From What (or Whom) is Eve Saved?
I recently published my translation of 1 Timothy, and I thought to share it with a Facebook group about biblical egalitarianism (the idea that the Bible affirms interchangeable roles and equal value for men and women, with no divinely instituted hierarchy). The admins of the group are scholars, and they declined to approve my post, but not because they disagreed with my point. Instead, they pointed out more research I needed to do.
So I did.
The question about Eve hadn't been something I had considered yet, but verses 13-15 had been confusing and seemed more or less irrelevant up to that point.
But then I updated verses 11-15, and I started to notice things.
Here's how the chapter reads now:
1 First of all, therefore, I encourage making requests, prayers, intercessions, and giving thanks for all people— 2 even for those who reign and for all who are connected with supremacy—so that we may lead a stable and undisturbed life with complete respect and dignity. 3 This is pleasing and welcomed from the perspective of God our Liberator, 4 who wants all people to be liberated and to come toward an understanding of truth. 5 You see, God is one, and there is one mediator between God and humanity, the human Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as payment for the price to free many people from enslavement, evidence of this presented at the proper moment. 7 I’m speaking the truth; I’m not lying: I was appointed with faithfulness and trustworthiness as a herald of that evidence and an emissary and teacher for other peoples.
8 Therefore, I wish for the men everywhere to pray raising hands that act in alignment with divine values, free from anger and arguing. 9 Similarly, I wish for women to arrange themselves with restraint and moderation, with respect for God and self-discipline, not with plaiting and gold or pearls or expensive clothing, 10 but rather with generous actions, which make them stand out as women who claim to respect God.
11 May a woman learn with full cooperation undisturbed, 12 but I’m not directing the woman to take over teaching and domineer over a man, just to be undisturbed. 13 You see, first, Adam was formed, and then Eve was formed. 14 Adam was not tricked, but the woman, who was tricked, came to be in a sidestep. 15 However, Eve will be liberated through having had children if they persist with self-discipline in faithfulness, love, and designation for sacred purposes.
When I looked at it again closely, a new thought struck me. What if "Eve will be liberated" from something I didn't expect? What if it's from Adam's domination?
I know, I know. It doesn't say anything about Adam's domination.
But maybe that's because domination is what the whole chapter is about...
Bear with me while I connect all the dots. There are a lot of dots to connect, all snowballing on a collision course with something significant, I think.
Here are verses 1-4 again:
1 First of all, therefore, I encourage making requests, prayers, intercessions, and giving thanks for all people— 2 even for those who reign and for all who are connected with supremacy—so that we may lead a stable and undisturbed life with complete respect and dignity. 3 This is pleasing and welcomed from the perspective of God our Liberator, 4 who wants all people to be liberated and to come toward an understanding of truth.
Keep in mind, there is more information in the footnotes on the website, but here are some of the more relevant pieces.
There is an ongoing theme of domination and avoiding both being victims and perpetrators of that domination throughout the chapter, and it starts in the first sentence.
The writer is encouraging Timothy to pray. Not just for his own community but for everyone--even tyrants and (Roman) supremacists! Why? "so that we may lead a stable and undisturbed life with complete respect and dignity."
The prayer being specified for "those who reign and [supremacists]" is as a way to enable a 'stable' and 'undisturbed' life. The church was a persecuted group.
Unlike most instances of 'peaceful' this word is not eirene which is about harmony or 'peace between people,' but rather heremos, which is about inner serenity or stability.
What is translated there as 'undisturbed' is hesuchios. It is traditionally translated in this chapter as 'quiet,' but while 'quiet' is one possible meaning, it is not the primary meaning. It has to do with not being agitated or disturbed, being able to stay steady in stillness.
The word 'respect' is traditionally translated as 'godliness,' but the word is about treating with reverence or respect. It was often used to refer to respect toward a deity, but not always, and in fact there are instances in Greek literature of it being used of a husband treating a wife with respect.
With the purpose of praying for rulers being to maintain a life characterized by stability, being undisturbed, being treated with respect, and maintaining dignity, it becomes clear that this is all about not provoking tyrants to violence by antagonizing them, even for the sake of throwing off their oppression.
But wouldn't the Liberator God want Timothy to do whatever was in his power to force oppressors to stop their tyranny?
No. That's not the cruciform way of Jesus. "3 This is pleasing and welcomed from the perspective of God our Liberator, 4 who wants all people to be liberated and to come toward an understanding of truth." This liberation is not just about overthrowing oppressors, but also not acting like the oppressors ourselves.
5 You see, God is one, and there is one mediator between God and humanity, the human Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as payment for the price to free many people from enslavement, evidence of this presented at the proper moment.
The issue is not that liberation from oppression is irrelevant but that it must be done the Jesus way.
It continues the same flow of thought:
8 Therefore, I wish for the men everywhere to pray raising hands that act in alignment with divine values, free from anger and arguing.
The implication is not to do things the way the violent, oppressive rulers do them, even toward the violent, oppressive rulers.
There's a lot to say about verses 9 and 10, but I'll just summarize for now.
9 Similarly, I wish for women to arrange themselves with restraint and moderation, with respect for God and self-discipline, not with plaiting and gold or pearls or expensive clothing, 10 but rather with generous actions, which make them stand out as women who claim to respect God.
Women, as Jesus followers in a patriarchal society, were not likely to engage in public anger or violence against oppressors, but they could use wealth and status to claim power and prominence. These verses are saying to use kind and generous actions toward others as what to be known for instead.
11 May a woman learn with full cooperation undisturbed, 12 but I’m not directing the woman to take over teaching and domineer over a man, just to be undisturbed.
These two verses maybe have the most consequential changes of the whole chapter.
In verse 11, notice that there is another instance of hesuchios, 'undisturbed.' Rather than instructing women to be silent, this is encouraging Timothy to protect women who are learning from being harassed for it. Women were not typically educated in the culture of the time, and the fact that women were being included was often seen as scandalous.
The preposition en should be translated as 'with' not 'in,' which indicates that the 'submission' or 'cooperation' should be provided for the learning women so that they'll be undisturbed, not that they should submit in silence.
For men to harass women, trying to perpetuate patriarchal domination, would be for men to replicate the behavior of the oppressive rulers and supremacists in verse 2. We've already established that the writer thinks emulating oppressors is a bad look for followers of Christ.
For verse 12, at the prompting of the Facebook group admins who wanted me to do more research, I looked at the work of Philip Payne, author of Man and Woman, One in Christ.
Many of the relevant ideas about this chapter are summarized in his article published in the Christian Post.
In that article he writes:
"First, the Greek word the old NIV translated 'to have authority, authentein, is best translated 'to seize authority.' This word’s first occurrence clearly meaning 'exercise authority' is three centuries later, circa AD 370, in Saint Basil, The Letters 69, line 45: 'he [the bishop of Rome] may himself exercise full authority [authentēsai] in this matter, selecting men capable of enduring the hardships of a journey' ̣(Loeb Classical Library Saint Basil 2:40–43). The New Testament uses a different word for 'exercise authority,' exousiazō. In Paul’s day authentein could mean either 'to dominate' or, more commonly, twenty-one times, 'to assume authority by seizing it.'"
If we're looking for things related to the theme of domination, that gives us another one. This time, it's about women not turning the tables to dominate men. My first thought was, "Well, of course he had to clarify to the men that was what he meant. They've got their male fragility to contend with and would be afraid that taking away their patriarchal privilege is putting women over them!"
But I don't think that's actually why it's saying it. It goes back to the first paragraph and the encouragement to stay the course along the way of Jesus, not returning domination to the oppressors but rather responding to the oppressors just like everyone else: "in alignment with divine values, free from anger and arguing . . . with restraint and moderation, with respect for God and self-discipline, . . . [and] with generous actions."
Payne continues:
"Second, Paul typically uses the conjunction that links 'to teach' with 'to seize authority' to convey a single idea. My '1 Tim 2.12 and the Use of οὐδέ [oude] to Combine Two Elements to Express a Single Idea,' NTS 54 (2008): 235–53 examines every use of oude by Paul. My 'Οὐδέ [Oude] Combining Two Elements to Convey a Single Idea and 1 Timothy 2:12,' in Missing Voices: Broadening the Discussion on Men, Women, and Ministry, ed. Hilary Ritchie (Minneapolis: CBE International, 2014), 24–34 answers objections and illustrates this use of oude to combine two elements that contrast with something else introduced by alla. Consequently, Paul prohibits only women from seizing authority to teach. This does not restrict teaching by women with recognized authority."
This grammatical point about the Greek linking two words and then contrasting with a third is why I translated this phrase like this: "I’m not directing the woman to take over teaching and domineer over a man, just to be undisturbed."
You'll notice it doesn't say "I don't allow." That's because it's not the best way to translate that Greek word either.
The word epitrepo in The Cambridge Greek Lexicon can be translated as 'allow,' but it is only one of several distinct definitions, which also include, 'direct,' as well as 'entrust' or 'surrender a responsibility' or 'leave things to someone.'
On top of that, as Payne writes this in his article:
“I do not permit” is a misleading translation because this verb in Greek normally refers to something limited in time, not permanent. Furthermore, its grammatical form here rarely conveys a permanent prohibition. It usually focuses on presently ongoing permission or prohibition, so should be translated, “I am not permitting,” referring to the ongoing crisis of false teaching in Ephesus, not to a universal prohibition.
While I see it better translated as 'directing ... to take over' instead of 'permitting,' Payne's point about wording it as about the present rather than an absolute command is important here.
Therefore, we have four major changes in verse 12 that all point to a very different meaning than the traditional prohibition on women teaching men.
The word authentein is defined as 'seize authority' or 'dominate' or 'domineer over.'
The word epitrepo is defined as a present-specific verb meaning 'direct' or 'leave to someone' or 'direct to take over.'
The grammatical construction oude ... alla indicates a linked pair in contrast with a third item.
The word hesuchios is defined as 'undisturbed' (for the third time in this chapter).
Those four elements combine to make this the appropriate translation: "11 May a woman learn with full cooperation undisturbed, 12 but I’m not directing the woman to take over teaching and domineer over a man, just to be undisturbed."
With that translation, along with the preceding context of both avoiding being the victims of domination and violence and perpetrating violence, the point seems to be not to harass women who are learning, and at the same time, also not trying to turn the tables for women to domineer over men.
Now we get to the last few verses which are the most confusing. At first glance, it seems like a non-sequitur. The record scratch in my brain is loud. We went from instructions about interactions between men and women in the church at Ephesus to suddenly talking about Eve and Adam.
13 You see, first, Adam was formed, and then Eve was formed. 14 Adam was not tricked, but the woman, who was tricked, came to be in a sidestep. 15 However, Eve will be liberated through having had children if they persist with self-discipline in faithfulness, love, and designation for sacred purposes.
These verses are referring to Genesis 2 and 3. There is a poetic parrallelism in the structure. People have made a lot out of the idea of "Adam was formed first" giving him some sort of primacy in a cosmic hierarchy, but that's all baloney. We see over and over again, the idea that the first will be last and the last will be first. First doesn't mean more important or higher ranking in the way of Christ.
The parallelism here is a Hebraic writing technique meant to highlight similarity, not hierarchy. It's trying to emphasize that they were both formed by God, but then only one of them was tricked. I've seen many people take that to be an accusation against Eve, but it's the other way around. Eve was tricked. Adam knew full well what he was doing.
With all that in mind then, we come to verse 15. It's traditionally translated as something like "Eve will be saved through childbirth...." That's a reference back to Genesis 3:16.
Here's that section from the NRSVue:
13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” 14 The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you among all animals
and among all wild creatures;
upon your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman
and between your offspring and hers;
he will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.”16 To the woman he said,
“I will make your pangs in childbirth exceedingly great;
in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”
What is interesting is that 1 Timothy 2:15 where it's traditionally 'childbirth' does not mean going into labor and delivering a baby. It means the fact of having had children at all. It's an ongoing condition after giving birth.
So that means, that it's not referring to the first two lines of Genesis 3:16. It is much more likely to have Genesis 3:15 in view. There is vindication of the woman for the wrong she suffered by being targeted by the snake that comes through her 'offspring,' literally, her 'seed.' Just like Abraham's seed later in Genesis, many people take the Christian interpretation of this to be the similar to Paul's interpretation in Galatians 3 that the collective 'seed' of all the descendants can also be taken to mean the singular 'seed' of Jesus. The New Testament over and over makes the case that Jesus serves as the representative for all.
Of course, in the Genesis narrative, even though Eve was tricked, she still decided to disregard what God had told her, so verse 16 still applies, but the focus that's relevant for 1 Timothy 2:15 is the second half of the verse: "yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you."
Margaret Mowczo writes in her article “Teshuqah: The Woman’s ‘Desire’ in Genesis 3:16,” about the meaning of teshuqah, which is what has traditionally been translated as ‘desire’ in Genesis 3:16. However, it is not the typical word for ‘desire’ and only appears a handful of times in the Bible. Here is one of the definitions she lists:
A wife will desire to control her husband.
Foh’s interpretation, adopted by some, is that a woman will desire to control her husband, but, despite this desire, her husband will rule her. Foh bases her interpretation on a comparison of Genesis 3:16 with Genesis 4:7 where the keywords teshuqah and mashal (“rule”) also occur.”
The word mashal for ‘rule’ or ‘have dominion’ or ‘gain control’ connects with the theme of domination. See definitions here: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/4910.htm
So, coming back to the theme of domination and avoiding both being the victim of domination and the perpetrator of domination, Genesis 3 shows a whole sequence of relevant elements. The snake lies to control and manipulate Eve. Eve is predicted to suffer from wanting to control her man but simultaneously be ruled over by him.
That's a lot of domination going around.
But somehow, Eve is liberated.
Looking at the word sozo, which appears in 1 Timothy 2:4, 15 and soter in verse 3, the traditional translation is ‘save’ and ‘savior.’ That meaning is fine in and of itself, since it is used many times to mean other forms of saving besides granting a pleasant afterlife. In The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, several contexts are given as examples of the kinds of rescue that might be in mind: from enemies, from being killed, from unwelcome situations, and from troubles. Violent men, oppression, and tyrannical leaders would seemingly fit the description of enemies, unwelcome situations, and troubles.
The question is still there, in the middle of all this exploration of liberation and domination, what was Eve being liberated from? The practical application being made in verses 11 and 12 is pretty clear: "Let women learn without harassing them, but don't worry I'm not telling them to start dominating men now." However, the connection with Eve still seems a bit murky.
11 May a woman learn with full cooperation undisturbed, 12 but I’m not directing the woman to take over teaching and domineer over a man, just to be undisturbed. 13 You see, first, Adam was formed, and then Eve was formed. 14 Adam was not tricked, but the woman, who was tricked, came to be in a sidestep. 15 However, Eve will be liberated through having had children if they persist with self-discipline in faithfulness, love, and designation for sacred purposes.
Eve was tricked, came to be in a sidestep, and had the declaration of struggle for and under domination to look forward to. But her liberation wasn't through the predicted pain of giving birth. It was through her seed that would strike the head of the snake. It was through her seed "if they persist with self-discipline in faithfulness, love, and designation for sacred purposes."
Jesus did those things, and through him we are learning to do those things too. The promise, in fact, is that it will spread across the whole world to become a version of humanity in which all do those things. Eve has been liberated, is being liberated, and will be liberated.
That understanding of Eve being liberated through Jesus having been born is not new. One of the earliest writers the worldwide church agrees is trustworthy outside of the New Testament is Irenaeus. Sometime around 174-189 CE, Irenaeus wrote Against Heresies. Here are a couple relevant quotations:
Mary the Virgin is found obedient, saying, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.” But Eve was disobedient.
(Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book III, Chapter XXII, Section 4)
...[I]t was that the knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. For what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith.
(Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book III, Chapter XXII, Section 4)
For just as [Eve] was led astray by the word of an angel, so that she fled from God when she had transgressed His word; so did [Mary], by an angelic communication, receive the glad tidings that she should sustain (portaret) God, being obedient to His word. And if the former did disobey God, yet the latter was persuaded to be obedient to God, in
order that the Virgin Mary might become the patroness (advocata) of the virgin Eve. And thus, as the human race fell into bondage to death by means of a virgin, so is it rescued by a virgin; virginal disobedience having been balanced in the opposite scale by virginal obedience. For in the same way the sin of the first created man (protoplasti) receives amendment by the correction of the First-begotten, and the coming of the serpent is conquered by the harmlessness of the dove, those bonds being unloosed by which we had been fast bound to death.(Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book V, Chapter XIX, Section 1)
OK, I know some of that language is distracting. For instance, 'virgin' is hard to just gloss over, but I can say that it didn't just mean someone who hadn't had sex yet. It meant an unmarried girl, or betrothed and married but not yet living in the marriage relationship--yes, including sex but not limited to sex.
Essentially, the point Irenaeus is making is equivalent with what Paul gets at in Romans 5. Through one person, Adam, all deviated from the path, and through one person, Christ, all were liberated from that deviation. It's not about some cosmic status; it's about the trajectory we're on, the way of life we all live: trying to meet our own need through domination of others vs. trying to meet everyone's needs through love.
1 Timothy 2:13-15 (and Irenaeus) see Even in the same light. Because the snake targeted her, she stepped off the path, and she and everyone after her were set on a path of violence and domination.
So, let's ask again. What is Eve saved from? Is it Adam? Is it Hell?
Well, yes, but no more than anyone else. Eve is saved from a legacy of passing on hostility, competition, domination, and dehumanization to humanity. So is Adam.
Eve is saved from patriarchy and misogyny. So is Adam (as the perpetrator and one who dehumanizes himself in the act).
Eve is saved from oppression, and isolation, and loneliness, and shame, and all the other hellish things all humans experience.
Eve is saved from Adam's domination. She's also saved from her own desire to dominate. Both Eve and Adam are liberated from deviation and freed to follow the path of Christ, the one written on hearts and taught by Torah and lived by Jesus.
The point of these verses isn't that Eve--and all women--have some unique sin that men don't have or that they need some special salvation by making babies. Like many, many other passages, this is simply a particular example of the same general truth of the human need for liberation and the promise that it has already been given.
The liberation has already happened. 1 Timothy 2:11-12 isn't telling Timothy that women will be allowed to learn undisturbed someday. Make sure it's happening now. Right now, men should be stepping back from domination over women, from standing in the way of women being empowered and feeling safe in spaces where men have dominated for so long. The rest about Eve is the explanation of why that's already true.
It's because Jesus, and Mary, and all of us who are being transformed and joining in the divine work of reconciliation and liberation have made it true, are continuing to make it true where it hasn't yet been fully realized, and God will be faithful to complete the work in all of us in making it completely true.
3 This is pleasing and welcomed from the perspective of God our Liberator, 4 who wants all people to be liberated and to come toward an understanding of truth. 5 You see, God is one, and there is one mediator between God and humanity, the human Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as payment for the price to free many people from enslavement.
