Tomorrow I get to teach our High Priests Group from a talk given by Elder D. Todd Christofferson in the last General Conference entitled, "The Moral Force of Women." This has caused me to reflect upon godlike characteristics I see in my wife, mother, and others who have had influence on me. Although I know the women in my life are humble and would be embarrassed at the comparison with the divine.
As we have been reading and studying the Old Testament in Sunday School this year, I have been aware of many comparisons with women and Deity. I would like to talk about a few.
When Adam was placed in the Garden of Eden he was foreordained to become a "living soul." The account states, "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul" (Genesis 2:7). Adam's name in Hebrew means man or mankind, and Eve's name means life or living. It is quite a stretch to pull elements from the dust of the ground and somehow convert the substance to life. And that is the role of Eve as a type of womanhood and "the mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20). Figuratively, Adam is a dead man without her. Abraham would recall this theme as he says of Sarah, "That it may be well with me for thy sake, and my soul shall live because of thee" (Abraham 2:25). The implications are physical, spiritual, and eternal in nature.
In what President Spencer W. Kimball called a "figurative story," woman was taken from the rib of Adam. The typology is profound! In the Septuagint translation, which is the Old Testament translated into Greek, the term for rib is pleura (see Strong's G4125). The same Greek word pleura appears in the New Testament as one of the Roman soldiers pierces the side (pleura) of Jesus and "forthwith came there out blood and water" (John 19:34). So in a moment of time we have the spirit of Jesus leaving His body, and we have water and blood coming out of His side transforming the wooden cross into a tree of life, and granting the opportunity of eternal life for all God's children.
In restoration scripture we have an explanation of this likeness:
"That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory" (Moses 6:59).
When Jesus tells Nicodemus that a man must be "born again" to see the kingdom of God, Nicodemus responds with question, "How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?" (John 3:4). The Greek word for womb is koilia (see Strong's G2836). It means womb, but also stomach, belly, and the entire abdominal cavity. Later, at the Feast of Tabernacles, as Jesus is teaching at the temple, he invites His audience to partake of "living water" by saying:
"If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water" (John 7:37-38).
The Greek word for belly is once again koilia. But it is unclear just whose belly this is. Is it the person who "comes to Jesus" or is it Jesus Himself? It is likely to be an allusion to the womb spoken of in John chapter 3. Thus, the womb, or belly, can be a figurative reference to eternal life.
Now let's get back to Adam and Eve. When Adam is created it says, "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground" (Genesis 2:7). The Hebrew word for formed is yatsar and it's pretty straightforward; it means to form or create. But when Eve is created, the Hebrew word is banah. It is something special. It means to build, establish, or cause to continue, as in the continuation of life. Wherever else the word banah is found in the Old Testament, it means to build an altar or build a temple. It is reserved for "God's crowning creation" as President Hinckley once observed. (Sorry, guys.)
Also, I was once sorry to learn that when God created a "help meet" for Adam, it was not meant to be so much a helper around the house to cook my food and clean the house for me (although my sweet wife always does this without complaining as I try in a feeble way to help out). Rather, it is meant to be a REAL helper as a preserver of life. The Hebrew word is ezer and it is only used in reference to Eve and in reference to Deity. In every other case it means God's help. An example would be, "There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky" (Deuteronomy 33:26).
Elder Christofferson said in his talk:
"Women bring with them into the world a certain virtue, a divine gift that makes them adept at instilling such qualities as faith, courage, empathy, and refinement in relationships and in cultures."
I agree with him one hundred percent.
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