Some background information might be helpful here. The people to whom Paul is writing had been influenced by the pagan idea that the woman is made of a substance inferior to and different from the man. By the use of the word “kephale”, Paul is correcting this error and confirming the Genesis creation account, which indicated that the female is made of the same substance as the male. Among other things this confirms the fact that women are of equal value to men.

Continuing on with the issue of headship we will now look at the headship of the husband over the wife as mentioned in Ephesians 5:23.

“For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, of which He is the Saviour“.

Once again Paul uses the word “kephale” to describe the kind of “headship” he is referring to. Not only makes Paul it very clear from the word that he uses that this is not to be a headship denoting authority, but he goes on to specify whose example the husband is to follow in the kind of headship he is to portray; he is to follow the highest example of headship, the headship of Christ over his church in His role of Saviour.

Christ’s Headship is beautifully described in Colossians 2:19

“The Head from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God” (A.V.).

We have here a wonderful picture of Christ as the Head of the church ministering to his body, His Bride, providing nourishment for her. That is the kind of headship a husband is to provide for his wife. It is to be a loving, serving, self-giving, sacrificial headship. There is not to be a hint of authority, rulership attached to it, since Christians including Christian husbands and wives are to love one another and to serve one another.

We will next look at the issue of Submission or Subjection. The word for “submission” is the Greek word “hupotasso” and means: aligning oneself with another, giving allegiance to another, tending to the needs of another, be supportive of another, be responsive to another, placing oneself at the disposition of another, complying with the wishes of another, or responsible behaviour towards others. It does not mean to obey, for the Greek word for obedience is “Hupakouo”. This term is used in I Corinthians 14:32.

“The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets”.

Another example is Ephesians 5:21-22.

”Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives to husbands, as to the Lord”.

What Paul is saying here is that the same kind of willingly aligning oneself with others in the Body of Christ, is to be applied by wives to their husbands.

It may help to understand a little more about the cultural situation into which the apostle Paul is writing these things. At that time women, though married, were still aligned to their parental household and Paul encourages them to separate themselves from their parental households and to align themselves to their husbands, to be supportive of their husbands and so to form a new household in Christ. This would have been a major change for these women, many of whom would have come from pagan households.

We will now look at the issue “Women are to be silent and are not allowed to teach”. We will look at two passages: I Corinthians 14:34 and I Timothy 2:11-15.

This time we will look at those passages first of all through the eyes of one of the Reformers, Calvin. And we will then look at his comments in light of scripture. The reason I have taken Calvin’s comments on these passages is twofold:

1.I believe these passages have been instrumental in determining the role of women in the church and at home.

2. I believe that Calvin as one of the Reformers of the church in the West, has been very influential in forming our understanding of scripture, including these two passages.

It is because of him and other Reformers that the Word of God has one again been given its central place in the Western church and the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers has been restored. And for these things we can only be very grateful. Nevertheless we must still act as the Bereans did in Acts 17:11 when they tested the apostle Paul’s teaching with scripture and he commended them for it. We likewise must test Calvin’s comments on these passages with the scriptures.

We read in I Corinthians 14:34

“Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says”.

Calvin’s comment on this passage is:

”If the woman is under subjection, she is, consequently prohibited from authority to teach in public. And unquestionably, whenever even natural propriety has been maintained, women have in all ages been excluded from the public managements of affairs. It is the dictate of common sense, that female government is improper and unseemly”.

Comment:

The word for silence here is the Greek word “sigao” and means a voluntary silencing because of disorder or chaos. That makes sense for the word “speak” here is the Greek word “lalein”, which does not mean to teach and may indicate disruptive speech. Paul is not saying here that women are not allowed to teach, he is simply bringing some order by asking them not to be disruptive.

The next passage deals with the same subject, this time seemingly connecting it to the creation order.

Paul writes in I Timothy 2:11-15.

“A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. But women shall be saved through childbearing–if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.”

Calvin has this to say:

“Let a woman learn in quietness”

And first he bids them to learn quietly; for quietnes means silence, that they may not take upon them to speak in public.

“But I suffer not a woman to teach”

“He excludes them from the office of teaching, which God has committed to men only“.

He adds – what is closely allied to the office of teaching – “and not to assume authority over the man”. They are subject and to teach implies the rank of power or authority. In the case of woman, who by nature (that is by the ordinary law of God) is formed to obey, and therefore so to speak, it will be a mingling of heaven and earth, if women usurp the right to teach. Accordingly he bids them be “quiet“, that is, keep within their own rank.

“For Adam was first created”.

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