So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:27-28).
The first mention of “man” explicitly includes both male and female, showing that “man” here means mankind or humanity. Both genders equally have God’s image or likeness. Both equally are blessed by God for their life and work on earth. The role of “dominion” or rule over the earth is given to both equally. In this context, God makes no distinction in His blessings and commands for them. What He says to the one He says to the other. This equality in God’s eyes is important to remember throughout this study. If God does at some time give different roles to different people, that should not be taken as inequality. Likeness to God and responsibility as earth’s rulers are given to both male and female by God Himself, from the beginning. If different roles are needed, God chooses the best way to divide the work for success and for His own honor.
This creation passage already suggests two roles. God says, “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28). That has to do with sexual relations and the resulting birth of children. Though man and woman are alike in that they both have God’s image, God created their bodies different for the purpose of reproduction. Different does not mean unequal. One body is made for the role of father. The other body is made for the role of mother. Difference in role has nothing to do with superiority or inferiority, greater worth or lesser worth. If you wish to test this, think of removing either Adam or Eve from this scene. How useful or valuable is either alone at producing children? Each is essential—equally important—in supplying what the other needs to produce children (1 Corinthians1:11-12). So, we already see three roles:
- The combined role as ruler over the earth
- The man’s role as a future father
- The woman’s role as a future mother
However, that is not where the creation account ends. Genesis goes on immediately to take a closer look at the creation of humanity. Where Genesis chapter one gives a summary, Genesis chapter two goes into much more detail. It shows how God goes about this creation.