Romans: The Story of God Bible Commentary

images/img-37-1.jpg LISTEN to the Story

¹I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. ²I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.

³Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. ⁴They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.

⁵Greet also the church that meets at their house.

Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.

⁶Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.

⁷Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.

⁸Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.

⁹Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.

¹⁰Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.

¹¹Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.

Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.

¹² Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.

Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.

¹³Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.

¹⁴Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them.

¹⁵Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord’s people who are with them.

¹⁶Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings.

Listening to the texts in the story: Luke 16:8; Acts 18:1 – 26; 1 Corintians 14:20; Justin, Apology 1.65.

Paul’s greetings has a double purpose of commending the letter carrier Phoebe as his emissary to the Roman churches and of reinforcing the familial bonds that he enjoys with many of the Roman believers as well.

Phoebe, as we will see, was a prominent woman in the Pauline circle, and she was evidently a person of means and maturity whom Paul entrusted with delivering his letter to the Romans and conveying his wishes to them. She was, for all intents and purposes, Paul’s personal apostle to the Romans. It is surely notable that 16:1 – 16 contains more personal greetings than all of Paul’s other letters combined. The closest we come to it is Philemon 1 – 2 and Colossians 4:15 – 17, both written to the church in Colossae, a church that Paul did not himself found. The reason Paul names so many people is because he wants to demonstrate that he has many friends and allies in the Roman churches, encompassing both the “strong” and the “weak,” and he greets them all without playing favorites. It is expected that Paul knows so many folks in Rome because of the mobility and travel of Christians across Roman roads and shipping routes. Merchants like Priscilla and Aquila had been in Corinth (Acts 18:2), and Ephesus (1 Cor 16:19; Acts 18:8), and recently they returned to Rome after Claudius’s death (Rom 16:3).

The twenty-six persons greeted encompasses a mixture of friends and coworkers as well several individuals whom Paul does not directly know. The list of persons greeted is impressive for its diversity since it includes a number of persons with slave names, eight women and eighteen men, a majority of Gentiles but clearly a cohort of Jewish Christians as well, and persons associated with the prominent households of Aristobulus and Narcissus. Many scholars are of the mind that Paul mentions at least five house churches.¹ This includes:

The church in the house of Priscilla and Aquila (16:5)
Those among the house of Aristobulus (16:10)
Those among the house of Narcissus (16:11)
Asyncritus and his brothers and sisters (16:14)
Philologus and the Lord’s holy people (16:15)

There certainly may have been more than five house churches or meeting groups in Rome, but these are the ones we can best identify from Paul’s greetings.²

Paul wants his patron Phoebe to receive a warm welcome from the Roman believers and perhaps wants her personally to extend his greetings to all the persons so named as part of a “charm offensive” ahead of Paul’s visit. The greetings can be broken down into: (1) Paul’s commendation of Phoebe to the Romans (vv. 1 – 2); (2) Paul’s personal greetings to the five (or so) house churches in Rome (vv. 3 – 15); and (3) Paul’s final admonition for his emissaries to be greeted with genuine affection (v. 16).

Paul begins his closing greetings by commending his envoy Phoebe: “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae” (v. 1). Letters of recommendation were important in the ancient world where any Josephus or Sallianus could present themselves claiming to be somebody (see Acts 18:27; 2 Cor 3:1 – 3; Col 4:10). Paul here provides a commendation of Phoebe to the believers in Rome as a bonafide messenger on his behalf. As a “sister” she is part of the family of faith and enjoys familial bonds with the Roman believers. She is from Cenchreae, the eastern seaport of Corinth, before the canal was dug between the two. Phoebe is probably a merchant, perhaps a widow, with enough financial means to travel to Rome. I doubt she traveled alone, and she probably would have had escorts accompanying her, such as slaves, freedmen, friends, or relatives.

Paul describes her as a diakonos, which can mean either “servant” in the more general sense (see KJV, NASB, ESV, NET, HCSB), or “deacon” in the more specific sense (see NIV, NRSV, NLT, CEB, or NJB with “deaconess”). Either option is strictly possible. We know of household leaders in Corinth including Stephanus (1 Cor 1:16; 16:15, 17) and a woman named Chloe (1 Cor 1:11), so envisaging Phoebe as a household leader and a deacon is not out of the question. 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.³

“I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me” (v. 2). Paul asks that they receive Phoebe as fitting for a fellow believer and provide her with the assistance that any traveler would need, like lodgings and provisions. Paul commends her specifically as a prostatis, which is not as older translations rendered it merely a “helper” (see RSV, NASB) but more properly a “patron” (ESV) or “benefactor” (NRSV, NIV).⁴ In the ancient world, patronage and benefaction were a vital part of social relationships, with patrons giving persons protection and provision in return for loyalty and service. Phoebe was Paul’s benefactor, who provided him with resources and residence in which to carry out his ministry while in the Corinthian peninsula.⁵ Clearly Phoebe was an important person in the Pauline circle. She was a household leader, financially independent, perhaps socially prominent, actively serving the Corinthian churches, and she is the one (not Timothy, Titus, or Tertius) whom Paul entrusts this important letter to be delivered to the Roman believers. There is much we can try to infer from this about Paul and women and more on that anon.

The first persons greeted by Paul are “Priscilla and Aquila” (v. 3). This Greek-speaking Jewish husband and wife team from Pontus were probably leather-workers or tentmakers just like Paul. They met Paul in Corinth after the expulsion of the Jews from Rome by Claudius, which forced them to leave Rome around AD 49/50 and move to Corinth (Acts 18:1 – 2). They accompanied Paul to Ephesus, where they remained while Paul continued on to Syria (Acts 18:18 – 19; 1 Cor 16:19). It was during their time in Ephesus that they met an Alexandrian Jew named Apollos, a new yet incomplete convert to Christian faith, and they both instructed him in the way of God more accurately (Acts 18:26). They made it back to Rome probably around AD 54/55 (Rom 16:3), and they later returned to Ephesus where Timothy was working when Paul was imprisoned in Rome sometime around AD 62/64 (2 Tim 4:19).

Paul describes the couple as “co-workers” (synergos) in v. 3, which is the description Paul used for ministry partners and traveling companions who were involved in evangelical work and church planting (see Rom 16:9, 21; 2 Cor 8:23; Phil 2:25; 4:3; Col 4:11; 1 Thess 3:2; Phlm 1, 24). That they “risked their lives for Paul” (v. 4) — lit., “laid down their necks,” a colloquialism for risking execution⁶ — is the greatest compliment that Paul can pay them. They put their necks on the line for him. Their fellowship was one forged in the face of danger, though sadly we do not know precisely how, where, or when. Paul can even say that “all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them” given their work in Rome, Corinth, and Ephesus. No wonder that Paul greets their house church first (v. 5a). This couple is Paul’s firm foot on the ground in Rome.

Greeting is also extended to “Epenetus,” who is described as “the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia” (v. 5b). Epenetus is described, lit., as the “firstfruits” (aparchē), and he was presumably among the first of Paul’s converts in Ephesus just as Stephanus and his household were the “firstfruits” of Achaia (1 Cor 16:15; cf. 2 Thess 2:13). Greeting is given to “Mary,” a popular Jewish name, and she “worked very hard for you,” implying her work in Rome for others in some regard (v. 6) was much like Tryphena and Tryphosa in v. 12.

We enter more contentious territory when we get to the next couple greeted by Paul: “Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was” (v. 7). An initial problem is the gender of the person named beside Andronicus, namely, Junia(s). The name in Greek reads Iounian, and it could be either masculine (“Junias,” a shortened version of “Junianus”) or feminine (“Junia”), depending on how the Greek is accented (male = Ἰουνιᾶν; female = Ἰουνίαν).⁷ The problem is that there were no accents in the original autographs or even in the early earliest manuscripts! There are also over 250 examples of the feminine version “Junia” in Greek and Latin inscriptions from Rome alone and not a single instance of “Junias” has been found.⁸ The acute accent, and thus feminine rendering, is by far the most well attested in extant witnesses, and patristic commentators are virtually unanimous in identifying the person as a woman.⁹

This did not stop several medieval scribes applying a circumflex accent and thus rendering it masculine — a move followed by several modern Greek editions like Stephanus, Tischendorf, von Sonden, and early editions of Nestle-Aland. This decision influenced Greek dictionaries (see BAGD 380) and translators who opted for “Greet Andronicus and Junias . . . they are men of note among the apostles” (RSV; cf. NJB, NEB, NASB). Many commentators have simply assumed that the person identified had to be a male apostle and never broached the alternative.¹⁰ However, there is a tsunami of textual and patristic evidence for “Junia” that proves overwhelming. Despite some naughty scribes, biased translators, lazy lexicographers, and dogmatic commentators, the text speaks about a woman named “Junia.” Jewett goes so far as to call the masculine “Junias” a “figment of chauvinistic imagination.”¹¹

Andronicus and Junia are described in several significant ways. (1) They are Paul’s syngenē, which could mean that they are Paul’s “relatives” (NRSV, CEB) or “kinsmen” (KJV, RSV, ESV, NASB, NJB). But later the same word is used for “Herodion” (v. 11) and “Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater” (v. 21), so that syngenē probably implies a common ethnicity and can be translated as “fellow Jews” (see NIV, NLT).

(2) They are Paul’s “fellow prisoners” (synaichmalōtos), a term used elsewhere only to describe Aristarchus (Col 4:10) and Epaphras (Phlm 23). They shared in a forced confinement with Paul, though again, the occasion and circumstances are unknown to us.

(3) Recently disputed is what relationship Andronicus and Junia had to the apostles. Most English translations say that they are “outstanding/prominent among the apostles” (NRSV, NIV, CEB, NASB), as if to be counted as members of the apostolic college. Alternatively, others opt for “well known to the apostles” (ESV, NET), as if they are merely acknowledged by the apostles. This debate focuses on whether the adjective episēmos is comparative (i.e., “prominent”) or elative (i.e., “well-known”). The ensuing discussion is somewhat technical, but my lexical and exegetical instincts clearly favor the comparative sense.¹² The couple are apostles who are well-known for their apostolic ministry. That said, I doubt that Andronicus and Junia were big “A” apostles in the sense that they were called and commissioned directly by the risen Lord since we have no evidence for such a commission.¹³ Therefore, it is more likely that they were little “a” apostles in the sense of delegates sent out from a church much in the same way that Titus was an “apostle” of the Asian churches (2 Cor 8:23) and Epaphraditus was an “apostle” of the Philippian church (Phil 2:25).¹⁴ According to Ben Witherington, “it would appear that Paul means that Andronicus and Junia were engaged in evangelism and church planting as itinerants. That Paul says they are outstanding may imply that their work had borne fruit, prompting the recognition of the Church in various places.”¹⁵

(4) That the couple was “in Christ before I was” testifies to their conversion early on, before Paul’s conversion ca. AD 33, and this perhaps makes them part of the Greek-speaking wing of the Jerusalem church in its earliest days (see Acts 6:1). Eldon Epp offers a somewhat aggravated albeit apt conclusion: “It remains a fact that there was a woman apostle, explicitly so named, in the earliest generation of Christianity, and contemporary Christians — laypeople and clergy — must (and eventually will) face up to it.”¹⁶

Paul then greets Ampliatus, Urbanus, Stachys, and Apelles (vv. 8 – 10a). The first three are personally known to Paul as either a “dear friend” or “coworker.” Apelles might be known indirectly to Paul, yet Paul commends him as one approved or tested in Christ. The mention of “the household of Aristobulus” in v. 10b has led to speculation as to whether this refers to Aristobulus, the grandson of Herod the Great and the rival brother of Herod Agrippa I.¹⁷ Aristobulus himself died in AD 48/49; however, his household probably continued and his name remained associated with it. If there was such a prominent Jewish household in Rome, it makes sense that Paul next greets “Herodion,” another “fellow Jew” (v. 11a). He was perhaps a freedman, a former Herodian slave who was sold to the imperial household. Evidence for a “Synagogue of the Herodians” in Rome suggests that there might have been more than one former Herodian slave in Rome.¹⁸

Greetings extended to the “household of Narcissus” (v. 11b) is interesting because Narcissus is the name of a famous mid-first-century Roman freedman who came to prominence under Claudius, until he was forced into suicide after Claudius’s death by jealous rivals. If this is the same Narcissus, as many believe, then Christians in his household would have been in a rather delicate position.¹⁹

Paul also greets a cohort of women in vv. 12 – 13. First, “Tryphena and Tryphosa” as well as “Persis,” who are described as working hard in the Lord. These women are known for their dedication and service to the tasks that they perform. In addition, there is “Rufus”; though a common name, we are left wondering if this is the same Rufus who was the son of Simon of Cyrene whom Mark takes time to mention (Mark 15:21). Paul mention’s Rufus’s “mother,” not by name, extolling her because she had metaphorically “been a mother to me, too.”

The people listed toward the end of the greetings probably denote two distinct households: (1) one consisting of “Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas” in addition to “the other brothers and sisters with them” (v. 14); (2) the other household comprising “Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas,” who are together with “all the Lord’s people.” One feels that Paul is going through his mental rolodex and trying to greet as many people in Rome as he can humanly remember. In any case, the greetings show that fellowship and reciprocation is rooted in a common conception of the gospel.²⁰

Paul closes his greetings with an exhortation: “Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings” (v. 16). Greeting with a kiss is not just a European thing; it was commonplace in some quarters of the ancient world.²¹ Paul’s letters often mention greeting with a “holy kiss” (1 Cor 16:20; 2 Cor 13:2; 1 Thess 5:26; cf. 1 Pet 5:14). By the time of Justin Martyr in the mid-second century, the holy kiss was part of the liturgy: “At the conclusion of the prayers we greet one another with a kiss. Then, bread and a chalice containing wine mixed with water are presented [for a eucharistic meal].”²² Chrysostom acclaims the practice because “this kiss mollifies and equalizes everyone, banishing grievances and jealousy. Paul not only directs them to kiss one another in this way, but he also sends them the kiss of greeting from all the churches.”²³ Christian affection is meant to be demonstrative and wholesome. Finally, Paul ends with greetings from the various churches that he represents as the apostle to the Gentiles.

Looking for application and searching for grand biblical narratives in a list of greetings is no easy task. However, the text points us to consider the role of women among Paul’s ministry partners and the importance of showing physical affection to our brothers and sisters in the Lord. In short, it points to the equality within the church and the emotional attachment we should display toward one another.

Irrespective of whether one identifies as conservative or progressive on the issue of women in ministry, we all have to agree that women are certainly prominent in Paul’s greetings to the Roman churches and women had a key part in the ministries of the earliest churches. Schreiner says that this text shows that while specific details are not given, these women “were vitally involved in ministry.”²⁵ While the word for “work” (kopiaō) does not necessarily imply a leadership position per se, it still points to women playing a significant role in the Roman churches.²⁶ In fact, according to Chyrsostom, “the women of that time were more zealous than lions, sharing with the apostles in their labor of preaching.”²⁷

I have to confess that it was a close reading of Romans 16:1 – 16 that led me to a complete turnaround on my views concerning the roles of women in the church. Various women are praised in Paul’s little greeting card for their service and labors. The fact that Junia is specifically identified as an apostle here is no small thing. Not only that, but it was reading about and reflecting on Phoebe — in particular her place in the Pauline circle, the reason why Paul chose her to deliver this letter, and imagining what subsequent role she might have played in the Roman churches ahead of Paul’s visit — that left me completely gob smacked and led me to affirm the role of women in the teaching ministries of the church.

About Phoebe, from the outset we have to say that when Paul sent her to Rome, he probably had more in mind for her than helping out with their flower arrangements and slaving in the kitchen to make potluck dinners. N. T. Wright says that when it came to delivering this letter to the Romans that Paul “entrusted that letter to a ‘deacon’ called Phoebe whose work was taking her to Rome. The letter-bearer would normally be the one to read it out to the recipients and explain its contents. The first expositor of Paul’s greatest letter was an ordained traveling businesswoman.”²⁸ Along the same line, when teaching through Romans 16:1 – 2, I habitually enjoy goading students into working out the implications of this text. Normally the scenario goes something like this:

“So then folks, if Phoebe is a deacon, Paul’s benefactor, and if he trusted her to take this very important letter to the Romans, then Phoebe must have been a woman of great abilities and good character in Paul’s mind. Do you agree?”

“Okay, and if the Romans had any questions about the letter like ‘What is the righteousness of God?’ or ‘Who is this wretched man that Paul refers to about halfway through?’ who do you think would be the first person that they would ask?”

Then I provocatively add, “Could it be that the first person to publicly read and teach about Romans was a woman? If so, what does that tell you about women and teaching roles in the early church?”²⁹

Let me add that this is not the only text we have to address in developing a theology and practice of gender and ministry. However, I think it should be crystal clear that Romans 16:1 – 16 shows how much Paul highly regards women for their work in laboring for the Lord in a mixture of ministries including leadership, teaching, prayer, hospitality, and various other forms of service. According to Ben Witherington, we “see here a picture of a vibrant, multifaceted church at the heart of the empire using the gifts and graces of both men and women to further the spread of the Gospel and the Church.”³⁰ Therefore, the ministry that women do in our churches should be celebrated, honored, and esteemed, just as Paul does. We can take our cue from John Chrysostom, who wrote about Junia: “O how great is the devotion of this woman that she should be counted worthy of the appellation of apostle!”³¹ Another church father, Origen, could infer: “This passage teaches that there were women ordained in the church’s ministry by the apostles’ authority. . . . Not only that — they ought to be ordained into the ministry, because they helped in many ways and by their good services deserved the praise even of the apostle.”³²

When it comes to developing ministry teams, especially in church planting, we would be wise to follow Paul’s example and incorporate women into key roles, especially when our field of ministry is either highly difficult or boldly ambitious. Remember that it is women who are most likely to reach other women with the gospel. Remember that when you give women a voice, they will not only speak for themselves, but also for others like children and the elderly. Remember that when you empower women in a community, it will have ramifications on all sorts of areas ranging from domestic violence to family cohesion.³³

I don’t know about you but I don’t get kissed a lot when I greet fellow parishioners at church. However, there are a lot of cultures and congregations that do, especially in Europe and South America. I remember once when a friend from church introduced me to a beautiful young lady from Argentina. I got about halfway through saying, “G’day, nice to meet you” when she ever so casually just leaned over and kissed me on both cheeks, leaving me feeling a little embarrassed and dumbstruck, with my friend laughing in hysterics at the spectacle. Believe it or not, gorgeous ladies do not ordinarily come up and kiss me. I am not a particularly handsome man. Ever since I was a small child, my mother kept telling me that I had a face for radio. The longevity of my marriage is anchored in making sure my wife never visits an optometrist (“Yes honey, everyone sees things blurry up close, it’s perfectly normal”).

While kissing might not be the most culturally appropriate way of greeting people, we can easily contextualize it. Some good paraphrases are offered with “holy embraces all around” (MSG) or “give each other a hearty handshake all round” (J. B. Phillips). If anything, maybe we should be like dogs, when you see someone you know, greet them with gusto and enthusiasm, let your excitement be physically evident and emotionally energetic. In a network of churches, including both the indigenous and immigrant varieties, where there are ethnic boundaries, disputed matters, and long-held suspicions, Paul calls these vulnerable churches to renew the bonds of affection for each other, by sharing a holy gospel and a holy kiss.

2. Cf. Dunn, Romans, 2:891; Jewett, Romans, 963; Lampe, From Paul to Valentinus, 359 – 60.

3. Lynn H. Cohick, Women in the World of the Earliest Christians: Illuminating Ancient Ways of Life (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2009), 304 – 5.

7. The most recent editions of the Greek New Testament, the NA²⁸, UBS⁵, and SBLGNT, all opt for the feminine Ἰουνιάν, as do the older editions like Tregelles and Westcott-Hort. See further Eldon Epp, Junia: The First Woman Apostle (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2005) or in brief Metzger, TCGNT, 475 – 76, and Kruse, Romans, 563 – 65.

10. Cf. e.g., Murray, Romans, 2:229. Cf. Dunn (Romans, 2:894), who says the “assumption that it must be a male is a striking indictment of male presumption regarding the character and structure of earliest Christianity.”

12. See Michael H. Burer and Dan B. Wallace, “Was Junia Really an Apostle? A Re-examination of Rom 16.7,” NTS 47 (2001): 76 – 91; Richard Bauckham, Gospel Women: Studies of the Named Women in the Gospels (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002), 172 – 80; Linda Belleville, “Iounian . . . episēmoi en tois apostolois: A Re-examination of Romans 16.7 in Light of Primary Source Materials,” NTS 51 (2005): 231 – 49; Epp, Junia, 69 – 78; Kruse, Romans, 565 – 67.

13. Origen identified them as one of the seventy-two sent out by Jesus in Luke 10:1 (Burns, Romans, 385).

14. On apostolos as missionary in the early church, see Did. 11.3 – 6; Hermas, Vis 13.1; Sim 92.4; 93.5; 102.2 (see Stuhlmacher, Romans, 249).

15. Ben Witherington, Women and the Genesis of Christianity (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990), 188.

24. See further Susan Mathew, Women in the Greetings of Romans 16.1 – 16: A Study of Mutuality and Women’s Ministry in the Letter to the Romans (LNTS 471; London: Bloomsbury, 2013).

28. N. T. Wright, “Women Bishops: It’s about the Bible, Not Fake Ideas of Progress,” The Times. 23 Nov 2012. www.virtueonline.org/women-bishops-its-about-bible-not-progress-tom-wright-updated-retort.

29. Michael F. Bird, Bourgeois Babes, Bossy Wives, and Bobby Haircuts (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2014), 20 – 21. I should point out that I am trying to speculate within reason about what Phoebe did, whether it was read the letter to various house churches, expound it, answer questions about it, or meet with leaders to discuss it. She may have just handed it on to Priscilla and Aquila and then headed back to Rome the next day. No one knows for sure. However, given Paul’s commendation of her, I can’t help but think that she had some kind of on-going task in ensuring that Paul’s letter was disseminated and understood, whatever she or her colleagues had to do to achieve that end. See discussion in Alan Chapple, “Getting Romans to the Right Romans: Phoebe and the Delivery of Paul’s Letter,” TynBul 62 (2011): 195 – 214 (Phoebe gave the letter to Priscilla/Aquila, who made copies; they convened a meeting of all the house churches where the letter was read, and copies of letter were later distributed); Peter M. Head, “Named Letter-Carriers among the Oxyrhynchus Papyri,” JSNT 31 (2009): 279 – 99 (Phoebe, as a letter-carrier, probably didn’t read the letter to the recipients, but orally supplemented and expanded its contents to them); and Jewett, Romans, 943 (Phoebe’s task was to convey and interpret the letter as well as carry out the business entailed in the letter).

33. Schreiner (Romans, 797; cf. Murray, Romans, 2:228; Moo, Romans, 927) says: “One should scarcely conclude from the reference to Junia and the other women coworkers named here that women exercised authority over men contrary to the Pauline admonition in 1 Tim. 2:12. We see evidence that women functioned as early Christian missionaries, and it may have been the case that they concentrated especially on other women, given the patriarchal nature of the Greco-Roman world. The Pauline pattern prescribed in 1 Tim. 2:11 – 15 was the apostolic pattern in the early Christian mission, and the vibrant ministry of Christian women did not contradict the admonitions delivered in 1 Tim. 2.” This sounds to me like Schreiner is trying to reassure readers that although women were clearly active in ministry, they would never be permitted to teach a man. But this assumes that neither Paul nor anyone else could have allowed women to do anything that is proscribed by contemporary complementarian scruples. An assumption that is contestable. Did Phoebe refuse to instruct enquirers about Paul’s letter because she was a woman despite the fact that that is precisely what letter carriers were supposed to do? Did not Priscilla and Aquila both instruct Apollos in the way of God and presumably others in their house church? Was Junia really restricted in her missionary work to working only with women? Was Junia not imprisoned for anything she said? I am aware of the danger of inferring too much about women from Romans 16:1 – 16, but I am also aware of the danger of denying what is a plain and obvious consequent of the text: women did ministry and it involved talking to men. See also Witherington, Romans, 390; Talbert, Romans, 340 – 42.