Egalitarian theory: Paul was addressing female false teachers in Ephesus

Some egalitarians argue that Paul's restriction was directed at specific women in Ephesus who were spreading false teaching — possibly connected to the Artemis cult or proto-Gnostic ideas. Since Paul only restricted these particular false teachers, the passage does not prohibit women from legitimate teaching. Mike rebuts: (1) Paul does not mention false teaching in 1 Tim 2 — he addresses the category 'a woman' (generic, not specific individuals); (2) If false teaching were the issue, Paul would have restricted false teachers regardless of gender, as he does elsewhere (1 Tim 1:3-4, Titus 1:10-11); (3) The restriction is grounded in creation order, not in the content of anyone's teaching; (4) Paul's language is universal ('a woman,' not 'these women' or 'those who teach falsely').