I’m hesitant to engage the conversation because of the arduous task of being faithful to hard texts, however, I may have something valuable to add to the conversation. I’ll leave that to you.

Salvation in this passage needs to be taken seriously. This is where Zach’s argument may fall apart. There is consistent “role talk” in this passage because of a specific situation in Timothy’s church at Ephesus. The men and women there were probably very wealthy (hence, the command against gold, etc.)and held onto some status that may have distorted their view of the creation order and biblical roles for men and women. (I’m thoroughly complementarian and do not believe it is passe to discuss roles in the 21st century where women work in major corporations or even run for president. Assessing our culture through the lens of the Scriptures is of top priority and if there is a domineering man or a stay-at-home dad who leaves his role up to his wife who is the natural source of nurture, we as Christians should see that as a distortion of truth. Also, it is not hard to see in Scripture a theme of male leadership that is characterized by love and sacrifice and therefore rules out any talk of chauvinism.) Paul is correcting the faulty view of the roles of men and women (especially in the worship gatherings) and uses Adam and Eve as an illustration of the biblical truth of gender roles.. When Paul uses this illustration it would immediately bring the creation story to the minds of the readers. Along with the creation came the fall and the curse. Therefore, when Paul claims that salvation will come through the means of (dia) childbearing this points the reader to Genesis 3:16 where Yahweh promises multiplied pain in childbirth and a desire that is against her husband’s authority.

This leads to my interpretation of the passage. Paul is speaking of a reversal of the curse upon Eve. Through the reversal of the curse salvation has come. I tend to agree with Joel in his thinking of the “line” of salvation. A cursory reading of the Old Testament will show you how important lineages are in the scope of biblical history; reading the genealogies of Matthew and Luke will show the sovereign hand of God over his plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. Childbearing is an instrument God has chosen to utilize in his plan and has brought his Son into the world through a miraculous birth.
As we know, salvation is future-oriented though we see fruits and blessings of it now through the Kingdom breaking in the world in the person of Jesus Christ. This is why Paul says that “she will be saved.”

As for the if clause: this clause makes perfect sense if you hold to my position because it is an exhortation like many of Paul’s & Jesus’ exhortations of right living and Christian duty. One example might be that you will be an heir with Christ, your brother, if you suffer (Romans 8:17). If you put to death the deeds of the body (8:13).
The items Paul lists are attributes that must be in the life of the believer and function as evidences of their salvation.

In summary, there may be a nuance of role language in the childbearing event, but the concept of salvation here must be taken seriously and refer to the salvation that comes through Jesus Christ who is born miraculously to a teenage virgin, Mary. Although the woman, Eve, trangressed in the garden there is hope in Jesus Christ who brings victory over pain and sin.

By the way, here is my own translation:

“yet she will be saved by the means of childbearing – if they remain in faith and love and holiness with soundness of mind.”