Can Woman teach Sunday School

It actually bears correcting.

The meanign of anar and guna are determined by context. In this context, it clearly is a context of church, not of home. There is absolutely nothing in this context that even remotely suggests home. 1 Tim was written so that we would know how to conduct ourselves in the church of God (3:15). From chapter two about who doesn't have authority, Paul goes right on to chapter 3 about who does have authority. The context clearly indicates that this is about church.

This type of "exegesis" that you have demonstrated here is what gets false teaching going. We cannot simply rape the text to make it mean whatever we want it to mean. The text is about church. Let's keep it that way.

 

So Bob, a teacher is supposed to instruct the student as to what the text says, and how to apply it to their lives. If you tell someone what they should do with the text of Scripture, how is that not authority?

 

Amen! Very well said . Thank you, Pastor .

 

Yes there is. The Greek word AUQENTEIN referrs to being controlling in a domineering manner. Also, as can be clearly seen from the Greek, both GUNH and ANHR are in fact SINGULAR not plural. The correct rendering is, "I do not allow a GUNH ... [AUQENTEIN] an ANHR." This goes to the very heart of seeking to understand the meaning of the verse. It is NOT giving a generalization about women in general and men in general, but speaking of the relationship of one woman and one man.

And, bearing in mind that GUNH and ANHR are the words in koine Greek for "wife" and "husband" respectively, and being guided in this verse by the passage which is its wider context, we can see that this context is referring to a home-marriage-family situation, not a church context. That is to say, Paul is saying that he does not allow a wife to exercise authority over a husband in the marriage relationship, to take to herself the role of headship. The explanation of the meaning of this passage is to be found in Ephesians 5:22-33E, where the headship (leadership) role of the husband is set out, together with the wife's response. Note also Epheians 5:22 (HAI GUNAIKES TOIS IDIOIS ANDRASIN, citing IDIOIS, the husband is the head of his wife within the one-flesh relationship of marriage). Paul states this in Ephesians 5:23, and gives the rationale for it - the one-flesh relationship, quoting Genesis 2:24 - in 5:31.

The passage in 1 Timothy 2:11-12 has many parallels in 1 Peter 3:1-7, where the identical words GUNH and ANHR are used, and translated as referring to wives and husbands (not women and men generally, in the church at large). Also of interest is that the New RSV translation informs the reader in its footnotes to 1 Timothy 2:11-12 that the Greek can be translated alternatively as "I permit no wife to teach or have authority over her husband". 1 Timothy 2:12 is to be understood as similar in thrust and intent to Ephesians 5:22-33E: Within the one-flesh marriage relationship, a wife is not to assume the role of teacher of her husband, nor that of headship over him.

[ October 04, 2004, 06:31 PM: Message edited by: Johnv ]

 

The word authenteo means to govern or have rule over. It can be domineering, but does not have to be. But even at that, it does not argue in anyway for a home relationship. It could apply to other relationships as well. The issue with the use of the word is "authority" or "control." It has no specific reference to the kind of relationship or situation in which the control is exercised.

Your limited understanding of of anar and gune is also incorrect. Do a concordance search on both of those words and you will see many places where they do not mean husband and wife. As I already pointed out, the meaning is determined by context. In many cases it means generically "man" or "woman." This can be substantiated simply by looking up the uses of them.

Furthermore, you argue yet again for the "wider context," ignoring the fact that the "wider context" is all "how to conduct yourself in the church" (3:15). There is virtually nothing in 1 Timothy that is about the family in any way (save chapter 5 where taking care of family members is in view with respect to the church's obligations to them). 1 Timothy was written to Timothy to give him directions as to how to lead the church at Ephesus who was facing trouble from false teachers.

So the fact remains that there is nothing in the context to indicate a home relationship. Everything in the context is about the church relationship. Paul does not even address the home in 1 Tim.

 

But John, that is just the problem. Neither 1 Peter or Ephesians have anything to do with the passage in 1 Tim. It is an entirely different context. The fact that two passages use the same words do not mean they talk about the same thing. Neither does the fact that some want to explain away the teaching of 1 Tim 2 mean we should create false parallels.

You are basing too much on your misunderstanding of the semantic range of anar and gune. They clearly are not as limited as you make them out to be. Even this very passage uses gune in a way that cannot refer only to wives. The previous verses are addresssed to all women in general, not just wives. That understanding is simply insufficient based on the whole context of 1 Timothy.