Should Women Teach Men?

As a teacher, and wanting to be a good steward of God’s gift and exercise it in obedience to Him, I struggled for a long time with whether or not it was biblical for me to teach men in any context at all. I set about to search the Scriptures for God’s clear instruction, and was completely willing to never allow men in my classes/seminars/workshops at all if that was indeed what God required. I say this because it is important to be clear that I did not come at this study with a position to prove, but rather with a completely open heart to hear from God and obey. Period.

I do, from time to time, get questions on this topic, so I have chosen to post it so I don't have to keep repeating myself! 

You may come to this with an already formed opinion, and in that case I just ask that you set that aside for now and consider the following:

I will take the major Scripture passages that have formed my position one by one:
 
1.     Are women to be SILENT in the church (mixed assembly of believers)?

    a.    1 Timothy 2:11-15
V11 Let the women learn in silence with all subjection.  First of all, that women were allowed to learn was major. At that time/culture for the most part, only men would receive an education. But let’s look at the Greek for ‘silence’ , see what it means and if it is used elsewhere.
This word translated ‘silence’ is ‘hesuchia’ (2271). It does not mean complete silence as in being forbidden to speak. It means, the state of being undisturbed; tranquility.

It is the same word used in 2 Thess 3:12 when Paul is exhorting those who refuse to work, but are running around like busybodies stirring up trouble: “Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread.”  He is not telling them to work in complete silence and never speak. He is telling them to work in a state of peace, tranquility as opposed to being a pot-stirrer.

It is the same word used in 1 Tim 2:2 “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.”  Obviously here he is not desirous of leading a life of complete silence, but rather a life of undisturbed tranquility.

It is the same word used in 1 Peter 3:1-4 “In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, 2 as they observe your chaste and [a]respectful behavior. 3 Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; 4 but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.”  Here, women are not being told to have a silent spirit, but a quiet spirit – tranquil, undisturbed.

It is the same word used in 1 Thess 4:11 “and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you”.  Once again, we are not being told to lead a silent life, but a life of tranquility in a state of being undisturbed.

So, the question becomes: why, in all of the NT uses of this word, is it translated as ‘quiet’, but in this ONE instance it is translated ‘silence’? Let’s look in some different translations:

NASB:  A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness.
Complete Jewish Bible: Let a woman learn in peace, fully submitted;
AMPC: Let a woman learn in quietness, in entire submissiveness.
NIV: A woman should learn in quietness and full submission.
Passion Translation:  Let the women who are new converts be willing to learn with all submission to their leaders and not speak out of turn.

While I am not a huge fan of the Passion Translation, it does bring light to the context of this instruction as historians tell us that one of the issues being addressed in this letter was that women, being unaccustomed to actually being allowed to be in the same learning environment as men, were in fact speaking out of turn and being disruptive… interrupting to ask questions, etc… because they were new to that environment and did not know the ‘rules’ of how to conduct oneself. Hence the admonition to learn quietly... like the men.

At any rate, most reliable translations use the work ‘quietness’ rather than ‘silence’. And a simple use of the concordance will reveal the true and accurate meaning of the original.

What about the rest of this verse, ‘in all subjection’ ? I will address this at the end of point #2.

2.    Are women to never teach ANY man?

a.    1 Tim 2:12 “But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.”

Is this a policy of Paul to never allow any women to ever teach any man or do we need to look more deeply to see the full meaning?

The Greek for woman here is gune (1135) and although it can be translated woman in general, it can also be translated as ‘wife’. The precise meaning will depend on the context.  So let’s look at the word for man. It is andros (435) which can mean ‘male’ or ‘husband’.  According to Greek Scholar, Spiros Zhodiates, this word is “better rendered ‘husband’ when the usage of this Greek word occurs in relation to a discussion of wives.”  (Word Study New Testament, p.690). So, first of all, we are talking about wives not teaching their husbands, not all women teaching any man.

Let’s look further… the word here for ‘teach’ is ‘didaskein’ (1321) and it is in the present tense. The present tense in the Greek denotes continuous, ongoing action. This is important because the most correct translation would be to ‘teach continuously’ or in other words, ‘to disciple’.  This is not talking about a woman teaching a workshop or a class in which men are present.  This is talking about a wife being in a continuous teaching position over her husband, in other words, discipling him.  This is a continuous teacher/student relationship. Hold that thought.

The very next phrase is ‘to usurp authority over the man’… The husband is to be the spiritual head of the wife in the marriage relationship. If the wife is in the position of discipling her husband, then she is usurping his headship. In the marriage.  This is again, not talking about a husband sitting in a workshop or a class or in church when his wife is speaking – this is a continuous discipling relationship in which the wife would actually be over the husband spiritually as his teacher/discipler, which would undermine and usurp his authority in the home.

This concept actually goes along with the end of v11 that “women are to learn…. In all subjection”.  The Greek for ‘subjection’ here is hupotage (5292) meaning ‘to place in proper order’. Again, this is the concept of a wife being respectful of her husband’s place over her as spiritual head.

So then, what about a Sunday School class? If I am teaching a mixed class, would it be a violation of this principle for my husband to be in that class? I will have to say that it depends on the class and it depends on your particular marriage dynamic. Husbands can be great support when we are teaching. We just need to make sure it doesn't cross the line to where he looks to us as a spiritual authority in his life rather than as an equal partner and co-heir.

Let’s finish this phrase with a look at ‘be in silence’. Is this the same Greek word we looked at before? Yes it is.


3.    Women in the NT:
 
a.    1 Cor 11:5 “But every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying disgraces her head, for she is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved.” (a woman whose head was shaved in those days was a prostitute, so you can see why that would be shameful).

However, the larger and often missed point we need to see here is that women were permitted both to pray and prophesy in gatherings of believers (what we would call ‘church’ today).
 
Let’s look at the whole passage from the Passion Translation:  "Any man who leads public worship, and prays or prophesies with a shawl hanging down over his head, shows disrespect to his head, which is Christ. 5 And if any woman in a place of leadership within the church prays or prophesies in public with her long hair disheveled, she shows disrespect to her head, which is her husband, for this would be the same as having her head shaved. 6 If a woman who wants to be in leadership will not conform to the customs of what is proper for women, she might as well cut off her hair. But if it’s disgraceful for her to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head. 7 A man in leadership is under no obligation to have his head covered in the public gatherings, because he is the portrait of God and reflects his glory. The woman, on the other hand, reflects the glory of her husband, 8 for man was not created from woman but woman from man. 9 By the same token, the man was not created because the woman needed him; the woman was created because the man needed her. 10 For this reason she should have authority over the head because of the angels. 11 So then, I have to insist that in the Lord, neither is woman inferior to man nor is man inferior to woman. 12 For just as woman was taken from the side of man, in the same way man is taken from the womb of woman. God, as the source of all things, designed it this way.

b.    Gal 3:27-28 “ For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

All humans are of equal value in Christ. Women are not ‘less than’.

c.    Acts 18: 24 "Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. 25 This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John; 26 and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.”  

Both Priscilla and her husband Aquila were teachers in the early church and they both spent time teaching Apollos – not just Aquila. If this had been an issue, surely Paul would have not allowed it.  Priscilla and Aquila are mentioned by name six times in the NT, always together as a couple (Acts 18:2-3, Acts 18-19, Acts 26; Rom 16:3-5; 1Cor 16:19; 2Tim 4:19). According to historians, they exercised leadership among the early churches and Paul twice notes that churches meet in their home (Rom 16:5; 1Cor 16:19).

d.    Rom 16:1-2 “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea; 2 that you receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and that you help her in whatever matter she may have need of you; for she herself has also been a helper of many, and of myself as well.”  

The word for ‘servant’ is diakonos (1249) which can be translated servant, minister or deacon… denoting a position of leadership and service. 

e.    Rom 16:3-4 “ Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who for my life risked their own necks,”  

In this verse Paul refers to both Priscilla (Prisca) and Aquila as ‘fellow workers’, the Greek here is ‘sunergous’ (4904). Used for both of them. He did not say, 'Aquila, my fellow worker, and his spouse, Prisca'. They were both fellow workers in Christ with Paul.


f.    Rom 16:21 (NIV) “Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.”

Junia was a female. And Paul refers to her as an apostle!

4.    Spiritual Gifts passages in the NT:
 
Are certain gifts only for men? No. It matters not if we are talking about the office gifts, the grace (motivational) gifts, or the manifestation gifts…they have no distinction as to gender: 1 Cor 12; Rom 12; Eph 4: 1 Peter 10,11.  
 
Are women restricted from exercising certain gifts in mixed assemblies? No. There is absolutely no Scripture that even hints at this. In fact, Acts 2:17 (quoting Joel 2:28) says, "In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people; your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams." Additionally, Acts 21:9 tells us that Phillip had four daughters who prophesied.

5.    Jesus always elevated the status of women.  
 
All during His earthly ministry as well as after his resurrection, Jesus showed respect to and for women. There are so many examples if you will but read the gospels! His encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well alone broke SO many religious and cultural rules it is astounding. Mark 16:1-8 tells us that Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome were the first to see that Jesus was not in the tomb and to receive the news that He had risen. They were also the first evangelists because they were entrusted to tell the disciples the news.  Additionally, Jesus’ first post-resurrection appearance was to Mary Magdalene (Mark 16:9)
 
Conclusion: Jesus always elevated the status of women. Women and men are equals in Christ. (This was God's original design. That is a whole 'nother teaching!) Both are recipients of the gifts and calling of God. I have not even addressed the female leaders of the Old Testament (Miriam, Deborah, Esther, Huldah to mention a few), but likewise, in  the NT we see women functioning in public prayer, prophecy, teaching and other ministry roles—we know this because Paul himself mentions them!  The only statement that seems to contradict this is in Timothy, and has been misapplied due to the lack of simply looking up the Greek and properly understanding the grammar. Are women permitted to teach men? Yes, with one caveat – a wife is not permitted to be in a continuous teaching relationship over her husband (discipleship) because that undermines his authority in the home and usurps his spiritual headship over her.