Familiar questions
- Why are women not allowed to become elders or ministerial servants?
- Why is the Governing Body made up exclusively of men?
- Why may women preach and conduct Bible studies, but not carry out the same teaching duties as elders?
- How does Deborah, a female judge over Israel, fit with the idea that spiritual authority is reserved for men?
- Why could women in the first Christian congregation prophesy?
- Why is Phoebe called “a minister of the congregation”?
- Why can women, according to the teaching, belong to the 144,000 and later rule with Jesus, but not be elders now?
- Are Bible examples always used by the same standard when setting rules?
What do Jehovah’s Witnesses teach about men and women?
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that men and women are equal before God, but do not have the same responsibilities.
Women preach, conduct Bible studies, and can become pioneers. Yet they cannot be elders, ministerial servants, or members of the Governing Body.
An important underlying principle is the Biblical principle of headship.
GOD
↓
JESUS
↓
MAN
↓
WOMANThis is based in part on 1 Corinthians 11:3. Within marriage, the husband is therefore seen as the head of the household. Within the congregation, formal leadership and teaching roles are assigned to men.
Another key text is 1 Timothy 2:12, where Paul writes that he does not permit a woman to teach a man or exercise authority over him.
1 Timothy 3 is also used, where the requirements for overseers and servants are described.
From these texts, the current structure emerges:
MAN
↓
elder
ministerial servant
member of the Governing Body
formal leadership and oversight
WOMAN
↓
preaching
Bible studies
pioneer service
other spiritual activities
but no formal congregational authorityBut these are not the only Bible passages in which women have a spiritual role.
Deborah — prophetess and judge
In Judges 4:4-5, Deborah is described as a prophetess and judge over Israel.
The Israelites came to her to have cases decided. She also conveyed God’s message to Barak.
So Deborah was not an elder. That office did not yet exist in that form in the later Christian congregation.
But she did hold a public role in which judgment, leadership, and conveying God’s message came together.
DEBORAH
woman
↓
prophetess
↓
judge over Israel
↓
people came to her
for judgment
↓
she conveyed God’s instructions
to menThis creates an important nuance.
The Bible does not show that women were always excluded from every form of authority over men.
The question therefore becomes:
If God could use a woman as judge over Israel, how absolute is the principle that spiritual authority belongs only to men?
Huldah — men went to her to consult Jehovah
Huldah was also not an elder. She was a prophetess.
When the book of the Law was found during King Josiah’s reign, the king sent a group of men to consult Jehovah. Among them was High Priest Hilkiah.
They went to Huldah.
Huldah then conveyed Jehovah’s judgment to them.
That is striking. There were priests, older men, and other male authorities, but in this situation a woman was consulted to make known God’s message.
So the question is not:
Was Huldah a female elder?
She was not.
The more interesting question is:
Does her story show that making known God’s judgment and carrying spiritual responsibility were, in principle, reserved only for men?
Women were allowed to prophesy
Women are also mentioned in the New Testament as prophesying.
In 1 Corinthians 11:5, Paul speaks of a woman who prays or prophesies.
In Acts 21:9, the four daughters of Philip are mentioned as prophesying.
To prophesy meant more than merely talking about faith in private. It meant making known a message from God.
WOMAN
↓
receives or conveys
a spiritual message
↓
may prophesy
BUT
WOMAN
↓
according to the current
JW explanation, does not receive
a formal teaching or authority roleThat distinction is important.
The Bible does not literally say:
“A woman may prophesy, but therefore may never have formal spiritual authority.”
That is a conclusion reached by combining different Bible texts.
Priscilla taught along with others
In Acts 18:24-26 we read about Apollos. He knew the Scriptures well and taught others, but his knowledge was not complete.
Priscilla and her husband Aquila took him with them and explained the way of God more accurately to him.
Priscilla was not an elder, and she did this together with her husband.
Still, the text shows that a woman could be involved in spiritually instructing a man who himself was teaching others.
This too makes the biblical picture less simple than just:
men teach — women are taught.
Phoebe — “a servant of the congregation”
In Romans 16:1, Paul refers to Phoebe as:
“a servant of the congregation in Cenchreae.”
The Greek word used is diakonos.
Jehovah’s Witnesses do not interpret this as proof that Phoebe held the same formal position as what is now called a ministerial servant.
In her case the word is understood in a more general sense: someone who serves.
BIBLE TEXT
Phoebe
‘servant of the congregation’
↓
INTERPRETATION
not an appointed
ministerial servant
↓
REASON
that role is, according to
the JW explanation,
assigned to menThat does not automatically have to be a wrong interpretation.
But it does clearly show that there is a difference between the wording of the text and the interpretation of the role meant by it.
And then the 144,000
This is perhaps where the most striking question arises.
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that both men and women can be among the 144,000 anointed ones.
According to this teaching, they will rule over the earth with Jesus from heaven. They are described as kings and priests and are given a role in future judgment and rulership.
ON EARTH
woman
↓
not a ministerial servant
↓
not an elder
↓
not a member of the
Governing Body
↓
no formal authority
over the congregation
IN HEAVEN
the same woman can
be among the 144,000
↓
rule with Christ
↓
king and priest
↓
part of the heavenly government
over mankindThat does not automatically mean that women should therefore be able to serve as elders. Jehovah’s Witnesses can say that these are two different arrangements: the Christian congregation now and the heavenly Kingdom later.
But the comparison does raise a logical question:
If Jehovah can consider a woman suitable to rule with Christ over mankind, why does being a woman make her unsuitable to be an elder during her earthly life?
The reason can hardly be only that a woman is not suited for spiritual responsibility or authority.
According to the same teaching, an anointed woman will later receive far greater responsibility.
Why is the comparison with birthdays interesting?
Jehovah’s Witnesses do not celebrate birthdays.
The Bible contains no direct command:
“Do not celebrate birthdays.”
In the explanation, attention is drawn, among other things, to the two explicit birthday celebrations in the Bible. Both accounts have a negative context: Pharaoh’s birthday and Herod’s birthday.
Biblical examples are thus partly used to determine what practice is considered fitting.
That makes a comparison with women interesting.
BIRTHDAYS
no direct prohibition
↓
two explicit examples
↓
both negative
↓
the examples are factored in
when concluding:
do not celebrate
WOMEN AND AUTHORITY
Deborah
→ judge
Huldah
→ prophetess
Priscilla
→ helps a man
understand God’s way
women
→ prophesy
Phoebe
→ servant of the congregation
anointed women
→ later rule with Christ
↓
these examples do not lead
to female congregational authorityThe comparison by itself does not prove that one interpretation is right and the other wrong.
But it does raise an important question about the way biblical examples are weighed:
Why can a negative biblical example contribute to a general rule, while positive examples of women with spiritual responsibility do not lead to a general rule in the same way?
Which text becomes the rule and which the exception?
Here we come to the core of Bible interpretation.
There are texts that are used to support headship and male congregational authority.
But there are also texts in which women prophesy, teach, judge, or make God’s judgment known.
Those texts have to be harmonized with one another.
ALL RELEVANT
BIBLE TEXTS
↓
which text describes
a general principle?
↓
which text belonged to
a specific situation?
↓
which example is
a model?
↓
which example is
an exception?
↓
which rule applies
today?That is where interpretation begins.
The question is therefore not only:
What does the Bible say?
But also:
Why is one text given more weight than another?
Investigate Whether That Is Really So
In Acts 17:11, the Bereans are described in a positive light because they did not simply accept what they were told. They carefully examined the Scriptures to verify whether that was really so.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 also says:
‘Make sure of all things; hold fast to what is fine.’
That does not mean that someone must first decide that Jehovah’s Witnesses’ explanation is wrong.
Rather, it invites one to place all relevant texts side by side.
WHAT AM I BEING TAUGHT?
↓
WHICH BIBLE TEXTS
ARE USED?
↓
WHICH OTHER TEXTS
ARE ABOUT THE SAME THING?
↓
HOW ARE THESE
RECONCILED WITH ONE ANOTHER?
↓
WHAT IS TEXT?
↓
WHAT IS INTERPRETATION?Questions to Think About
If Jehovah used Deborah as a judge over Israel, what does that say about women and authority?
Why did male religious leaders go to Huldah to inquire of Jehovah?
If women were allowed to prophesy, to whom did they do so, and what spiritual responsibility did that involve?
Why was Priscilla, together with her husband, able to explain God’s way more accurately to Apollos?
Why is Phoebe called “a minister of the congregation,” yet it is ruled out that she held a formal ministerial position?
If an anointed woman can later rule with Christ, why can she not be an elder now?
Why do negative Bible examples count in the teaching about birthdays, while positive examples of female authority do not have the same effect?
Where does the Bible itself say that Deborah and Huldah were exceptions that say nothing about female spiritual responsibility?
Which texts determine the general rule, and which are seen as exceptions?
Where does the Bible text end and the interpretation begin?
Summary
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that men and women are equal before God, but have different responsibilities. Elders, ministerial servants, and members of the Governing Body are therefore men.
Various Bible texts are used to support this structure.
But the Bible also contains other examples.
Deborah was a judge and a prophetess. Huldah conveyed God’s judgment to male religious leaders. Women in the first Christian congregation prophesied. Priscilla helped Apollos understand God’s way more accurately. Phoebe is called “a minister of the congregation.”
In addition, Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that anointed women will eventually rule with Christ.
So perhaps the central question is not:
‘Does the Bible say that women should be able to serve as elders?’
But rather:
‘How are all these Bible texts weighed in arriving at the current conclusion?’
Anyone who wants to investigate what the Bible really teaches can look at both the texts that support the current teaching and the texts that raise questions about it.
For that is precisely where it becomes clear:
where does the Bible text end and where does the interpretation begin?
Sources
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — Judges 4:4-9.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — 2 Kings 22:8-20.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — 1 Corinthians 11:3-5.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — 1 Corinthians 14:34-35.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — Acts 17:11.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — Acts 18:24-26.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — Acts 21:8-9.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — Romans 16:1-2.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — 1 Timothy 2:11-13.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — 1 Timothy 3:1-13.
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures — 1 Thessalonians 5:21.
JW.org — Do Jehovah’s Witnesses also have female preachers?
The Watchtower — Can women among Jehovah’s Witnesses be spiritual ministers?
Insight on the Scriptures — Woman.
Insight on the Scriptures — Prophetess.
Insight on the Scriptures — Huldah.
Insight on the Scriptures — Phoebe.
JW.org — What Is the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses?
JW.org — What Is God’s Kingdom?
The Watchtower — God’s Kingdom — The New Rule Over the Earth.
JW.org — Why Don’t Jehovah’s Witnesses Celebrate Birthdays?
