1 Corinthians 14:34-35 Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35 If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.
These are some of the more challenging verses in this letter and have caused a lot of discussion. One argument is that they are a textual variant inserted after Paul wrote the letter. There are a few manuscript differences, particularly with the Western text and Textus Receptus (upon which the early King James was based). Evidently these verses have caused a stir from early centuries.
If we assume these verses are authentic and written by Paul, then we can explore them within their historical and literary context. Paul is likely addressing a specific situation. “Women” can also be translated as “wives,” just as “husbands” in v. 35 can be translated as “men.” Is this a marital issue? Since these verses come in the context of a difficult chapter addressing people who spoke out in unknown sounds, part of the problem may have been women. There were some cults in the area (oracle of Delphi, for example) where women spoke in ecstatic utterances. Prophetesses were popular in some of these religions. The Christian women could have wanted to be like these other religions. It could also be that some of the women came out of these religions. Whatever the background issue, women were causing some problems for orderly worship and gatherings. They are an example of the type of problem Paul was trying to solve in this letter.
Verse 35 is the more challenging one with the phrase, “it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.” One of the most important rules of interpretation is to determine what is a timeless directive for everyone and what is a time bound instruction for a specific situation. There are plenty of examples of women speakers in the early church, so most likely, this is a specific instruction for the Corinthian church to help them deal with their chaotic and divisive worship times. Some Corinthian women were speaking out, possibly in tongues but at least in a way that caused disturbance, and so Paul wants them to be quiet and ask their questions at home to their husbands. In that culture and time, men were the more educated of the two and also considered the authorities of the home. Channeling questions through the husbands would help the church run smoother.
Although we must contextualize this passage, the principle of orderly worship is important. The motivation of gathering together as church should be that everyone is built up, discipled, and grows in their faith. If there are things that happen in any gathering (corporate worship services, small groups, classes, etc.) that hinder this, then they should stop. This should challenge each of us to examine what we bring to our gatherings and what we contribute to the edification of others.
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