sigaō (G4601)

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G4601 sigaō (see-GAH-o) — to be silent, stop speaking. In 1 Cor 14 it silences tongue-speakers and prophets too. 

Word: σιγάω · verb · Strong's G4601

In brief

Sigaō means to keep silent or stop talking. In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul uses it three times. Two of those silence men and women alike: a tongue-speaker with no interpreter, and a prophet when someone else receives a revelation. The third, "let the women be silent" (14:34), is the verse usually quoted alone. Read with the other two, Paul's concern is order in a noisy gathering, not a ban on women speaking.

Where it appears

  • 1 Corinthians 14:28 — if there is no interpreter, the tongue-speaker should sigatō, keep silent in the church.
  • 1 Corinthians 14:30 — if a revelation comes to someone seated, the first prophet should sigatō.
  • 1 Corinthians 14:34 — the women should sigatōsan in the churches.
  • 1 Corinthians 11:5 — compare: three chapters earlier, Paul assumes women pray and prophesy aloud in the gathering.

What the text shows

  • Placement: in some ancient manuscripts, verses 34–35 appear after verse 40 instead of after verse 33. Some scholars think the verses were a marginal note later copied into the text.
  • Quotation: Paul often quotes a position in order to answer it (for example 6:12 and 7:1). In 14:34, the women's silence is required "as the law says," but we haven't found any Old Testament law that tells women to be silent. Following Katharine Bushnell, Ezer Bible reads verses 34–35 as Paul quoting the Judaizers' appeal to the Jewish oral law, then answering it in 14:36: "Or was it from you that the word of God came? Or are you the only ones it has reached?" This is Ezer Bible's reading.
  • Where the sentence starts: "as in all the churches of the saints" ends verse 33. Some translations make it the start of the instruction about women, which makes the silence sound universal.

How translations render it

All major translations render 14:34 "keep silent" or "be silent." The difference lies in whether they footnote the manuscript placement.

See for yourself

  1. Read 1 Corinthians 14:26–40 straight through. Count how many times Paul tells someone to be silent. Who are they?
  2. Read 1 Corinthians 11:5. If women were never to speak, why does Paul give instructions for women who pray and prophesy?
  3. Read 14:36 right after 14:35. Who is Paul arguing with?
  4. Compare 14:21 with 14:34. In verse 21, Paul says "in the Law it is written" and quotes Isaiah. What does he quote in verse 34?

Related words

hēsychia (G2271, quietness) · gynē (G1135) · anēr (G435)

Sources