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Articles
GenesisIn the beginning, there was peace and equality.The book of Genesis is the main reason I walked away from God many years ago. It then became the reason I came back to Him later as I started to read and
learn about what His plan was for the human He created in His image. When I saw
it in a new light, God became the magnificent, loving, and amazing Father I
somehow always knew was out there. I came to realize He loved women as much as
men and expected the same good things from His daughters as His sons.
The Lord created a human in His own image. He never calls this creature “Adam” as if it were a proper name. The word adam is Hebrew for human, mankind. God made adam in His image. He made them male and female and blessed His creation five times over to be fruitful, to multiply, to subdue and replenish the earth, and have dominion over all (Genesis 1:28).This male-female creature, made in the image of God, was the ruler over the earth and proclaimed “good” by the Lord. Then, for reasons unknown, this creation became “not good” when only one human walked in the Garden. God decided it was not good for one person to be alone. So, in the beginning, there was a created human--male and female. The first named person in history was Eve, the Mother of all living. The human named her, even though he isn’t designated as male until Genesis 2:24 after the woman is taken from his side. After that event, the remaining creature is called isha which means male. The woman is ishshah. The human was created first, and then a woman was taken from his side; the male was formed first, then the female. The word tsela is always referred to as “rib” in this verse. For some reason, though, it is only translated as “rib” in Genesis. It would seem from the translation that the woman was made from one small piece of the adam, but we know women are much more complicated than that! No, the word tsela is translated everywhere else in the Bible as “side,” or “plank.” She was pulled out and formed from the side of the adam.
Dr. Susan Hyatt says in her book, In the Spirit We're Equal, regarding ezer kenegdo: “In Genesis 2:18, the word ‘helpmeet’ does not occur. The Hebrew expression ezer kenegdo appears, meaning ‘one who is the same as the other and who surrounds, protects, aids, helps, supports.’ There is no indication of inferiority or of a secondary position in an hierarchical separation of the male and female ‘spheres’ of responsibility, authority, or social position.” You all know the story. “Adam” knew he wasn’t supposed to eat from the
Tree because God told him so. Yet, according to Genesis 3:6, there they were—Eve
with “Adam” right beside her. They both ate. They see they’re naked, and God
questions them. God then tells this hapless couple how it’s going to be because
of their faux pas, but He never curses them. What does He curse? He curses the
serpent, and He curses the ground upon which the man must work. He tells the
woman that her teshuqa, mistranslated as “desire,” will be for her husband, and
he will rule over her. The man will work the soil for his sustenance. Katharine Bushnell translated this verse in her book, God’s Word to Women, to
mean, “You are turning away to your husband, and he shall rule over you.” In
other words, the woman turned away from God and chose her husband over Him. Because of this choice, Eve’s husband becomes her superior. God sent “Adam” out
of the Garden, but He never sent Eve. She chose to go with the man. In scripture, God stresses the enmity between the woman and the serpent. Woman will produce the One that will crush the serpent’s head. What better way for Satan to battle woman than to orchestrate the perception of her as insignificant in the Army of the Lord?
Sources used: The Bible; The Interlinear Bible, Hebrew Greek English, Jay P. Green, Sr.; God's Word to Women by Katharine C. Bushnell; In the Spirit We're Equal by Dr. Susan Hyatt; www.godswordtowomen.org; www.crosswalk.com and www.scripture4all.org (Original Artwork by Karen K. Davidenko)
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Karen
K. Davidenko is an artist, writer, minister, wife, and mom. She and
husband Glenn met at UTDallas, have been married since 1982 and have 2 boys.
Her relationship with the Lord was fully realized during the illness and death
of her mother in 1997. At that time, Karen sought Him as her refuge and
fully came to accept Jesus into her life. 
When
the Lord decided to take (or separate) the woman from the human, He wanted to
make a “helper suitable” for the man (Genesis 2:18). Not a “help meet” or a
servant, He wanted the man to have a “help” or ezer, the same word David uses to
refer to God in the Psalms (Psalm 33:20, Psalm 70:5, and nine more psalms). In
that realization, would we then assume the Lord is man’s servant or is in any
way subordinate to us? Hardly. The word “suitable” is negdo, or kenegdo, which
means, “parallel to,” “before,” or “in front of.”
The
Christian world now, for the most part, chooses to live in a post-Fall manner. At any time, the Body of Christ could choose to live pre-Fall. Jesus came to
restore us to pre-Fall conditions (Romans 5:15), yet many would continue in the
comfort and hierarchy of the Fall. It’s hard for us to allow one another to walk
in the Lord or to let others do what He says. Humans have a hierarchical leaning
now; someone needs be in charge. The original man and woman never gave us the
chance to see what it might be like to walk together, shoulder to shoulder. Men
are geared to be the boss now, but it takes a big man to listen to others; to
give when he needs to give or stand firm when needed. Women are just as culpable
in the role of the subordinate woman. It’s easier to relinquish control to
someone else because it completely absolves one of responsibility and
accountability. God made humans in His image. Side by side, we are to care for
the earth and all of its creatures in an equal and loving relationship, with our
eyes and hearts turned toward Him.