Writing: Created Inferior?

Introduction

One of the most popular topics today revolves around the differences between men and women. People love to talk about how differently the sexes are wired. I suppose we are infatuated with the subject because for so many of us, it hits home. And it is true that men and women seem to be from different planets. In fact, God Himself has created men and women to be different.

And these differences are meant to be appreciated and celebrated. They are to be seen as a gift from God. But this is not always the case. In fact, these differences often lead us to put each other down and judge one another.

Among the many important and interesting aspects to this discussion is the topic of the status of the woman. It is commonly believed that the woman is somehow inferior to the man. And really, it does not take much effort to survey human history to see that this was a common assumption.

But, we all know that just because something is believed by the masses yesterday and today does not automatically make it right. A lot of people can be wrong. Or maybe they are right. In fact, what is your belief concerning the status of the woman? Is she inferior to the man? Can we go one step further and ask: did God create the woman to be inferior to the man? Did God create the woman to have lesser status before Him than the man has? Many would say yes. And just as many would say no. So, what is your position?

I have found that many Christians today believe a lot of things but at the same time are unable to present reasons as to why they believe them. To the people who say that the woman is created inferior, can biblical evidence be presented? I wonder. And to the people who say that the woman is not created inferior, can biblical evidence be presented here as well? I wonder. And so, let’s ask the following question and then take a biblical journey to discover exactly how God has designed the woman. My prayer is that readers will come from both sides of the gender line.

So, did God create the woman inferior to the man?

The best place to begin is at the beginning! To be exact, we should look at the book of “beginnings,” Genesis. And let’s begin with a simple proposition:

* Genesis chapters 1-2 come before chapter 3!

Now, before you dismiss this as something too obvious, consider that chapter three ushers in the devastation of sin into human history. For the first time, the perfect garden is permanently interrupted by a state of imperfection. Mankind shall never be the same again. In short, this is chapter three. And if chapter three brings all this, we can say that whatever comes before chapter three is unaffected by such devastation. In fact, we can say that chapters one and two display the garden in all its perfection and holiness. Whatever God created and instituted in those two chapters reflects a perfect situation that was to be a model for all times and places. In fact, chapters three onward present the development of culture and civilization. And so, once again, we can say that if these chapters bring such developments, then the chapters before three do not; that chapters one and two truly contain a pre-civilization model, meaning a model that was to be universal—to be adopted by all civilizations. And so, what we find in chapters one and two are pre-sin designs, divine designs that must transcend time, culture and situation. And it is here that we must begin to understand how God created the woman. And whatever we find concerning her status must be our interpretation.

With this in mind, let’s look at Genesis 1:27:

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

“Man” is created in the image of God

Now, I will not spend time developing the meaning of “image.” Of course, it’s an important word and much can be written on it. But we can focus on the issue of inferiority without doing a major treatise on this word. But let me say in passing that the word “image” has to do with how we reflect God—how we resemble him. And this verse tells us both male and female are given the image of God. In other words, there is no difference between male and female insofar as what we are given by God. That in our essence, both the man and the woman are given the same.

Now, we know this because the word “man” in this verse is the generic word for man. It can be translated “mankind.” And so, “man” in this verse definitely refers to BOTH the man and
the woman. Based on this verse, we must say that the man is not created any better than the woman. That God did not use better material to make the man or use inferior material to make the woman. Both are created in His image, equal in their essence. This is God’s perfectly divine design. And remember, chapter one comes before chapter three! And so, His design must stand for all times and generations, and must be accepted by all His children.

So, did God create the woman inferior to the man?

Let’s continue to explore this question by examining chapter two:

Genesis 2

Again, chapter two comes before chapter three! And here, the creation story is retold from a different perspective than chapter one. As a result, some wonder why we have two creation accounts. This is not the place to give a full explanation of this, but let me say in passing that there are many ways to tell a story. We all tell multiple stories about one event and often from different perspectives. And so, Scripture is doing nothing new. For example, one way to tell a story is to look at the big picture and offer general statements. This is what chapter one does. And another way to tell the story is to focus on some of the details. And this is what chapter two does. Both chapters offer unique insight. And here in chapter two, we have a more detailed account of how the man and the woman are created. Actually, the chapter two account is more about how the woman is created and how the man comes to understand her. Really, the creation of the man gets only one verse (v.7)! But the woman receives much more attention. And so, if someone wants to find evidence that the woman is an inferior product, this is the place to do it. This is where her story unfolds. This is where her creation is the focus. But if you cannot find it here, then you cannot find it anywhere.

Now, there have been many attempts to show the lesser status of the woman via chapter two. I will address two of them here.

The woman is called a “helper”, v.18

In v.18, God says, “I will make a helper suitable for him.” And historically, this has been understood (by both men and women) as meaning the woman is of lesser status than the man is. People reason by saying “after all, she is just a helper.” Now, it is true that in many places around the world, a helper is someone in a lesser position. That way of thinking is definitely common here in America. But herein lies the danger of it all. Anytime we take our modern understanding and use of a word, and assume that that is the meaning of the biblical word in question, we fall into a serious trap, a trap that will keep us from understanding what God originally intended. Quite honestly, we should never take our own use of a word and just expect the Bible to use it the same way. Rather, we should humbly submit ourselves to the Bible’s use of the word. We must ask ourselves, “How is God Himself using this word?” and not just have a knee-jerk reaction to a word which, in this case, carries a lot of meaning and emotion for us today.

Once we ask the question about how God uses a word, we are then set on a journey of discovering how the word is actually used in the Bible. One place the journey takes us is Psalm 121:1-2. In the original Hebrew, the word “help” found here is identical to the world “helper” found in Genesis 2. And to our surprise, here in the Psalms, the word is used of God Himself!

I lift up my eyes to the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord…

God is our helper, a concept no believer will deny. In fact, this very concept is basic to our understanding of God. It is who He is. It is part of His nature. It is part of His divine status to be a great helper to His children. And every believer embraces this part of our Lord and praises Him for it. And King David is no different. He praises the Lord for His great ability to help him in all times and situations. And really, at no point does King David, nor do we, interpret God’s ability to help us as evidence of His lesser status. Such a proposal is unthinkable. And so, we have here a great example of how the word “helper” does not automatically refer to someone in an inferior position. And again, the very word “helper” here in Psalm 121 is the same word that is used in Genesis 2:18. “Help” (Psalm 121) or “helper” (Genesis 2), it’s the same word in the original text. At the very least, we ought to say that the word “helper” does not automatically place the woman in a status inferior to the man.

In fact, let’s go one step further and propose that the word “helper” actually exalts the woman to a unique status. Though the man is called by God to lead the relationship, the woman is given a very special calling to help the man. And so, just as God’s role as helper is a unique and exalted one (although He is in no way obligated to man), so too is the woman’s role. And this position must be appreciated and celebrated, and not become a source of discrimination.

Actually, we can go many steps further and unfold exactly how the woman is to be a helper suitable for the man. But that will take us into a journey beyond the boundaries of this short commentary.

The woman is created out from his rib, vs.21-22

Another attempt to show that a woman is inferior is to propose that because the woman was created out from his rib she is made inferior to the man. I have heard this argument since I was a child. I remember clearly how it was the standard interpretation, and so it was not challenged. In fact this interpretation is older than this writer and anyone who happens to be reading this commentary. Actually, I really don’t know how old this interpretation is and/or who started it.

But interestingly enough, I did find a song written by our 16th president, Abraham Lincoln, in which he expresses the woman’s lesser status. In between his many obligations in office, he did find the time to compose a song for a friend who was getting married. And in this song, he wrote about the man’s responsibility to lead in the relationship, and the “evidence” (a word he uses in the song) he cites is the fact that the woman was created out from his rib. The lyrics are as follows:

            The woman was not taken
                        From Adam's head, we know,
            To show she must not rule him -
                        'Tis evidently so.
            The woman she was taken
                        From under Adam's arm
            So, she must be protected
                        From injuries and harm

And so, the rib material is seen as lesser material. I suppose that if she were created from independent material, she might be perceived differently. But the fact that she was created from his rib is gathered as evidence of something unequal. Now, I should submit a disclaimer that I am not exactly sure what our distinguished president actually believed about the woman. But it is clear that the rib reference places her under the man.

But, we must note that even without the president’s song, this interpretation has momentum. Again, I suspect that the engine that drives this interpretation is similar to the one that drove the meaning of “helper.” In other words, people have taken their general understanding of being taken from a rib and inserted it into the Bible, assuming they are one and the same. In our efforts to understand this event, we try to visualize the process of being taken out of a man. And we immediately conclude that such a process must make the woman secondary in importance. Again, I believe that we must stop and humbly ask ourselves, “How is God Himself using this word?” And once we ask this question, we are again on a journey of discovering how the word is actually used in the Bible. In this case, we must stay right here in chapter two and follow the story carefully to see the overall context that surrounds the rib extraction. And so, here is the journey through chapter two. And in this, the sequence of events is very important.

After the man is created, he is put to work in the garden. We can safely say that the garden, being a perfect situation, must have been a happy place for the man. He shows no sense of discontentment. There is no yearning on his part for something more. (Sorry ladies, but the first man is completely satisfied without a woman in his life!) But there is one problem with this picture: God Himself is not satisfied without the woman in the man’s life. Let us not forget that it was God Himself who formally declared that it was not good for the man to be alone (v.18). Now this declaration is profound when you consider that the man was surrounded by all kinds of life in the garden. Technically, the man is not alone. The last thing on the man’s mind is the sense of loneliness. As I said, the man is content. The man is the original Dr. Dolittle, able to walk and talk with animals and find satisfaction. And because this is his state of being, God must instill in this man a foreign sense of loneliness, a sense of incompleteness without the woman. The man must be taken to a place in his heart where he can share in God’s declaration. In other words, he must be taken on a spiritual and emotional journey in which he must also be able to say that it is not good for him to be alone. This is the divine task at hand. In other words, God Himself will orchestrate this.

And I believe this is the reason why God does not create the woman right away. Think about this: God declares that it is not good for man to be alone in verse 18. But for some reason, God does not create the woman in verse 19! If it were a matter of just creating the woman, God would have created the woman instantly and without hesitation. But God chooses to wait, because it is important for the man to arrive at the conclusion himself.

And so, this is how we are to understand the parade of animals that comes before the man. That it is God’s way of taking the man on a spiritual and emotional journey through which he will discover his loneliness without the woman and find satisfaction in their compatibility and completeness together. And this is what happens as the man names each animal. And naming is to be seen as a profound process. Unlike some today who may trivialize it, naming is a process of attributing characteristics and special meaning to the one being named. In an important way, it allows a certain bonding process to occur between the one naming and the one being named. And so, the man names them one by one. And after an exhausting day of naming everything, he discovers an entirely new feeling within himself: that none of the animals that he was so close to could ever be a true companion for him in the way that God intended the woman to be for him. And with this new discovery, the man is now ready to be introduced to his true mate.

Then the man is put to sleep and out from his rib the woman is created. And when he awakes, what does he say? Does he say, looking down at the missing space in his rib cage, “Hey! Now I understand; you are to be my assistant, my follower. Can you make me some coffee? It’s been a long day naming the animals!” No, he doesn’t say anything like that. There is no indication that he saw her as something lower than himself. Rather, he rightly understands that she is something different from the animals. That she is, in fact, just like him. And so, he poetically declares her to be bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh, meaning that she is just like him. In other words, the rib operation is God’s way of convincing the man that the woman is the only one truly compatible with him. A dog may be seen as “man’s best friend.” But the woman shall be seen as his truly unique companion. Simply put, the meaning of the rib does not lead us to believe she is inferior. Rather, we are led to believe that she is just like the man – equal to him in essence.

So, did God create the woman inferior to the man?

Many more issues can be discussed, but a careful look at the first two chapters of the first book makes the woman’s status clear. She is created in the image of God, and given the same essence as the man before God. She is in no way inferior.

Now, it is true that God calls the man and the woman to different roles. Having the same essence does not have to lead to the same roles. In fact, Scripture is clear of the different roles for them in the home and in the church. But this topic will have to be covered another time.

Conclusion

As we look today at all the cultures around the world, we get a sober reminder that many cultures do in fact believe that women are created inferior—that something in the very essence of the woman makes her less in status to the man.

Recently, the tragedy of the terrorist attack on the United States on September 11, 2001 put the spotlight on this issue (among other important things). People especially in the United States suddenly became interested in Middle Eastern countries, and, among other things, became interested in their view and treatment of women in those cultures. Women were (and still are) clearly viewed as inferior and treated as second-class citizens. Abuse and mistreatment of these alleged lesser beings were accepted and justified. And watching all this from the other side of the world, Americans were appalled and disgusted (and rightly so).

But I wonder what we would find here in America if, for a moment, we lifted the veil of political correctness and even the laws that promote equality. We would probably find that many even in this country also believe that women are lesser beings. We would even find that many women themselves believe such a thing! And we would probably find that many in the church believe this as well.

In fact, we all know that even in this county, women have been abused and mistreated because of this fundamental belief. I dare say even in the church women have been mistreated. And so, before we become so appalled by the beliefs of other countries and cultures, we ought to take a hard look at ourselves. Even Scripture tells us to deal with our own sins before we look at the sins of others (Matthew 7:1-5). We should examine our own hearts to see if there is the sin of such discrimination within. And we can start with this simple question:

Did God create the woman inferior to the man?

Now you know the answer:

He did not.

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