Good post, Mike.  I'm curious...are there really bible publishers throwing out God's inspired words?  Ugh, now that just makes me sick!

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Recently Jim and I were taking old boards to make raised garden beds and he was doing some heavy work to help with it but asked me to remove nails. I used the tool he gave me and pryed till I was sweating, and I never sweat. I couldn't do but about two. He took it over and honestly has popeye arms, lol and he pulled them out in no time. Physical strength, hands down he is stronger.

He is new to faith in Christ and I asked God to give me a husband who could lead our home. Jim is a natural leader. He doesn't know much about the Bible but mercy he is well acquainted with the author now. He is on fire, so I have no trouble submitting...did I say that outloud? I hate to be tested on my words. 

Now, I don't mind him treating me as if I am weak in many areas. He sees me as more emotional and less balanced but perhaps God made me that way for a purpose? 

I remember Kenneth Copeland saying we have to be careful when married to asssume roles. He said Gloria and the Holy Ghost handle the checkbook perfectly so he has her doing it as he is lousy at it. 

He is not surrendering his role as leader of the home, just recognizing her strength. 

I am not a good cook but will clean up and entertain for hours if Jim preps the main dishes and I will carry out trash and mow the lawn in a heartbeat. 

I read once (wish I could say where) that submitting meant that when the neighbor comes over screaming over your son throwing a baseball through the window, you simply say "I will speak to my husband and have him contact you when he comes home" 

higherground (Juanita), your marriage is a picture of spiritual harmony and mutual cooperation....wow, God does do some wonderful things when we let him. I am so tickled to write about your marriage, given where you and Jim were a year ago - or was it less than a year ago? :)

Pastor Chuck, like Leigh said, we need the balance women provide, our churches would be a wreck if nothing but men!

Maureen, thanks! I'm prayin your guy fits the bill! Women were made to be cherished and esteemed.

Thanks Gwen (gojolly)! I appreciate your reading.

Juanita, I see you answered my question..."Now, I don't mind him treating me as if I am weak in many areas. He sees me as..." I wonder if many non-Christian women feel this way?

This is a very interesting topic.
I will say this, if God made me the weaker vessel who am I to argue the point. I want to be blessed for being obedient. 
As far as the "submission" yes, my God says submit not only to my husband but to authority as well.

Women's lib put the slant on submission, I say equal pay for equal work but treat me like the lady God made me, Amen.  weaker, yeah, ok!
 

Hi Mike n Laura ~
Do You think satan knew who would be the best person {choosing between Adam, or, Eve} to tempt?  'Best'  in meaning with which of the two would he most likely succeed?  Could Adam, being created totally new from God,be somehow stronger than Eve, who was made using something{a rib} that was already human?  This, such as, is there possible greater strength in being 'more originally'  from God and not being made from something (someone) already made?  Really, I promise, I didn't purposely mean to go too deep, yet, I would really like to hear some other perspectives on these questions as related to the.......Our Wonderfully Amazing Females!

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Hi Mike, you asked "Would you still appreciate being treated with utmost consideration and respect, knowing your husband was choosing to see you as a “weaker partner”?  If he treats you with the highest esteem, does it really matter how he sees you?"

Well first off, I am not married. I've always thought of myself as one day going to get married but so far that hasn't happened. I grew up without a good male role model and that has in many ways affected how I've entered into and dealt with male relationships of a romantic nature. I was strong and independent, I got a couple of degrees and didn't "need" a man to look after me.

While in some ways, this is good, it doesn't meet my deep need which I believe is a deep need of all women for a true leader in the home and one that will treat you well, with the utmost kindness, respect and consideration. As a Christian, we also want a Godly mate  and someone who can bring spiritual leadership to the home. Without these requirements, I think it is better to stay single though am not closing the door just yet *smile.

I have a few degrees, have travelled the world, held demanding (though not high profile) positions in the work place, and am very much for women's equality of pay and opportunity and freedom to speak. Yet, I do still consider myself the "weaker" sex. If I were married, or am to marry in future, I would want my husband to treat me with the utmost consideration and respect. I don't mind him considering me the weaker sex so long as he isn't demeaning and abusive (which I know that sadly, many Christian men are). If my husband treated me with the highest esteem, it really wouldn' t matter whether he considered me the weaker sex or not.

I believe that God set things up in order...I believe He ordained for men to treat their wives as themselves so that men would consider everything they do and everything they say to their wives, before they do it or speak it. In this way, men would be sure to treat their wives well and to speak lovingkindess to them. Wives are to exhibit the same checks on their words and actions toward their husbands. So in this way, men and women are both treated well and respectfully in a marriage relationship.

Another thought, first of all to Sherlock: Take notes sweets as you can learn from us older ones what your mom is already telling you for sure and for certain. You must protect your femininity and your purity as you grow older because God will never take advantage of your "weakness" and He has a special plan in YOUR life for a man of His choice who will love and protect you. Save the gift for that man.

Second thought: In survival such as starvation or exposure, women typically survive longer, fat reserves maybe, lol...but their bodies have been known to survive longer. They live longer although since entering the workforce and stressors of it and becoming smokers and drinkers as much of the world is, that gap is growing smaller. Brute strenghth alone, men have the physical strength and use it in violence against women giving them the upper hand in that type of situation. Not all men who are NOT violent are even driven by an experience with God, some are naturally civilized of course, but probably the respect is more apparent among brothers under the fruit of the Spirit.

One last thought, in the movie Steel Magnolias...first look at the title. A beautiful flower named a magnolia made of steel. Amazing. In the movie, the mom played by Sally Fields stays at her daughter's bedside while she dies. She said she was honored to be there when she drew her first breath and there when she drew her last. Her daugheter, played by Julia Roberts had a husband and father in the movie but they skedaddled and was not present because they couldn't handle it. 

I have witnessed this in many situations where death occurred and the man couldn't handle the situation to view the body or tend to the dying and women traditionally rise to that occasion, even in preparing the body of Jesus for burial. I am not saying all, but it is more often than not. Why? I think God wired us for it. Again not all. I have been a hospice caregiver and bathed the dying and sang to them and fed them and went to their funerals. It was anguishing at times but when I look back, I gave them clean bodies, pjs, sheets, a taste of ice cream, listened to them and assured them after prayer that they were soon to be free of the pain, what a joy. I will let someone else pry nails out of boards. I am way ok with having a different strength. We all balance each other and are different parts of the SAME body of Christ. 

Less than a year Mike, I came HOME to Jim permanently Feb 1 of this year. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He had to bolt for work this morning and I hated to see him leave, kissed him and kissed him again. I have totally fallen in love with my Popeye!

Scattered thoughts this a.m., Lord help me! lol

Ken (bro-Ken), no mercy needed brother! Interesting question, can honestly say I never considered it. Was Eve at a disadvantage since she was made human from human, as opposed to Adam who was human from dust (+ God's breath). I don't have anything specific to back this up, but I suspect they were pretty much on even footing as far as tempt-ability goes. Men and women, all the way back to the original two, have their inate strengths and weaknesses, their Achilles heels so to speak. I believe Satan could have found Adam's too, if he had so chosen.

Some actually believe Adam was present when Eve was tempted, given the phrasing of Gen. 3:6, "She also gave some to her husband, who was with her..." But I don't think this is conclusive evidence, plus 1 Tim. 2:14 would contradict that interpretation as well.

Your comments always welcome, brother! (Your words are always gentle and kind, as I see them.)

The greatest struggle in life seems to be the struggle between the sexes! lol

Ok, on to more comments...

Kathy, thanks for your important perspective! :) With this particular blog, I was trying to zero in on a very specific point, that being that this verse does not necessarily state that women constitute the weaker partner. RATHER, it seemed to me as I read (with the Spirit snuggled up with me) that Peter was inspired to exhort married men to treat their wives as the weaker partner, in order to get them to cherish their wives as something very very special. Does that make sense? I had a devil of a time wording this in a way that made my point clear to even me, let alone anyone reading it.

As I stated in the blog, I do not think Laura is the weaker partner in our marriage. She's amazing!! She's WAY stronger than me in MANY ways! (Though math is not one of them, lol.) NEVERTHELESS, she likes being treated as a delicate, precious work of art.....and if I'm on my A-game, I'm doing just that. And when I do, she feels cherished. I believe this is what scripture (& Peter) is advocating.

You will never ever ever ever see in ANY of my blogs an exhortation for women to become "subservient" to men. No man is to be bowed down to by his wife or any other person, IMO. I agree with your equal yet not equal statement. In fact, I edited out a rather long sentence from my blog which captured the essense of "as the weaker partner and as heirs with you..." This phrase says to treat wives as unequals (as stronger to weaker), YET also equals (as co-heirs of an identical inheritance, genderically speaking). .....I know, "genderically" isn't really a word, but it suits the purpose!

I may be a fundie, Kathy, but hopefully not the stereotypical fundie! =)

yee-hah...this is fun!!

Good morning MyChurch!

Yvelisse...THANKS for your comment! I don't believe God made you the weaker vessel! Well, in SOME ways yes, of course. But in many others, you are STRONGER than your husband! (I don't really know this based on anything other than the law of averages...lol)

God bless you, my strong sister!

Joyful Servant (Penny!) - you answered my question in the most amazing way, THANK YOU!!

Peter seems to have ruled out "demeaning and abusive" as acceptable behavior for a godly husband, with his full admonition to "be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner". See that, be considerate and with respect are characteristics of AS the weaker partner. Unfortunately there is some serious baggage with modern male/female relations that almost requires women to add "so long as he isn't demeaning and abusive." That makes me so sad!!!

Here is the answer I was looking for, AND the answer I fully expected. You said "If my husband treated me with the highest esteem, it really wouldn' t matter whether he considered me the weaker sex or not." I believe Peter was told by the H.S. that men would be more motivated to treat their wives this way if they were put in the position to protect and care for their wives. I know that when I'm in this mindset, Laura is treated like a princess! And who wouldn't want to be treated like that? Well, what LADY wouldn't, that is?  :)

Great comment Penny! Truly thoughtful. And you too are obviously a STRONG woman!!!!  (As was the woman described in Proverbs 31!!)

Mike, my comment was not posted in correction but in agreement with your general conclusion, and I saw no "fundie" signs here!   ;)

Stevie, interesting comments. I enjoyed reading them! I also thank you for being courageous enough to comment here. Men are definitely in the minority here!!

Your second sentence leads me to believe I didn't make my point well enough in the blog. I reiterated it in my comments to Kathy, so you might want to read through that. Basically, no, I don't believe women are the weaker sex. Well, most women would not fair too well against men in an arm wrestling match. But women are stronger in other ways (some you mentioned) that can offset. SO are women weaker OVERALL? I even stated that in my own wife's case, I don't think she's actually the weaker partner. But should that stop me from being considerate and respectful of her as the weaker partner? 

Ok, you've just persuaded me to change the name of the blog, LOL. God bless you Stevie! :)

higherground aka Olive Oil (is that spelled right?) aka Juanita, wonderful comment to read!! And wonderful to read about your restored marriage, I truly delight in that!

Indeed, now as I've said quite a few times above, I don't believe women really are the weaker partner, unless you're talking about phys. strength alone, which is insignificant in view of the WHOLE person. Women are stronger in many ways! But see, I don't think Peter's (or the Holy Spirit's) admonition necessarily stamps women as weaker. I think I said it pretty well to Kathy above.

I'd like to give you a hearty amen to this: "We all balance each other". That was definitely God's intention, too, when he created woman to fill man's lone need at creation: "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." With the creation of woman, mankind achieved balance. BTW, the Hebrew word for "helper" in this verse is the same word used elsewhere to refer to GOD (e.g.Psalm 10:14, 27:9, 118:7). Ain't no way God is subordinate to ANY man!

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My, my my, a man who is a real man. Woohoo Mike and Laura:
Yes, My husband treats me with the highest esteem, so I DONT CARE HOW HE SEES ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. I love to feel delicate, fragile, and precious. But I also love to feel needed, useful and know my opinion counts. It too k a long time to find my husband. I found him when I stopped looking. One bad apple don't spoil the whole bunch.

Mr Overthinker.  LOL  What do you mean HOW??
We have the manual.

Overthinker? I must be right up Stevie's alley, given how deep he goes, lol.

Ok Bubbles, here goes. God says, "Husband, your wife has EQUAL standing before me, but I want you to think of her as the WEAKER partner, so that you will be more inclined to treat her as the precious creature that she is, and esteem her as I intended you to."

How's that, sister? lol

Excellent representation of the happy couple!

Gee, maybe I did overthink this thing. The verse really is pretty simple, and I really can beat the heck out of Laura in arm wrestling. Seriously, I'm talkin 10 contests out of 10. But the thing is, Peter tells us guys to treat our wives as.....the weaker partner. That lil word "as" is pretty important! See Eph 5:22, 23, 25, and 28 for examples!

Love y'all! :)

God is a great redeemer!! Amen Forgiven (Cathy)!!

Great point Carrie Ann. Created equal before God, yes we are!

Joey... I see the way God treats those who are weak:

God doesn't exploit or use them, he SAVES them!!!!

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Maybe "weaker" just means physically? I cannot beat my husband in arm wrestling. Maybe it does not mean "worth less" or "not as smart" or even "needy"?

Maybe "submitting" just means supporting your husband even when your opinion is different? A good vice president knows when to question and when to support the president?  "Behind every good man is a good woman" (telling him he's wrong).

I am reading a book by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs titled "Love and Respect", which asserts that God wired women to love and be loved, while men are wired to respect and be respected.  He cites alot of bible references for his conclusion, starting with Ephesians 5:33.  He says that even Christian marriages can get into what he calls a "crazy cycle", where a woman does something to make her man feel she does not respect him causing him to act unlovingly toward his wife causing her to react unrespectfully, etc.

Even a woman who finds herself with a husband who does not respect God is told to treat her husband with respect (I Peter 3:1-2).  This may be the only way to reverse the cycle.

Dr. Eggerichs says in his book that most people (male and female) can appreciate the concept of unconditional love.  But many people (male and female) have a hard time with unconditional respect, yet that may be what a woman who does not understand why her husband does not love her needs to give him.