Women of the Bible - The Beginning

The Beginning seems like a good place to start, and indeed it is. While the creation seems rather straightforward it has large theological ramifications. The text is divided into three pieces, two accountings of creation followed by the accounting of the fall. (I'll handle the fall in my next post.)

Genesis 1.1-2.3, the creation of everything...a summary
Genesis 2.4-2.25, the creation of humans...a detailed account
Genesis 3.1-3.24, the fall

Now the first accounting of creation summarizes the creation of humans into one verse (Genesis 1.27):
27 So God created human beings in his own image.
In the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
While the second accounting gives much detail about the creation of people, this first account boils it down to the two most important aspects of the creation of people.
1. Humans are created in the image of God.
2. Humans were created with two types: male and female.
It is so important that we get these two points that each one is written twice!
In this accounting there is no difference between male and female humans. Both were created by God and both were created in God's image. Both were commanded to rule over the earth and to populate it. They are not in opposition nor indistinguishable, but rather they live in community with one another in common commission and function.

The second accounting of creation focuses on the creation of the humans, leaving out most of the rest of the creation. First, God creates a beautiful garden then He places the man in the garden to watch over it. He gives the man one rule: don't eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God sees that the man needs a companion and parades the animals in front of the man so that he sees this need as well. Then God creates the woman from the man's rib and the man cries out in excitement at his new companion!

Some claim this second creation story demonstrates men's authority over women. There are four main points to this argument:
1. Man was created first and therefore has dominion over women.
2. Man named woman, demonstrating his authority over her.
3. Woman was created from man's rib, demonstrating her dependence on him.
4. Woman was created to be a helper to Man, indicating his authority over her.

The flaws in these arguments are simple:
1. There is no inherent dominion on the grounds of creation order. The animals don't rule over the people and the fish and birds don't rule over the land animals, yet that was the order they were created in.
2. God commanded the man to name all the animals but God does not give the man the authority to name the woman. On the contrary, the man names the woman (and also himself) out of spontaneous joy at the sight of her!
3. If we apply this rule to man, then he is dependent on and ruled by the dirt he was created from...which makes no sense at all.
4. This is a complete misrepresentation of the word “helper.” This exact Hebrew word is used several times in the Hebrew Bible to refer to God, i.e. God is our helper. If this word “helper” indicates dominance or authority then God would have to be under the authority of those people He was a helper to. Of course, this is asinine.

The fact is the second creation story is really about the woman. She is the climax and the pinnacle of the creation. She gets five verses describing the need for her and then the creation of her. Notice the man gets zero verses! He is just placed in the garden. If there is any indication of superiority in this chapter it is that the woman (who is the only creature who is created from another creature) is the crown-jewel of God's creation.
The fact is, from both creation stories we see a perfect world, just as God created it and intended it. In this world there is no distinction in terms of role or authority between the man and the woman.