Male and Female in Genesis 1:26-27

TWO CREATION STORIES

In another blog, I have already established that there are two creation stories.  Some would say there were two different stories that were passed down through generations and written down at some point in time as Genesis 1 and 2; others have suggested that Chapter 1 is an overview of creation and Chapter 2 focuses in on the garden during the first days.

GENESIS 1:26-27
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

EQUALITY OR NOT EQUALITY?

On the surface, this verse from the first story of creation looks like male and female were equal in creation, but in Hebrew grammar, this could be either complete equality or it could mean that men were first among equals.  In Hebrew, the most important names were always mentioned first, but if someone wanted to write about equals, the author would automatically choose the male name first because the language and the culture always placed the male first, unless the woman was more imoportant.

In fact, women's names were placed first only when they were very important.  Aquilla's and Priscilla's names were sometimes switched to Priscilla and Aquilla.  The fact that Aquilla's name is mentioned first in about half of the times they are menioned tells us that she was not only equal in their ministry, but probably the more dominant of the two.

In Genesis 1, the Hebrew gives us two equal possibilities:
1.  Because the male is mentioned first, he was the more imortant of the two or his status was higher.
2.  They were absolutely equal.  Adam was mentioned first only because the Hebrew language would place the male before the female in an equal relationship.

CONCLUSION ABOUT CHAPTER ONE

1.  Genesis 1 gives us no indication that there was any difference in status between Adam and Eve.
2.  Genesis 1 does not give us an order of creation.  Adam was not made first, but both Adam and Eve were created at the same time.
3.  The fact that Adam's name was mentioned before Eve's is most likely grammatical and does not indicate status.