Cheryl Schatz

Lin,
You said:

It is ironic in many ways. Comps teach that now, in the NC, the husband’s ‘rule’ is good. (They describe it as leadership but it is really rule). They also describe her ‘desire’ in Genesis as usurping his authority which they say makes his rule a bad sort of rulership.

This exactly what my next post will be on so I will wait to comment there in this area.

You describe her ‘desire’ as good and his rule as bad.

I say they are both bad. I have explained before I believe it is actually more like turning toward Adam and away from God. (Or her depending on Adam for needs that only God can meet)

This is where I believe it is very important to look at the text and to see where the connection between words develops the meaning. It appears to me that you are saying that her desire is spiritual so that she gets her spiritual needs met through Adam rather than God.

However when we look at the inspired words we see that the “desire” is connected to something physical not something spiritual. Look at it carefully.

“In pain you will bring forth children, yet….” This talking about the pain that she will experience but despite the pain she will do something unexpected…she will desire the man.

“In pain you will bring forth children, yet your desire will be for your husband…”

The conjunction word “w” is connecting something physical (pain) to something physical (desire for the one who has brought you into the pain). There is nothing in this passage that even hints that she is desiring him spiritually. It is a physical context, not spiritual.

The next part of the connection is also physical.

Yet your desire will be for your husband. And he will rule over you.

This connection goes from a physical desire (to be with the husband) to something unexpected, he will take his rule over her. He physically takes dominion over her just as he physically takes dominion over the animals.

If her desire/turning is good then it is the same as the desire/turning that comps NOW think a woman should have for her husband as in his being her leader or authority.

I disagree. Comps believe that her responsibility is to give up her independent life and to rely on her husband for all spiritual decisions. More about this one in the next post.

That is her role…to turn toward her husband as the leader. They teach this as Christian virtue. This ‘desire’ or turning actually puts him in the role of prophet, priest and king.

However there is nothing in the Genesis 3:16 passage about the wife following a leader. The issue is physical not about a spiritual leader.

What I believe is far different than what comps believe. I believe that her desire is not sinful but is an unexpected positive reaction after her pain. His will to rule her is not positive. It is a sign of his sin nature.

Now fast forward to today. Women today and not like Eve who did not have a sin nature. We not only have been convinced that a man is to be our spiritual leader and our spiritual inter-mediator between God and us but we naturally look to him for what we need to get from God alone. This is not good. We women are not like Eve, we are like Adam.