But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.
//This particular section of scripture (attributed to Paul, though
probably written after his time) draws little appreciation from most
women. First, "Paul" insists that a woman may not speak in church, but
should "learn in quietness and full submission." Then he says that women
will be saved by having children.
Really?
Actually, there is another interpretation of this verse. In no translation does it actually say saved by having kids. It says through, or in. And
what, exactly, does "saved" mean? We tend to read the New Testament
through the lens of today's afterlife-oriented Christianity, but that
may be inappropriate.
Consider,
for example, that Timothy (the letter's addressee) lived in Ephesus.
Just down the street from him would be the world-famous temple dedicated
to Artemis, the goddess who protected women from harm as they gave
birth to children. I've heard it said that one out of two women in
Ephesus died during childbirth; if that's true, then Artemis wasn't
doing a very good job.
Artemis’s failure should come as no surprise. Recall God's promise to Eve because of her sin in the Garden of Eden: To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. But
in the new age, the paradise of Eden will be restored, and this age,
according to the first Christians, lived in its birth pangs. It was
supposed to be just around the corner.
Thus
in today’s verse "Paul" exposes Artemis as a fraud while at the same
time reminding believers of the promise of safe child bearing through
faithfulness to the true God.
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