RESOURCES — SHORT ARTICLES

 

SHORT ARTICLES BY TOM ELSEROAD
	2021-07-08	I Do Not Permit a Woman to Teach or to Have Authority Over a Man (1Tm.2:12)
		1Ti 2:11 Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. 1Ti 2:12 And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. 1Ti 2:13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 1Ti 2:14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression. Paul begins by using the word “silence” (G2271, hesuchia) which means “quietness, stillness, or tranquility.” Paul previously used the same word referring to the “quiet” life which godly people should lead (1Tm.2:2). Silence is “in all subjection” (v.11). Silence is the opposite of “authority over the man” (v.12). The point is not whether a woman says nothing. The point is whether she supports the authority of the men God called to oversee the church. Thus, silence means not speaking in a way that compromises that authority. Paul is certainly forbidding something in verse 12, “And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man.” Teaching (G1321, didasko) and exercising authority go together. Authority was not from some hierarchical structure or status. The authority exercised in the early church was primarily through the word. The teaching here is somehow related to authority over men. The word “authority” (G831, authenteo) means “one acting by his own power.” Elders are called by the Spirit and made “overseers” of local churches (Ac.20:28). Elders are to govern and teach the Word, and their authority is subordinated to the Word. Paul does not permit a woman to fill the office of elder nor to function by teaching over men. Some who desire to ignore this prohibition try to say this was simply a cultural issue and not universal, thus not binding for today. Paul seems to expect someone sometime will desire to reject his teaching, so he shows how transcultural it is intended to be. It is difficult to imagine how many try to find a way to ignore this exhortation. The context shows Paul grounding his argument first in the order of creation, and second in the order of the Fall. First, Paul reminds us that Adam was first formed, then Eve (v.13). God's order of creation teaches the responsibility of man to be a leader in relationship with women. God created woman to be man's help (Ge.2:18), to assist him to carry out his responsibility. Second, Adam was not deceived, but the woman was (v.14). Paul does not excuse Adam for the Fall. Adam gets the blame (Ro.5:12-21). Paul's point shows what happens when creation is reversed, and man abdicates the leadership role. Satan spoke to the woman, not the man (Ge.3:1). Satan wanted to break God's model. He deliberately defied it. Adam was with Eve at the time (Ge.3:6, he was “with her”). Adam listened to the whole interchange and knew what he was doing. God disapproved of the way Adam and Eve related to each other. “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife” (Ge.3:17). Adam forsook his responsibility to lead and protect his wife. Satan put Eve in the position of spokesman and leader. Paul is forbidding women from filling the office and role of the pastor or teacher. With the universal examples of Creation and the Fall Paul explains why women should never take authority and teach men God's Word. Paul is not prohibiting women from teaching in other appropriate conditions and circumstances. (1) Older women teach younger women (Ti.2:3); (2) Women teaching children (2Tm.3:14); (3) Women teaming up with their husbands to give private instruction (Ac.18:26). It is difficult to find any passage that is less culturally dependent than this passage. The fact that churches today are ignoring or all out rejecting Paul exhortation here shows a real heart problem. It is God they are fighting not those who teach what God clearly teaches as the proper roles of men and women. Pastor Tom Elseroad

 

An Evangelical Free Church of America

23304 E Wellesley Ave. Otis Orchards, WA 99027 Church Office: 509.926.9552 Church Cell: 509.342.9145 Pastor Cell: 509.828.8843 tomelseroad@gmail.com