Since the fall, women have wrestled with an impulse to control or dominate men. It is a distortion of the good order God established at creation. In Genesis 3:16, God said to the woman, “Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.” The word “desire” is not about affection. It is the same word used in Genesis 4:7, where sin’s desire is to rule over Cain. It pictures a struggle for mastery. From that day forward, this conflict has played out in every home, every church, and every society where headship is resisted.
“Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16)
The same impulse that distorts marriage also seeps into every other sphere of life. When women reject God’s design or when men refuse to lead, confusion multiplies. In civil life, this curse is seen when women rule as magistrates. Scripture describes this as judgment.
“My people—children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people, those who guide you lead you astray and confuse the direction of your paths.” (Isaiah 3:12)
God’s design was harmonious. The man was created to lead with love, and the woman to help with honor (Genesis 2:18; Ephesians 5:22–24). Sin turned harmony into competition and strife, but the gospel restores what was lost. When women seek control, or when men surrender leadership to keep peace, both reject the covenant pattern of Christ and His Church.
The answer to feminine domination is not masculine tyranny. The answer is redeemed order. Men must lead with strength, humility, and courage. Women must follow with faith and gladness. The cross restores what the curse corrupted.
“Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church.” (Ephesians 5:22–23)
Semper Reformanda
Objection: “That’s just patriarchy or cultural bias.”
Response: This is not cultural bias. It is creation order. Paul roots it in Adam and Eve, not in Roman society. Redemption redeems headship.
“For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve.” (1 Timothy 2:13)
Objection: “But strong women lead too.”
Response: Scripture honors strength. “Strength and dignity are her clothing” (Proverbs 31:25). But true strength is not rebellion but obedience. A godly woman’s strength is fruitful, wise, and aligned with God’s design.
Objection: “Women can serve as rulers if they are capable.”
Response: Scripture warns that when women rule over men it is a mark of disorder and judgment (Isaiah 3:12). Capability does not cancel calling. God’s order extends from the home to the nation. Authority belongs to those He has appointed, not to those who seize it.
Truth That Withstands
The gospel fulfills creation’s order. A woman’s redeemed glory is found in magnifying Christ through joyful submission to godly headship. When both men and women walk in this pattern, their home becomes a living picture of Christ and His Church. And when nations honor this order, they reflect the wisdom of God rather than the confusion of the world and are blessed through it.