The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Timothy 3:11,
"In the same way, the women are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything."
Who are these women Paul speaks of here? These particular women are to be worthy of respect by not being "malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything." These are women that are to be qualified. Qualified for what?
"In the same way, the women are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything."
Who are these women Paul speaks of here? These particular women are to be worthy of respect by not being "malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything." These are women that are to be qualified. Qualified for what?
This rendering of the verse comes from the 2011 version of the NIV. The footnote they provide for "women" says the term could mean either deacon's wives or deacons who are women.
In that this section of Paul's letter to Timothy is devoted to recognizing who might be qualified for leadership within the fellowship, "the women" as a reference to all women in the fellowship certainly seems out of place. That leaves either the wives of deacons or women who were to be appointed as deaconesses within the fellowship.
The fact that there is nothing mentioned about the qualifications for an elder's wife by Paul, it does seem odd that he would only reference the wives of deacons as needing certain qualities.
The fact that there is nothing mentioned about the qualifications for an elder's wife by Paul, it does seem odd that he would only reference the wives of deacons as needing certain qualities.
It seems to me a reasonable alternative to understanding who these women are that Paul qualifies must be those considered for a role as a deaconess. After Paul lays out the qualifications for an elder, he prefaces his comment about deacons with the introduction, "In the same way..." I note that is exactly how he prefaces his qualifications for these women.
Of course, if Paul is considering roles for women as deaconesses, it flies in the face of the accusation that Paul was a misogynist. Women, recognized as leaders within the fellowship???
What do you think? Who were these women? Might we need them today?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
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Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
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