One of the strangest verses in the Bible is found in Paul’s first letter to Timothy:

But women will be saved through childbearing – if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety. (1 Timothy 2:15)

If there was ever a verse that could be misused to promote patriarchy and dead works, it’s this one.

“Stay home, make babies, earn salvation!”

Sounds ridiculous, right? Yet it’s not far removed from what some of the Church Fathers actually taught.

Augustine, the Bishop of Hippo, taught that women were put on earth to serve men and make babies:

I do not see in what sense the woman was made as a helper for the man if not for the sake of bearing children.

Martin Luther likewise taught that the chief purpose of women was to reproduce:

Men have broad and large chests, and small narrow hips, and more understanding than women, who have but small and narrow breasts, and broad hips, to the end they should remain at home, sit still, keep house, and bear and bring up children.

Raising children is a noble occupation, but the picture of a man ruling from his throne while his wife raises the kids alone, is contrary to God’s plan for partnership. It comes from Athens, not Eden.

The scriptures are full of exhortations for men to be proactive and engaged fathers (e.g., Pro. 4:1–4, Eph. 6:4, 1 Thess. 2:11). Men and women are both called to raise children.

And this idea that women can be saved by having babies?! That can’t be right. Can it?

Some translations try and wriggle out of it by translating the word saved as preserved. But the original word (sozo) is almost always translated as save or saved elsewhere in the Bible.

Are women really saved through childbearing?

The first thing to note about this strange verse is the word women. This word should be in italics as it has been added by translators. Paul never said it.

Other Bibles translate his words as “she will be saved through childbearing.” Who is she? It is the woman Paul has just been talking about, namely Eve.

For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve… but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression. (1 Timothy 2:13–14)

Eve was deceived and became a sinner, but that wasn’t the end of her story. She was saved through childbearing, meaning her Offspring – the Seed of Eve otherwise known as Jesus – undid the damage.

Recall the promise God made to the serpent:

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head… (Genesis 3:15)

Are women saved through childbearing? No, but women (and men) are saved because Eve bore a child. No baby, no Jesus.

Imagine if fallen Eve had refused to bear children. Imagine if she had been so racked with guilt and shame that she said, “I will not bring any children into the world.” That would have been a disaster! God’s redemptive purposes would never have come to pass.

Thank God Eve bore children or none of us would be here and none of us could be saved.

Which is a lovely way for Paul to close out what he has been saying. “Because Adam failed to train his wife, Eve fell into deception, and humanity was lost. But God redeemed their mess by giving us a Savior, born from the couple who fell.”

What a Great Redeemer is our God.

Continue in faith, love and holiness

Now that last bit:

– if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.

Some read this as though Paul was preaching conditional salvation. “As long as you maintain propriety or self-control, you’re saved. But have a bad day and you’re out.”

Paul was not saying this at all. Paul’s frequent exhortations to continue in the faith or continue in the grace of God should not be read as threats to your eternal salvation.

He’s saying, “Don’t be tossed and turned, but keep your eyes on Jesus. Continue trusting him and you won’t be seduced into dead works or religious superstition.”

Again, the context is the key. The immediate context is Eve; the larger context is Timothy’s church in Ephesus.

The Ephesians worshipped the many-breasted Artemis, the goddess of childbirth and midwifery. Artemis was just about the ugliest, most-repulsive idol you could imagine, yet the superstitious and fearful came from miles around to pray to her.

Now imagine you are an Ephesian believer facing a difficult birth. You live in a world without antibiotics, painkillers, and C-sections. You know people who have died during childbirth, and you worry that it could happen to you. What can you do?

For an Ephesian woman, the temptation would be to fall back on old habits and offer sacrifices to Artemis.

“Don’t do that,” said Paul. “There’s no salvation there. Fear not and continue to trust God. Just look at the mighty salvation he wrought through the childbearing Eve.”

What does this mean for us?

We may never be tempted to worship an idol with more udders than a herd of cows. For us, superstition and dead works take other forms.

When facing a trial, we might be tempted to pray a little more or give a little more or go to church a little more in the misguided belief that we can bribe God with our efforts.

“I’ll do something for you, if you do something for me.”

It’s very easy to think like this but when we do we are no longer continuing in faith, love and holiness. We’re walking after the flesh.

The word for propriety means sound mind. If you want a sound mind in times of trouble, don’t look to yourself for salvation, but fix your eyes on the Savior. Hasten to enter his rest and let nothing move you.

Paul is not saying women are saved by making babies. Nor is he saying a woman’s place is in the home or women must raise children alone.

He’s saying continue to trust the God who saves, and you will have grace for your trials.

—–

Update: Paul’s book The Silent Queen has won a medal at the 2022 Illumination Book Awards!

Imagine God asked you to recruit the mother of the Messiah. Two women have been shortlisted, and you have been asked to pick the best one.

The first woman has an impeccable pedigree being descended from Aaron the high priest; the other is a nobody from the no-name town of Nazareth.

The first one is married to a highly-regarded priest; the other is a teenager engaged to a tradesman.

The first one will go down in history as “righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord” (Luke 1:6); the second has done nothing worth writing about.

Which one is the more suitable candidate? I suspect many people would choose the first woman (her name was Elizabeth), but God chose the latter (Mary).

The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.” (Luke 1:30)

How did Mary find favor with God?

Who is favored by God?

I’ve been thinking about this question because it comes up in the discussion guide I just wrote for my latest script. Why did God choose Mary? What made her special?

Some say God chose Mary because “she must have been of high character.” In other words, Mary was a moral woman.

Others say Mary was pious, meaning she was blameless in terms of the law. Just like Elizabeth.

Then there are those who believe that Mary was sinless.

These explanations appeal to our religious sensibilities, but none of them is Biblical. If God was looking for a moral woman with the right pedigree and performance, he would have chosen Elizabeth. But he chose Mary, a young girl with little to commend her.

So here’s a question to discuss at the Christmas table: Why did Mary find favor with God? And here’s a follow-up question: How do we find favor with God?

Mary was not favored on account of anything she had done; she was favored because God was with her.

Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you. (Luke 1:28)

It’s the same with us.

You may be the youngest and the most insignificant believer in the kingdom, but you are as favored as Mary, because the Lord is with you (see Eph. 1:6).

I’m not joking.

Whether you lead a ministry of millions or live on a rock tending toadstools, if the Lord is with you, you are as favored as the mother of the Messiah.

But why Mary?

If God’s favor is unmerited, why did he pick Mary? Why not pick some other girl? Why not pick Elizabeth?

God could not just choose anyone. To fulfill the prophecies, the mother of the Messiah had to be a humble Jewish virgin living in Nazareth. She had to be ready to give birth in Bethlehem and then go live in Egypt for a while (see Is. 7:14, Mic. 5:2, Hos. 11:1, Matt, 2:23, 4:15). She had to be descended from the royal line of David or marry someone who was (Matt. 1:1, 20, Luke 1:32, 2:4).

At the time of Jesus’ birth, there were about half a million people living in Israel. Of this number, only a small proportion would have been unwed teenaged virgins. And of this group, only one woman ticked all the prophetic boxes. Her name was Mary.

But even that answer doesn’t quite capture why God chose Mary.

The God who sees the end from the beginning picked Mary long before those prophecies were given. God picked Mary because she had the one thing that matters when it comes to finding favor: faith.

And Mary said, “Behold the servant of the Lord; may it be done to me according to thy word.” (Luke 1:38)

Highlight these words of Mary, for this is the language of faith. These are the words of someone who knows how to find the favor of God.

Faith attracts favor

God is good to all of us. His favor shines on everyone indiscriminately. But God only dwells with those who open the doors of their hearts. It is through faith that we find favor.

Cast your mind back to the beginning of the human story. God is in the Garden of Eden rebuking the serpent. He declares that the Seed of Eve will crush the devil’s head. As he is saying this he is scanning the future, looking for a mother. His gaze stretches past the law and the prophets and into the New Testament.

As the entirety of human history unfolds before him, God sees millions of suitable women with faith. So God decides to shorten the list.

“To demonstrate my glory I will choose a woman with no name from a town of no significance in a country of no consequence.”

So God whittles down his list and lands on Mary. In God’s eyes, she is the right person at the right time.

And so are you.

You are not going to give birth to a Messiah, but if you have faith, God will bear his fruit in your life. You don’t need to do a thing to make this happen. You don’t need to acquire a reputation and a track record. You don’t need to be blameless in the eyes of the law.

You just need to be like Mary, and believe.

A Mary Christmas

When God speaks into your life, you need to say, “may it be done to me according to your word.” God speaks, you obey, and your ordinary no-account life turns into Christmas.

Christmas is special, because God is with you. It is not the banquet or the tree that makes Christmas special. Christmas is special because it’s the day we remember God with us.

After Christmas the dirty dishes will be in the sink and the tree will be headed for the curbside, but God will still be with us. He’ll never leave us nor forsake us. And if you believe that – if you get up every morning with the same faithful attitude as Mary – you’ll continue to enjoy his favor on Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, and every other day.

Happy Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Day.

Image: “Maryiam” by Holly Schapker

—