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NASB | 1 Timothy 2:15 But women will be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 1 Timothy 2:15 But women will be preserved (saved) through [the pain and dangers of] the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and holiness with self-control and discretion. |
Bible Question:
Please explain. You wrote: "The false teaching seems to have had something to do with the relationship between husbands and wives." How does their misunderstanding of this relationship (however misguided that may have been) culminate into women being saved or healed (NASB: preserved?) (Gk: from the word sozo) through or by (Gk: dia) bearing children? What is Paul meaning here? Surely he is not saying that the bearing of children plays any part in spiritual salvation for women, is he??!! Certainly I don't think that many believers (if any) would suggest that. But what is this verse talking about?? |
Bible Answer: Greetings RWC! I am still working through this very difficult passage, but let me give you a brief summary of what I think this passage is saying. I haven't settled on this interpretation yet, but I am leaning toward it. There are a couple of givens that must be considered as we look at this passage. 1) God created man and woman equal. The word used to describe Eve is an "equal power." When Adam named the animals, he found no suitable partner, so God created a partner for him. 2) Scripture constantly affirms that women are equal to men spiritually. Contrary to their culture, Christians allowed and encouraged women to take part in minsitry. There are numerous examples of this. 3) The word "quiet" here refers to a settled or peaceful spirit, not a lack of talking. 4) The word "authority" refers a "taking of power." 5) The passage mentions children, so I think it is refering to husbands and wives. I can go into more detail on these points later, but with them in mind, here is my summary statement. Many at Ephesus seemed to have fallen under the influence of some false teachers. The women in particular seemed to have been guilty of this. In fact, they may have been among the leader in promoting the false teachings. The false teachings seemed to have revolved around the role of women in the church. It may have been that the women were being taught to abandon their traditional roles altogether in order to be saved. Thus Paul's basic argument could be understood in the following way. Women are to be submissive to their leaders and their husbands, not unruly. It is not right to attempt to wrest power away from those who are legitimately exercising it. In fact, they should learn quietly from these leaders. After all, look at what happened to Eve when she got out of bounds. So instead of abandoning your role in your family, you will find salvation, as you fulfill that role. Not meaning that they are saved through it, but they are saved, while living it. This is a very rough sketch. I certainly don't have all of the answers. This passage has been an extremely difficult one throughout the history of the church. Almost every commentator you check will have a different take on it. But this seems to make sense of the context of the passage and the balance of Scripture. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |