All throughout the Old Testament we see female leaders and teachers and prophets. At one of the most critical moments in the life of Israel, God used a female prophet in 2 Kings 22 to direct God’s people and teach God’s people how to return to the Lord through once again paying attention to “the scroll” which we call the Bible today. Her message was so powerful that they took it back to the King and God used a woman to ignite the greatest reform Israel has probably ever seen in its history under the leadership of King Josiah. Her words motivated the King to do and be what few if any kings had ever done.
Many other examples can be identified in the Old and New Testament of female leaders, teachers, and yes, as we would call it today, pastors. Paul says to the Colossians:
Colossians 4:15 Please give my greetings to our Christian brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and those who meet in her house.
Nympha led a house church, a life group, a small group, a location of a multi-site church, and so forth and so on in comparison to today’s church and church structure. She was in all tense and purposes an associate pastor of a congregation that met in her home.
And unless one might think it wasn’t a church. Listen to Paul’s words in the following verse.
Colossian 4:16 After you have read this letter, pass it on to the church (also) at Laodicea so they can read it, too. And you should read the letter I wrote to them.
The Apostle Paul referenced what Nympha was doing in equal language as usage to what the church of Laodicea was doing as well.
Nympha led a church in her home. And she was a woman.
So, how do we reconcile the examples of female leaders in Israel in the Old Testament and the examples of female leaders in the church in the New Testament? Paul is clear in Timothy that women should not teach men. He is also very clear in Corinthians that women should be silent in the church. The same guy who wrote Colossians wrote Corinthians and Timothy. So, how do we reconcile these seemingly discrepant and conflicting verses in the Bible written by the same author under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit? Is Paul or God schizophrenic or contradictory?
Craig Keener notes that Paul’s letters elsewhere support women as prophets, ministers, and even an apostle (Junia in Romans 16:7). He interprets the “do not teach” command in 1 Timothy as a “short-range solution” because women in that context were the most susceptible to false teachings due to lack of education. Craig Keener presents these arguments primarily in his book Paul, Women, and Wives: Marriage and Women’s Ministry in the Letters of Paul.
In addition to Keener’s claims about women being uneducated at the time of 1 Timothy, we don’t have to go too far in this discussion to see there are cultural biases that have always been and shape this discussion as well. Deborah the judge and leader of Israel said it best.
This is what the bible says about Deborah,
Judges 4:4 Deborah, the wife of Lappidoth, was a prophet who had become a judge in Israel.
A judge was the highest office of the land at this time for Israel. This is what Sampson and Samuel were as well.
Judges 4:6 says, One day she sent for Barak…She said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel commands you: 7 Assemble warriors…I will give you victory…”
She was saying, “Thus says the Lord.” This is what a prophet does, and this is what a preacher or pastor does. She had the authority of God, and she spoke as a pastor speaks today to God’s people.
Now we see the cultural biases of Deborah’s day as we see it today in the following verses:
Judges 4:8 Barak told her (Deborah), “I will go, but only if you go with me!” 9 “Very well,” she replied, “I will go with you. But since you have made this choice, you will receive no honor. For the Lord’s victory over Sisera will be at the hands of a woman.”
And God gave Israel victory through a woman.
For thousands of years culture has wrestled and continues to wrestle with the reality of a woman and her role in leadership. As a father of four daughters and one only begotten son, I have raised all five of my children to be leaders. I have raised my daughters to be leaders and have the capacity to run their own business if they choose to. I am married to a brilliantly gifted woman who has the gift of leadership and teaching. I think she is better than me. Her gender does not limit her giftedness.
Harold Hoehner, the late Dallas Theological Seminary professor argued in the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society that while a woman cannot be an elder, she can be a “pastor-teacher” as a function of her spiritual gifting.
In this paper, we will wrestle with this tension between “spiritual giftedness” and “church office” and seek to reconcile the two in a modern application of church practice of gifts and leadership in church offices for the 21st century church.
In addition to Harold Hoehner’s argument, I will use the NET Bible translated by Dallas Theological Seminary to form my arguments, thoughts, and conclusions on this matter as we look at the English and Greek texts that are applicable to this discussion and debate.
Here are a few questions that I started with:
1)Are there instructions and guidelines in the Bible about local church leadership?
2)What is the role of men and women in the local church according to Scripture?
3)What is the point of having roles and guidelines for the church according to Scripture?
Let’s begin in Timothy where Paul addresses these matters.
1 Timothy 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people, 2 even for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. 3 Such prayer for all is good and welcomed before God our Savior, 4 since he wants all men to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth.
Look at this passage in the Greek text:
1 Timothy 2:1 παρακαλω ουν πρωτον παντων ποιεισθαι δεησεις προσευχας εντευξεις ευχαριστιας υπερ παντων ανθρωπων
2 υπερ βασιλεων και παντων των εν υπεροχη οντων ινα ηρεμον και ησυχιον βιον διαγωμεν εν παση ευσεβεια και σεμνοτητι
3 τουτο καλον και αποδεκτον ενωπιον του σωτηρος ημων θεου
4 ος παντας ανθρωπους θελει σωθηναι και εις επιγνωσιν αληθειας ελθειν
In verse four when Paul says, “men,” what is he referring to? It is the Greek word ανθρωπους (Anthropous), which means, humanity.
It is the generic Greek word for humanity in general, both male and female. Context determines interpretation.
I don’t believe anyone who adheres to the Gospel of Jesus Christ would hold to a view that only “males” can be saved through Jesus. Nor does the context lend itself to a specific people group or subset of humanity in general. The context is established in verse one with a reference to παντων ανθρωπων, “all people.”
The Apostle Paul is challenging Timothy and those he pastors to offer prayers on behalf of all those he and they represent. The multiple usage of ανθρωπος seems to indicate the generic usage thus far in context of his communication to the church in reference to all of humanity and not just males specifically.
The Apostle Paul continues his discourse to Timothy,
1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus, himself a man, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for men, revealing God’s purpose at his appointed time. 7 For this I was appointed a preacher and apostle—I am telling the truth; I am not lying—and a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
1 Timothy 2:5 εις γαρ θεος εις και μεσιτης θεου και ανθρωπων ανθρωπος χριστος ιησους
6 ο δους εαυτον αντιλυτρον υπερ παντων το μαρτυριον καιροις ιδιοις
7 εις ο ετεθην εγω κηρυξ και αποστολος αληθειαν λεγω ου ψευδομαι διδασκαλος εθνων εν πιστει και αληθεια
In verse five when Paul says, ανθρωπων is he referring to “all of humanity” or “males of humanity?” Translation is determined by context of interpretation. If ανθρωπων refers only to “males of humanity” then who saves the women, the females? Context still would seem to indicate that ανθρωπων is referring to all of humanity, both male and female.
Paul then calls Jesus, ανθρωπος “man or male.” What is he referring to or what aspect of Christ is he referring to, His humanness or His maleness? Of course, Jesus was both and the translation could read, “Christ Jesus, himself a “male” or “Christ Jesus, himself a “human.” Either translation could be accepted. However, the specificity in this translation would somehow need to contribute to Paul’s argument or point. So, one must ask, what does the specificity provide and what would Paul’s point be regarding the emphasis of Jesus “maleness?” It doesn’t appear by context that Paul is attempting to emphasize Jesus’ “maleness” but establish the humanity of Christ’s person and existence as the human sacrifice for sin for all of humanity including females.
In verse eight the Apostle Paul makes a shift in his usage of terms. He goes from ανθρωπος to a more specific term, τους ανδρας. This is a notable change and shift in Paul’s communication to Timothy.
1 Timothy 2:8 βουλομαι ουν προσευχεσθαι τους ανδρας εν παντι τοπω επαιροντας οσιους χειρας χωρις οργης και διαλογισμου
1Timothy 2:8 So I want the men τους ανδρας to pray in every place, lifting up holy hands without anger or dispute.
τους ανδρας is never used in the New Testament or outside the New Testament in reference to generic humanity or groups of male and females combined. It is a specific term referencing only “males” or more specifically “husbands.” This is key to the discussion.
Why the shift? Why did Paul ask τους ανδρας (the men) to lift up their hands and not fight? What is significant to this?
Paul’s shift from anthropos (humanity/people) to andras (men/males) in 1 Timothy 2:8 emphasizes that the instruction to pray with holy hands, without anger, specifically targets males in the assembly, setting a contrast with women’s roles discussed later in the chapter.
Anger is obviously a real issue for males/husbands. He wants males to release anger through worship instead of fist fighting. This would seem to be applicable and logical still today for the general population of males versus females. Society allows men to express feelings of anger but rarely invites men into a vulnerable posture of worship that releases their stance of defense. The Apostle Paul is pushing back, it seems, against this cultural norm of his day which seems to still exist today.
Today males commit most physical violence, with statistics showing they account for roughly 80-90% of perpetrators in overall violent crimes, homicide, and intimate partner violence
In a study done by The Institute For Family Studies in 2017, they found “men who attend religious services several times a week are 72% less likely to abuse their female partners than men from comparable backgrounds who do not attend services.”
It appears Paul’s advice to males in 1 Timothy is applicable for “males” still today in the twenty-first century.
Now Paul turns his attention in verse nine to what he perceives to be the issue that the “females” are dealing with in Timothy’s church.
1 Timothy 2:9 Likewise the women are to dress in suitable apparel, with modesty and self-control. Their adornment must not be with braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive clothing, 10 but with good deeds, as is proper for women professing reverence for God.
In verse nine when Paul says, “women,” what is he referring to? Let’s look at the Greek text again to get a more specific context of usage.
1 Timothy 2:9 ωσαυτως και γυναικας εν καταστολη κοσμιω μετα αιδους και σωφροσυνης κοσμειν εαυτας μη εν πλεγμασιν και
What does the word γυναικας mean?
Specifically, γυναῖκας is the accusative plural form of the word, γυνή, which means it is used when “women” or “wives” are the direct object of a verb in a sentence.
The root word γυνή (gynē) can refer generally to a female person of any age or, more specifically, to a married woman (a wife). The precise meaning in English often depends on the context of the sentence in which it is used.
The context is reference to males and females and their conduct in worship so it seems it could be in reference to females or wives.
Does verse nine mean they can’t wear these things and do these things?
It is an emphasis. Focus should be their spirituality more than how they look physically. Just as men today are known for violence more than females. Females today are still known for their looks and beauty more so than males. In modern society, while nurturing qualities are still valued, traits such as intelligence, confidence, assertiveness, and independence have become increasingly important as women pursue education, careers, and leadership roles. However, a 2017 Pew Research survey on American views found a division in what people believed society values most in women, the highest named trait was still physical attractiveness and beauty with nurturing and kindness the second highest desired trait in a female.
These cultural norms, though challenged in many circles by changing beliefs of sexuality, it does seem these two gender stereotypes can still be seen clearly in gender circles especially in the context of faith circles, still today.
In verse ten, Paul continues this discussion of good deeds and reverence for God in worship.
Paul says:
1 Timothy 2:10 but with good deeds, as is proper for women professing reverence for God.
The Greek text reads:
1 Timothy 2:10 αλλ ο πρεπει γυναιξιν επαγγελλομεναις θεοσεβειαν δι εργων αγαθων
Paul’s use of γυνή, remains consistent to his argument and exclusive to females in the church worship context. Now considering this consistent contextual usage of ανθρωπος, ανδρας, γυνή, Paul begins to apply his intent to his context in verse 11.
1 Timothy 2:11 γυνη εν ησυχια μανθανετω εν παση υποταγη
1 Timothy 2:11 A woman must learn quietly with all submissiveness.
Is Paul referring to all females or to wives here? Context determines interpretation. Up to this point it could be interpreted either way. Paul says in verse 12,
1 Timothy 2:12 διδασκειν δε γυναικι ουκ επιτρεπω ουδε αυθεντειν ανδρος αλλ ειναι εν ησυχια
1 Timothy 2:12 But I do not allow a woman to teach or have authority over a man. She must remain quiet.13 For Adam was formed first and then Eve.
“Woman” here refers to a wife or a female.
“Man” here refers to husband or male.
Context would determine usage.
Who is Adam to Eve?
Adam is Eve’s husband.
The illustration in 1 Timothy 2:13 would indicate that ανδρος refers specifically to husband and γυναικι specifically to wife.
The man should be the spiritual leader of his home not the wife.
Paul says, “I do not permit a woman (guna: wife or female) to teach or have authority over a man (Andras: husband or male). This should be interpreted as a husband/wife passage based off the illustration that follows and the application Paul draws at the end of the passage. Thus, a woman exercising her gift of teaching in the context of males is not in purview in this passage, but the posture by which she approaches it in context of her relationship to her husband.
What does it mean for a woman to learn in quietness and all submissiveness? How is she to remain quiet? It seems Paul is referring to attitude and not the action. Not the absence of words, but the style or mood of use.
εν ησυχια μανθανετω εν παση
Bill Mounce and Douglas Moo note that ησυχια (hēsychia) (tranquility or harmony) is distinct from σιγή (sigē) (absolute silence). In the context of 1 Timothy 2:2, Paul uses the same root to describe the “peaceable and quiet life” that all Christians should lead, which clearly does not mean all Christians must be mute.
In 1 Timothy 2:11, υποταγη describes an orderly “ranking under”. Commentators like Thomas Constable explain that this refers to a voluntary learner’s stance within the church’s teaching structure, not a statement of personal inferiority.
Based on this scholarly input, if an adult woman is in submission to her husband’s spiritual authority, she is eligible to exercise whatever spiritual gifts God has entrusted to her including the gift of prophecy/teaching, that is, forth telling truth of God and His Word in the context of the worship service, which is the context of another situation that addresses this issue in 1 Corinthians 11. This is where the home structure is to reflect the church structure due to the order of humanity established by God between Adam and Eve at Creation. Paul expounds on this to the Corinthian church in the context of worship services.
1 Corinthians 11:2 (context is the local assembly): “I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the teachings, just as I passed them on to you. 3 Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.”
1 Corinthians 11:2 Ἐπαινῶ δὲ [a]ὑμᾶς ὅτι πάντα μου μέμνησθε καὶ καθὼς παρέδωκα ὑμῖν τὰς παραδόσεις κατέχετε. 3 θέλω δὲ ὑμᾶς εἰδέναι ὅτι παντὸς ἀνδρὸς ἡ κεφαλὴ ὁ Χριστός ἐστιν, κεφαλὴ δὲ γυναικὸς ὁ ἀνήρ, κεφαλὴ δὲ [b]τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὁ θεός.
What is the meaning ἡ κεφαλὴ “the head” in this passage? Kethale (head) is used to demonstrate order. The literal meaning is “superior rank” and is the symbol of the father of a family. Paul is making a statement concerning the order of males and females. God has established authority and a chain of command in which things are to be done in the local assembly (Christ over man, man over woman, God over Christ).
Now let’s go back to Timothy for a second here:
1 Timothy 2:13 says, “For Adam was formed first and then Eve.”
Who is Adam? Who is Eve? Look at Ephesians 5:31 for the answer:
Ephesians 5:31: “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
Paul is quoting Genesis 2:24.
Adam was the first husband.
Eve was the first wife.
Paul is establishing roles and authority in the home and in the marriage. Paul continues in verse 14:
1 Timothy 2:14: “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman, because she was fully deceived, fell into transgression.”
Why was Adam not deceived, but Eve was? We must look at Genesis 2:15-18 to answer:
Genesis 2:15 “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”
The assumption here is God never explained the truth to Eve, but only to Adam, and Adam never explained it to Eve.
Adam could not be deceived because he knew the truth, but Eve never did.
Thus 1 Timothy 2:14 is establishing the “wife,” the γυνη deceived. Paul is making a point about husband/wife relationships today through this ancient example.
Paul continues in verse 15:
1 Timothy 2:15: But she will be delivered through childbearing, if she continues in faith and love and holiness with self-control.
What is the point of verse 15? Look at Genesis 4:1 for the answer.
Genesis 4:1 “Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, ‘With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man’”
The key here is the Hebrew phrase: “qnyty ish et YHWH.”
What is Eve saying? She is in essence saying, “I have created man or male with the help of the Lord” or “Just as God, I have created a man or male.”
Why is this phrase significant? A woman will find her greatest satisfaction and meaning in marriage, not seeking the male role, but in fulfilling God’s design for her.
What about single women?
It doesn’t apply; it is not in the focus.
What about women who can’t have children?
Unfortunately, this is a part of the brokenness of our world. This passage is extremely painful for women who can’t have children. When a woman can’t reproduce a human being, it does have a deep and lasting impact on her life. We do believe it is possible to employ alternative means to fulfill this potential longing, but we understand that it does not necessarily resolve the overall tension and pain the heart feels through this sorrow of loss of ability.
But this brings us to a closing thought.
A man or a woman is not under a certain authority because of their gender, but because of God’s sovereign design and plan.
Practically speaking how does this play out in the local church?
I believe the fundamental misunderstanding in this issue has to do with order and value.
Let me give you two extreme statements or examples we often hear in this debate:
The first is, “The woman’s place is in the home and nowhere else.”
How do you reconcile Proverbs 31 with this? How do you reconcile prophetesses in the Old Testament along with Judges like Deborah and Phoebe the deaconess in Romans 16 and Aquila and Priscilla? Or women proclaiming the truth of God’s Word in worship services in 1 Corinthians 11?
The second extreme statement is, “A woman can do anything a man can do.”
This biblical debate is not about value but order. It is not a question of ability but design. No one should ever say a woman couldn’t do the job of an elder. We know they could. The office of Elder is about order not value of genders.
In the local church we believe there is order to the Trinity, the Church, and the Family (marriage).
The Trinity has: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. This is the order in which it is always spoken of in Scripture.
The Church has: Elders, Deacons, and Church Body
The Home has: Husband, Wife, and Children
These three entities represent order in all three God created domains of structure and authority.
The Father is not more valuable than the Son nor the Son more valuable than the Holy Spirit. It is not a value discussion it is an order discussion.
The elders are not more important than the deacons or more important than the church body. It is an order discussion.
The husband is not more important than the wife, just as the wife is not more important than the children. It is an order discussion.
Each of these entities has order for the sake of functionality not to determine value or worth but order for function effectiveness.
We believe the church should reflect the Trinity and the home should reflect the church. There should be order in all of these and they should be similar in how it functions.
In the Trinity the Father is in charge. In the Church the Elders are in charge. In the home the Husband is in charge.
What does this mean? It means they represent the head of the organism not to determine value or worth but simply order.
The Father makes the rules. The Son dies for those who can’t keep the rules (all of us). The Holy Spirit convicts about the rules.
The Elders make the rules so to speak. The Deacons care for those who are affected by the rules. The Church Body lives and is governed by those rules.
The Husband makes the rules. The Wife establishes order and accountability to those rules for the children. The Children abide by the rules and flourish from it.
It is important to note; I am not so much referring to the marriage here as much as the order of the family. Ephesians establishes that the husband and wife are to be in mutual submission to one another, so the relationship has a dynamic to it that is also true of the Trinity and the Church. Absolute power corrupts absolutely but for the sake of order and chain of command, this is how I see it.
So, nowhere in the Bible does it say, “God says, a woman cannot teach an adult male.”
Church polity/government is somewhat determined by the “Elders” or the governing board of the church regardless of its title (trustees, deacons, congregational rule, and so forth and so on)
My biblical understanding is that the man should be the spiritual leader of his home. A wife (and that is how I interpret the above passage) is not to have authority over her husband. Paul says, “I do not permit a woman (γυνη: wife or female) to teach or have authority over a man (ανδρας: husband or male). We see this as a husband/wife passage based off the illustrations and the application Paul draws at the end of the passage.
If an adult woman is in submission to her husband spiritually, I believe she is eligible to exercise whatever spiritual gifts God has entrusted to her including the gift of prophecy/teaching (forth telling truth.)
In 1 Corinthians 11 even Paul said women “when they prophecy in church” should do it this way…
Even he doesn’t forbid them teaching, so the assumption is he is referring to a certain type of woman, and we believe that type of woman is the type of woman who is:
1) not in submission to her husband spiritually
2) seeking the design of a man instead of seeking fulfillment in how God made her.
Females have the gift of teaching. The gift of teaching is not an office in the New Testament. Elders and Deacons are the only two offices in the New Testament. Pastor is not a New Testament office.
Practically speaking the Bible teaches that the office of Elder has the authority to choose teachers. There is a prohibition from Paul not to allow wives to teach or have authority over their husband (i.e. if a woman is married to a man who is not the spiritual leader of the relationship, she would not be qualified to teach. If she were single, then she would need to be in spiritual submission to the Elders.)
So, why not have female elders?
For two reasons:
1)Elder is an office not a gift.
2)Elder is not about value but order.
God has a set order that we see time and time again in the Trinity, the Church, and the Home.
I believe the Bible teaches the authority of the teaching resides in the Elders not the teacher. The teacher is exercising his or her gift under the authority of the Elders.
There are two extreme statements that come out of this debate:
1) “A woman’s place is in the home.”
2) “A woman can do anything a man can do.”
Neither of these extreme statements are helpful in this discussion. They don’t address properly the order and value that God intends for us to have as the Body of Christ to the world.
Being an Elder is not about value or worth, it is about order. And teaching is not about order or value; it is about giftedness and ability under the proper order ordained by God.
In a world where order has been lost and everyone is grasping for value; it is important to remember that the order God created has always been and will always be. However, be careful applying that order to places where God has not applied it. Equally be careful removing worth/value from people to maintain a rigid order that in and of itself was supposed to bring value not destruction.
Let a woman in submission to her husband, teach and pastor, exercising her gifts under the authority of the Elders.
In closing, in 2023, the Christian and Missionary Alliance, updated its policy to allow women to be ordained and called “pastors,” while still reserving the local church’s office of “elder” and the position of “lead pastor” exclusively for males.
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