A Moveable Passage: 1 Cor 14:34-36

Once again, the discussion/debate/dogfight about the role of women in Baptist ministry surfaces in church olds (“olds” being my designation for news that is not new, only recurring). And as always, it is segments from the letters of the Apostle Paul that seem to fuel the fire, particularly this gem:

Women should be silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be subordinate, as the law also says. If there is anything they desire to know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church (1 Cor 14:34-36 NRSV).

The interesting thing about this passage is that it is itself a textual variant and shows up in different places in different manuscripts. Variants actually offer us a lot of information about a text, both about the text and community that produced it.

What does this variant tell us about the nature of the text?

Scholars call this kind of passage an interpolation, meaning it has been embedded into a previously complete text. Scribes or editors shoehorn a verse or passage into a text because either they aren’t sure where it goes or they feel it explains an incomplete thought in the text. There are three pieces of evidence that argue that this variant is an interpolation.

First, the passage in view shows up in different places in different manuscripts. In many manuscripts of the Western textual tradition, this passage is placed at the very end of chapter 14.

Second, it also interrupts the flow of the main passage. V. 29-33 all refer to prophets and their place in worship. V. 37-40 all refer to prophets and their place in worship. V. 34-36 digress from the argument.

Finally, it seemingly contradicts the writing earlier in the letter. Just a few chapters earlier (11:5), Paul and Sosthenes discuss whether women should cover their heads when they prophesy and pray in church worship. But if women are to be silent and not speak in church, how are they supposed to prophesy?

We can conclude, therefore, that the passage was a later addition to the original body of text.

What does this variant tell us about the early church?

This insertion—in addition to its debated location—suggests that the early church was also processing ideas about issues in the churches. It means that either there are different voices or different perspectives represented in the text.

I find it helpful to recognize the conversation and even argument taking place in the New Testament documents. Not only does this debate take place within one Scriptural passage, but it comes into conflict with other parts of the letters that actually uphold a woman’s place in church leadership (oddly, no one seemed to alter those?)! Perhaps this variant, then, helps us read the text with a bit more humility, a bit less narrowly, and a lot more curiosity.

‍