Brother Rushmore, Is it wrong for a woman to have authority over the man in the work place? Does 1 Tim. 2:11,12 and 1 Cor. 14:34 apply in principle outside the church? Sincerly, Amanda Williams
“Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence” (1 Timothy 2:11-12).
“Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law” (1 Corinthians 14:34).
Both of the Scriptures above concern religious settings. The context of 1 Timothy 2:11-12 begins in verse 8 by addressing males and the prayers they offer. Consequently, 1 Timothy 2:11-12 pertain to religious circumstances. Likewise, 1 Corinthians 14:34 pertains to an assembly of the church (the word “church” in that context referring to the assembly). Other passages explain the subordination of women to their respective husbands in the home (Ephesians 5:22-23). However, though Scripture clearly addresses the role of women respecting their male counterparts in religion and in the home, the same role of subordination does not appear in Scripture regarding business activity.
For instance, Lydia was a merchant woman who was a native of Thyatira but she was conducting business in Philippi (Acts 16:12, 14). She had a residence in Philippi (temporary or permanent) into which she invited the apostle Paul and his companions (verse 15, 40). Lydia was a Jewess, who would have been under similar constraints as appear in 1 Timothy 2:11-12, 1 Corinthians 14:34 and Ephesians 5:22-23 in her amenability to Judaism and certainly was constrained thus by those truths in those passages once she became a Christian. Yet, the apostle Paul, Luke the author of Acts and the Holy Spirit who inspired the volume all declined to sanction Lydia for being a business woman and all that involved. Implicitly, Lydia was not in violation of the principles about which we are concerning ourselves. Certainly, her business activity would have required interaction with some of the male population, and in some instances as a boss toward underlings, etc.
Further, the virtuous woman of Proverbs 31:10-31 bought real estate and farmed it (vs. 16) and sold homemade products to merchants (vs. 24). These activities involve interaction with some of the male population in such a way as to command some circumstances and make decisions for herself. Outside the home, she was not restricted by the principles applicable in the home and in religion that made her subordinate to males. However, regarding her God-assigned roles in the home, she served her family and her husband in an admiral way worthy of eternal documentation in the very Word of God.
Likewise, Christian women today have definitive God-given roles in the home and the church that are subordinate to God-given roles assigned to men. Outside the home, though, women are not restricted to a subordinate role to their male counterparts. Yet, women (and men, too) must exercise caution that this liberty outside the confines of the home and religious circumstances is not abused. This liberty must not be allowed to circumvent or alter the relationship between the biblical roles of women and men in the home and the church. The reader may want to view articles on Gospel Gazette Online that address the role of women.
