situation that dictated their composition.”318 Marshall concludes that “there must, then, be special reasons for the prohibition [against women teaching] here.”319 Doubtless there were special conditions at Ephesus; all historical settings have their distinctive features. But the question is whether the historical setting (real or fictive) at Ephesus was so different from other places and times that the counsel found in 1 Tim 2:12 has no relevance beyond its original location. Were there, for example,
Page 177