In verse 8 Paul also urges the brothers to pray “without wrath and reasoning.” Wrath and reasoning kill our prayer. Wrath is of our emotion, and reasoning is of our mind. To have a prayer life and pray unceasingly, our emotion and mind must be regulated to a normal condition under the control of the Spirit in our spirit.
The Greek word for reasoning means disputatious reasoning. What Paul is speaking of here is not normal or ordinary reasoning, but a reasoning filled with disputation. We must avoid this if we are to pray properly.
Paul’s word about not having disputatious reasonings is related to his admonition to lift up holy hands. If we close our eyes and lift up our hands, we shall be able to pray. But if we open our eyes to consider others and reason about their situation, we shall not be able to pray. Instead of lifting up our hands, we may clasp them behind our back. Who can pray with his hands clasped behind his back? But if we lift up our hands and refrain from disputatious reasoning, we shall be able to pray in a proper way.
From experience I have learned that our prayer life can be affected by our mood. If I do not keep myself in a proper mood, my prayer life is put to death. Anger always destroys our prayer life for a period of time. If a brother loses his temper with his wife, he may find that he cannot pray properly for a few days. If we are to have a prayer life, we must learn not to be moody or angry with others. By the Lord’s grace that is with our spirit, we must exercise a strict control over our emotion.
In verse 9, Paul turns to the sisters. He begins this verse with the word “similarly.” This refers to “I will” in verse 8. It may also indicate that Paul’s word about praying in every place applies to the sisters as well as to the brothers.
Verse 9 says, “Similarly, that women adorn themselves in proper clothing with modesty and sobriety, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly clothing.” Proper clothing denotes what is fitting to the sisters’ nature and position as saints of God. Clothing in Greek implies deportment, demeanor. Clothing is the main sign of a sister’s demeanor, and it must befit her saintly position.
The Greek word rendered modesty literally is shamefastness, that is, bound or made fast by an honorable shame (Vincent), implying not forward or overbold, but moderate, observing the proprieties of a woman.
Sobriety denotes sober-mindedness, self-restraint. It means to restrict oneself soberly and discreetly. The sisters in a local assembly should clothe themselves with these two virtues-shamefastness and self-restraint-as their demeanor.
In verse 10 Paul continues, “But, what befits women professing godly reverence, by good works.” Godly reverence is reverence toward God; it is the revering and honoring of God as those who worship Him should.
In verse 11 Paul says, “Let a woman learn in quietness in all subjection.” Quietness means silence. For a sister to learn in silence and in all subjection is to realize her position as a woman. This safeguards the sisters from the presumption of overstepping their position in the local assembly.
Verse 12 continues, “But I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man, but to be in quietness.” To teach here means to teach with authority, to define and decide the meaning of doctrines concerning divine truth. For a woman to teach in this way or to exercise authority over a man is to leave her position. In God’s creation man was ordained to be the head, and woman was to be in subjection to man (1 Cor. 11:3). This ordination should be kept in the church. The word quietness in verse 12 refers to silence from speaking.
In verse 13 Paul offers a word of explanation, “For Adam was formed first, then Eve.” This brings us to the beginning. God always wants to bring us back to His beginning (Matt. 19:8).
In verse 14 Paul goes on, “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being quite deceived was in transgression.” Verse 13 gives the first reason that a woman should subject herself to man. Here is the second. Eve was deceived by the serpent (Gen. 3:1-6) because she did not remain in subjection under the headship of Adam, but overstepped her position to contact the evil tempter directly without her head being covered. This is the strong ground for the apostle not to permit the sisters in a local assembly to teach with authority or to exercise authority over men, but to learn in silence and remain in all subjection. Man’s headship is woman’s protection.
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