A woman should learn in quietness and full submission.
Summary: In this passage, Paul challenges us to examine the authorities in our lives.
I have not been looking forward to this at all.
Over the course of my lifetime, over seventy years now, I have lived in a world that has sought to erase the differences between men and women. This passage is the opposite of what society says, and not just by a little.
Yet, Paul said it, and it is in the Bible. This is a meditation on the Bible, and we are stuck with dealing with God’s Word as it is.
What I am going to share with you in this meditation is a personal reflection. As always, what you take away from this passage is between you and God. So, please understand that what follows is nothing more than one person’s perspective on the topic.
To begin with, there is a radical difference between how Christ wants us to live and what the world of non-believers is like. Christ-followers strive to love God above all else and love their neighbors. For men this includes wives, girlfriends, mothers, and daughters, to mention a few. Women are to love their husbands, boyfriends, fathers, and sons as neighbors as well.
The “love” of Christ is not just an affection for someone, but it is agapē love — a love that is self-sacrificing.
God clearly values family hierarchy. The first three Commandments (Deuteronomy 5:6-11) are dedicated to instructing us to honor God above all else.
The fifth Commandment (Deuteronomy 5:16) establishes the authority of parents in the home. Children are to honor their father and mother.
Before there was sin in the world, it is very likely that there was no need for any hierarchy. Adam and Eve are described as being “one flesh.” They had each other, and they lived in God’s garden. Life was good.
Then, unfortunately, the serpent enticed Eve to sin. Adam followed and … well … you know the rest of the story.
As a result of sin, God said to Eve:
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16)
And there it is: the hierarchy.
So what went wrong?
When men stray from submitting to God, their authority in the family loses credibility. Forcing anyone to submit to someone based on threats and intimidation is not God-like. In fact, it is the opposite.
This is where society went wrong. It is also why women were justified in claiming independence.
Which brings us to the duality of the worlds we live in. If we live by the world’s standards, then power and authority flow to those who can take it. If we live by God’s standards, then there is only one authority, and that is God.
Application: Honor the Father in all things.
Food for Thought: How is man’s relationship to God similar to a woman’s biblical relationship with her husband?
In a relationship with God there is a covenant rooted in love. God loved us first, and despite our rebellion, sent His son to pay our debt of sin so that we could be redeemed to Him. It is through Christ’s sacrificial love that we are redeemed to the Father. In our relationship with God, we submit to His authority, trusting Him and that His Will is good for our lives. Through Christ, and the Holy Spirit, we learn to trust Him more and more, and our love for Him grows deeper. We are given grace by Him to grow into the likeness of Christ.
A woman’s biblical relationship with her husband is similar to this. A marriage is a covenant rooted in love. The husband loves the wife as God loves us and Christ loves the Church, sacrificially and without condition. This builds trust in the relationship. One aspect of that trust is that the one who has been given authority exercises it in good will. In a relationship of love and trust, grace abounds and love grows deeper.
Well said, Chris!