“Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper [‘ezer] fit for him.’” (Genesis 2:18)
Usages of ‘ezer in the Old Testament show that in most cases God is an ‘ezer to human beings, which calls to question if the word “helper” is a valid interpretation of ‘ezer in any instance it is used. “Evidence indicates that the word ‘ezer originally had two roots, each beginning with different guttural sounds. One meant “power” and the other “strength.” As time passed, the two guttural sounds merged, but the meanings remained the same. The article below by William Sulik explains this point quite well. He references R. David Freedman and Biblical Archaeology Review 9 [1983]: 56-58).
“She was to be his “helper”—at least that is how most of the translations have interpreted this word. A sample of the translations reads as follows:
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Author: Gods Word to Women
Keywords: Women superior to men, Women men, Women vs men, Women versus men, Women are closer to God, Women are closer to God than men, Oppression of women, Women, Feminism, Anti feminism, misogynist, misogyny, Women to be in subjection, Sexist, Women of prominence, Chauvinism, Male chauvinism, Chauvinist, Male chauvinist, Helpmeet, Help meet, Helper, Woman helper, Helper against, Helper opposite, Helpmate, Help mate, Woman help mate, Woman helpmeet, Equality of women, Gender equality, Equality of the sexes, Men superior to women, Opposing helper, Woman opposing helper, Ezer Kenegdo
Bible reference(s): Genesis 2:18, Genesis 2:20, Genesis 3:16, 1 Corinthians 11:3, 1 Cor. 14:34, Ephesians 5:22, Ephesians 5:24, Col. 3:18, 1 Tim. 2:11-14, Titus 2:5, 1 Peter 3:1-6
Source: “Ezer Kenegdo,” Gods Word to Women.
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