What are we talking about here?

It’s about this job:

“For Adam was formed first, and then Eve. Nor was Adam deceived, but the woman, being completely deceived, fell into transgression, but will be saved through childbearing, (as will all,) if they continue in faith, love and sanctification with sound reason.”
2Tim 2:13-15

So the woman is “saved by bearing a child”? I always thought that people are only saved by the grace of God and because of the cross and resurrection of Christ? Women should know a different mechanism? It should also be possible through childbearing? Unfortunately, this is a popular short-circuit thought “because it says so in the Bible”. Here you can see what happens when you interpret everything “literally” and don’t ask yourself what the issue is here and what Paul means. The idea is so absurd that many remain somewhat perplexed. A good starting point for promoting a more differentiated view. But how does that work?

The first observation, however, is a simple one: no doctrine is being broadly measured here, but Paul’s statement appears in a subordinate clause. It is therefore not only pointless to set out a fully developed doctrine, but fails to recognize that the actual subject is not the bearing of children or salvation from sin and death, but something else.

The actual theme begins a few verses earlier:

“I now decree that the men pray in every place of assembly ...”
1Tim 2:8

Paul is not just talking about women in this passage. The direct context speaks of behavior in the community and in society, with examples for both men and women. This needs to be taken into account. So we need to consider not only this verse, but the verse in its entire context.

Giving birth

The “bearing of children” (Greek teknogoneo) is used once by Paul:

“I decree therefore that the younger (widows) marry, bear children, be housewives, and give no hand to the gainsayer to revile.”
1Tim 5:14

Here too decides Paul something like before in 1Tim 2,8. In both places it is a matter of practical consequences, so that the way of life “does not give rise to any opportunity for defamatory gossip”. One could recognize this as Paul’s intention. 1 Timothy 5 is also about the practical conduct of life. The subject is not “bearing children”, nor does the word “salvation” refer to that which can only be achieved through God’s work. Hold on to that.

The word “childbearing” (Greek teknogonia) is also only used once (1 Timothy 2:15), in the same letter. So it is not a constant theme, but it is used in the same context of 1 Timothy.

Both biblical passages mention “bearing children” as an example of the actual statement. It is an explanation, a comparison of the time. Everyone understood this. Both men and women were instructed not to cause a riot, not to create slander. Instead, both men and women were expected to behave decently according to the norms of their time. Or, in other words: take care of your life, your family and what has to do with it. It is a reference to the morality that found expression in “bearing children”. With this normality, you save the quiet and inconspicuous life.

So this is not about a law that, for example, “women can only be saved by bearing children”. This is an explanation in context. Bear in mind that it is not a question of all women having to bear children (!) in order to be saved. That is quite absurd. Because what about women who cannot bear children, for whatever reason? Anyone who teaches something like “women must bear children so that they can be saved” soon stumbles over their own inconsistencies, which invalidate the all-encompassing love and grace of God (as in the same chapter, just before: 1 Timothy 2:5-6).

Giving birth to children is an example here and not the actual topic. No lesson can be drawn from this.

The actual goal

In this section (1 Timothy 2:8-15), Paul describes general situations in the church. It is about the way of life and the understanding of life in the light of faith. How should you organize your life? Paul is always quite conservative and cautious when describing how to organize oneself so as not to attract negative attention in the community and in society. Not because of other people, but so that you can live in peace yourself.

“I speak to you now above all things, that supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil way of life.”
1Tim 2:1-2

The reasoning here is: “that we may lead a quiet and tranquil way of life”. That is the wish. He does not say: “so that we may beautifully fulfill the teachings, ideas, projections and demands of others”. He is not concerned with others, but with the consequence of such behavior: “a calm and quiet way of life”. Paul sees neither himself nor others in the limelight. All believers are in the world, but desire a calm and quiet way of life in it.

A calm and quiet way of life is the goal.

Guide to happiness

As we have just seen, Paul has a clear goal in mind. Furthermore, he describes that God’s goal corresponds to this goal:

“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
1Tim 2:3-4

What the church seeks and what God wants are now aligned in his argument. Paul doubles down when he then writes:

“For God is one, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gives himself as a substitute ransom for all, as a testimony to his own deadlines, for which I was appointed a herald and apostle (I tell the truth, I do not lie), a teacher of the nations in knowledge and truth.”
1Tim 2,5-7

Now we need to expand on this idea. The apostle does this step by step by “deciding” (1 Timothy 2:8) how men and women should behave. Paul then writes to Timothy (not to a church!) about how he envisages this. If you read the section 1 Timothy 2:8-15, you will notice that his comments were intended to achieve the goal in his time, namely that the believers should lead a quiet and calm lifestyle. That was the goal. What Paul describes is something like a guide to happiness, with this calm and quiet way of life in mind.

Everyone in the church should be equal. There is already a longer article on the special situation in Ephesus, where Timothy is staying:

The linked article explains the special situation in Ephesus, where Timothy is working. The point is this: Paul does not want to build a salvation-by-childbirth doctrine, but rather give a friend and coworker advice for his special task. Paul knows the situation and knows what is needed in this situation.

Men and women should pray, lifting up hands in homage, without anger and reasoning (1 Timothy 2:8-9). In addition, women should dress modestly, as some apparently did not. Moreover, they should adorn themselves with good works (1 Timothy 2:10). Paul replaces two things: differences between men and women, which were omnipresent in Ephesus, are abolished and the emphasis on outward appearances is rejected.

Did Paul only preach something like a “guide to happiness”?

The emphasis on women in the following verses corresponds to the emphasis on women in Ephesus and the cult of the goddess Artemis, which was celebrated in Ephesus. This is a very special context. Paul now speaks of a contrast to the omnipresent cult there when he refers to the scriptures. He refers to Adam and Eve. This is another basis that stands in sharp contrast to the cult of Artemis in Ephesus.

If you read verses 14 and 15 as a contrast to the situation in Ephesus, you understand how Paul balances the weight of the Artemis culture. No differences are introduced here, but the apostle shows that although women had many advantages in Ephesus, the Bible speaks of something completely different. Note that Paul is not trying to introduce a different kind of inequality.

There was something of a matriarchy in Ephesus. This was unusual at the time. All around and also in the Bible there was something like a patriarchy. Today, these terms are characterized ideologically. This was never an issue for Paul. He was still only concerned with one goal, namely how to lead a calm and quiet way of life. No power games are helpful in this. Neither patriarchal nor matriarchal structures are useful here. Equality in the church is consistently upheld and taught by Paul.

Childbearing is now part of the general description of that time. Those who focus on their own family do not attract attention. This saves, so to speak, from turmoil, bad behavior and the like. It is not an absolute statement, not a doctrine on how to be saved, but a pragmatic statement to help us lead a calm and quiet way of life. It is about culture, and how to respect culture if you want to live quietly and peacefully. This is the salvation to which Paul refers. It has nothing to do with salvation from sin and death.

General information

As soon as one realizes that Paul is speaking here of general information that should serve the church, strange teachings disappear. This passage is not about the birth of children replacing the cross and resurrection, nor is salvation about salvation from sin and death. None of this can be found in this passage.

It should make you wary when someone quotes a Bible text without context in order to then make wild fantasies about its meaning. It is then advisable to always pay attention to the text in context, as was done here above.