What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women

“At the end of a long faithfulness in the direction of the church, and at the end of one careful study after another, Kevin Giles has brought together his finest arguments for the full support of women in all levels of ministry in the local church . . . Running through the whole book is a graciousness of disagreement propped by a firmness of conviction. This book will be on my desk every time I think about church leadership.”

—Scot McKnight, Northern Seminary, Lisle, Illinois



“As a ‘soft-complementarian,’ I heartily endorse Kevin Giles’ masterful work, What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women. As an academic who has written and taught on gender for almost twenty-five years, I found this to be one of the best and most enriching books I’ve read on the subject . . . This book evidences a lifetime of extensive biblical study and real world pastoral ministry. I am very grateful this book is now available to the body of Christ.”

—Steve Tracy, Professor of Theology and Ethics, Phoenix Seminary





“What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women, is nothing short of an egalitarian thesis hammered on the church’s door . . . Giles exposes the theological abuses of Christian patriarchy while critiquing its heinous impact on human life globally . . . Few books are more comprehensive in tracing the river of destruction fueled by ‘male headship’ presented as God’s ideal. This book is essential reading for ministry students and Christians concerned for the church’s influence in our world today.”

—Mimi Haddad, president, CBE International



“Through careful analysis of the Bible and tradition, Kevin Giles compellingly and convincingly . . . demonstrates that those who argue for the continued subordination of women to men are distorting the biblical witness with dire consequences, not only for Trinitarian doctrine but for women’s rights and their very humanity . . . I highly recommend this book as the definitive study guide for understanding the theological basis for the equality of women and men.”

—Paul D. Molnar, St. John’s University, Queens, New York



“In . . . What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women, Kevin Giles upholds the clear teaching of Scripture that God has created, redeemed, and Spirit-gifted equally both men and women. This truth has breathed the fresh air of empowerment into women in the majority world culture where, instead of mutuality in relationships, women are condemned to subordination, depriving them of God-given leadership roles in church, family, and society.”

—Richard Howell, General Secretary, Asia Evangelical Alliance



"This book has a strong advocacy tone because it consistently argues that the Bible teaches the equality of the sexes in contrast to those who maintain the subordination of women as the creation ideal . . . This book marks the high point of a life of careful scholarship and is a rich resource for academics, pastors, and lay members of the global church. The reader cannot but gain a new confidence in the relevance of the biblical story for our world."

—Charles Ringma, Asian Theological Seminary, Manila



“Kevin Giles has given himself to this issue for decades now, and it shows. He is intimately familiar with all the standard arguments, and, as a result, his deconstruction of the ‘complementarian’ case is simply devastating. He pursues weak arguments relentlessly in this book, showing all the contradictions, prevarications, and biblical errors of those who profess ‘male headship’ . . . After this book, they will have little or no ability to pretend that their persistence has any basis in the Bible.”

—Stephen R. Holmes, University of St Andrews



“Kevin Giles' . . . speaks against other positions to awaken! He takes up a wider theology, the widest, in this volume. Not unlike Athanasius, he isn't content with proof-texting for in-house evangelical consumption, but sets the question of how we women and our brothers, husbands, and male friends in ministry, are to minister together.”

—Ruth Newmarch, Associate Minister at St Thomas Anglican Church, Burwood, Victoria, Australia



“Kevin's latest book, What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women, is the culmination of his forty years of work on this question. It is a comprehensive study that convincingly outlines what in fact the Bible says on women, and covers issues I have not seen covered elsewhere. I think his arguments are compelling. I hope the book will be widely read.”

—Philip Freier, Archbishop of the Diocese of Melbourne



“There are few writers more qualified than Kevin Giles to provide us with perspective on the always controversial issue of women and their roles in Christian families and the church . . . He helpfully critiques and deconstructs the recent and perennial arguments for a so-called complementarian point of view on women and their roles. As it turns out, and as Giles shows, both Jesus and Paul took more radical views than their patriarchal peers on women and their roles, and we are still trying to catch up with the implications.”

—Ben Witherington, III, Asbury Theological Seminary



“Kevin Giles has used thorough biblical scholarship, especially of the New Testament, and knowledge of historical parallels, to frame one of the most effective critiques of the ‘complementarian’ view. This book is must reading for everyone concerned with understanding the Christian view of women at a more profound level.”

—Millard Erickson, Western Seminary, Portland, Oregon



“Kevin Giles offers a robust and systematic examination of what the Bible says about women, in particular, their fitness to serve in all levels of Christian ministry. It is a book that will annoy some, and excite others, but no one should ignore it.”

—Michael F. Bird, Ridley College, Melbourne, Australia



“I am enormously grateful to Kevin Giles for distilling the wisdom of a lifetime in this outstanding book. Set in the context of contemporary theological debate and social history, he undertakes a masterful analysis of Christian teaching on gender and human relationships. His profound and penetrating exegesis of the biblical text unearths truths often missed, misunderstood, or glossed over in so much literature on the subject . . . Whatever your current thinking, you will find Kevin Giles offers stimulating and refreshing new insights, and draws you again to a warming vision of Christ’s redemptive love which permeates his work.”

—Elaine Storkey, Newnham College, Cambridge University