In recent years, the question of women in the diaconate has increasingly pressed upon the Reformed churches in North America. My own denomination, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, leaves the decision to ordain women to the diaconate to each local congregation. Even within NAPARC, the question has been answered differently. In 2008, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America, which does not ordain women to the diaconate, received overtures to study the issue.(Duncan 2008) The Orthodox Presbyterian Church studied the issue in 1988.(Committee on Women in Church Office 1988) The two major Covenanter churches, the RPCNA and the ARP Church, both allow for the ordination of women to the diaconate already. In other words, this is not a settled issue, and it benefits the church to continue to study it in light of Scripture.

However, this is more than a simple yes or no question. The issue is complex given the biblical data. Two key passages are in play, both in the Pauline corpus. First, in Romans 16, Paul refers to a woman in the Corinthian church, Phoebe, as a διάκονος. Second, Paul makes mention of women in the context of the diaconate in 1 Timothy 3. This paper seeks to demonstrate that Paul’s references to women such as Phoebe do not imply the ordination of female deacons but rather indicate roles of service and support within the church, distinct from official ecclesiastical offices.

Romans 16:1-2

¹I commend to you Phoebe, our sister, who is a deacon of the church in Cenchrae, ²that you welcome her in a way worthy of saints, and that you support her in what she needs from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself.

There are four instances of the word διάκονος in Romans. In Romans 13:4, Paul uses the term twice to describe the civil magistrate. While Paul obviously intends to signify a master-servant relationship between the Lord and the state, this cannot be a reference to church office. In Romans 15:8, he uses the term to refer to Christ once more, this time as a "servant to the circumcised." Again, this is clearly not a reference to church office, but rather the kind of service that Christ rendered to the Jews. Finally, he refers to Phoebe as a διάκονος in Romans 16:1. It is relevant to point out that in the book of Romans, three of the four instances of the word διάκονος do not refer to church office. This aligns with Paul’s use of the same term in his early epistles.

Of the thirty-one uses of διάκονος in the New Testament, twenty-three belong to Paul.¹ Examining each use in the order in which they were written yields interesting insights. It seems that Paul uses the term in two ways. In Paul’s earlier writings, the term denotes a more general category, but in Paul’s later writings, it seems to refer more specifically to an official church office. I take the Pauline Epistles to be written in the following order: Galatians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Romans, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, 1 Timothy, Titus, 2 Timothy. Of course, this is a rough sketch, and dating these epistles is always a bit speculative, but in broad strokes, we might classify them into three groupings: early (Gal, 1 & 2 Thess, 1 & 2 Cor, and Rom), middle (Eph, Phil, Col, Phlm), and late (Pastorals). Within these groupings, we are able to discern a definite shift in Paul’s usage of διάκονος.

In the early grouping, we find διάκονος twelve times. First, in Galatians 2:17, the term is used in reference to Christ. He is not a "servant of sin." Clearly, this is not a reference to church office.

There are six instances in 1 and 2 Corinthians. It is notable that each of these six instances, the word διάκονος refers to ministers of the gospel. But the context of this usage is not immediately dealing with church office. These “ministers,” whether Paul or others, are not those appointed by the church at Corinth. They are outsiders who have come into the church to deliver a message. In other words, the efficient cause of their ministry is significantly different from what we find in Acts 6 or 1 Timothy 3. Instead, Collins effectively argues that, in this context, διάκονος refers to a “go-between,” one who brings the message of another.(Collins 1992, 42) The single instance of διάκονος in 1 Thess 3:2 could possibly fall under this category as well.²

In Paul’s middle and later writings, there is a clear turn in the use of the term. In Phil 1:1, Paul addresses his letter to the ἐπισκόποις καὶ διακόνοις of Philippi. These are same two terms Paul uses to designate his two church offices in 1 Timothy. Of the four instances in Colossians, διάκονος is used in the Corinthian sense to refer to ministers of the Word. A similar use is found in 1 Tim 4:2 where Paul calls Timothy a διάκονος although he is clearly also an elder/bishop.

In sum, we can discern at three different senses in which Paul uses the term διάκονος.

1. Paul has a general use of the term, simply implying mediation between two parties (Rom 13:4, 15:8; Gal 2:17).

2. It may also refer to the ministry of the Word (1 Cor 3:5; 2 Cor 3:6, 6:4, 11:15, 11:23; Eph 3:7, 6:21; Col 1:7, 1:23, 1:25, 4:7, 1 Thess 3:2, 1 Tim 4:2).³

3. Less frequently, it refers to a designated church office (Phil 1:1; 1 Tim 3:8, 12).

In Paul’s earlier epistles, he prefers (1) and (2), but later on, it seems the first usage drops out. Furthermore, since (1) and (2) are less specified, there is clearly some overlap in meaning.

The question then arises, how do we classify Phoebe’s role? There is much debate here, with some arguing that Paul intends to bestow on Phoebe some kind of church office. Calvin, for example, notes:

He first commends to them Phoebe, to whom he gave this Epistle to be brought to them; and, in the first place, he commends her on account of her office, for she performed a most honorable and a most holy function in the Church; and then he adduces another reason why they ought to receive her and to show her every kindness, for she had always been a helper to all the godly. As then she was an assistant (ministra) of the Cenchrean Church, he bids that on that account she should be received in the Lord; and by adding as it is meet for saints, he intimates that it would be unbecoming the servants of Christ not to show her honor and kindness.(Calvin 1981b, 542)

He goes on to explain his view that Phoebe was actually a widow-deacon after the manner described in 1 Timothy 5.⁴ A century later, however, the Westminster Assembly would conclude that there was not sufficient biblical evidence to support that claim despite dissenters citing Calvin in support of their position.(Eshelman 2018, 72) Given Paul’s previous use of the word διάκονος and his silence on the specific question of church order, the Westminster Assembly was probably correct in their conclusions, and modern scholarship generally agrees:

“There is no evidence that Φοίβη διάκονο was used as a deaconess that is belonging to that category of women fulfilling a womens role in the diakonate. Phoebe is simply a pious Christian woman involved in various works and aetivities of the entire society of Christian confessors. Not a few modern commentators of the Letter to the Romans hold to this view.”(Romaniuk 1990, 133)

Romaniuk’s assessment seems warranted. For example, Michael Bird, who holds to an egalitarian perspective,(Bird 2012) concurs with Collins’ “go-between” idea in his description of Phoebe’s role: “The key thing to remember about a ‘deacon’ is that it is not so much an office as an agency, and Paul identifies Phoebe as an intermediary between himself and the Roman churches.” (Bird 2015, 520) Also, James Dunn argues that Phoebe may have had some kind of official standing in the Corinthian church, but he is reluctant to ascribe her the office of deacon as it would be later developed. He understands the office of deacon in Paul’s epistles to be a later development in his ecclesiology.(Dunn 1988, 38B:887)

In a word, Paul’s use of the word διάκονος to describe Phoebe cannot be counted as support for female deacons. With regards to the three senses in which he uses the term, Paul most likely refers to Phoebe as a deacon in the sense of an intermediary between Corinth and Rome. ⁵

1 Timothy 3:8-13

⁸Deacons likewise must be respectable, not double-tongued, not given over to much wine, not swindlers, ⁹holding fast to the mystery of the faith in clean conscience. ¹⁰And he also must be tested first, then, made a deacon if found blameless. ¹¹Women likewise must be respectable, not devilish, temperate, faithful in all things. ¹²Deacons must be men of one woman, managing their children and their own household well. ¹³For those who deacon well gain a rank of wellness themselves and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

In 1 Timothy, Paul is directly addressing church order; thus, even more than Romans 16, this passage should determine our understanding of Paul’s diaconate. Furthermore, whereas the debate in Romans 16 is largely lexical, it is grammatical and syntactical in 1 Timothy 3. The meaning of γυναῖκας in verse 11 is highly dependent on the relationship of these women to the deacons of verse 8.

Lewis proposes three possible interpretations:

View 1:

These women are deacons’ wives.

View 2:

These women are female assistants to the deacons without official standing.

View 3:

These women are deaconesses appointed to church office.(Lewis 1979)

There is also a fourth possible interpretation (hereafter, View 4): that the women in verse 11 share the same diaconal office with male deacons.(Stiefel 1995, 453–54)

There are two major syntactical features in verse 11 that are of some help in our exegesis. First, γυναῖκας is an anarthrous noun. On one hand, this presents a problem because there is no article explicitly defining the relationship between the deacons and the women. This is particularly difficult for the View 1. On the other hand, it may indicate that γυναῖκας refers to a unique class of people within the church. This is bolstered by the second syntactical feature: the use of the word ὡσαύτως. In verse 8, this same word is used to signal a transition to a new office, that of deacon, from Paul’s discussion of overseers. Taken together, these clearly indicate that the women of verse 11 are being considered as a unique class by Paul.

View 1: Deacons’ Wives

View 1 has a long pedigree. The majority of modern English translations enshrine this view in their texts following after Tyndale. There are several reasons for this.

First, verse 11 is sandwiched between two sets of qualifications for deacons. It would be strange, the argument goes, for Paul to introduce this new church office (or pseudo-office) and immediately go back to a discussion of the previous office. Furthermore, the second set of qualifications begins with a discussion of the deacon’s family and home life, which would follow quite naturally from a discussion of his wife. Finally, γυνή appears in a different form in verse 11, which seems to indicate that Paul is referring to the same group.(Mounce 2000)

For his part, Calvin understands verse 11 as referring to the wives of both deacons and elders. Their purpose would be to assist their husbands in the execution of their office. One may object by noting that Calvin seems to imply in his Institutes that women were included in the diaconate, but it is important to note that he only means to include the widows who also meet the requirements of 1 Timothy 5.(Calvin 2008, 4.3.9) Furthermore, as we have already discussed, this does not appear in his exegesis of either 1 Timothy 3 or 5.

The obvious objection to this view is that it is partially an argument from silence. The marital relationship between the deacons and the women is not established on the basis of clear textual evidence but on the basis of a best-guess interpretation.(Stiefel 1995, 451–52) It is also strange that Paul would mention the wives of deacons and not the wives of overseers. There is conjecture about the different role a wife may play with regard to her husband’s office, but, again, this is an argument from silence. We see no indication in the text that wives are expected to assist their deacon husbands.(Lewis 1979, 168)

View 2: Deacons’ Assistants

View 2 is a mediating view between Views 1 and 3. View 2 agrees with View 1 that Paul is not describing a separate third office. Once again, the inclusion of verse 11 between two sets of deacon qualifications indicates that whomever Paul intends to address, they are in some way connected to the deacons, but not as a unique office. But View 2 is reluctant to restrict Paul’s words to the wives of deacons because the text does not make the nature of the relationship between the deacons and the women explicit.(Lewis 1979, 171–72)

The central difference, then, between Views 2 and 3 is that View 2 does not extend church office to the deacons’ female counterparts, but functionally, Views 2 and 3 see the women serving in similar ways (e.g., their role is focused on ministry to women).

View 3: Deaconesses

This view understands Paul to be describing a third office, unique from the office of deacon, that is specifically reserved for women. One author notes: “This has long been the consensus of the majority of churches throughout the centuries and is no less true today.”(Lewis 1979, 169) While this may be a slight overstatement, it is true that this view has a very strong historical pedigree.

For example, John Chrysostom (347-407 AD) notes, “Some have thought that this is said of women generally, but it is not so, for why should he introduce anything about women to interfere with his subject? He is speaking of those who hold the rank of Deaconesses.”(Schaff 1995, 1–13:441) This is roughly contemporaneous with the Apostolic Constitutions, which contain perhaps the first use of the word “deaconess.” In this document, the deaconess is primarily tasked with serving women at times when it would be inappropriate for men to do so.(Schaff 1996, 7:431)

This is important because, in the first century, there was no feminine form of the word διάκονος. In other words, if Paul was speaking of a separate office of deaconess, he did not have access to the vocabulary to title that separate office. However, Paul has no problem inventing words when no other words are sufficient, and feminizing a masculine noun is not a difficult change to make. Thus, if Paul means to speak of a separate office, he does so using very ambiguous language.(Mounce 2000)

At the same time, Paul is not writing to establish these offices; rather, he is advising Timothy on how to lead an existing church. Presumably, the offices of overseer and deacon (and perhaps deaconess) have already been established.(Stiefel 1995, 442) If, then, this so-called third office is already referred to by the term γυναῖκας, it would be confusing to Timothy himself to introduce new language.

View 4: Female Deacons

View 4 is distinct in that it sees 1 Timothy 3:8-12 describing a single office which includes both men and women. It is difficult to find anyone who will argue for this perspective, and when they are found, they tend to argue somewhat tepidly.(Stiefel 1995, 453–54)

The central problem for this view is that the text simply cannot support it. The two major syntactical features discussed above do not allow us to interpret Paul as placing women in the same office as men. He is speaking of a different class.

Concluding Evaluation

Considering the arguments for each of these views, perhaps the thing that is most clear is that we cannot come to a definitive interpretation. At the same time, I think we can make some summary evaluations of each.

First, the text cannot hold the weight of View 4, so it can be ruled out. But things get more complicated with respect to Views 1-3. Views 1 and 2 could be considered “safe” interpretations. Both views satisfactorily explain the text, and since they do not argue for a separate office, both views can be held in most contexts without concern. Even in a church which prefers View 1, it is certainly within the purview of the diaconate to request assistance from women in carrying out their duties with regard to women. While View 3 is acceptable, it cannot be established from this text alone. One finds broader (but not definitive) support from church history.

Conclusion

In sum, we have demonstrated that Paul does not open the office of deacon to women, but he does consider women to be a key part of a healthy church. While Romans 16 speaks highly of Phoebe, there is no indication in that passage that she held an ecclesiastical office. In 1 Timothy, Paul speaks of a separate class of women, but the evidence is strongly in favor of the idea that an unordained servant role is in view. However, some further concluding thoughts are in order.

1. Whatever Paul intends to communicate about church office, it is clear that women were serving the church in important capacities in the first century. Phoebe may not have held church office, but she was integral to the health of the church. She demonstrated her faithfulness in service by laboring alongside Paul in both Corinth and Rome. The same can be said of the women described in 1 Tim 3:11. In other words, one’s position on the proper candidates for the office of deacon cannot be used to exclude women from serving important purposes in the church.

It is also unwise to be dogmatic about this issue. If a church decides to ordain women to some kind of diaconal office, we should exercise charity toward that church, understanding that faithful readers of God’s Word may come to different conclusions.⁶

2. Each church must determine how she understands the New Testament’s views on women with respect to deacons. This is not adiaphora. For the sake of church order, each church must have a decided position on this question. There is also a degree of freedom that each church has in ordering her affairs. Westminster Confession of Faith 1.6 notes:

“[T]here are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and government of the church, common to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature, and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed.”

In other words, whereas the office of the service is dedicated to the diaconate, the details of how they carry out their duties is left to each church body.

This means that, even if a church agrees that the office of deacon is restricted to men, there are good natural and prudent reasons to appoint certain women to carry out various duties, particularly with respect to other women. It may even be appropriate to refer to these women as “deaconesses” as long as the church’s position is made clear at the outset.

3. Whatever a church decides, they ought to hold to the standards of 1 Timothy. Whoever these women are in 1 Tim 3:11, they are being held to a standard of conduct. Once a church determines what they believe Paul’s meaning is, they should seek to honor that. Furthermore, while Paul is clearly addressing a specific group, his standards of conduct are in no way unique to this special class. They are virtues that all women and all Christians are called to emulate.

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