Church of Christ: Lessons & Truth

10/05/2026

Why are there so many different "Christian" churches and so many different answers to questions about the bible?

This is a very good post because it exposes division aka denomination/s. To denominate means to divide. Jesus was not double minded, he did not teach different views and he did not play favoritism. He created the law, the one and only, and we all must obey the same laws. It really is that simple.

1st Cor. 1:9-13 addresses the very issue of denominations (divisions). Most do not want truth, they want to follow their version of what they want to believe instead of obeying Jesus' one and only truth.

And even worse are those that aren't even within a divided version that study and may easier find the truth but completely outside of it such as atheists, muslims, buddhists, sikhs, hindu, etc. They are very lost.

And let us not forget that Matthew 7:13-14 are the very verses that tell us few will enter heaven and most will perish because most are not (truly) seeking Christ. Most simply reject Christ and that includes those that have denominated aka divided.

Matthew 7:22-24 also addresses the divided (denominations). Jesus will tell them he does not know them, that is because they did not follow Jesus, they followed a denomination, a division; a version they wanted to believe instead of obeying Jesus' one and only way.

The bible is not a checklist of what we want, what we choose to obey and disobey. We most be obedient in all Jesus commands.

A great example is capital punishment. I know Christians against capital punishment.

The problem is God ordained and commanded capital punishment for certain crimes, particularly murder. It was in the old law and some was carried over into the new law.

Because God commanded it that means the Christians that obey also must accept it and obey it, be in favor of it. Those they do not are disobeying God's command and are in danger.

We cannot pick and choose, We must obey all the commands/laws.
I do not want to hear excuses such as "I do not like that" or "I believe..."

It does not matter what you, nor anyone else may, believe; it is about God and what he commands. If you find yourself not agreeing, then YOU must change. Only narcissists would think God is wrong and should change based on their feelings.

Nope, it does not work that way. It is us that must realize we are wrong and most renew our minds (Romans 12:2), setting our thinking in favor of God, not against it.

I was a criminal. I wanted to believe what I wanted to believe. I have learned I am not God nor wise, just as everyone else. I have learned I am just a stupid human and I need God and his guidance. So I do not want to hear excuses.

Obey God, in full and truth, or else. Stop being a know-it-all, stop being stubborn. Change your ways; or else.

(A study on capital punishment: https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/should-a-christian-support-capital-punishment/)

Christ is the way, only Christ (John 14:6). No one else. Jesus estavlished the law. Jesus sacrificed and died on the cross, no one else. Christianty is Christ's. The church belongs to Christ and Christ only. He is the mediator, the law maker, the way. We obey him, not what we want to believe. We cannot divide from his truth. we cannot twit the texts to our liking, we cannot add.to nor take away (Deuteronomy 4:2; Revelation 22:18-19).

We must obey Christ in full and in truth, each and every command/law.
No exceptions.

12/04/2026

TEN Facts About One Cup Controversy - (Aaron Erhardt)

1. Some oppose multiple cups in communion (1)
2. They argue that only one cup was used by Jesus (2)
3. They argue that multiple cups were late addition (3)
4. They argue that the cup (container) represents NT (4)
5. The word “cup” comes from Greek word poterion (5)
6. The word “cup” is used by metonymy for contents (6)
7. The “cup” represents the shed blood (Matt. 26:28) (7)
8. Christians in different places drank of the same cup (😎
9. Multiple cups are authorized by general authority (9)
10. It is sinful to make laws not found in scripture

Footnotes:

1. Opponents of multiple containers are often referred to as “One Cup” advocates.

2. This argument, which says Jesus used only one cup so we must use only one cup, is based on assumption. The Passover Feast provided that each person have his own container. Therefore, Jesus may have had them divide the fruit of the vine into their own containers (Lk. 22:17). Furthermore, since Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper in an upper room (v. 12), does that mean we must eat it in an upper room? What proves too much proves nothing at all!

3. The NT is silent on how communion was served in local churches. It is hard to image, however, that 5,000 Christians all used the same container in the Jerusalem congregation (Acts 4:4).

4. They argue that there are three elements of Lord’s Supper: The unleavened bread (body); the fruit of the vine (blood); and the container (NT). However, the Lord’s Supper has but two elements (1 Cor. 10:16). It is the blood of the cup that ratified NT (Matt. 26:28).

5. Poterion means “…a cup, a drinking vessel…by meton. of the container for the contained, the contents of the cup, what is offered to be drunk” (Thayer, p. 533).

6. Metonymy “is a figure by which one name or noun is used instead of another, to which it stands in a certain relation” (Bullinger, p. 538). Ex: “The pot is boiling,” that is, the water in the pot.

7. The fact that Jesus said the cup was his blood proves that “cup” was used by metonymy for its contents. Also, it could be drunk (Matt. 26:28) and divided (Lk. 22:17).

8. Paul, in Ephesus, wrote to the Corinthians and said they drank of “the cup” (1 Cor. 10:16). Hence, the cup was the contents, not the container. The cup they drank was the fruit of the vine!

9. Multiple cups aid in fulfilling the command to drink the fruit of the vine without changing the very nature of the command. Therefore, they are authorized by general authority.

11/04/2026

SHOW LOVE & CONSIDERATION IN THE HOME



Dear friends,



These quotations remind us to show love and consideration to each other in the home while we can.



"A man never opened the car door for his wife because he felt it was a sissy kind of thing to do and, besides, he was fond of saying, 'She doesn't have two broken arms.'



After many years of marriage, his wife died, and he was heartbroken because he truly loved her. Somehow, as the pallbearers brought her casket out of the funeral service, the husband and his family reached the hearse ahead of them.



The mortician was back a few feet and, since he knew the husband quite well, he called him by name and said, 'Open the door for her, will you?' The man reached for the door handle and then, for one second, froze. He realized he had never opened a car door for her in life.



Now, in her death, it would be the first, last, and only time.



It was a moment when years of regrets came crashing down around him."
(Illustrations Unlimited, by James S. Hewett, p. 338)



"They have fathers who are busy and so weighted down with cares,
That they haven't time to listen to a little child's affairs.
They have mothers who imagine, life could give them, if it would,
Something richer, something better than the joys of motherhood.
So their children learn from strangers, and by strangers' hands are fed,
And the nurse, for so much money, nightly tucks them into bed."

(from "Orphans of the Living")

31/03/2026

Does the Church of Christ Replace Israel?

The short answer is that the Bible shows the church of Christ is the true Israel, not a replacement of Israel, but the remnant of faithful Israel emerging into faith in Jesus (as they were supposed to) and taking on the blessings promised along with Gentiles who were also predicted to join the faithful.

This faithful remnant would transition into a spiritual fellowship and covenant with Jesus Christ. The unbelieving Jews would simply miss out on the blessings promised.

So, rather than a new group replacing an old group, the faithful of God, true Israel, would simply transition into the new covenant (Jer.31:31f) and receive the promised blessings while the unfaithful Israelite transitions into the rejection God promised them.

The church does not replace Israel; it emerges from Israel’s faithful remnant and becomes the continuation and expansion of the true people of God.

1. The Old Testament Expectation: A Faithful Remnant Will Carry the Covenant Forward

The prophets repeatedly teach that “not all physical Israel is the true Israel”, and that God’s promises continue through a “purified remnant”.

Key OT Remnant Texts
Isaiah 10:20–22 — “A remnant will return… though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant will return.” God has always considered unbelieving Israelites to be “not My people”.

We see the remnant emerge in Acts 2 as the true Israel, the “gathered” into His kingdom. Church is the gathered.
Isaiah 6:13 — Israel is like a tree cut down, but the “holy seed” (the remnant) is the stump.

Micah 2:12; 4:6–7 — God gathers the lame, afflicted remnant and makes them His people.

Zephaniah 3:12–13 — The remnant is humble, righteous, and faithful. These are the “blessed” that Jesus described in Matthew 5:1-12.
OT pattern:

Israel as a whole fails → God preserves a faithful remnant → God’s future people arise from that remnant.
This sets the stage for the NT.

2. Jesus and the Apostles: The Church Begins with the Remnant of Israel

Jesus gathers the remnant
His disciples are **Jews**, representing the faithful within Israel.
He calls them the **“little flock”** (Luke 12:32), echoing remnant language.

He says the kingdom is taken from unbelieving Israel and given to a **nation producing its fruits** (Matthew 21:43) — not a different ethnicity, but a faithful people.

Pentecost is the remnant becoming the renewed people of God**
Acts 1–2: The church begins with **faithful Israelites** gathered in Jerusalem.

This fulfills the prophetic promise that God would restore His people through a purified remnant.

12 apostles plus 120 plus 3000 penitent Jews equal the “gathered” (church) in Christ, then growing. Not replacing Israel but demonstrating who is the true Israel (the faithful remnant).

3. Paul’s Explicit Teaching: The Church Is the Remnant + the Grafted‑In Nations**
Paul is the clearest voice on this question.
Romans 9:6–8 — Not all Israel is Israel**

Paul says:
- There is **Israel according to the flesh**, and
- **Israel according to promise** — the true Israel.

This is not replacement; it is **distinction within Israel**(ethnic Israel).
**Romans 11 — The Olive Tree**

Paul’s metaphor is decisive:
- The **olive tree** = the covenant people of God.
- **Unbelieving Jews** are broken off. (Rom.11)
- **Believing Jews** remain — the remnant.
- **Believing Gentiles** are grafted in **to the same tree**.
There is **one tree**, not two.

Gentiles do not replace Israel; they join the faithful Israel.

Galatians 3:7, 29 -- “Those of faith are the **sons of Abraham**.”
- “If you are Christ’s, you are **Abraham’s offspring**, heirs according to promise.”

Ephesians 2:11–22 - Gentiles are:
- Brought **near**
- Made **fellow citizens**
- Joined into **one new man**
- Built on the foundation of the **Jewish apostles and prophets**
This is not replacement; it is “incorporation”.

4. The New Testament’s Names for the Church Are Israel’s Names
The NT applies Israel’s covenant titles to the church:
| OT Israel Title | NT Application to the Church:
“Chosen race” (Deut 7:6) | 1 Peter 2:9 |
“Royal priesthood” (Exod 19:6) | 1 Peter 2:9 |
“Holy nation” (Exod 19:6) | 1 Peter 2:9 |
“People for God’s possession” (Isa 43:21) | Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 2:9 |
“My people” (Hos 2:23) | Romans 9:24–26 |
This is not replacement language — it is **continuity language**.

5. The “Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16)**
Paul blesses:
- “All who walk by this rule” (believers), and
- “the **Israel of God**.”
Most scholars — and the context — understand this as referring to the **church**, especially its Jewish believers, the remnant within it.

Paul is not redefining Israel ethnically; he is identifying the **faithful Israel** within the church.

6. Final Biblical Picture: One People of God, Rooted in Israel, Expanded to the Nations**

The storyline is consistent:

1. **God chooses Israel.**

2. **Israel largely falls into unbelief.**

3. **A faithful remnant remains.**

4. **Jesus gathers that remnant.**

5. **The Spirit forms the church from that remnant.**

6. **Gentiles are grafted into the same covenant people.**

7. **The church becomes the expanded, renewed Israel of God.**
No replacement.
No abandonment (unbelieving Jews abandoned God as always)
No two peoples of God.
Just **one people**, purified and enlarged.

Conclusion (Scripture Only)
The church does not replace Israel. God never accepted the unbelievers of fleshly Israel. They were never His people and still are not.

The church is the faithful remnant of Israel — with believing Gentiles grafted in — becoming the true Israel of God.
This is the consistent testimony of the Law, the Prophets, Jesus, and the Apostles.

The church of Christ is the true Israel of God that entered the New Covenant promised and became the new creation promised. All unbelievers among Jewish heritage simply remained among the “not My people” and were cut off from God and His blessings.They can individually come back into covenant through obedient faith in Jesus the same as all other unbelievers.

There is a change of Priesthood and covenant in Christ, and all spiritual blessings are IN Christ (Eph.1:3,7). If you are outside of Christ, you are not God’s people and have no favor from Him. You must come into Christ through obedient faith in order to be a part of the TRUE Israel of God. TWB (Help from Copilot).

[This is taken from the "Answering Religious Error" page.]

27/03/2026

IS IT WRONG TO DRINK?
anonymous

Drinking beer, wine, whiskey and other beverages which contain alcohol, and therefore make one drunk, is a very old practice.

The first time drinking is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis, chapter 9. Noah, a righteous man, became drunk and lay naked in his tent.

This good man had his sense of right and wrong dulled by the evil effects of drinking. In Genesis 19, we read of another righteous man, Lot, who was overcome by the evil effects of alcohol. While drunk, he had s*xual relations with his own daughters!

Again, a good man lost his sense of right and wrong when under the influence of alcohol. The writer of Proverbs warned: “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler; and whoever is led astray by it is not wise” (Proverbs 20:1).

Some people try to support their sinful habit of drinking by going to the Bible. They point out that some passages in the Bible speak of drinking wine as a good thing(Genesis 14:18; Amos 9:14; Zechariah 10:7, etc).

But there are also many other passages which condemn the drinking of wine (Genesis 9:20,21; 19:30-35; Leviticus 10:8-10; Proverbs 20:1; 23:29-35; 31:4,5; Daniel 1:8; Isaiah 5:22; 28:7; Habakkuk 2:15). How can the drinking of wine be both commended and condemned? Does the Bible contradict itself? If it does, then it cannot be the Word of God!

The Bible does not contradict itself. The Bible is the Word of God.

A correct understanding of the word “wine” in the Bible depends upon the meaning of the words which are translated “wine” in our English Bible.

The Old Testament was first written in the Hebrew language. There are eleven different Hebrew words which are all translated “wine.” The New Testament was first written in Greek. There are two different Greek words which are translated “wine” in our English New Testament.

In his book, Bible Wines, William Patton quotes the Bible scholar, Moses Stuart, who correctly says: “. . .whenever the Scriptures speak of wine as a comfort, a blessing, or a libation to God, and rank it with such articles as corn and oil, they mean, they can only mean, such wine as contained no alcohol that could have a mischievous tendency; that whenever they denounce it, and connect it with drunkenness and reveling, they can only mean alcoholic or intoxicating wine.”

The word “wine” simply refers to the juice of the grape. Whether it means fermented wine, which could make one drunk, or unfermented wine, which would not make one drunk, depends upon the context.

For example, Isaiah 65:8 says: “As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for a blessing is in it.’”

The context makes it very clear that unfermented wine is being spoken of. The cluster refers to the grapes which are still on the vine. It is not possible they could be fermented, and, therefore, intoxicating, while the juice was still in the grapes on the vine.

The Bible is filled with warnings of the dangers of drinking intoxicating wine. The wise man wrote, “Who has woe? Who has sorrows? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long at the wine.

Those who go in search of mixed wine. Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it swirls around smoothly. At the last it bites like a serpent, and stings like a viper.

Your eyes will see strange things. And your heart will utter perverse things. Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying: ‘They have struck me, but I was not hurt; they have beaten me, but I did not feel it. When shall I awake, that I may seek another drink?’” (Proverbs 23:29-35).

The prophet Isaiah spoke of the wicked rulers of his day: “Woe to men mighty at drinking wine. Woe to men valiant for mixing intoxicating drink, who justify the wicked for a bribe, and take away justice from the righteous man” (Isaiah 5:22,23).

Isaiah also condemned the shameful conduct of the priests and prophets in his day: “But they also have erred through wine, and through intoxicating drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink . . . ” (Isaiah 28:7,8).

The prophet, Habakkuk, said: “Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbor, pressing him to your bottle, even to make him drunk, that you may look on his nakedness” (Habakkuk 2:15)!

In the New Testament, there are many strong condemnations of drunkenness. In 1 Corinthians 5:11,13, Paul wrote: “But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is s*xually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner--not even to eat with such a person. . .

Therefore put away from yourselves the evil person.” In 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, Paul lists the sins of which the Corinthians had been guilty before they became Christians. Drunkards are listed along with fornicators, adulterers, homos*xuals, sodomites, thieves, covetous, extortioners, and revilers. Those who are guilty of these things, “will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

In the list of the “sins of the flesh” in Galatians 5:19-21, “drunkenness, revelries, and the like” are included along with such sins as adultery, fornication and murder. It is clearly said: “Those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Some have argued that it is all right to drink as long as one does not get drunk. However, Ephesians 5:18 says: “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation: but be filled with the Spirit.”

According to Young’s Analytical Concordance to the Bible, the verb which is translated: “Do not be drunk” actually means,“ Do not begin to be softened” with wine. Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words defines this verb as: “to make drunk, or to grow drunk (an inceptive verb, marking the process of the state expressed in methuo), to become intoxicated. . . .”

In other words, Paul is saying, “Do not even begin the process of becoming drunk.” (See also Luke 12:45 and 1 Thessalonians 5:7). Since the process of becoming drunk begins with the first drink, then one is forbidden to take even one drink of an alcoholic beverage.

It is a well known fact that people do many evil things while drinking. Hundreds of people are injured and die every day in motorcar accidents which are caused by drunk drivers.

Many violent crimes are committed by those who have been drinking. Drinking alcohol contributes to many of the major health problems facing us today such as heart disease and cancer.

One who wishes to please God will not drink any alcoholic drink, in any amount, for any purpose, at any time! Remember, the process of becoming drunk begins with the first drink. Those who are guilty of drunkenness cannot go to Heaven!

(This was shared from "Refuting Error: Church of Christ" page.)

28/02/2026

https://churchofchristborger.com/2025/10/23/who-are-gods-chosen-people-today/

WHO ARE GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE TODAY? The Bible presents the children of Abraham, specifically the twelve tribes of Israel, as God’s chosen people, selected for a divine purpose: to bring forth the Me…

20/02/2026

20/02/2026

I'm careful with this one because the source is not COC but the point here is still intact as it shows the Jews were God's chosen people in the old testament but that changed with Jesus and now the Christian's are God's chosen people.

Explore whether the Jews are still considered God's chosen people in light of New Testament teachings. Click to delve into this discussion.

06/02/2026

27/01/2026

A WIFE’S “DESIRE” AND A HUSBAND’S “RULE” IN GENESIS 3:16



Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception;

in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children;

and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee

(Gen. 3:16, King James Version).



Adam and Eve sinned in Genesis 3 and God pronounced judgment upon them by adding difficulty, pain, and sorrow to their temporal roles in life. Adam’s role of working with his hands to tend the land and reap its harvest became arduous and exhausting. Eve’s role in bearing children became so painful that labor pains became a metaphor for the most intense suffering of mankind. Eve’s sentence included the statement, “And thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.”



What is the wife’s “desire” and the husband’s “rule” in Genesis 3:16? Whatever it means, is this part of the sentence or curse of sin? Is a man’s leadership over his wife designed to punish her? If it is a blessing for a man to lead his wife, why did God speak these words when pronouncing judgment against Eve?



Consider Various Translations of Genesis 3:16



Here is Genesis 3:16 in several additional translations:



To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;

in pain you shall bring forth children.

Your desire shall be for your husband,

and he shall rule over you”

(English Standard Version).



To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;

with painful labor you will give birth to children.

Your desire will be for your husband,

and he will rule over you”

(New International Version).



He said to the woman, “I will increase your pain and your labor

when you give birth to children.

Yet, you will long for your husband,

and he will rule you”

(God’s Word Translation).



The Amplified Bible is an expansion of the American Standard Version designed to bring out various shades of meaning in the original Hebrew and Greek texts. It translates the passage:



To the woman He said, I will greatly multiply your grief and your suffering in pregnancy and the pangs of childbearing; with spasms of distress you will bring forth children. Yet your desire and craving will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.



Kenneth Taylor’s paraphrase, which amounts to a commentary mixed with a translation, is called The Living Bible. It has strengths and weaknesses but should be used only as a resource when considering the interpretation of passages, not as an actual translation. The way he expressed the passage is very interesting:



Then God said to the woman, “You shall bear children in intense pain and suffering; yet even so, you shall welcome your husband’s affections,

and he shall be your master.”



This indicates God would make the original bond of marriage so strong that it would overshadow the pain of childbearing, so that the original relationship would be preserved not destroyed by her punishment.



Some translations and commentators take the view that the woman’s subjection is part of the curse: The woman’s intense desire and affection for her husband will be disappointed by his domineering and lording it over her. The Easy-to-Read-Version says in the latter part of the verse, “You will want your husband very much, but he will rule over you,” and The Message, billed as an idiomatic translation but really a paraphrase by Eugene H. Peterson, says, “You’ll want to please your husband, but he’ll lord it over you.” Certainly it is true that some men do frustrate their good wives by acting like tyrants, but rather than such an attitude and such abuse being legislated by God to punish women, the Bible is replete with instructions forbidding men to treat their wives in this fashion!



Other translations give the thought a different turn by saying marriage will involve constant tension as husband and wife vie and battle for headship or control. The New English Bible translates the latter part of the verse, “You will want to control your husband, but he will dominate you.” This seems to suggest that marriage will hereafter be something like a boxing or wrestling match in which two competitors struggle to defeat each other. This is contrary to God’s instructions for both husband and wife throughout the Bible.



Genesis 3:16 Reinforces God’s Original Plan



From the beginning God created man as the leader of his family and his home. It is apparent from Genesis 2:18-24 that God created woman to complement man in this vital relationship. The wording of Genesis 2:24 shows that God put man in the role of leadership by the way it expresses him taking the initiative although two parties are involved in marriage: “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Of course, the clear implication is that his complement must also leave her home and cleave to him, but he initiates the marital relationship and thus he is manifestly responsible for leading it properly.



It is helpful to see how the Holy Spirit guided Paul to explain the imperative and the importance of men leading the local church in 1 Timothy 2:8-15:



8 I will therefore that men pray every where,

lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.

9 In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel,

with shamefacedness and sobriety;

not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;

10 But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

11 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.

12 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man,

but to be in silence.

13 For Adam was first formed, then Eve.

14 And Adam was not deceived,

but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.

15 Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing,

if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.



Notice how verse 13 gives a reason men lead in the divine plan and order of things which shows God established this principle from the beginning before there was sin: “For Adam was first formed, then Eve.” Then, verse 14 reinforces that principle by showing that when Eve stepped ahead of Adam by eating the forbidden fruit and introducing it to him, she violated her role and misled Adam. The order of creation preceded the tragedy of sin, and so God ordained man’s leadership from the beginning.



Now, back to Genesis 3:16, God said, “Thy desire shall be to thy husband.” The Pulpit Commentary well explains that the Hebrew word “desire” used here means to have “a vehement longing” for something as in Song of Solomon 7:10 when Solomon’s wife says, “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.” But it may also express simple “deferential submissiveness,” which is how the Jewish scholars understood it about 250-200 B.C. when translating the Hebrew Bible into the Greek Septuagint translation (abbreviated LXX). “Following the LXX. (apostrophe), Murphy explains it as meaning, ‘The determination of thy will shall be yielded to thy husband’” (http://biblehub.com/genesis/3-16.htm).



Whether the emphasis be on intense longing for the husband or on deference to him, the core idea is this: The wife focuses on her husband, yields herself to him, and finds fulfillment in him. Thus, the two lives complement each other as one, the two become one. This is a blessing not a curse and echoes Genesis 2:24, “And they shall be one flesh.”



The statement, “Thy desire shall be to thy husband,” is followed by a parallel statement necessary to complete the meaning: “And he shall rule over thee.” The Pulpit Commentary explains this coordinate concept as follows:



Not merely a prophecy of woman’s subjection, but an investiture of man with supremacy over the woman; or rather a confirmation and perpetuation of that authority which had been assigned to the man at the creation. Woman had been given him as an helpmeet (Genesis 2:18), and her relation to the man from the first was constituted one of dependence. It was the reversal of this Divinely-established order that had led to the fall (Genesis 3:17). Henceforth, therefore, woman was to be relegated to, and fixed in, her proper sphere of subordination. On account of her subjection to man’s authority a wife is described as the possessed or subjected one of a lord (Genesis 20:3; Deuteronomy 20:22), and a husband as the lord of a woman (Exodus 21:3). Among the Hebrews the condition of the female s*x was one of distinct subordination, though not of oppression, and certainly not of slavery, as it too often has been in heathen and Mohammedan countries. Christianity, while placing woman on the same platform with man as regards the blessings of the gospel (Galatians 3:28), explicitly inculcates her subordination to the man in the relationship of marriage (Ephesians 5:22; Colossians 3:18; 1 Peter 3:1) (http://biblehub.com/genesis/3-16.htm).





That is as good a summary as can be found of the meaning and application of the concept, “And he shall rule over thee.” It is indeed “a confirmation and perpetuation of that authority which had been assigned to the man at the creation.”



A Husband’s Rule Complemented by a Wife’s Submission:

A Blessing Not a Curse



In other words, women will suffer greatly in childbearing as a consequence of Eve’s sin, a vivid reminder of God’s wrath against all sin and disobedience to His will. Yet, in spite of Eve’s sin of rebellion against God and against her proper role of submission to Adam, her role as man’s vital complement will be preserved. She will abide at her husband’s side to support him, yielding and submitting her will or desire to his leadership as ordained from the beginning. The events of Eve’s sin and punishment should reinforce the importance of following God’s instructions in all matters, and especially in a wife’s relationship to her husband.



Other passages teach the husband to rule and lead with unselfish love, cherishing his wife as a most valuable complement who makes his life complete, not abusing her or subjecting her to abject slavery. A husband who leads as God ordained gives his wife affection, protection, and security, fulfilling his role in such a manner as to make it pleasant for the wife to fulfill hers.



[Truth Magazine 58, 4 (April 2014):30-32]