And what exactly is a woman? Maybe that's not so much the question as, "What did God create woman to be?" This "study" would actually be much easier to do in person, but let's give it a go. You can try to humor me and ponder the question before you read the answer I came up with, or you can just read through the post. I'll never know. This post may appear long, but I think it's only because I included the actual Scripture (I know how unlikely I am to actually get up and find a Bible, and I'll just assume a few of you are the same way). Again, comments are welcome. I don't claim to be an expert on womanhood or on Biblical interpretation or on the mind of God, so feel free to contribute to the general enlightenment of us all. :)
First, let's read Genesis 1:26-31.
Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground--everything that has the breath of life in it--I give every green plant for food." And it was so.
God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning--the sixth day.
(1) What does this passage tell us about man?
He was made in the image of God to rule over creation. He was commanded to reproduce and to rule the earth and its creatures. He was given food. God called His man creation very good.
(2) What does this passage tell us about woman?
Pretty much the same thing it told us about man. But male and female were listed as separate entities--not the exact same "things".
Okay, so let's look at Genesis 2.
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing: so on the seventh day He rested from all His work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done.
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
When the Lord God made the earth and the heavens--and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground--the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there He put the man He had formed. And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. the name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."
Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, He took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib He had taken out of the man, and He brought her to the man.
The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man."
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
(1) Am I regretting my commitment to typing out all the Scripture?
Maybe.
(2) What do we learn about man?
He was formed from the dust. He was a living being. He was put in the Garden of Eden to work it and care for it. He was told by God not to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It was not good for man to be alone. He named all the animals; none of the animals were suitable helpers. He underwent surgery. He named woman.
(3) What do we learn about woman?
She was created in response to the fact that it wasn't good for man to be alone. She was created to be a suitable helper FOR HIM. Was created by God from the man's rib.
(4) What do we learn about the relationship between man and woman?
Woman was created from man, for man. Man leaves his family and is united to his wife. Man and woman become one flesh. There was no shame in their nakedness.
(5) What were God's instructions to man? to woman?
God instructed man not to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
I realize this may seem super long, but it seemed awkward to break it up. Don't feel like you have to do it all in one sitting if that doesn't work for you. And not every week will be like this--I promise!
So next is 1 Corinthians 11:3-12.
Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head--it is just as though her head were shaved. If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head. A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head.
In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.
Wow--tough one. I'm not randomly selecting Scriptures. I'm pulling them from a study many of us did in high school. And I'm not pretending to know all the answers. I'm honestly just giving it a stab, so feel free to chime in any time. Here are the questions:
(1) What do we learn about man?
Christ is his head. He is the head of woman. He is the image and glory of God. He is not entirely independent of woman. He is born of woman.
(2) What do we learn about woman?
Man is her head. She is the glory of man. Woman came from man. She was created FOR man. She is not independent of man.
(3) What do we learn about God?
He is the head of Christ. Everything comes from Him.
(4) What do we learn about Jesus?
God is His head.
(5) What is the order of headship?
God is the head of Christ. Christ is the head of man. Man is the head of woman.
Last but not least: 1 Peter 3:7.
Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
(1) What are the differences between man and woman?
Whaaaaat? Seems odd that the writer of the study put these questions on this verse.... Hm. Anybody else come up with anything besides the fact that the man is the stronger partner?
(2) What are the similarities between man and woman?
Ditto the "Whaaaaat?". Anything besides the fact that both man and woman are heirs of the gracious gift of life?
SUMMING IT UP:
Man was created by GOD, for GOD. He was created from DUST to rule the earth.
Woman was created by GOD, for MAN. She was created from man's RIB to be a helper to man.
SHARE: any questions you may have AND how this information impacts your view of womanhood and/or marriage.
10 comments:
Thank you for puting this together, Karisa.
No problem. :) I had committed to studying it myself, and Amy mentioned that she'd be interested in the same thing...so I assumed that maybe all of us with husbands in the study might like the opportunity. Committing to another "meeting" seemed over-the-top and not-so-doable, so this was a compromise--do it when you want, if you want. :) I pray that we can all grow in godliness and in unity with our husbands through this. (Wow--what a wordy woman I can be!) Anyway, there's always the possibility that we woman could gather for coffee or something sometime if there's interest. I know not everyone knows each other....
Hey--so you had a baby! A girl, right? What's her name? How's the transition to 2 kiddos?
The thing that stood out for me in this post...and not just cuz you capped it every time...is that we were created FOR man. I guess I never thought about it before. And, also, being raised by a very pro-woman woman, it raises some "issues" in my flesh and heart, but it's God's Word. This is going to be VERY good. Thanks so much. I will talk to you more tomorrow....
Yeah--I really struggled with this study when we did it in high school because I've never been one to submit to anything. This whole not-pushing-my-own-agenda has been something I've just been growing toward in the last three years. By God's grace, it becomes more and more of a joy--not the degraded existence I always expected it to be. ;)
And I think the headship thing is helpful. We are to submit to our husbands as Christ submitted to God. And when the whole thing is in place (i.e., man is submitting fully to Christ) we can have that level of trust in him (that he's following Christ's will rather than simply pushing his own personal thoughts) that makes it easier and even a joy to submit.
I really don't sit on here 24-7...honest. I just ponder and ponder during the quiet moments when Mattaya is napping and I'm frantically trying to slice meat for beef stroganoff. Amy mentioned that woman was created FOR man, and it occurred to me that even more importantly woman was made to be man's HELPER. Not his manager, not his critic, not even his maid. His helper. Whatever his God-give purpose or project, it is our duty to help in whatever capacity he chooses. Whether it's handling the house chores so he can focus on what he needs to or being directly involved in the task itself...WHATEVER may be the case, we are to be our husbands' HELPER. I think I so often get it turned around and see Matt as the one who is supposed to help me with what I need to get done. So often I am setting the goals and directing the achievement of them. That's wrong. I'm the helper. I'm to be helping. I'm to stop rambling. :)
When Amy was over the other day, she brought up some questions about the whole covered/uncovered head thing...anyone else curious?
I'll introduce myself for those who may not know me...If others would do so also that would be helpful to me. Maria Olson, married to Matthew for 5 years. 2 daughters, Lila (16 months) and Grace (2 months) Stay-at-home mom, was a dental hygienist before kids. From the Minot area originally.
Here are my random, not necessarily spiritual comments. I apologize now for any spelling errors through out this study.
"Helper" I've been pondering and trying to work on that the last few days. Matthew mentioned, in jest, I'm suppose to be helping him not taking control. When I hear "help" I think he needs to ask for things. If I waited for that we'd be a wreck around here. I struggle because I have certain things that I'd like to get done but I need his help to do so. So I end up always asking for his help and he never asks for mine.
Head covering...good question. A commentary in my Bible says it was Paul's instructions to keep church unity and avoid offending others, not a spiritual command. Just a thought.
I assume Eve knows not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Although Scriptures read that God told Adam the command.
If woman were created for man, should all woman marry? I don't think so after reading some passages in the New Testament, but I still wonder.
When we have children and we don't have a good spiritual leader as a husband/father, are we to assume that role for our children?
Many of my questions are my thoughts. I'm not necessarily looking for answers, nor are they all based on my personal experience.
other thoughts from a study I'm reading to go along with the blog...Thank you, Karisa. "helper" is an exalted position. God is our helper. Psalm 54:4 "Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me." Hebrews 13:6 "We say in confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?'" Jesus came to serve, not be served Matt 20:28. The one who gives recieves more than he gives Acts 20:36. One of the gifts of the Spirit is the gift of help I Cor. 12:28.
I am still trying to figure out the whole to marry or not to marry. God created male and female. So it seems one should marry. But then in the New Testament doesn't Paul say if you can remain single it is better to do so. Jesus was single. Obviously I'm married and am content in doing so, but in 1 Cor it says the married have worldly distractions of pleasing their spouse not the Lord. I believe the Bible does not contradict itself and I know it is not a sin to remain single or be married. It all just seems confusing as I prefer black/white vs. gray.
I'll try to comment right after I read, so my comments don't tend to ramble and are shorter. After a few days my thoughts never seem to end. Maria
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. You brought up a lot of good points.
My personal thoughts (not based on Biblical research, mind you) on the whole to marry/not to marry: no, women don't HAVE to marry to fulfill their God-given role. I think God calls many women to serve Him in other capacities that require them to remain single.
As far as having a husband who ISN'T being the spiritual leader, I'd say YES the mom should step in IF the father is not a Christian. If the father IS a Christian and simply not doing his job, then he needs to be spurred on to do so--the woman should not usurp that role.
The commentary Amy and I checked tied the head-covering thoughts very closely with the headship thoughts. The head-covering was to be a sign that the woman was under the headship of man and behaving in such a way that reflected that. (The explanation was much more in-depth, but I think that's what it boiled down to...right, Amy?)
Thanks for the Scripture contributions related to the "helper" aspect. :)
I agree that it would be nice if others introduced themselves. I am Becca Steen, have been married for 2 years, have no kids yet, and am in my last year of nursing school.
I think these verses lay it out simply that I was made for my Husband. I am to travel through life with him as his helper, which I think is a harder and more admirable job than it may seem at face value. If I am honest with myself I find much more satisfaction when asking the questions, Can I help you or how can I help, than if I do my own thing. Plus, when my husband asks for help with something, it seems like a compliment because when he asks me to do something it is usually because he trusts me to help him. Personally, I get frustrated when he doesn't let me help him.
Another thought is that when God instructed MAN about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil...this may be an example of how God chose our husband to be the spiritual leader...not the other way around. I don't think our culture would buy into that thought. As far as if a Husband is not fulfilling a Godly role or is actually misguiding the family or isn't even a Christian, it seems as though the wife still has the duty to fulfill/rely on God as a wife/Christian as God is the ultimate head, not man. This seems especially important as far as teaching children.
Excellent. Thanks for those thoughts, Becca. I wasn't really sure what to make of the fact that God instructed man but not woman. Very insightful. Thanks for sharing. :)
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