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Holey Exegesis: Schreiner versus Sprinkle on women and authority in Scripture

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Andrew Bartlett, author of Men and Women in Christ: Fresh Light from the Biblical Texts (IVP Books, 2019) writes:

New Testament scholar Preston Sprinkle has created quite a stir with his new book, From Genesis to Junia: An Honest Search for What the Bible Really Says About Women in Leadership. Formerly ‘complementarian’, Sprinkle has changed his mind. Though he did not initially know where his study would land, after three years of intensive study of Scripture, he concludes (page 288):

The Bible says that women can teach and exercise leadership at every level in the church.

The Gospel Coalition are committed to the view which Preston Sprinkle has decided is mistaken. The day before the book’s publication, they posted a review of it. The reviewer is Tom Schreiner, who declares he’s not persuaded by Sprinkle’s argument and has said why. Sprinkle has responded.

Sprinkle’s response praises Tom Schreiner as sincere, gracious, and a top-tier scholar. Having read Schreiner’s writings, and having done a joint three-hour session with him at the Evangelical Theological Society, I agree. 

I’m not going to discuss the details of Sprinkle’s response. Here is what most interests me: Schreiner’s review exposes some of the gaping holes in complementarian exegesis of Scripture. 

Longing for the new creation in Romans 8 video discussion

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The lectionary epistle for the Second Sunday before Lent is Romans 8.18–25—often called the pinnacle of the New Testament. In a theologically rich, carefully structured passage, Paul explores the hope that we long for, and with us, all creation—something that we have already begun to experience in Jesus now, but whose full realisation will come … Continue Reading

What is worship?

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I write a quarterly column for Preach magazine, in which I explore a significant word, phrase, or idea in the Bible, or a theme or section of Scripture, and the ideas that it expresses. At the end of this piece I list the previous articles I have written for them. Here I explore what Scripture … Continue Reading

Jesus stilling the storm in Luke 8

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The Sunday gospel lectionary reading for the Second Sunday before Lent in Year C is Luke 8.22–25, the concise account by Luke of Jesus stilling the storm. (It is worth noting that the ecumenical lectionary has a different set of readings; apparently for the Church of England it was thought that there was not enough … Continue Reading

Does sex matter? What is it for?

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In 2017, I was invited to a church in Hull to do a morning’s teaching giving an overview of what the Bible said about sex. It was fascinating to have to offer such an overview—not least because it made me realise how important this is, and how rarely it is done. I turned this into … Continue Reading