Smethurst: Phoebe Was a Deacon, Not Just a Servant

Phoebe Was a Deacon, Not Just a Servant

As we saw earlier, Paul begins greeting the Roman church with a specific commendation:

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant [diakonos] of the church at Cenchreae, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well. (Rom. 16:1–2)

Though many interpret diakonos informally (e.g., a servant-hearted person), there are better reasons to believe that the word signals the formal position of deacon.

First, the ending of the word is masculine, not feminine. This would have been an odd way for Paul to refer to a woman—unless, of course, he’s not describing her character but designating her office.

Second, it is significant that Phoebe is called a diakonos of a specific church. Throughout the New Testament this term is often used in a general sense—and rightly translated “servant” or “minister”—since the person’s labor isn’t tied to a specific locale, much less to a specific church. Thus Paul is a diakonos “of the gospel” (Eph. 3:7), Epaphras “of Christ” (Col. 1:7), Tychicus “in the Lord” (Eph. 6:21), and Timothy “of Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 4:6). On first glance it might seem Paul is placing Phoebe into this same “general servant” category, but this overlooks that he describes her as a diakonos “of the church at Cenchreae,” specifying her function as diakonos to that specific church.

This one-church designation is even more striking when we consider the expansiveness of Phoebe’s ministry: she belongs to the church in Cenchreae; she is serving Paul in Corinth; and she will likely carry the letter to Rome. Yet despite this service to churches across the Roman Empire, Paul tethers her diakonos status to a single congregation. The most natural conclusion, then, is that “diakonos of the church at Cenchreae” is not a general description but an official title. There are countless general servants of the church, but Phoebe is also a formal deacon of a church.

Finally, Phoebe is called a “patron” (ESV) or “benefactor” (NIV) in verse 2, indicating that she regularly supported, perhaps financially, those in need. This task, as well as serving as a courier or envoy to Rome, would fit naturally with a diaconal position.

Matt Smethurst, Deacons: How They Serve and Strengthen the Church, 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2021), 147–148.

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