God, What is a Woman?

Whoever thought that the most difficult question of our day would be: “What is a woman?” In a recent Senate confirmation hearing for a nominee for the Supreme Court a senator asked the judge, “Can you provide a definition of the word ‘woman’?” The response was just a simple “no.” In response to a follow up question the judged explained, “I can’t. Not in this context. I am not a biologist.”

We are living in strange and confusing times. But this judge is not alone. According to Robert Innes, a bishop for the Church of England, “there is no official definition, which reflects the fact that until fairly recently definitions of this kind were thought to be self-evident, as reflected in the marriage liturgy.” Later he added, “There are complexities associated with gender identity …be very sensitive…required additional care when attempting to define the word… re-examine our boundaries.” Gert Comfrey, a non-binary gender affirming therapist with a Master of Theological Studies from Vanderbilt University, said: “I’m not a woman, so I can’t really answer that.” University professors have been asked this question and have struggled to give an answer. So, the man on the street is asked the question and also responds: “That’s a stumper …. I honestly don’t know.”

So far, dictionaries have not had to be updated to add to the confusion. Dictionary.com defines a woman as “adult female person.” It is defined as “an adult female human being” according to the Oxford Dictionary. These might sound like common sense answers for most people. Even in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1990 movie “Kindergarten Cop,” a toddler defines a woman. What was universally accepted and eternally set in nature is now unknowable.

The new definitions are of no help in defining a woman. The LGBT Foundation Website defines a woman as “A woman is someone who identifies as a woman.” This is a circular definition that is about as helpful as “a dog is an animal though identifies as a dog.”

Perhaps to answer the question as to what a woman is, it is wisest to seek out the universe’s leading and eternal expert on women: God.

God Expects Us to Know the Definition of a “Woman”

Throughout the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, God gives commands and statements which imply that He expects His readers to already know what a woman is. According to Exodus 21:22, a woman is someone who can get pregnant and have a husband. “If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follows, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman’s husband imposes on him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.” God commanded that women and men dress differently in the Law of Moses. “A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 22:5). God expects honor from women. “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised” (Proverbs 31:30).

The New Testament is written with the same expectation that the readers would understand what a woman is. Jesus said, “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Being inspired by the Holy Spirit Paul wrote, “women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise, also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due” (Romans 1:26,27).

“For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man” (1 Corinthians 11:7). God expects men and women to have differences in hair length. “Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him? But if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her; for her hair is given to her for a covering” (1 Corinthians 11:14,15). The role of a woman is compared to the role of the church in relationship to Christ as the Bridegroom and the church as the bride (Eph. 5:22-33). A woman’s role in the church is different than that of a man. “And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence” (1 Timothy 2:12). A woman cannot be an elder or a deacon in the church leadership, because she is not a man. Nor can she be the husband of one wife (1 Timothy 3:2,12). God’s Word cannot be understood and followed without having a proper understanding of the definition of a woman.

God’s Definition of a “Woman”

• A Woman is Created by God

The Divine defining of a woman begins in Genesis when God made man and woman on the sixth day of creation. “So God created man…male and female He created them…He made into a woman” (Gen. 1:27; 2:22).

• A Woman is Created in God’s Image and Likeness

God made man and woman different from animals in that they were living souls from the beginning. “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” (Gen. 1:26-27). The woman is like the man in that she, too, is made in the image and likeness of God. A woman is both a physical being and a spiritual being. She possesses many of the attributes of God her Creator, since she is made in His image. However, no woman is God or a god.

• A Woman is Created Female, Not Male

Today, it has been argued by some, there are over sixty genders. God created only two. “ …male and female created he them” (Gen. 1:27). Just two genders were created: Male and Female thus binary not non-binary. A doctor cannot assign gender at birth, the Creator did first at creation and from then on through natural procreation at conception. When a child is conceived in the womb, two people play a part, the mother and the father. The infant has 23 pairs of chromosomes. Twenty-two are called autosomes and are arranged in decreasing order. The last pair are sexual chromosomes. If the child has two X chromosomes, the child is a female. If the child has and X and a Y chromosome, the child is a male. These chromosomes remain the same throughout a person’s entire life. Taking hormones does not change the chromosomes. Having a sex-change operation does not change the chromosomes. Calling someone by “another gender” does not change the chromosomes.

In the past, those who had trouble accepting their gender were considered to suffer from a condition known as “gender dysphoria.” This is “a state of severe distress or unhappiness caused by feeling that one’s gender identity does not match one’s sex as registered at birth” (Oxford). The Cambridge Dictionary now defines woman as “1. an adult female human being: 2. an adult who lives and identifies as female though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth.” Even those who support the transgender movement have had difficulty. Ironically, if you want to support the transgender movement by buying a shirt, the store will sell you one in either male or female sizes.

• A Woman is Created for Man

Initially, God created Adam on day six. The animals had companions, but Adam did not. God wanted Adam to recognized that he did not have a female counterpart as did the animals. “And the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him’” (Gen. 2:18). A woman is of a higher order than the animal kingdom. This Hebrew word for “helper” elevates the woman as the completion of creation itself. Paul adds, “nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man” (1 Corinthians 11:9).

• A Woman is Created from Man

God made the animals and Adam from the dust of the ground. But woman was a special creation by God for man. “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: ‘This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” (Gen. 1:21-23). The Hebrew for “man” is ish and “woman” is ishah, because Eve was “taken out of” the man’s side. Paul also explained, “for man is not from woman, but woman from man” (1 Corinthians 11:8).

• A Woman is Created to Be a Wife to a Husband

When God brought Eve to Adam, He explained that this represented a new relationship and a new family. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Gen. 2:24). Women are to be wives in submission to their husbands and husbands are to love their wives as Christ loved the church (Eph. 5:23f). “Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them” (Colossians 3:18-19). Sex between a man and a woman is to take place only within a monogamous relationship. “Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband” (1 Corinthians 7:2). Homosexual relationships even in marriage is condemned by God. “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination” (Leviticus 18:22).

• A Woman is Created to be a Mother to Children

After Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, God gave consequences to both the man and the woman. “To the woman He said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children” (Gen. 3:16). Every human who has ever lived is a descendent of Adam and Eve. “The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20). Eve bore Cain and Abel (Gen. 4:1-2). All humans, with the exception of Jesus’ virgin birth, are made in the womb of the mother via procreation. “For you created my inmost being, you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Psalm 139:13-14). The English word “woman” is a compound of womb and man. The beautiful and painful (see 1 Thess. 5:3) experience of childbirth belongs to women exclusively. There is not one man in the pages of God’s Word who ever gave birth to a child. It is an impossibility, even today.

What about women who are barren? This does not mean such women are not female. In fact, if she is barren there is something physically wrong. This exception of being barren thus proved the rule – normally women bare children. Women nurse their babies. If she cannot do so due to a medical condition or a double mastectomy, she is no less of a woman or a mother. If a woman goes to her doctor and tells her she cannot get pregnant, she will run tests on the woman to find out why. If a man goes to his doctor and complains that he cannot get pregnant, the doctor might run tests on the man’s brain. What his doctor cannot do is give him an operation or hormones which will allow him to become a woman and a mother.
Some have argued that some men have already given birth to children. These are biological women who have identified as men. When a transgender gives birth to a child, they have demonstrated, they are in fact a woman.

• A Woman was Created to be Honored as “the Weaker Vessel”

After Peter outlines the role of a woman in marriage, Peter addresses, “husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered” (1 Pet. 3:7). What does it mean she is “weaker”? It’s not that she is mentally or spiritually weaker. It may reflect a difference in emotions. Her emotional being is usually much different than a man. However, it can be clearly seen in the physical differences between a man and a woman. Women have a smaller skeletal frame (bones) than a man’s. She will have a smaller waist and rounder hips than a man. A woman normally has less hair on her body than a man. Her muscle mass is less than a man’s. Her chemical make-up is different: estrogen versus testosterone.

Males who identify as females are being permitted to compete in women’s athletics. Transgender swimmer, Lia Thomas, was allowed to compete in the NCAA women’s swimming championship. He is setting records in swimming against women, because he is a man. He beat out biological females in many of his races, which many say can be attributed to his larger size and stature as a biological male. CeCe Tefler is setting records in track and field against women, because he is a man. Mary Gregory is setting records in power lifting against women, because he is a man. Rachel McKinnon is setting cycling records against women, because he is a man. Women and men are different and cannot compete in almost all athletic events on a fair or equitable level. “The U.S. women’s national team played the FC Dallas U-15 boys academy team on Sunday and fell 5-2″ (CBSports.com on Apr 4, 2017). Fifteen-year-old male soccer players can beat the best adult female team.

How To Respond?

Christians are living in a strange, new world. How should we react? How can saints save themselves from this perverse generation?

• Use the Creator’s Definition

First, using the passages listed above, let God (the Creator of men and women) define what is a woman. “A woman is a special creation above the animals; made in the Divine image of likeness as a spiritual being and physically an adult human female. Created to be a suitable helper to man and is from man. She is to be a wife and mother and honored as the weaker vessel.”

• Beware of the Devil’s Devices

Transgenderism is not a product of the Creator or any part of His teaching. It is of the Devil. Paul warned, “lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11). A device is “a thought, a perception, an idea, a cogitation, an inward reasoning.” First device was to play with the definition of “die” and lie to the woman. Satan tried to pervert and de-create God’s Creation from the beginning with lies and he is still at it today saying God is a liar. Satan is trying to tell us, “God did not just make them male and female.”

• Do Not Buy the Lie

Jesus warned the Pharisees, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it” (John 8:44). Do not buy into their lie. Do not call them a” man” or a “he” or “him”, when they are a woman. Do not call a man a “woman” or a “she” and a “her”. We are being told that “when someone tells you who they are you should believe them.” You cannot and should not believe something, just because someone says so. There are times when we can and should give someone the benefit of the doubt. This is not one of them.

Years ago, I was visiting a brother in Christ at an Air Force Hospital on the fourth floor and west wing. While in the waiting room a man over seven feet tall came over to me and put out his hand to shake mine and introduced himself, “Hi. I’m Jesus Christ.” I was not foolish enough to argue with him, but I was not dumb enough to believe him.

• Defend the Truth

Matt Walsh, in his documentary, “What is a Woman?” interviewed a man about his definition, explaining he was trying to get to the truth of the matter. The man being interviewed had a doctorate, but instead of answering the question, he protested, “Yeah… well I’m really uncomfortable with that language of, like, getting to the truth…It sounds, actually, deeply transphobic to me and if you keep probing, we’re going to stop the interview… You keep invoking the word ‘truth’ which is condescending and rude.” Remember postmodernist are relativists, when it comes to ethics.

Christians are commanded to defend the truth and be ready to answer. “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear (1 Peter. 3:15). Are you prepared to defend the truth about God the Creator of males and females?

• Share the Gospel

Jesus claimed, “and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). It is important to God that we obey His commands. Many of these commands demand we understand the difference between a man and a woman. In fact, the plan of salvation is based upon the seed of woman.

God made man and woman. Woman and man believed a lie and sinned. God made a plan to save them from their sins. In the first messianic prophecy, God promised, “and I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15). Jesus is the Seed of Woman. “Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ. …And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:16, 29). “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (Galatians 4:4). Mary, a woman and a virgin, brought forth a son. He was the Son of God. He came from Heaven, lived, died for man’s sin on a cross, and resurrected from the dead, so all might have the chance at eternal life.

Trans-people need the Gospel. They are broken and lost by sin. Our end game should not be to rub their nose in their brokenness or overlook their sinful delusions, but to lift their eyes to the hope that can finally heal in Jesus Christ.

– Daniel R. Vess