The Bible does not support the modern American concept of equality. In fact in some ways American ideas about equality are completely at odds with the Bible. But the unfortunate truth is that over the past century most American Christians have willing laid down their Biblical faith on the altar of their new god – the god of equality.
It is a sad fact that in 2016 more Americans believe in gender equality than believe in God. According to a 2015 Pew survey, 86 percent of Americans believe in God while another Pew survey reveals that 91 percent of Americans believe in advancing the social equality of women.
“Pew Research Center surveys are not the only ones that have found a long-term decline in the overall share of Americans who say they believe in God. For example, 86% of Americans said in a 2014 Gallup poll they believed in God or a universal spirit, down from 96% in 1994 and the lowest figure since Gallup first asked the question in 1976.”
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/11/04/americans-faith-in-god-may-be-eroding/
“…the highest levels of support for gender equality are found in Canada, Australia, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. Roughly nine-in-ten or more in these countries say gender equality is very important.”
And it is not just gender equality. Whether it be income equality, education equality, racial equality, sexual orientation equality, healthcare equality and host of other “equalities” it is undeniable that the American culture as well as the rest of western countries have bowed their knees to the god of equality.
How should Bible believing Christians react to our culture’s emphasis on these various equality ideologies?
When it comes to this issue of equality we have two choices as Christians.
We can let our beliefs about equality dictate our beliefs about the Bible
Sadly many professing Christians in America and around the western world have chosen this first approach to the subject of equality. While their beliefs in equality are absolute – their beliefs in the Bible as God’s perfect and inspired word are not. Any part of the Bible that contradicts with what their god of equality stands for are dismissed as “cultural” or “temporary” for Biblical times only. Others teach a false Gospel that Christ came not just to die on the cross but to bring about social equality.
We can let our beliefs about the Bible dictate our beliefs about equality
Fewer Christians today than at any point in the history of Christendom believe that the Bible stands as the inerrant Word of God. Yes as Bible believing Christians we understand that we are not under the civil laws, sacrificial laws, cleanliness laws, dietary laws and priestly laws that God gave to Israel as theocracy. But God’s lasting moral law was enforced and strengthened under the new law of Christ in the form of the New Testament.
We believe what the Apostle Paul wrote when he said this about his writings as well as those of the other Apostles:
“For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”
I Thessalonians 2:13 (KJV)
We know that the New Testament stands as the final revelation of God built upon the moral law of the Old Testament. When accept this fact, then we will accept that the New Testament not only left certain inequalities intact (like slavery) but it also enshrined and reinforced other inequalities such as the social inequality of men and women. Any honest reading of the New Testament reveals this to be true.
Now that we have established that Bible believing Christians must view the subject of equality through the lenses of the Scriptures we will now look at some hot button areas of equality in American culture today.
What does the Bible say about racial and gender equality?
The Bible teaches that all human beings, men and women and people of all races are equally human.
“24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; 25 Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; 26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;”
Acts 17:24-26 (KJV)
All human beings regardless of their gender or race are equally as human as the first man Adam was and we ought never to regard a person as being less than human because they are a certain gender or race.
The Bible teaches not only the equality of our common humanity but also our spiritual equality as believers in Christ regardless of race, creed or gender:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”
Galatians 3:28 (KJV)
Does the Bible support the concept of equal justice before the law?
Yes it does. The Bible teaches that all people are to be treated fairly in the eyes of the law:
“You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial, and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous.”
Deuteronomy 16:19(NASB)
So if a rich man commits a crime and poor man commits a crime they both should face the same justice. If a man commits a crime or a woman commits a crime they should face they justice. If a black man commits a crime or white man commits a crime they should face the same justice.
What does the Bible say about income equality?
The Bible talks about workers being paid the wages they agreed to be paid but it does not say workers or people in general must be paid equally. An employer and an employee agree to a wage. But that employer does not have pay more than the agreed wage because he pays other employees more.
In one of Christ’s parables he talks about a land owner who needs his fields harvested quickly in Matthew 20:1-15. The land owner goes out into the town looking for workers to agree to work in his field that day. He starts off early in the morning finding some workers and they agree to work for a denarius which was the typical wage for a 10 hour work for field workers.
But he needed more workers for his fields so throughout the day and even towards the end of the day the land owner kept going out and getting workers.
At the end of the day he paid all his workers the same wage for that day even though some had only worked the last few hours of the day while others had worked all day long. This was the response of the first workers he hired who agree to their wage of a denarius:
“10 When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ 13 But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’”
Matthew 20:10-15(NASB)
Some have tried to misinterpret this story as teaching that workers must all be paid the same when clearly that is not the case. This story from Christ is actually a powerful example of the natural private property rights that God has given to mankind. Notice what the landowner says to the workers – “Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own?”
The landowner by paying the men who worked only an hour the same as those who worked 10 hours was paying his workers unequally. The men who worked at the end of the day got an entire day’s wages while those who worked all day got the same wage.
As Bible believing Christians we should NOT support “equal pay for equal work” laws as these laws violate the natural private property rights that God has given to man.
A business owner has the right to do what they will with their own property including determining the hourly wages of their employees. If a manager chooses to pay blonde people more money per hour than brown haired people or men more than women that is his right as Christ said “Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own?” We may not agree as workers with how our employers decide our wages but at the end of the day if we agreed to that wage we are not to be envious of another person making more money.
This is the complete opposite of how Americans are taught to view their employers. We have people suing all the time for unequal pay and this is a violation of the private property rights of the owners of these companies.
On the larger issue of income equality Christ said this:
“7 For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me.”
Mark 14:7 (NASB)
Both in the Old and New Testaments we are encouraged to help the poor. But the fact is that there will ALWAYS be poor people and there will always be rich people and sometimes there will be those in between. But we will never eliminate poverty in this world.
The giving to the poor in the Old and New Testament was always a temporary thing. And in some cases the poor would have to work for their food. A man’s giving to the poor was commanded by God and enforced by God – not the government of the nation of Israel. They did not have tax collectors going around assessing people’s land and taking from them and redistributing to the poor. It was PRIVATE charitable giving, not government taxation and redistribution of wealth as we have in America and other western countries.
Also the giving to the poor was never meant to encourage laziness – in fact the Apostle Paul warns against church giving food to people who are able bodied and could work:
“10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.”
II Thessalonians 3:19 (KJV)
In the New Testament the specific formulas for charity given to Israel as a theocracy are done away with and giving was to be completely based on one’s free will:
“7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”
2 Corinthians 9:7 (KJV)
There are many passages throughout the Scriptures that talk about the protection of private property. In fact in many places in the Old Testament we see laws proscribing remedies for the violation of private property rights. Theft of private property was seen as a much more serious thing than we see it today.
“15 Thou shalt not steal…
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.”
Exodus 20:15-17
Civil government is never granted the right to tax for income redistribution purposes. To do so is tantamount to legalized theft. The poor are to be supported by private free will charity, not government confiscation of private property for the purposes of trying to bring about income equality.
Socialism and Communism are in direct contradiction with the natural private property rights God has given to man.
So here is the point about income inequality from a Biblical perspective. The Bible clearly respects private property rights as well as the right of workers to be paid the wage they agreed upon. An owner of a company may pay his workers different wages that they have agreed to and they are not to be envious of what he pays their fellow employees. The government does have the right to tax but this right should never cancel out a man’s private property rights.
Does the Bible support sexual orientation equality?
The Bible does NOT support the right of gays, lesbians and transgender people to engage in these lifestyles nor does it say that Christians cannot discriminate against these people in offering services to them(like florists, photographers, etc.).
The Bible clearly condemns these types of lifestyles as sinful:
“Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.”
Leviticus 18:22 (KJV)
“The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the Lord thy God.”
Deuteronomy 22:5 (KJV)
Does the Bible support healthcare equality?
I would refer you back up to the income inequality section. No the Bible does not require that we offer free healthcare to anyone any more than it requires us to guarantee free food and shelter to all. Now should people, especially the wealthy donate to hospitals and help take care of the poor? Yes.
“17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good [a]works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.”
I Timothy 6:17-19 (NASB)
But again this should be of their own free will. It should not be based on government confiscation of property and redistribution of wealth.
Does the Bible support education equality?
Again I would refer you back to the section on income inequality. We do not have a God given right to other’s people’s money to pay for our education. As believers and followers of the Bible we value education.
“A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:”
Proverbs 1:5 (KJV)
But let’s be honest that just like equality – education has become an idol in American society.
“And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.”
Ecclesiastes 12:12 (KJV)
We have thousands of young people believing they are entitled to a free college education when they are NOT. In fact it can be shown that education standards have dropped while education costs have skyrocketed because of this philosophy that everyone must go to college. Universities and colleges are flooded with people who should not be there. I have two words for you – it is called “skilled trades”.
Does the Bible support equal rights for all human beings?
No it does not. Now you might say “Wait a minute! You just said in an earlier section that we are to regard all people regardless of race or gender as equally human – doesn’t that mean that if all people are equally human they should have equal rights?” The answer my friends is no.
Now we can grant equal rights in certain areas like we did with race and religion here. The Bible does not forbid us from granting these types of equality.
But there was nothing unbiblical about the racial and ethnic quotas that the US Government had from 1790 to 1965 when racial and ethnic quotas were outlawed as considerations for allowing immigrants into the United States. A nation has the right to preserve its cultural, racial and ethnic makeup through controlling what persons may immigrate to its country.
But if Americans decided to place restrictions or stop immigration from certain countries as we are considering today because of the war with Islamic radicals this is not an immoral action by Biblical standards.
Now unlike the issue of equal rights based on race or ethnic origin or religious liberty rights in the area of gender rights Gods has placed firm restrictions on this regardless of what civil governments decide.
While American law may grant women equal rights with men – Biblical law does not. And unlike the issue of equal rights based on race or ethnic origin or religious liberty rights God has not left the issue of gender rights open.
Woman are to submit to their fathers and then their husbands when they marry:
“3 If a woman also vow a vow unto the Lord, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father’s house in her youth; 4 And her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her; then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand. 5 But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand: and the Lord shall forgive her, because her father disallowed her.
6 And if she had at all an husband, when she vowed, or uttered ought out of her lips, wherewith she bound her soul; 7 And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her in the day that he heard it: then her vows shall stand, and her bonds wherewith she bound her soul shall stand. 8 But if her husband disallowed her on the day that he heard it; then he shall make her vow which she vowed, and that which she uttered with her lips, wherewith she bound her soul, of none effect: and the Lord shall forgive her.
9 But every vow of a widow, and of her that is divorced, wherewith they have bound their souls, shall stand against her.”
Numbers 30:3-9 (KJV)
“22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. 24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.”
Ephesians 5:22-24 (KJV)
Woman is to submit to Man in the Church
“34 Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law. 35 And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.”
I Corinthians 14:34-35 (KJV)
Woman is to submit to Man in society
“But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.”
I Corinthians 11:3 (KJV)
So yes our American society has granted women equal rights with their husbands – but God has not. Another way of putting this is – the American government over the last century as legalized women rebelling against their husbands.
Christian women in America are faced with the same choice that Eve, the first woman, faced in the Garden of Eden:
“1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which theLord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”
Genesis 3:1-4 (KJV)
Will you as a woman take the forbidden fruit? Will you try and be equal with your husband as Eve tried to be equal with God?
Will you take advantage of the sin your government condones and rebel against your husband’s authority or will you resist that temptation and follow God’s law?
Conclusion
While the Bible supports such concepts that all people are equally human and equal justice under the law it does not support the modern American philosophy of equality.
The philosophies of socialism, feminism and humanism which are all children of the philosophy of equality are also in direct contradiction with the Word of God.
We all have a choice to make – will we worship the god of equality or the God of the Bible?
“Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”
Matthew 4:10 (KJV)
See the articles below that are related to this subject of equality:
Biblical Human Rights vs American Human Rights
Biblical Gender Roles 
Good post, thanks for your work.
IMO – all things being equal, one of the most damaging parts of the equality desire is the desire to be equal with God. That was the song of the serpent sung to Eve, to be as a god.
Christianity is not about the creature becoming gods, but that God became a creature so that His elect would be not bear the wrath for their desire to be a god. The Gospel is not fair! It is not equal either, because the righteous bore the penalty for the unrighteous to satisfy the requirements of justice. The gospel is not equal, some are elect and some are not. The gospel is that while all deserve the wrath of God equally, by grace alone (unequally given) some are spared.
Humanistic equality is an attempt by the inferior seeks to exult the inferior and humble the superior, to blur the distinction, to standardize uniqueness and to prioritize outcomes rather than actions. In the marriage equality places the primacy on the individual parts or persons to the neglect of the unit and its mission. An army without officers and a chain of command is broken and ineffective – a family without a chain of command is unable to achieve its objective and fulfill its mission.
Jonadab,
That is a great comparison with Eve. I actually was going to add something about Eve before I finished last night and I did not. I have now remedied that and talked about Eve in the last part.
I have said many times that Satan was the first egalitarian as we see from Isaiah:
And in Genesis 3 we see Eve pursuing the same sin of egalitarianism that Satan did.
God’s creation is not an equal one. Men are not even equal to other men and women are not equal to other women. Some men are taller, some are shorter. Some are super intelligent, some are average and some are stupid. With women some are smart, some are dumb, some are pretty and some are less pleasing to the eyes. And it is obvious to even a small child that the equality between men and women stops at our common humanity. Everything after that is different, and it is different by design.
Excellent post. My husband and I were discussing the “no child left behind” law a few days ago and the radically damaging effect it has had on our education system. People used to view an education as an opportunity to work hard for and then work hard in. Now, it’s just something to check off the list. Preferably with as little effort and inconvenience as possible.
I also agree that this is an excellent post. As far as gender equality goes, I don’t want to be treated like a man and I doubt most men want to be treated like women. I don’t understand all these young actresses and singers who are constantly male bashing. The fact that young girls see these women as role models just infuriates me. they basically are sending out the message that you don’t need a man,don’t need a husband. Feminism is causing chaos. My husband loves that I am a submissive wife. Men want a woman who respects him. Feminists to me are men with vaginas. Don’t think most guys are looking for that in a wife. I was reading an article in psychology today that said feminism is the anti-viagra! Enough with my rant! Again, great post!
D,
I loved your statement “Feminists to me are men with vaginas.” – it made me laugh.
AnnaMS,
That is a great point about education. Education used to be seen as privilege and because it was seen as a privilege it was appreciated more.
Since you brought up education I wanted to clarify my position a bit here. I do not believe we have a right to be educated by others but we do have a right to educate ourselves in God’s Word. God commands us to know his word and commit it to our memory so in this way we have the right to educate ourselves.
For instance I fully support the Christians who are smuggling Bibles into China or Middle Eastern countries so people can learn about God. This is a God a given right.
BGR, absolutely. The Bible also instructs parents to teach their children in the Truth. So regardless of what other education they may be getting, children should at least be getting educated in the Bible. Adults should as well.
Glad I could make you laugh. My husband just read it and it made him laugh too. He has always loved my sense of humor!
Gender equality (Gender Egalitarianism) is rooted in socialism. Every great civilization that implemented gender equality fell within a matter of decades.
Biblical patriarchy is sustainable and supports life, prosperity, family well-being and social stability.
DrSchneider,
Not disagreeing with you – I agree that Biblical patriarchy has sustained civilization for thousands of years. But what great civilization before the last century embraced gender equality? I think the closest we see would be the Egyptians which allowed women to own property and get inheritances. Women in Egypt had many more rights than Greek women did and there was a a big culture clash when the Greeks came to Egypt because Greek women did not have these same rights. But even in Egypt they were not completely egalitarian – women could not occupy political offices or military commands and there were many other inequalities.
Just curious what other civilizations you are referring to?
@BGR,
It was actually quite common for civilizations to allow women to inherit property in absence of male heirs, but this wasn’t a policy that advocated gender equality. But anyway, women were typically allowed to inherit for a couple of reasons:
1) Continuation of bloodline: A man who did not have any sons would be more likely to want his daughter to inherit his property, marry, and pass it on to her children rather than have that property go to his younger brother’s line.
2) Preservation of order: The lack of a clear heir to a sizable tract of land was pretty much the biggest nightmare ever, historically. Many civilizations found it simplest and most orderly to pass property down to the daughter (although that property would be managed by her husband if she married, which she almost certainly would, being an heiress) rather than try to figure out which male relative of the father was the proper heir. For one thing, there was a long-running conflict between systems of primogeniture and proximity of blood. Then there was a question over whether or not men descended from a female line could inherit if women themselves could not inherit. (The French crown ultimately settled this debate in 1316 by excluding men descended through the female line as well as women, although one could say that this debate wasn’t properly settled until the end of the Hundred Years War, which was waged because the English argued that men descended through the female line could inherit. The Crown of Aragon also had a number of succession conflicts due to the explicit exclusion of women but its explicit inclusion of men descended through the female line.)
3) Money and land, my dear boy: There was really nothing better for a man looking to rise up in the world than getting the opportunity to marry a wealthy, well-landed heiress. These men would have total control of their wives’ property and money, and it was a great way to rise up the social ladder at rapid speed. Kings could also reward their closest and most loyal men by giving them an heiress in marriage, and they didn’t mind marrying heiresses themselves. For example, Louis VI of France and William IX, Duke of Aquitaine agreed to marry Louis’ heir the future Louis VII to William’s heiress Eleanor of Aquitaine around 1137. Louis VI wanted that match for his son because it gave him an opportunity to greatly expand the royal demesne. And of course, Eleanor of Aquitaine married the future Henry II of England in 1152 after she and Louis divorced on grounds of consanguinity. (Although probably really because Eleanor was rumored to have committed adultery and she and Louis only produced two daughters together.) Then Henry II had the good luck to have a number of wealthy, marriageable heiresses to dispose of during his reign. These included Isabella de Warenne, Countess of Surrey, who married Henry’s illegitimate half-brother Hamelin FitzGeoffrey; Isabel (or Avice or Hawise), Countess of Gloucester, who became the first wife of Henry II’s youngest son John (John later divorced Isabel/Avice, retained control of her county, and married another heiress, Isabella, Countess of Angouleme); Mary, Countess of Boulogne, who was forced to marry Henry II’s cousin Matthew of Alsace when he abducted her from the convent where she was serving as abbess (Mary had also inherited her county from her mother, Matilda I of Boulogne, and her two daughters with Matthew would successively rule after their father’s death); and Isabel de Clare, Countess of Pembroke and Lady of Striguil, who was betrothed by Henry II and married by Richard I to William Marshal. Richard I, for just one example, also married Ela, only child William Fitzpatrick, Earl of Salisbury, to his father’s illegitimate son William Longsword. The amount of control that these women exercised over their own lands varied on their husbands’ wishes and the amount of loyalty that her peasants, tenants, serfs, and vassals personally felt towards her due to her blood and personality.
Also, most European societies allowed widows to manage their own property (which could mean an inheritance, the remnants of a dowry, or her widow’s jointure/dower) because they were legally no longer under control of a husband or a father. Typically, these widows needed the support of male relatives and servants to exercise all of their roles, but they weren’t prevented from having property. It’s true that the Greeks and Romans didn’t generally extend those rights to women and that widowed and divorced women needed to be under the control of a male guardian, but this certainly wasn’t the case in all societies, particularly those influenced by Germanic law.
It’s true that the question of women succeeding as queens regnant was far more controversial, but they were generally allowed to inherit properties that weren’t kingdoms because it benefited men. Plus, there is the biblical case of the daughters of Zelophehad.
Oh, and the “Money, my dear boy” thing wasn’t meant to come across as patronizing. I was meaning to use a common phrase to convey a point. Apologies if it came across that way.