Without a doubt, women were treated subserviently in the Old Testament. The reason for this can be found in this verse of Scripture.
To the woman He said: "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over (to be the master) you."God wasn't giving Adam a command in this verse of Scripture. He was telling Eve what would happen because they sinned.
(Gen. 3:16)
Because of Adam and Eve's sin, a sin nature entered into man and woman (Rom. 5:12-13). It's important to realize that sin perverts good, God given abilities. God equipped the man with abilities that enabled him to be the head of the marital relationship.
When those good qualities come in contact with a sin nature, they're perverted the majority of the time, and man ends up trying to rule over his wife. God never intended the marital relationship to be this way.
As a matter of fact, after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, God tells man to break free from, and overcome, the sinful desire to rule over his wife. Notice this powerful Bible truth: "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Him self for it" (Eph. 5:25).
The husband is told to love his wife in the same way that Jesus loved the church! You can't be the master over your wife, and love her as Jesus did, all at the same time. Notice where Jesus (in loving the church) has placed us.
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
(Eph. 2:6-7)
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