1S25-14: Divine Perspective – Is God Pro or Anti-Feminism?

“And please forgive the offense your servant has caused; because Adonai will certainly establish my lord’s dynasty, for my lord fights Adonai’s battles, and nothing bad has been found in you all your life long.”-1 Samuel 25:28

In verse 28, Avigayil asks David to forgive her offenses.

What exactly was she seeking forgiveness for?

Many folks assume she was asking for forgiveness on behalf of her husband’s rude behavior.

That’s not exactly wrong…

But it ain’t exactly right either.

There’s another part to this that I’m afraid will fly over the heads of most folks…

Especially since we’re living in a world that has been infested with feminism.

And when I say “infested”, you had best believe that was a deliberate word choice.

See, in the ancient Middle East, it wasn’t appropriate for a woman to approach a man who wasn’t her husband, especially a well-known man with a reputation.

If there was to be an interaction between a man and a woman, it was the man who was to do the approaching, not the other way around.

Avigayil had taken the bold risk of intervening in her husband’s affairs behind his back…

And things could have easily gone badly had David taken offense at her behavior.

Here’s the thing. Avigayil was teetering the line between possibly breaking this Torah command:

“If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.”-Deuteronomy 25:11-12

Now, I get that Avigayil had not entered into a physical altercation with David.

Yet the principle still stands.

A human being of the female persuasion is NOT to intervene in her husband and another man’s affairs.

Ya feel me?

What Avigayil was doing was dangerous.

That’s why she was bowing down before David asking for forgiveness.

Alright, let’s transition over to the takeaway.

I mentioned above that feminism has infested our modern world.

I meant what I said.

I believe feminism has done much damage to the traditional family structure.

The basic definition of feminism is the advocacy of women’s rights based on the equality of the sexes.

Ironically, I believe God would not have a problem with this definition.

Check out some of these verses.

“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”-Genesis 1:27

This verse affirms that both men and women are created in the image of God, underscoring their equal value and dignity.

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Messiah Yeshua.”-Galatians 3:28

In this verse, Paul emphasizes the spiritual equality of all believers in the Messiah, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, or social status.

“Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.”-Proverbs 31:30-31

These verses highlight the value and honor of women who live in reverence to God, recognizing their contributions and achievements.

“‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.'”-Acts 2:17-18

This passage highlights that God’s Spirit is given to both men and women, empowering them equally to serve and prophesy.

So in terms of spiritual status, are women equal to men?

ABSOLUTELY!

But are they the same as men in terms of their role in the kingdom?

ABSOLUTELY NOT!

This should be obvious when you examine the Torah laws themselves.

Some apply only to men, and others only to women.

Just like some commands only apply to priests and others only to laymen.

The Bible says…

“Wives, submit yourselves to your
own husbands as you do to the Lord.
For the husband is the head of the wife
as Messiah is the head of the
Messianic Community,
his body, of which he is the Savior.
Now as the Messianic Community
submits to Messiah,
so also wives should submit
to their husbands in everything.”
-Ephesians 5:22-24

If you’re a woman does it bother you that your husband is the head of you?

Or does it grate on your pride and ego that you’re called to submit to your husband in everything?

Look, and forgive me for this masculine example, in the game of football, for instance, there are different positions, right?

You’ve got the Quarterback, the Running Backs, the Wide Receivers, the Offensive Linemen, and so on?

Now what if all the Running Backs, the Wide Receivers, and the Offensive Linemen decided to abandon their posts and each tried to be the quarterback?

You’d have complete chaos, right?

Well, that’s pretty much what’s happened in our society with feminism.

For the sake of equality, God-ordained boundaries have become so blurred, that divine hierarchy has been practically erased.

Nothing good has come of it but broken families and men who have decided to give up on marriage altogether (at least in the West)…

Not to mention all the transgender sex change operations taking place at a furious pace all around the world.

Okay, I feel like I’ve gone off on a tangent and I’m starting to ramble now.

So what’s my point?

My point is to come as you were called and don’t try to be what God has not created you to be.

If you were circumcised at the time of your call, don’t try to remove the marks of your circumcision.

If you were uncircumcised, don’t seek circumcision.

If you’re a man, don’t do the Bruce Jenner thing, and try to become a woman.

If you’re a woman, don’t try to be a man.

Alrighty, I’ll stop here for now.

But would love to get your thoughts on this.

CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT

 ^“Let a woman learn in peace, fully submitted;
but I do not permit a woman to teach a man
or exercise authority over him; rather,
she is to remain at peace.
For Adam was formed first, then Havah.
Also it was not Adam who was deceived,
but the woman who, on being deceived,
became involved in the transgression.”
-1 Timothy 2:11-14

“But every woman who prays or prophesies
with her head uncovered dishonors her head—
it is the same as having her head shaved.
For if a woman does not cover her head,
she might as well have her hair cut off;
but if it is a disgrace for a woman to
have her hair cut off or her head shaved,
then she should cover her head.”
-1 Corinthians 11:5-6