2
THE KEY ISSUES IN THE
MANHOOD-WOMANHOOD
CONTROVERSY
Wayne GrudemR
KEYISSUE1: MEN ANDWOMANAREEQUAL INVALUE ANDDIGNITY
Very early in the Bible we read that both men and women are made
“in the image of God.” In fact, the very first verse that tells us that God
created human beings also tells us that both “male and female” are in
the image of God: “So God created man in his own image, in the
image of God he created him; male and female he created them”
(Gen. 1:27).^1
To be in the image of God is an amazing privilege. It means to be
like God and to represent God.^2 No other creatures in all of creation,
not even the powerful angels, are said to be in the image of God. It is
a privilege given only to us as men and women. We are more like God
than any other creatures in the universe, for we alone are “in the image
of God.”^3
Any discussion of biblical manhood and womanhood must start
here. Every time we look at each other or talk to each other as men
and women, we should remember that the person we are talking to is
more like God than anything else in the universe,and that men and women
share that status equally. Therefore we should treat men and women