1I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and givings of thanks be made for all men, 2for kings and all who are in high places, that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and reverence. 3For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth. 5For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony at the proper time, 7to which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am telling the truth in Christ, not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
8I desire therefore that the men in every place pray, lifting up holy hands without anger and doubting. 9In the same way, that women also adorn themselves in decent clothing, with modesty and propriety, not with braided hair, gold, pearls, or expensive clothing, 10but with good works, which is appropriate for women professing godliness. 11Let a woman learn in quietness with full submission. 12But I don’t permit a woman to teach, nor to exercise authority over a man, but to be in quietness. 13For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14Adam wasn’t deceived, but the woman, being deceived, has fallen into disobedience; 15but she will be saved through her childbearing, if they continue in faith, love, and holiness with sobriety.
In Ephesians 5, the apostle Paul sets forth the need of Christians to reflect God in their lives. It is not unexpected that unbelievers, who follow the ways of a wicked world naturally, would not reflect the holiness and purity of God. For believers, who retain the heart of sin due to their relationship with the fall of Adam, they may follow these old passions and acts of the world, but God desires better for His beloved children (Eph 5:1). Rather than following selfish desires, Christians are called to act differently, so that we might have an inheritance from God (Eph 5:5). Following worldly attitudes and actions brings results that damage our testimony of Christ and harm to ourselves.
After the apostle sets forth a variety of attitudes and actions that disavow our new relationship with God (Eph 5:3-6; 18), he sets forth a general admonition to walk in light, to be wise, to give thanks and become subject to others in the fear of Christ (Eph 5:15-20).
At this point of his presentation, Paul turns to the relationship of a husband and wife in order to illustrate the manner of relationship the church is to have to Christ. The majority of the remainder of the chapter, he discusses how husbands are to love their wives (Eph 5:25-32), but before he does this he set forth the duty of the wife to be submissive to her husband, a view that is largely rejected in the current age. Nonetheless, we need to understand what God, through the apostle, considers to be the proper way that husbands and wives fulfill their obligations according to the creation of God.
The teaching of the apostle in this chapter, and elsewhere (1 Cor 11:2-10; 14:34, 35; Gal 3:28; Col 3:18, 19; 1 Tim 2:12-15),1 finds its basis in the creation account of Genesis 1-3. One finds in Genesis 1:26-28 the creation of male and female in the image of God, with the mandate of fulfilling God's purpose for their creation. The initial text discussed here is a preview of what is laid out in more detail in the second chapter of Genesis, as the focus moves from creation in general to humanity in specific.
One finds in Genesis 1:26-28 three important matters relating to the creation of humans. First is that they are created by God. Second, that humanity is created in God's image. Last of all, the text emphasizes that humanity created by God is male and female. According to Genesis 2 the woman is taken out of the male Adam as a helper, and through one, also, the world might be propagated. In this ordering of creation, Eve was to work along with her husband to fulfill the plan of God to fill and rule the world.
Paul's words to the wife are that she is to be under submission to her own husband as she is submissive to the Lord. As a helper she is to follow him, and not as someone under his feet, but alongside him. She is to submit to him as she submits to the Lord because he is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. This is hard, and often rejected, teaching to those who are not submissive to Christ, but an example to the Christian of not following the manner of the world. The creation of Adam first, and woman's creation out of Adam, serves as a model for the human race and in the church in specific, that guides Paul's teaching on the home and the church (Col 3:18-19; 1 Tim 2:12-15; 1 Cor 11:2-10; 1 Cor 14:34, 35), some by marriage (Col 3:18, 19), or family relationship (Col 3:20, 21), and others by society (Col 3:22-25). All of this is to be done in the name of Christ (Col 3:17).
H. Wayne House, The Role of Women in Ministry Today: Affirming the Biblical Position of Women in the Church. ↩︎