1 Timothy · chapter 2 of 6
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1 Timothy 2 asks the church to pray for all people, including kings, because God desires all to be saved and there is one God and one mediator, Jesus Christ, who gave himself as a ransom for all. Paul then gives instructions for worship in Ephesus: men should pray without anger and women adorn themselves with good works; he also restricts a woman from teaching or exercising authority over a man in that setting.
After charging Timothy to stop false teaching, Paul orders the life of the congregation, beginning with what matters most: prayer. This chapter contains one of the clearest statements of the New Testament about Christ as mediator, and also one of the most discussed passages about the role of women in the church.
Paul urges first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that they may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. There is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. For this Paul was appointed a preacher, an apostle and a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
He desires that in every place men pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling. Likewise women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair, gold, pearls or costly clothing, but with good works, as is proper for women who profess godliness.
Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. Paul does not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. He grounds this in the fact that Adam was formed first, then Eve, and that Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. Yet she will be saved through childbearing (or the childbearing), if they continue in faith, love and holiness, with self-control.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Paul asks first of all for prayers for all people, including kings and authorities, so that believers may live in peace and godliness. The church prays for the world and for those who govern, even when it does not always agree with them.
God our Savior desires all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. Christians understand this desire in different ways, but all agree that it grounds the church's prayer and mission for everyone.
There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all. He alone is the bridge between God and humanity, and his death is the price that sets us free.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: For all people, including kings and all who are in high positions. — 1 Timothy 2:1-2
Answer: That all people be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. — 1 Timothy 2:4
Answer: The man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all. — 1 Timothy 2:5-6
Answer: Lifting holy hands, without anger or quarreling. — 1 Timothy 2:8
Answer: With good works, modesty and propriety rather than luxury. — 1 Timothy 2:9-10
Answer: That Adam was formed first, then Eve, and that the woman was deceived. — 1 Timothy 2:13-14
Prayer comes first: not only for the church, but for rulers and for those who do not yet know Christ. In a group you can make a list of people, authorities and situations in the community and pray for them by name. It is also worth remembering that the gospel is for everyone, and that Christ is the only mediator.
The verses about women require humility and study. Churches that honor the Bible understand them in different ways, so it is wise to read them respectfully, pay attention to the context of Ephesus, compare them with other passages about women's service and avoid using them to look down on anyone. All of us, men and women, are called to prayer, holiness and good works.
Paul has set in order the church's prayer and worship. In chapter 3 he describes the people who must serve and lead the congregation: overseers and deacons.
Paul says God desires the salvation of all, and for that reason the church must pray and preach to all. Christians understand the relation between this desire and election in different ways, but the passage clearly teaches that the gospel is offered to every person and that Christ gave himself as a ransom for all.
It is interpreted in two main ways: some believe Paul permanently restricts women from teaching men with authority or holding the office of elder in the congregation; others believe he responds to a particular situation in Ephesus, with false teachers influencing some women. Both groups recognize that women taught and prophesied in the New Testament, like Priscilla and the daughters of Philip.
It is a difficult phrase. It has been understood as protection of women in childbirth, as a reference to the birth of Christ, descendant of the woman, or as a life of service in the home. In any case Paul does not teach salvation by works: the verse asks that they continue in faith, love and holiness.