Mark

I would just like to import some important terminology so you can all understand my position, because from your comments i fear i haven’t been very clear- for this i apologise.
1. I will now try to use ‘Total Equality’ to mean that male and female are equal in essence and function.
2. I will also use ‘Equal in essence’ in relation to understanding how i think male and female are equal in essence only, not function.

What i think is clear with Gen 1:26-27 is that male and female are equal in essence. I believe this to be so because i understand our image to be in relation to our souls not physical differences. However i do not see anything in this explicit text or how it is understood throughout the rest of scripture to come to the conclusion that we are equal in function. Likewise i do not see anything in this explicit text to show hierarchy or authority.

Gen 2:23 likewise is evidence in my mind that we are equal in essence, but again there is no indication to show equality in function.

Gen 2:24 i don’t think has anything to do with equality in essence or function, because it is never understood this way by other authors in the bible. It is a picture of marriage, sexual relations and Christ’s coevenant with the church.

Therefore i come to the conclusion that we are indeed equal in essence but there is nothing in Gen 1-3 to show or explain total equality. But there is evidence to show that Adam and Eve do indeed have different functions which i have shown already. Whether the significance of these roles indicates any type of authority is another question.

I would also like to re-state that i do not see any text explicitly in Gen 1-3 to state hierarchy or authority. I understand from other texts which we will further discuss as to why i can ‘read into’ Gen 1-3 that Adam was indeed the leader.

So to conclude
1. We are equal in essence in my opinion.
2. Nothing explicitly in Gen 1-3 shows equality in function
3. Nothing explicitly in Gen 1-3 shows authority between genders
4. There is most definately different roles for Adam and Eve.

So i ask this question to egalitarians. Do you agree that there are different roles/functions for Adam and Eve? Can we agree that your view of total equality and my view of authority are both read into this text from our greater understanding of the bible.