Are Women Really the “Weaker Vessel”?
It was by the Holy Spirit that the apostle Peter wrote, “Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered” (1 Peter 3:7).
I am going to begin by responding to this passage of Scripture by saying something that is politically incorrect. Men and women are different. That’s right folks, you heard it here first. You are reading an article written by someone who still feels it is appropriate for men and women to use different public restrooms. God made men and women to be different. He made their roles different. Therefore, their strengths and weaknesses are also different.
If you were to read the rest of the context from Peter’s writing, you would reflect on the responsibilities God requires for both men and women in the marriage. He does call the wife the “weaker vessel.” To ignore this statement, or to disregard it, would be to deny the Holy Spirit of God. The real question is what does it mean? Well, just examine the rest of Scripture. Simply observe in real life the differences between the sexes. In doing this, you will eventually come to a correct understanding of what Peter is saying.
Just because men and women are intrinsically different in some areas doesn’t mean they are more or less capable in all of them. As a man, I have absolutely no problem admitting that women on the whole possess strengths is some areas where men are undoubtedly lacking. Women are usually better with interpersonal relationships. They are better at communicating their feelings. They are better at listening and understanding. They are superior and especially fit for the patience and love that come with child-rearing and nurturing in the home. I could write an entire book on things that women are better at than men.
But men (and we are speaking on average) have strengths in areas where women do not typically excel. Men are built differently in the physical sense and biologically are usually stronger than women. The inability that men possess to emote or feel as much as women often feel can sometimes be an advantage in decision making. In other words, men compartmentalize better and tend to make difficult decisions based on the mind more than the heart. I am convinced that this alone is why God gave them the role of leadership in the home and in the church. The woman is the heart and soul of the home and the man is the provider and protector. God made men and women as they are so they can succeed in these specific roles. And God just happens to know what he is doing.
If we were going to take a poll of Christian homes the numbers would show that there are more women who are faithful Christians than there are men. The ratio of spirituality in the world favors the women to a great degree. Women are not spiritually weaker, they are usually stronger than the men. But when it comes to their ability to remove themselves from their emotional feelings they are, in truth, usually not as capable of doing so as those who are of the male gender.
In fact, that is why the apostle Peter is pleading with men in this verse to be more understanding! Husbands need to honor their wives by giving preference to their feelings. They need to listen more. They need to place their wives on a pedestal. They need to allow the voice of their wife to be heard on every occasion and it needs to weigh equally in every decision made within the home. How else can the wife follow the God-given leadership of the husband? How else can they know that their husbands care? Wives need to be able to trust that their feelings matter so that they can trust their husbands. If a Christian wife is struggling to follow the lead of her husband it is likely to be mostly his fault because he did not give her an adequate reason to do so.
Both the family and the church are struggling today because men are struggling when it comes to spiritual leadership. They need to be examples. They need to care and listen. They need to understand. They need to act according to their responsibilities to the Lord and to their families. This is the deeper emphasis of Peter’s command.
And what about the “weaker vessel”? Men and women are the same in that they have both been created in the image of God. They both sin and need grace. They both have roles to play in the family and in the church. But they are different in that God has designed them specifically for the part he desires for them to play in the physical and spiritual families. Are women the weaker vessel? Well, it all just depends on what you are talking about.
“So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” – Genesis 1:27.
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AUTHOR: Jeremiah Tatum
