Was God a Misogynist?

There is a question that many Christian women have which is seldom asked. The question is this: “Why did God discriminate against women in the law of Moses?” Let’s consider one point in particular, which may be found in Numbers 5:11-31, the Law of Jealousy.

In summary, if a husband had a suspicion that his wife had committed adultery, then he was allowed to take her to the priest. The priest would question her, give her a potion of water mixed with the dirt of the tabernacle area, have her repeat an oath, and have her drink this potion. The oath stated that if she had committed adultery and was now denying it, then she would incur a sickness that would result in her miscarriage of any children from that point.

The point of contention is that no such law was for men. In contrast, men could have multiple wives; there was also a sexual laxity that was accorded to men and not to women. In terms of equity and fairness it seems that the law should allow the same rights and privileges. Why did God allow and codify such a double standard?

There is no explanation in Scripture. Either we have to assume that God is a misogynist (the typical response, particularly from unbelievers), or there is another reason which simply is not given in Scripture. The purpose of this short essay is to explore two of those possible reasons. Without question this is a risky step. The Scriptures state that God has revealed to us what we need to know, and the secret things He has kept to Himself (Deuteronomy 29:29). Needless to say, I am a bit nervous with the idea of imputing to God what His motives are or should be. I do want to emphasize these are possible reasons, and there is no dogmatic attitude on my part concerning these. I trust the reader will grant me leniency in this.

As any parent or child care worker will admit, it is not possible to treat every child exactly the same. Certainly principles and guidelines will be in place for all children, but how all those are enforced and any exceptions allowed will vary per child. There are some children in which firmness must be exercised from the very start; otherwise, he will take over. The expression I remember is “Give him an inch, and he will think he is a ruler.” In contrast there are other children that if you look at them in a cross manner, the child will collapse as if beaten. Also the group dynamics will vary with children. For some groups different rules will work more efficiently. As mentors for children our goal is to help them to reach their potential. As the saying goes, “That means different strokes for different folks.”

Furthermore, there are times in which discipline is public and other times, private. As well as discipline, motivation may work better for some in public and for others in private. It is common that private discipline or private motivation is not known by others; otherwise, it would not be private.

In Numbers 5 the procedure for the woman was a public event. Others could guess rather easily what was going on. Since men did not have to go through this public embarrassment, it is assumed (and reasonably so) that women were being discriminated against. Yet, there is another assumption that is also reasonable. God is disciplining the man privately.

An immediate objection to the last comment could easily be, “But the woman was humiliated simply for a suspicion. Since God would know if a man committed adultery and not simply suspect it, then the husband would not have to face that humiliation. Isn’t that unfair and discriminating? Even if God disciplined the man privately for his adultery, he gets off totally free on any suspicion of adultery.”

I agree with that, which leads me to my second reason. Prior to stating the reason, an observation of mine needs to be stated first. Not only in Scripture but also in practice, women as a class are more serious about their commitment to the Lord then men. It was women who supported Jesus financially. The women who loved Jesus outnumbered the male disciples at the crucifixion. The women were the first ones who went to the tomb and witnessed the resurrected Jesus. The reader may continue with his own illustrations of women in Scripture.

Beyond the Bible, women far outnumber men in the church. Furthermore the single spouse who attends church is probably a woman by a ratio of 9 to 1, if not higher. When volunteers are requested, women are usually the first. Christian mothers are usually the one who prays with the child, reads Bible stories, and displays a godly life for the child.

In addition, my observation of women with more than 40 years of being a practicing Christian is that they have an allegiance, devotion, and commitment to the Lord which excel men’s. Statements from other church leaders have confirmed this observation. The Barna Group provides formal statistical validation. See http://www.barna.org/faith-spirituality/400-who-is-active-in-group-expressions-of-faith-barna-study-examines-small-groups-sunday-school-and-house-churches for an example.

The question which I wish to suggest an answer to is this, “Why do women seemed to have a more acute spiritual commitment and possible awareness? The suggested answer to this question coincides with the second reason why God is not discriminating against women. Please note that I am not saying God does not discriminate. He is discriminating; however, He is discriminating for women as opposed to against women.

Discrimination has very unpleasant connotations with it so that it is difficult to understand discriminating for someone; yet, we do it and allow it. Let’s assume you have two children, a boy and the girl. The boy is very good in mathematics whereas his sister is a musical prodigy. Will you as a parent make a decision that favors the boy in mathematics and one that favors the girl in music? For instance, will the educational gifts differ for the two? If the school offers a special class that favors the giftedness of either child, will that upset you? If you hired a special tutor or teacher, would you hire a mathematical teacher for the son and a music teacher for the daughter? All of those are acts of discrimination.

To discriminate, at its root, means to distinguish. Obviously we can discriminate based on social prejudice, or we can discriminate on the means and methods that will help others. To discriminate for someone is to distinguish a means or method that will help the other person.

I have suggested that God discriminated for women in Numbers 5 in regard to the Law of Jealousy. How did He do that? First, let’s consider an analogy.

You are the coach of a track team. You will have higher expectations for some of the members rather than other members. These higher expectations are based upon the abilities and giftedness of the members. As a coach you do your best to have all the members do their best. Those who are particularly gifted can be pushed harder. The ones you are pushing have the talent to win scholarships in college. To help them you also give them special exercises to do at home. For example’s sake, let’s assume you have them do fingertip pushups.

When the team gets together for practice you query the special group, asking, “Have you been doing the extra exercises at home?” Of course, everyone says “Yes.” As you watch them in practice, you begin to suspect that one is not telling the truth. As a good coach, your motive has been to help this child excel in the sport; and in the future, you put the child to a test. You do this publicly because you want the other gifted athletes to see this. In our example you have the child do fingertip pushups. If the child has been doing them, then he will have no problem. If he has not been doing them, he could pull or strain a muscle trying to prove he had done what he had said. If the track member messes up, then the other members who have been given the special exercises will probably be motivated to continue them so that they won’t be called out. A member who messed up will probably not do it again.

Let’s apply the analogy to the Law of Jealousy. Women are the special group of athletes, but they are spiritual athletes. They have a natural ability for pleasing God. Because they have this extra ability, which seems to be inborn, then God has a higher standard for them. This standard is not beyond their ability and will bring more honor to them.

The Lord discriminated for women because He knew they had the wherewithal to respond to the higher calling. In stark contrast the Lord did not give this standard to men because He knew they would terribly fail. When strength is the key element, then men, as a class, dominate. When beauty, kindness, gentleness, and a hunger for God are the key elements, then women, as a class, dominate.

Is God a misogynist? No. Does He discriminate? Yes ... but He discriminates for.