Cheryl Schatz

Thanks Fritz for posting the link, and welcome to my blog!

I know that NT Wright has been a very strong supporter of women in ministry and for that I am grateful. I haven’t read through the entire article yet, but I do have a problem with a couple of things that I did read. Wright says:

And that salvation is promised to those who contribute to God’s creation through childbearing, just as it is to everyone else.

This view doesn’t fit the grammar which makes “childbearing” a noun and not a verb and it is a definite childbearing since it is a definite noun.

Secondly Paul advocated singleness as the best way to serve God if one is able to bear this and for him to say that salvation comes through bearing children doesn’t fit the gospel message.

Also Wright said:

15She will, however, be kept safe through the process of childbirth, if she continues in faith, love and holiness with prudence.

This is one of the views of verse 15, but it fails the test of truth since many godly Christian women are not kept safe through the process of childbirth so it appears to be a false promise (or false prophecy). We can better understand the verse if we keep in mind that it is “THE childbirth” (noun) which quite easily fits to the One who came through the woman – the Messiah Himself.