by Bruce C. E. Fleming, speaker on The Eden Podcast and author of The Book of Eden.
What are the troubling ideas people think are found in these passages? Are any of them actually correct? No. None of them is actually taught in the passages people typically point to. And these ideas aren’t taught anywhere else in the Bible. Shall we jump in?
Genesis 2-3. Wasn’t Eve cursed by a zap on her body’s efforts at the moment of childbirth? No! Sadly, most translations make it look like God did something like that in Genesis 3:16. But in actuality God was telling the woman of two things that were going to be specially multiplied. Neither one had to do with childbirth. The translations are leading their readers astray and that is really a big problem. Dr. Joy Fleming invested seven years researching Genesis 2-3 and especially Genesis 3:16 and she has shown that “God didn’t curse Eve (or Adam) or limit woman in any way!” Our website (Tru316.com) takes you deeper into that verse and more. It turns out that when Genesis 3:16 is made clear all the other verses become clear too. Go deeper? See The Book of Eden, Genesis 2-3, available from Amazon in paperback (125 pages), as an eBook and as an audiobook on Audible.
Ephesians 5-6. Wasn’t a wife to submit to her husband? No! Sadly, most translations make it look like Paul said something like that in Ephesians 5:22. But in actuality Paul was giving an example of how Christians build up one another spiritually in the body of Christ. This passage is not primarily about marriage and family but about unity with Christ as members of one united joint-body with Christ (see 5:32). Go deeper? See the book Beyond Eden, Ephesians 5:15-6:9, available from Amazon in paperback (120 pages), as an eBook and as an audiobook on Audible.
1 Timothy 2-3. Weren’t women prohibited from teaching men in church? No! Sadly, most translations make it look like Paul wrote did something like that in 1 Timothy 2:12. But in actuality Paul was telling Timothy how to restore women teachers in church who had gone astray but were being retrained so they could minister again in church! This passage is not restricting women in any way. Go deeper? See the book Back to Eden, 1 Timothy 2:8-3:16, available from Amazon in paperback (150 pages), as an eBook and as an audiobook on Audible.
1 Corinthians 11 & 14. Aren’t there extra rules for women on head covering and silence in church? No! Sadly, most translations make it look like there were supposed to be special restrictions for women in 1 Corinthians 11:10 and 14:34-35. But these verses should have quotation marks around them. In these passages Paul was quoting the proposals of the legalists, refuting them and then teaching the opposite. Go deeper? See the book Because of Eden, 1 Corinthians 11 & 14 and 1 Peter 3, soon to be available from Amazon in paperback (150 pages), as an eBook and as an audiobook on Audible.
Want to support the work of Dr. Joy Fleming and Bruce C. E. Fleming? We’d love to have you join with us! Give now to the Tru316 Foundation. Here’s the link: https://donorbox.org/tru316-launch-membership