Female Supremacy Articles - Page 10

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The first pages of the Bible describe the origin and results of impaired judgment. At the onset of human mortality, God Himself declared that weeds and thorns would sprout from the earth, pain would complicate childbirth, and men would rule their wives (Genesis 3:16-19). Although most of us work to minimize the curse of weeds in our yards and the pain in childbirth, some of us have not seen the subordination of women as part of the same curse. As a result, we have seen male dominance as a principle to affirm rather than a problem to be minimized. Yet the Bible itself shows that in circumstances of diminished capacity, God is flexible in His approach to the complementing roles of men and women.

• Abraham is widely regarded as "the father of us all" (Romans 4:16). His legacy is rich in faith but also includes impaired reason and flawed judgment. In several examples of diminished capacity, both he and his wife Sarah made the mistake of following one another's advice (Genesis 12:11-20; 16:1-4). Along the way, however, Abraham learned that it is not beneath a man to submit to an imperfect woman. In a difficult family dispute, the Lord told Abraham to defer to Sarah's demands (Genesis 21:9-12).

• Abigail is an example of a woman married to a man whose pride blinded his judgment. Rather than submitting to her husband's stubbornness, she protected her family by providing care and assistance to David and his hungry soldiers (1 Samuel 25).