the earth seeking to show Himself strong to those whose hearts are wholly devoted to Him (2 Chr 16:9). We believe the church exists to comfort the afflicted but also to spur one another on to love and good deeds, not to coddle each other in partial obedience.
4. Pure Praise
We long to be King Davids of the Kingdom, leading the way for pure praise that catches the attention of heaven, elevating worship as the chief end of the church.
5. Catalyze a Prayer Movement
We want to be driven and directed in dependence lived out through intercessory and inquiring prayer. We intercede because we believe God is, God answers and God acts. We inquire out of a desire to be led by Him, not trusting our own skills, strategies or schemes but His guidance.
6. Raise Up a Joshua and Caleb Generation
Only two of approximately two million had the faith to persevere in pursuit of God’s promise. We know what God has revealed about the test of faith coming to the next generation and we are burdened to pass on a baton of persevering faith to the future generation.
7. Fight for Every One
We refuse to leave our community uncontended and uncontested, but instead, we are unapologetically on mission for every life and every eternity.
