Category: Pastoral Epistles|1 Timothy (Page 4 of 10)

Baum, “Saving Wealthy Ephesian Women from a Self-Centered Way of Life (1 Tim 2:15)”

October 1, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A essay on the crux of 1 Tim 2:15 in a festschrift honoring Rob van Houwelingen on the occasion of his retirement:

Armin Baum, “Saving Wealthy Ephesian Women from a Self-Centered Way of Life (1 Tim 2:15): Salvation by Childbearing in the Context of Ancient Arguments against Sexual Intercourse, Pregnancy, and Child-rearing,” in Troubling Texts in the New Testament: Essays in Honour of Rob van Houwelingen, Contributions to Exegesis and Theology (Leuven: Peeters, 2022), 257–83.

Abstract: “Many Bible readers regard the statement in 1 Timothy 2: 15 (“She will be saved through childbearing … “) as very unfair. Why did Paul (or one of his disciples) lose sight of gender equality? And is this passage not irreconcilable with passages such as Galatians 3:28, where Paul advocated the soteriological equality of the sexes, and with 1 Corinthians 7:8, where Paul encouraged unmarried women and widows to remain single? 1 Timothy 2: 15 confronts us with two exegetical challenges. First, its telegraphic style was probably quite comprehensible for Paul’s protege Timothy; but for us who are much less familiar with Paul’s thoughts, it.is much more difficult to decipher. Secondly, while for Paul, Timothy and the women concerned the concrete situation in the church of Ephesus was crystal clear, for us who are not involved and look at it from a distance of 2000 years it is anything but easy to figure out what exactly Paul was talking about. But read against its literary and historical context, l Timothy 2:15 is not a misogynistic text but rather a statement against luxury-oriented selfishness which is in conflict with the law of love.”

Helpful in this essay is a taxonomy of views regarding τεκνογονία in 2:15 (p. 260):

Baum’s final interpretive translation reveals his take on the passage: “(The luxury-minded) women (in the church of Ephesus) will be saved (from their spiritually dangerous self-centered lifestyle) by bearing children (and thereby accepting the maternal role) and by holding fast to (the basic Christian virtues of) faith, love, holiness and (particularly) chastity” (p. 280).

Waters, Women, Salvation, and Childbearing

July 16, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

Kenneth L. Waters, Sr., is Professor of New Testament and Associate Dean of Personnel, Contracts, and Undergraduate Studies in the School of Theology of Azusa Pacific University. Those who have sought to probe the depths of the extensive literature on 1 Timothy 2:15 have encountered the two related essays that Waters has produced on this crux interpretum:

“Saved Through Childbearing: Virtues as Children in 1 Timothy 2:11–15.” Journal of Biblical Literature 123.4 (2004): 703–35.
“Revisiting Virtues as Children: 1 Timothy 2:15 as Centerpiece for an Egalitarian Soteriology.” Lexington Theological Quarterly 42 (2007): 37–49.

Waters has now incorporated these two essays into a new, book-length treatment of the debated 1 Timothy 2:11–15:

Women, Salvation, and Childbearing: The Mystery of 1 Timothy 2:11–15. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2022.

The book also includes a four-page appendix: “Exploring Further: Teknogonía in Classical Literature” (111–14).

Annual Bibliographies on the Pastorals

April 12, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

For some few years now, we have been producing annual bibliographies for researchers in the Letters to Timothy and Titus. These bibliographies are meant to help students of these letters keep up with the secondary literature, and give some idea of research trends. We compile this list each year by contacting academic publishers and Pastorals scholars who have published previously on the letters. Our thanks to all who contributed!

Our annual bibliography of recent publications on the Letters to Timothy and Titus covers contributions from all of 2021 and early 2022. Over 170 items long and international in scope, the list contains monographs, journal articles, and commentaries, as well as lists of conference presentations and dissertations on the letters. It is available for viewing and downloading here.

Our annual bibliography of forthcoming publications on the Letters to Timothy and Titus is wide-ranging and academically oriented, containing over 60 forthcoming works on the Pastoral Epistles, including essays, monographs, and commentaries. In some cases, authors have provided a brief synopsis of their work. This bibliography is available for viewing and downloading here.

Kotansky, “The Secret of the Hidden Cross: The Form, Meaning, and Background of the Hellenistic Hymn Quoted in 1 Tim. 3:16”

April 8, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A new article on the intriguing 1 Timothy 3:16 is now available, intriguing in its own right:

Kotansky, Roy D. “The Secret of the Hidden Cross: The Form, Meaning, and Background of the Hellenistic Hymn Quoted in 1 Tim. 3:16.” Pages 165–200 in Gods, Spirits, and Worship in the Greco-Roman World and Early Christianity. Edited by Craig A. Evans and Adam Z. Wright. Studies in Scripture in Early Judaism and Christianity 23. London: T&T Clark, 2022. https://www.doi.org/10.5040/9780567703286

Those who have researched the passage will immediately recognize the language of the title as echoing an important essay by Robert Gundry published just over a half-century ago (see below), a purposeful evocation by Kotansky. The fascinating 1 Timothy 3:16 has attracted scholarly attention for quite some time (I’ve appended some treatments at the end of this post); Kotansky rightly speaks of “the long history of exegesis that these lines have endured” (179).

From the volume introduction: “Roy Kotansky investigates the background of the Hellenistic hymn that lies behind 1 Tim. 3:16. After drawing our attention to a number of relevant artifacts and suggesting a new way to understand a difficult phrase in the verse, Kotansky concludes that this hymn is composed in such a way that it creates a visual structure whose purpose is to disguise the message of the cross, yet allow its message to be understood when recited and sung aloud.”

________

Here are a number of focused studies on 1 Tim 3:16, listed chronologically:

Ward, William H. “An Examination of the Various Readings of 1 Tim. 3:16.” Bibliotheca sacra 27 (1865): 1–50.

Klöpper, A. “Zur Christologie der Pastoralbriefe (1. Tim. 3,16).” Zeitschrift für wissenschaftliche Theologie 45 (1902): 339‒61.

Seeberg, D. A. Der Katechismus der Urchristenheit. Leipzig: A. Deichert, 1903. [Note “Dieselbe Glaubensformel und der Hymnus I Tim. 3, 16,” pp. 112–25.]

Wilson, O. R. B. “A Study of the Early Christian Credal Hymn of 1 Timothy 3:16.” PhD diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1954.

Braun, R. A. “Mysterium Pietatis seu in historiam interpretationis Eusebeias vocis Pastoralium Epistolarum, speciatim 1 Tim 3.16a inquisitio atque exegetica christologici hymni 1 Tim 3,16b explanatio.” Diss., Pontificio Istituto Biblico, Rome, 1956.

Schweizer, Eduard. “Two New Testament Creeds Compared: I Corinthians 15.3–5 and I Timothy 3.16.” Pages 166–77 in Current Issues in New Testament Interpretation: Essays in Honor of Otto A. Piper. Edited by William Klassen and Graydon F. Snyder. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1962.

Kremer, Jacob. “‘Aufgenommen in Herrlichkeit’ (1 Tim 3,16): Auferstehung und Erhöhung nach dem Zeugnis der paulinischen Schriften.” Bibel und Kirche 20 (1965): 33–37.

Lachenschmid, R. “Geheimnis unseres Christseins. Das Christuslied aus 1 Tim 3,16.” Geist und Leben 39 (1966): 225–29.

Hanson, A. T. “An Academic Phrase: 1 Timothy 3.16a.” Pages 21–28 in Studies in the Pastoral Epistles. London: S.P.C.K., 1968. Reprint, Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2015.

Stenger, Werner. “Der Christushymnus in 1 Tim 3,16: Aufbau—Christologie—Sitz im Leben.” Trierer theologische Zeitschrift 78 (1969): 33–48.

Deichgräber, Reinhard. Gotteshymnus und Christushymnus in der frühen Christenheit. Untersuchung zu Form, Sprache und Stil der frühchristlichen Hymnen. Studien zur Umwelt des Neuen Testaments5. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1970.

Gundry, Robert H. “The Form, Meaning and Background of the Hymn Quoted in 1 Timothy 3:16.” Pages 203–22 in Apostolic History and the Gospel: Biblical and Historical Essays Presented to F. F. Bruce on his 60th Birthday. Edited by W. W. Gasque and R. P. Martin. Exeter: Paternoster, 1970.

Strange, J. F. “A Critical and Exegetical Study of 1 Timothy 3.16: An Essay in Traditiongeschichte.” PhD dissertation, Drew University, 1970.

O’Callaghan, José. “1 Tim 3,16; 4,1.3 en 7Q4?” Biblica 53 (1972): 362–67.

Fowler, Paul B. “Examination of I Timothy 3:16b: Its Form, Language, and Historical Background.” PhD thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1973.

Langkammer, Hugolin. “Hymn chrystologiczny 1 Tym 3,16.“ Pages 137–49 in Verbum Crucis. Kardynałowi Bolesławowi Kominkowi w hołdzie. Wrocław: Wrocławska Księgarnia Archidiecezjalna, 1974.

Stenger, Werner. “Textkritik und Schiksal (1Tim 3,16).“ Biblische Zeitschrift 19.2 (1975): 240–47.

Langkammer, Hugolin. Hymny chrystologiczne Nowego Testamentu. Najstarszy obraz Chrystusa. Attende Lectioni 3. Katowice: Kuria Diecezjalna, 1976.

Stenger, Werner. Der Christushymnus 1 Tim. 3,16. Eine Strukturanalytische Untersuchung. Regensburger Studien zur Theologie 6. Frankfurt: Lang, 1977.

Szczurek, Tadeusz. “‘Ukazał się aniołom’ (1 Tm 3, 16) [‘was seen by angels’ (1 Tim 3, 16)].” Ruch Biblijny i Liturgiczny 30.4 (1977): 195–98.

Manns, Frédéric. “L’hymne judéo-chrétien de 1 Tim. 3,16.” Euntes Docete 32.3 (1979): 323–39. = “Judeo-Christian Context of 1 Tim 3:16.” Theology Digest 29 (1981): 119–22.

Metzger, Wolfgang. Der Christushymnus 1. Timotheus 3,16: Fragment einer Homologie der paulinischen Gemeinden. Arbeiten zur Theologie 62. Stuttgart: Calwer, 1979.

Hengel, Martin. “Hymn and Christology.” Pages 173–97 in Studia Biblica 1978, III. Papers on Paul and Other New Testament Authors. Sixth International Congress on Biblical Studies. Oxford 3–7 April 1978. Edited by Elizabeth A. Livingstone. Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series 3. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Academic Press, 1980.

Hugger, P. “Mission als Christusmysterium: 1 Tim 3:16.” Pages 19‒27 in Zukunft aus empfangenem Erbe: 100 Jahre benediktinische Missionsarbeit. Edited by S. Hertlein and R. Rudmann. St. Ottilien: EOS, 1983.

Murphy-O’Connor, Jerome. “Redactional Angels in 1 Tim 3:16.” Revue Biblique 91 (1984): 178–87.

Du Preez, J. “‘Angeloi’ in die lied van 1 Timoteus 3:16.” Nederduitse Gereformeerde Teologiese Tydskrif 28 (1987): 182–86.

Luke, K. “The Impact of Egyptian Ideas on the Formulation of NT Soteriology.” Bible Bhashyam 14 (1989): 185–94.

Rensburg, Fika J. van. “Die Timoteus-himne (1 Tim 3:16).” Pages 83–97 in Hymni Christiani. Edited by J. H. Barkhuizen. HTS supplementum series 1. Pretoria: Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk van Africa, 1989.

Fowl, Stephen E. The Story of Christ in the Ethics of Paul: An Analysis of the Function of the Hymnic Material in the Pauline Corpus. Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series 36. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Academic Press, 1990. Reprint, Bloomsbury Academic Collections, Biblical Studies: The Epistles. London: Bloomsbury, 2015. [note chap. 7, “1 Timothy 3:16b,” 155–174; chap 8, “The Function of 1 Timothy 3:16b,” 175–210]

McClain, C. K., Jr. “A Hermeneutical Inquiry into the Raz-Pesher Motif with Application to 1 Timothy 3:16.” PhD diss., Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary, 1990.

Marcheselli-Casale, Cesare. “Gesù di Nazareth il Risorto-Asceso centro vitale della comunità ecclesiale protocristiana. Considerazioni intorno al valore pasquale di 1 Tm 3, 16.” Theologica (Annali della Pontificia Facoltà Teologica della Sardegna) 3 (1994): 235–76.

Karris, Robert J. A Symphony of New Testament Hymns: Commentary on Philippians 2:5–11, Colossians 1:15–20, Ephesians 2:14–16, 1 Timothy 3:16, Titus 3:4–7, 1 Peter 3:18–22, and 2 Timothy 2:11–13. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1996. [note chap. VI-2, “1 Timothy 3:16 — The Universality of Salvation in Christ Jesus,” 112–26]

Testa, Emmanuele. “L’inno sul sacramentum pietatis (1Tm 3, 16).” Studium Biblicum Franciscanum Liber Annuus 46 (1996): 87–100.

Kremer, Jacob. “Das einmütig geschätzte Mysterium der Frömmigkeit: Erwägungen zur Kurzformel chritlichen Glaubens in 1Tim 3,16b.“ Geist und Leben 70.2 (1997): 99–107.

Ham, C. “The Christ Hymn in 1 Timothy 3:16.” Stone-Campbell Journal 3 (2000): 209–28.

MacLeod, Donald J. “Christology in Six Lines: An Exposition of 1 Timothy 3:16.” Bibliotheca Sacra 159 (2002): 334–48.

Frary, Stephen W. “Who Was Manifested in the Flesh? A Consideration of Internal Evidence in Support of a Variant in 1 Tim 3:16a.” Filología Neotestamentaria 16 (2003): 3–18.

Nayak, I. The Mystery of Christian Life: The Christ-Hymn of 1 Tim 3,16. Rome: Urbaniana University Press, 2004.

Arichea, Daniel C., Jr. “Translating Hymnic Materials: Theology and Translation in 1 Timothy 3.16.” Bible Translator 58.4 (2007): 179–85.

Herzer, Jens. “‘Das Geheimnis der Frömmigkeit’ (1 Tim 3,16)—Sprache und Stil der Pastoralbriefe im Kontext hellenistisch-römischer Popularphilosophie—eine methodische Problemanzeige.” Theologische Quartalschrift 187.4 (2007): 309–29. = Pages 381–406 in Die Pastoralbriefe und das Vermächtnis des Paulus: Studien zu den Briefen an Timotheus und Titus. Edited by Jan Quenstedt. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 476. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2022.

DiPaolo, Lawrence. Hymn Fragments Embedded in the New Testament: Hellenistic Jewish and Greco-Roman Parallels. Lewiston, NY: Mellen, 2008.

Martin, Brice. “1 Timothy 3:16—A New Perspective.” Evangelical Quarterly 85.2 (2013): 105–20.

Trebilco, Paul R. “1 Timothy 3.16 as a Proto-Rule of Faith.” Pages 170–90 in Ears That Hear: Explorations in Theological Interpretation of the Bible. Edited by Joel B. Green and Tim Meadowcroft. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2013.

Walker, Kevin. “Ukazao se . . . Kome? Još jedan osvrt na 1 Tim 3,16b.” Kairos: Evanđeoski teološki časopis 8.2 (2014): 155–74. = “He Appeared to Whom? Another Look at 1 Tim 3:16b.” Kairos: Evangelical Journal of Theology 8.2 (2014): 123–42.

Gordley, Matthew E. New Testament Christological Hymns: Exploring Texts, Contexts, and Significance. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2018. [1 Tim 3:16 covered on pp. 183–190]

Gonzaga, Waldecir, and Rafael Mendonça de Souza. “‘Grande é o Mistério da Piedade’: Eclesiologia e Christologia em 1 Timóteo 3,16.” Caminhos 19.2 (2021): 394–415. http://dx.doi.org/10.18224/cam.v19i2.8816

Machado, Sidney Damasio. “‘Manifestado na carne’ (1Tm 3,16): Considerações sobre a transmissão damensagem cristã na Igreja primitive // ‘Manifested in the flesh’ (1Tm 3,16): Considerations on the Transmission of the Christian Message in the Early Church.” Revista Pistis Praxis 13.2 (2021): 758–85. https://doi.org/10.7213/2175-1838.13.02.DS05

Van Nes, “Second-Century Vocabulary in the Pastoral Epistles? A Reassessment”

April 6, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A recent article of interest to Pastorals researchers:

Van Nes, Jermo. “Second-Century Vocabulary in the Pastoral Epistles? A Reassessment.” Filología Neotestamentaria 34 (2021): 41–67.

Abstract: “Many contemporary New Testament scholars consider 1–2 Timothy and Titus, collectively known as the Pastoral Epistles (PE), to be pseudonymous. Some of them do so on the basis of the PE’s comparatively large number of hapax legomena (hapaxes), which they believe is closer to writings of the second century AD. The aim of this study is to reconsider this influential thesis as advocated by P.N. Harrison over the course of the twentieth century. It will be argued that the (statistical) evidence presented by Harrison is flawed as he gives no proper definition of hapaxes, unevenly compares the PE collectively to individual writings, and does not use any criteria to show how his results are statistically significant. By way of alternative, this paper will (1) provide a proper definition of hapaxes, (2) count how many of these hapaxes recur in all Greek second-century writings classified as such in the Thesaurus Linguae Graecae database, and (3) by means of (simple) linear regression analysis determine whether or not 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and/or Titus in comparison to each of the other undisputed Pauline letters share significantly more hapaxes with these second-century writings.”

Maier, “The Entrepreneurial Widows of 1 Timothy”

April 5, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A new essay on the widows of 1 Timothy has recently appeared:

Harry O. Maier, “The Entrepreneurial Widows of 1 Timothy.” Pages 59–73 in Patterns of Women’s Leadership in Early Christianity. Edited by Ilaria Ramelli and Joan Taylor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198867067.003.0004

An earlier version of this essay is available on Academia, and includes this abstract: “This essay argues that the exhortations and admonitions voiced in 1 Timothy, a highly rhetorical pseudonymous letter written in Paul’s name, that widows (i.e. unmarried) women attests to a concern with single women’s patronage of Christ assemblies, which the writing seeks to address by having them marry. The argument seeks to move beyond a common explanation that the epistle was occasioned by ascetical teachings in which women discovered in sexual continence freedom from traditional gender roles. It seeks to furnish a broader economic concern with widows through an historical exploration of the socio-economic status of women who were artisans in the imperial urban economy. It identifies the means by which women gained skill in trades, the roles they played in the ‘adaptive family’ in which tradespeople plied their trade often at economic levels of subsistence. New Testament texts point to artisan women, some of them probably widows, who played important roles of patronage and leadership in assemblies of Christ believers. By attending to levels of poverty in the urban empire, traditional views of the widows of 1 Timothy as wealthier women assigned to gender roles are seen in a new light through consideration of spouses accustomed to working alongside their husbands taking on businesses after they died. While the lives of these women are largely invisible, attention to benefactions of wealthy women to synagogues and associations gives insight into the lives of women acting independently in various kinds of social gatherings.”

Krauter, “Die Kirche—Pfeiler und Fundament der Wahrheit?”

April 4, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A recent article on 1 Tim 3:15:

Stefan Krauter, “Die Kirche—Pfeiler und Fundament der Wahrheit? Zur Übersetzung und Auslegung von I Tim 3,15f.” Theologische Zeitschrift 77.1 (2021): 45–59.

The article is in German, but an English-language abstract is provided: “I Tim 3:14–16 is considered the theological centre of the Pastoral Epistles. The text combines the Pauline image of the church as a temple with the image of the church as house of God, which is characteristic of the Pastoral Epistles. In this way, the church is portrayed as a firm institution that passes on the truth unadulterated. The paper questions this interpretation in three steps: lt examines whether there is [a] temple metaphor in the background of l Tim 3:15. The idea that an institution carries the truth of faith is examined. An alternative translation and interpretation of the passage is proposed.”

The article is available here.

Solevåg, “Birthing, Nursing and Mothering Salvation: Metapher und Realität in den Pastoralbriefen”

April 3, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A new contribution to secondary literature on the Pastorals in ZNW:

Anna Rebecca Solevåg, “Birthing, Nursing and Mothering Salvation: Metapher und Realität in den Pastoralbriefen.” Zeitschrift für Neues Testament 24.48 (2021): 45–60.

The article is in German. No abstract is included, so I provide the section headings:

(1) Einleitung
(2) Die kognitive Metapherntheorie als theoretisches Instrument für die neutestamentliche Forschung
(3) Die Metapher des „Hauses Gottes” in den Pastoralbriefen
(4) „Gerettet durch das Gebären von Kindern” als soziale Realität
(5) Gebären und Nähren der Erlösung als Realität und Metapher
(6) Fazit: Spielt die Metapher eine Rolle?

Merz, “Gendered Power and the Power of Genre” and Van Houwelingen, “Power, Powerlessness, and Authorised Power in 1 Timothy 2:8–15”

April 2, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A couple of decade-old Pastorals essays have recently been translated and revised for inclusion in a new volume.

Originally published in German in HTS Theological Studies in 2012, an English-language revision of Annette Merz’s “Gen(de)red power: Die Macht des Genres im Streit um die Frauenrolle in Pastoralbriefen und Paulusakten” is now available:

Annette B. Merz, “Gendered Power and the Power of Genre in the Debate about Women’s Roles in the Pastoral Letters and the Acts of Paul.” Pages 173–194 in Power in the New Testament. Edited by Annette B. Merz and Pieter G. R. de Villiers. Contributions to Biblical Exegesis and Theology 107. Leuven: Peeters, 2021.

Abstract from the original article: “Two texts that contributed to the discussion on gender roles in formative Christianity, 1 Timothy and the Acts of Paul, are investigated. In both cases the emphasis is on the much-disputed role of women. Power plays a role on different levels. On the one hand power relations between the sexes are depicted or directly addressed by the text (‘gendered’ power), while on the other hand the power of persuasion is brought to bear on both male and female readers to legitimize the patriarchal, videlicet the encratitic model of gender. This is done by rhetorical means that are text-specific, but also make use of genre-specific persuasion strategies. This ‘genred power’ is still mostly unchartered territory in exegetical discussions and is therefore the focus of my investigation. Especially important in both genres are intertextual allusions to authoritative texts. Fictive self-references which enable the author (’Paul’) to correct himself are one focus of interest. Narrative strategies (i.e. character and plot development) which also have an intertextual dimension are a second focal point. The take-over of the role of Peter who denies Jesus and repents by Paul in the Acts of Thecla turns out to be of major rhetorical significance.”

Originally published in Dutch in HTS Theological Studies in 2012, a English-language revision of Rob van Houwelingen’s “Macht, onmacht en volmacht in 1 Timoteüs 2:8−15” is in the same volume as Merz’s:

P. H. Rob van Houwelingen, “Power, Powerlessness, and Authorised Power in 1 Timothy 2:8–15.” Pages 195–222 in Power in the New Testament. Edited by Annette B. Merz and Pieter G. R. de Villiers. Contributions to Biblical Exegesis and Theology 107. Leuven: Peeters, 2021.

The essay is available on Academia, where a summary is given: “Exploring whether and in what respect the Pastoral Epistles demonstrate thinking in terms of ecclesiastical power, the present essay examines 1 Timothy 2:8–15. This passage is much debated when it comes to the role of women in the church. A close reading of the text within the corpus paulinum, including the self-attestation of 1 Timothy as a letter of the apostle Paul, shows three aspects. Under the heading Power, the underlying problem is discussed that Timothy faced: the male/female relationship within the congregation in Ephesus that threatened to degenerate into a power struggle. With Powerlessness, the creation account as referred to in verses 13–15 comes into view. Its focus is the woman God created, Eve. It tells the story of human weakness, which in 1 Timothy becomes a sort of triptych about Eve and creation, Eve and the fall, and Eve and redemption. From all this, Paul draws the conclusion that a woman is not allowed to teach in the church or to exercise authority over a man. Finally, Authorised power refers to speaking with another’s authority—in Paul’s case, as an ambassador of Jesus Christ. Paul wanted to regulate a problematic situation involving male/female relationships in Timothy’s congregation by giving his apostolic instructions. He did so, in order to create space for the trustworthy Word. Paul’s instructions could easily be considered a kind of misogynistic power play. However, the apostle should be interpreted on his own terms. This applies both to his social context and to his missionary drive, as is explained in a brief reflection.”

Zamfir, “‘You, Man of God, Pursue Righteousness’: The Reception of 1 Timothy 6:11 in Some Third and Fourth Century Writers”

March 14, 2022 / Chuck Bumgardner

A new reception-historical study:

Zamfir, Korinna. “‘You, Man of God, Pursue Righteousness’: The Reception of 1 Timothy 6:11 in Some Third and Fourth Century Writers.” Pages 261–75 in Bibel und Patristik: Studien zur Exegese und Rezeption von Septuaginta und Neuem Testament. Festschrift für Martin Meiser. Biblische Zeitschrift Supplements 3. Leiden: Brill Schöningh, 2022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.30965/9783657793372_015