What Does It Mean To Be A Helper?
Many people misunderstand the biblical role of women, particularly the term „helper.“ But what does this term really mean? Are women relegated to being inferior little housewives?
Genesis 2:18. “Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”
That’s two words in the Hebrew: ezer kenegdo—ezer, help. Kenegdo means at his level, or next to him, or complementary to him. We are made as a helper, suitable for him, or fit for him.
Sometimes when we think of a helper, we think of a secretary or someone who cleans up the house while someone else does all the important things. But that is not how the Bible sees help. In fact, there’s only one other person that our Old Testament will attribute the name ezer to. (Any guesses who that is? God Himself.)
You see woman called ezer, and you see God called ezer. Let me read you some of the verses where that word ezer comes up.
Psalm 121:1—2, “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”
What about Psalm 33:20? “Our soul waits for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.”
Psalm 70:5, “I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God! You are my help [my ezer], my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay!”
That word that we just saw in those verses, that God is our help in that way, is the same word He attributes to Eve, “I’m going to make an ezer for you at your level.”
Now, when we say that God is our help, does that belittle God? It does not. It exalts Him. We seek Him as a deliverer and a shield—somebody who’s desperately needed. “If You don’t come to my aid, I have no hope.” And that kind of neediness on God as our help elevates Him when we admit that we have our need and in need of Him.
So why would we, as women, feel inferior because we’ve been called a help? God does not feel that way. Why should we? We are no more inferior to man because we were created to help any more than God is inferior to us because He is there to help us. As God is a help to His people, so we as women get the privilege and honor to be a help to mankind.
Do you enjoy the fact that God is a help to you? Do you enjoy the fact that the One who numbers the stars cares enough to bend down and be a part of your life and help you? We have this awesome privilege to image God in a beautiful, humble, and sacrificial way.
God does not need to come and help us. He doesn’t owe us that. But He does willingly, and through Christ, at a great cost to Himself. And we get to reflect that as we relieve the burden of others—not add to them, as we encourage and strengthen others—not tear them down, as we push others to Christ—not steer them away.
What an honor! What a privilege! When you think of women as helpers, you should not think, Low; man, that’s such a lame role, thoughts. You should think, Awesome! I can’t wait to do that!
That’s the type of woman that we want to be, the type that when other people in our lives look around and go, “We need someone who can help us do what we’re doing better. Who could that be?” That our names would come to their mind because of the ways that we’ve been faithfully trying to help and serve those that are already in our lives.
And don’t wait for marriage to be that kind of woman. Be that kind of woman who’s known to come alongside and help others thrive.
This is what you were made to do, and this is what I was made to do. We serve God wholeheartedly and selflessly, where we’re planted, right now. That gives God honor as we reflect Him as helper to us.
And so, concluding that, our creation as women, God created us in His image to be a reflection of His helping nature. That means biblical womanhood is womanhood with God at the center. God made us in His image to reflect His helping nature. Which means biblical womanhood is a womanhood with God at the center. He is to be our center of gravity, our motivation, our ultimate goal.
An excerpt from the podcast episode: Biblical Womanhood and the Gospel by Kelly Needham
Love,
Mirjana Joy