Last month, as part of a class, I read The Making of Biblical Womanhood by Beth Allison Barr. Barr is a professor of history at Baylor University who specializes in women’s history, church history, and the history of medieval and early modern England.

The book is a fascinating examination of patriarchy, which Barr defines as “a general system that values men and their contributions more than it values women and their contributions.” As the author narrates the history of patriarchy from the very origins of human civilization all the way through the modern era, she specifically focuses on how patriarchy intersects with the Bible and traces the development of “Christian patriarchy” over the centuries up to the present day.

I found it to be quite an enlightening resource. She offers a look at the creation story in early Genesis, contending that patriarchy was not part of God’s original vision for humankind, but it only slithered into the human experience after the Fall. She sees a correlation here with ancient history, describing how as human civilization began to develop with the rise of agriculture, “[b]oth male labor and male power began to be associated with property ownership and the accompanying agricultural work. This led to boys being favored over girls for inheritance and to women becoming increasingly dependent on males who were property owners or agricultural laborers.” As a result, “[w]omen became increasingly dependent upon men as agricultural communities became the heartbeat of human civilization.”

Interestingly, with this in mind, Barr notes how “when God told Eve she would be under her husband’s power, God simultaneously told Adam that agricultural labor would be necessary for human survival.”

“Patriarchy, according to both the Bible and historical record, emerged alongside the emergence of agricultural communities.”

Barr contends that in Genesis 3, rather than prescribing a God-ordained system of male hierarchy, God is actually describing the consequential effects of human brokenness and rebellion.

As the biblical story moves forward, we see how patriarchy continues to shape the narratives as well as the storytellers. According to Barr, “[t]he patriarchy that continues to appear in biblical text is a mere accommodation to the reality of the times and culture; it is not a reflection of the divine ideal for humanity.”

However, despite the inevitable presence of patriarchal attitudes and actions within the biblical narrative, it’s startling how many stories and examples exist within the Bible that actually undermine this perspective. Barr catalogues numerous examples of women leading, teaching, and prophesying all throughout the biblical story, subverting conventional gender roles.

My one critique of the book is that when she deals with 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, she only offers one possible interpretation of this passage. While I appreciate her perspective, I would have preferred for her to at least acknowledge other views that exist, including the one I advocate for in this essay.

However, I found that her history pedigree especially aided her treatment of the “household code” passages in the New Testament (Ephesians 5:22-6:9, Colossians 3:18-4:1, and others). Her knowledge of Roman patriarchal structure (“paterfamilias”) was rather illuminating and helps readers understand how subversive Paul’s instructions were for these early Christians.

“The New Testament household codes tell a story of how the early church was trying to live within a non-Christian, and increasingly hostile, world. They needed to fit in, but they also needed to uphold the gospel of Christ. They had to uphold the frame of Roman patriarchy as much as they could, but they also had to uphold the worth and dignity of each human being made in the image of God. Paul gave them the blueprints to remix Roman patriarchy.”

This is an essential point that deserves reflection. Consider the not-so-hypothetical example of a community of Arab Christians worshipping together within an Islamic state. Wisdom would suggest that within such a patriarchal culture, the lives and practices of these Christians must look radically different than it would in other contexts. The gospel has always been (and must always be) contextualized. Because every culture is unique.

And that includes ancient Greco-Roman culture. What we have in the New Testament is an inspired record of how the earliest churches grappled with how to live forward in God’s new creation while also dwelling within Roman society. Thus, for example, we have instructions regarding slave-master relationships (such as Eph. 6:5-8). Barr asks:

“When we rightly understand that biblical passages discussing slavery must be framed within their historical context and that, through the lens of this historical context, we can better see slavery as an ungodly system that stands contrary to the gospel of Christ, how can we not then apply the same standards to biblical texts about women?”

Good question.

The greatest strength of Barr’s work is her historical survey of church history. She offers plenteous examples of women serving in church leadership roles in every era of church history (“Historically, women have flourished as leaders, teachers, and preachers—even in the evangelical world.”). She traces how Christian patriarchy radically shape-shifted through the medieval era into the Protestant Reformation. She then delineates the sordid history of patriarchy influencing translation choices in modern versions of the Bible.

It’s an eye-opener, for sure. And worth your time and attention.