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1 Timothy 2:11-14 – Structure of Text
1 Timothy 2:11-14
What can structure teach us about this controversial text?
1A – “A woman is to learn quietly
• 1B – with full submission.
2A – I do not allow a woman to teach
• 2B – or to have authority over a man; instead, she is to remain quiet.
3A – For Adam was formed first,
• 3B – then Eve.
4A – And Adam was not deceived,
• 4B – but the woman was deceived and transgressed.” (CSB’17 1 Timothy 2:11-14)
That first section is also a chiasm:
A – “A woman is to learn quietly
B – with full submission.
C – I do not allow a woman to teach
B’ – or to have authority over a man;
A’ – instead, she is to remain quiet.
This chiasm (inverted parallelism) helps us see how the words and thoughts are self-interpretive. “Quiet” or “silent” is not an absolute but is rather defined by its textual opposite – teaching with authority.
For purposes here, I want to focus on the step parallelism as seen in the first structural arrangement. The 4B section helps sum up all the preceding B sections:
4B-1B – The woman was deceived and transgressed because she was not in full submission to Adam who was not deceived, and she instead listened to the serpent.
4B-2B – Although Adam was not deceived, he relinquished the position of teacher over himself to his wife. As seen in Genesis 3, she is doing all the talking with the serpent; Adam remained quiet and was not teaching.
4B-3B – While many object to primogeniture being used by Paul, such is the obvious meaning. While 3A is giving a reason why husbands are to be the spiritual leaders, 4A,B is not. Instead it is showing Adam’s downfall, and what happened because he relinquished his position as head. Therefore 4A,B is a warning to men, not to women.
Hopefully we can see how Paul’s inspired thought process helps to explain his own words.
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