Ordaining women deacons is unbiblical!

By Sonny Hernandez

8 Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; 9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. 10 And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. 11 Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. 12 Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. 13 For they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

[8] Διακόνους ὡσαύτως σεμνούς, μὴ διλόγους, μὴ οἴνῳ πολλῷ προσέχοντας, μὴ αἰσχροκερδεῖς, [9] ἔχοντας τὸ μυστήριον τῆς πίστεως ἐν καθαρᾷ συνειδήσει. [10] καὶ οὗτοι δὲ δοκιμαζέσθωσαν πρῶτον, εἶτα διακονείτωσαν ἀνέγκλητοι ὄντες. [11] γυναῖκας ὡσαύτως σεμνάς, μὴ διαβόλους, νηφαλίους, πιστὰς ἐν πᾶσι. [12] διάκονοι ἔστωσαν μιᾶς γυναικὸς ἄνδρες, τέκνων καλῶς προϊστάμενοι καὶ τῶν ἰδίων οἴκων. [13] οἱ γὰρ καλῶς διακονήσαντες βαθμὸν ἑαυτοῖς καλὸν περιποιοῦνται καὶ πολλὴν παρρησίαν ἐν πίστει τῇ ἐν Χριστῷ ᾿Ιησοῦ.

1 Timothy 3:8-13

Although the vast majority of so-called conservative denominations will not permit women to teach men, rightfully so (1 Timothy 2:12), many will ordain women deacons. This view is seriously perplexing. Examine the following reasons why.

The office of an elder or deacon in 1 Timothy 3 linguistically points to men, not women, because τις ["a man," v. 1], ἄνδρα ["husband," v. 2], τις ["a man," v. 5], αὐτὸν ["he," v. 7], and ἄνδρες ["husbands," v. 12] are masculine. Put another way, according to Scripture, holding the office of an elder or deacon is reserved exclusively for a man (vv. 1, 5, 7) or a husband (vv. 2, 12), not a woman.

Many will reject the Bible and assert that 1 Timothy 3:2 does emphasize the husband of one wife [masc. ἄνδρα + fem. γυναικὸς], but 1 Timothy 3:11 does not include the pronoun "their," and the accusative γυναῖκας refers to women, not wives. This argument is, at best, misguided and, at worst, twisting the Bible.

1 Timothy 3:11 does not include "their" in the Greek NT (γυναῖκας ὡσαύτως σεμνάς μὴ διαβόλους νηφαλέους πιστὰς ἐν πᾶσιν). Still, Paul did not introduce qualifications for women to serve as deacons, and Christians should not erroneously assume that γυναῖκας refers only to women, not wives.

Exegetically, γυναῖκας can refer to women or wives. However, the context of 1 Timothy 3 suggests that γυναῖκας in v. 11 refers to women —who are the wives of deacons. This is evident since Paul's command to the church in the subsequent verse included, once again (see v. 2), the masculine ἄνδρες ("husbands") + genitive γυναικὸς ("wife"). This text states:

Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

In summary, the office of deacon is reserved exclusively for qualified men, and 1 Timothy 3 does not support the egalitarian view of permitting women to serve in an official church office. Therefore, ordaining women as deacons is prohibited.

References:

Ralph Earle, 1 Timothy, in vol. 11 of The Expositor's Bible Commentary, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein and J. D. Douglas (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1978), 368.

Thomas D. Lea & Hayne P. Griffin, Jr., 1 Timothy, in vol. 34 of The New American Commentary: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture (Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 1992), 119-121.

Philip Graham Ryken, 1 Timothy: Reformed Expository Commentary (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2007), 130-134.