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| Volume 26 Number 1 January 2024 |
Page 16 |
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| Volume 26 Number 1 January 2024 |
Page 16 |
Louis Rushmore, Editor
First Corinthians 14:34-35 reads, “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says. And if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church” (NKJV). The meaning of the word “church” depends on the context in which it appears. It can mean any one of three things relative to Christianity: (1) the universal church – spanning ages past, the present and what future may remain – over which Jesus Christ is the Head (Matthew 16:18; Colossians 1:18); (2) a local church (1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:1); (3) the assembly for worship by a local church (1 Corinthians 14).
The word “church” in 1 Corinthians 14 refers to a worship assembly of a local church, which contained Christian men and women. In a setting where only women comprised an assembly (e.g., some small, struggling congregations or ladies’ days), the divinely inspired prohibition for women to speak in the assembly would not apply. Yet, most assemblies of a local church by far have both men and women present. Therefore, other than participating in singing hymns, God through the Holy Spirit directed that women remain silent during worship. Incidentally, the men must also remain silent when another brother is speaking (1 Corinthians 14:26-33). In addition, God does not permit Christian women to rule over men in religious settings, even outside of worship (1 Timothy 2:11-12).
