Therefore Paul commands that the women should learn. Women who have been caught up in falsehood are clearly not qualified to teach. Accordingly, Paul s statement, I permit no woman to teach, I Tim. However, the meaning of his next words, or to have authority over a man, is disputed. This particular Greek word for authority appears nowhere else in Paul s writings, or the rest of the New Testament.
Some scholars attach a negative connotation to the term such as to usurp or to abuse.
Paul s use of a distinct word suggests he had something particular in mind, which we cannot conclusively determine. It is dangerous to insist that Paul s statement, I permit no women to teach or have authority over a man is a command for all churches, for all time. This assertion would require us to similarly interpret other instructions in I Timothy meaning that we should refuse to help young widows, publicly rebuke elders who persist in sin, and endorse slavery. Furthermore, this interpretation would be inconsistent with Paul s other writings which indicate that women prayed and prophesied in corporate worship and affirm that in Christ, there is no longer male and female. Paul ministered in a patriarchal society in which women were given virtually no opportunity for leadership.