📖WEB · 1 Timothy 2:13
What does 1 Timothy 2:13 mean?
"For Adam was first formed, then Eve."
— 1 Timothy 2:13 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
but (which becomes women professing godliness) with good works.
Let a woman learn in quietness with full submission.
But I don’t permit a woman to teach, nor to exercise authority over a man, but to be in quietness.
For Adam was first formed, then Eve.
Adam wasn’t deceived, but the woman, being deceived, has fallen into disobedience;
but she will be saved through her childbearing, if they continue in faith, love, and sanctification with sobriety.
Explanation
This short verse states a simple historical fact drawn from the creation narrative in Genesis: in the order of creation, Adam was formed first, and Eve was formed afterward. Paul is not making a new claim here but reminding his readers of something already recorded in Genesis 2, where God forms Adam from the dust, and then, seeing that Adam had no suitable companion, forms Eve from Adam's rib. The verse itself is descriptive of sequence — it simply notes who came first.
The context is Paul's first letter to Timothy, a young pastor whom Paul had left in Ephesus to oversee the church there (1 Timothy 1:3). Ephesus was troubled by false teaching, and part of Paul's concern in chapter 2 involves order and conduct in public worship — how men and women should pray, dress, and function within the gathered assembly. In verses 11-14, Paul addresses the specific issue of women teaching and exercising authority over men in that setting, and he grounds his instruction in two appeals to Genesis: first, the order of creation (Adam formed first, then Eve
Compare translations
Go deeper with ScriptureCompanion AI
Ask questions about any verse, follow reading plans, write personal prayers, and track your daily habit — all grounded in verified scripture text.