The main texts - the sedes doctrinae (seat of the doctrine) - 1 Cor 14:33b-38, 1 Tim 2:11-14
We need to remember that these texts listed in the Theses of Agreement on The Office of the Ministry (TA 6:11 has 1 Cor 14:34-35 and 1 Tim 2:11-14) are the main texts that speak to the issue of women’s ordination. They are not the only texts. These passages form the seat, the basis, for the church’s historic teaching about women’s ordination. They are apostolic teaching.
First, though, let me say something briefly about the related text in 1 Cor 11:2-16. The key verse here is the opening verse about headship. This verse stands as a heading over the whole section; everything that follows must be interpreted in the light of it. This verse lays down the principle of headship, in line with the two main texts. There follows the famous passage about “women’s hats”. More accurately, Paul is speaking about a shawl or a scarf rather than a hat. The custom of the day was that a woman only appeared in public with a head-covering like the headgear Arabs wear today. Otherwise she would be considered a loose woman. Today customs have changed. A woman can appear in public bare-headed without inviting judgments on her character.
We need to distinguish between principle and custom. Customs change, but biblical principles remain in effect. A good example is the foot-washing story in John 13. Jesus shows his love by washing the disciples’ feet in keeping with the custom of the day. He calls this an example (13:15). Today we show our love in different ways. But the foot washing story culminates in the principle, the commandment, which stays in effect: Jesus says, A new commandment I give you, that you love one another (13:34). [compare 1 Cor 14:37]
Today, the principle of the man’s headship may be reflected by the woman’s wearing a ring, or taking her husband’s name, or showing her respect in other ways.
1 Cor 14:33b-38
Chapter 12 of 1 Cor speaks about spiritual gifts in general, and gives some guidelines. Ch. 13 says all gifts should be used in love. Ch. 14 focuses on two gifts, prophecy and tongues, and says prophecy is more helpful and edifying. The chapter closes with Paul’s words about women’s role in the worship service. Everything Paul has to say on this topic is framed by his concern for love, for edification (building up), peace and order (14:33, 40).
Obviously worship in Corinth had become chaotic. Tongues-speakers and prophets were competing with each other for the floor. The command that the women be silent follows two other commands for silence: (1) a tongues-speaker should be silent if there’s no interpreter (14:28); (2) if one prophet receives a revelation during the worship service, the prophet who has the floor should make way for the prophet with the new revelation, and be silent (14:30). Why? Because God is not the author of confusion but of peace@ (33a). [At this point I responded to Mike Pietsch’s question about female prophets. I said the biblical prophets were people who brought special revelation - 1 Cor 14:30; Rev 1:3; 22:19. They had a special role in biblical times, and the church is built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Pastors/teachers of the church are not prophets in the biblical sense]
Then comes Paul’s third command for silence (34). It follows the clause where Paul says his ruling applies to all churches, not only the Corinthians. It’s an ecumenical ruling.
34: The women are to be silent in the churches. Paul doesn’t intend to impose an absolute silence, as if the women couldn’t participate in the hymns or creeds or responses. Nor does it mean they can never engage in Christian teaching. Women are encouraged to be good teachers of other women (Titus 2:3-5), and of children (2 Tim 1:5; 3:14-15). Priscilla joined her husband Aquila in giving private instruction to Apollos (Acts 18:24-26). What Paul means by silence is clarified by the parallel in 1 Tim: the women are not to teach (= preach) the word of God in the public worship service, for that involves having authority over men. It means usurping the man’s headship under Christ.
They are not permitted to speak. What is Paul restricting here, and how does this relate to 1 Cor 11:5? There are various suggestions about how to harmonise 1 Cor 11:5 and 14:34. Following Dr Peter Brunner, I believe Paul is restricting three things: during the worship service, the women are not to speak in tongues, they’re not to prophesy, and they’re not to teach. Admittedly there are difficulties with this harmonisation (e.g. 14:31) as with all of them. But a corollary of our commitment to the clarity of Scripture is that we believe it’s legitimate to propose harmonisations. We may not be able to prove a particular harmonisation. But we believe the Bible is essentially clear and consistent with itself, and if that’s the case, then all the parts belong to a harmonious whole. The Bible’s like a symphony orchestra, with all the instruments in tune with each other. All are inspired by the one divine Holy Spirit. [Some advocates of women’s ordination on the other hand, make a lot of the apparent discrepancies and contradictions in the Bible, and blow them up out of proportion].
Paul goes on: the women are to be subordinate. This command is in keeping with his concern for good order in the church (14:40). The women’s subordination is part of this good order (order/subordinate; hypotasso/taxis). What does subordination mean? Certainly Paul is not imposing on the women a demeaning role. Despite what the feminists say, it’s no more demeaning for women to be subordinate to men than it is for the men to be subordinate to Christ and for Christ to be subordinate to God the Father. It’s no more demeaning than it is for a good sportsman to be subordinate to his captain. The submission Paul’s talking about is a voluntary and willing compliance on the part of the wife, an equal, to one whom God has called to be the head in that relationship. This becomes easy for women when men exercise their headship in love. In the NT, headship is always understood to be loving headship.
The Christian faith calls for some subordination from all of us. The Son of God’s willing subordination to his Father is our model. Christians submit willingly to God and to Christ, and to God’s Law and Gospel. From this higher submission of all Christians to God and God’s word spring all other forms of submission. Christians submit to those placed over them in various situations: wives to husbands, children to parents, servants and slaves to masters, subjects to governing authorities, and all Christians to the church’s ministers. Submission involves the readiness to renounce one’s own will for the sake of others. It’s linked with humility, a gentle and quiet spirit, in contrast to the busy unrest of those who won’t accept their place in the allotted order.
As the law also says: The law here refers to the first five books of the Bible, called the Pentateuch - Gen, Ex, Lev, Num Deut. Here Paul almost certainly has in mind the first book of the law, Genesis. How do we know that? Because of the principle Scripture interprets Scripture. [This principle’s in keeping with the other principle I mentioned, that Scripture’s clear and consistent and harmonious] According to 1 Tim 2:13-14 Paul backs up his prohibition of the women’s teaching by referring to Genesis 2 & 3 (quote).
35: It’s been suggested some of the Corinthian women were chattering in church. If that was the case, would Paul have made such a big deal of it? More likely, they were speaking in tongues, prophesying, and asking disputatious questions.
36: The Corinthian Christians were highly gifted. Their great weakness was a tendency to boast and get puffed up by their own importance. They thought they were the Alpha and Omega of the gospel. Paul rebukes them sharply (36). The word of the Lord didn’t sound forth from Corinth, but from Jerusalem. And they weren’t the only ones it had ever reached. There were many other churches of the saints (33b). Does this verse say something to us today, when many in our generation think they have greater wisdom on issues like women’s ordination than their forefathers and mothers in the faith?
37: The Lord’s command: Most likely Paul has in mind a command from the Lord Jesus that has not been recorded in Scripture (cf Acts 20:35; 1 Thess 4:15; cf Jn 20:30; 21:25). Or this could be another reference to the Lord’s word in Genesis. Either way, we should be aware that Paul doesn’t use the word command lightly. This is only the second time he’s used it in 1 Cor, the other time being 7:19 (circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing; what counts is keeping God’s commands). But, so the argument goes, this command is only given once in Scripture, so we may ignore it. What parent would find it convincing if one of his children said to him: But Dad, you only told me once! [compare 1 Tim 2:12].
38: He is not recognised as a prophet or a spiritual person. In fact, his love for his Lord is in question. Jesus said: If you love me, you will keep my commandments (Jn 14:15), and AIf anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him (Jn 14:23).
Notes on 1 Timothy 2:11-14
1. The context: Paul first admonishes the men to pray, refraining from anger and quarreling (2:8). Then he admonishes the women to be modest and self-controlled in their dress and conduct (2:9). This sets the stage for his words about the need for them to learn quietly.
2. The word authentein (have authority over) in 2:12 has caused a lot of debate. The word occurs only once in the NT, which has made it difficult for us to be absolutely sure of the meaning. The KJV translates it as usurp authority, others have suggested it means domineer; some have even suggested it means to dominate sexually. But a new computer program (Thesaurus Linguae Graecae) has discovered two occurrences of the word in Greek literature outside the NT (papyrus BGU 1208:38, from 27 BC) and Philodemus, Rhetoric 2 (1st century BC). Taken together, it’s now clear the word shows no inherent negative sense of grasping or usurping authority or of exercising it in a harsh or authoritative way, but simply means to have or exercise authority (George W. Knight III, The Pastoral Epistles).
3. 2:12 prohibits women from publicly teaching men, and thus from teaching the church.
4. 2:13-14: Note how Paul goes back to the beginnings, the order of creation, as Jesus does in his words against divorce: In the beginning it was not so (Mt 19:4-9).
5. Elmore Leske: Adam was created to lead; Eve was deceived by Satan; she subsequently led Adam into sin; so she reversed the roles in a disobedience which shattered the perfection of God’s creation. . . The woman, in her first attempt at public spiritual leadership and the exercise of spiritual authority, misled man, and, indeed, all creation. Thereafter, the woman is not to assume this rule again. This does not exonerate Adam, of course (Rom 5:12-21). Through Adam’s fall, we sinned all. But Adam sinned willfully, not as a result of deception.
[In my oral presentation, I concluded by repeating that all Paul says on the subject is framed by the themes of love, edification, peace, and order]
Greg Lockwood