Does the Bible really teach gender equality? Why has gender inequality been the norm?

from the old testament

• God created men and women in His image, meaning they are of equal value in His eyes (Genesis 1:27). Some argue that because man was created first, men are more valuable than women. But God created Eve because He found it “not good” for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18–25), which implies that women are of equal importance.
• Passages like Deuteronomy 22:28–29 and Exodus 22:16–17 initially seem to require women rape victims to marry the rapist. The reality is more complicated. Those passages mean that if a man had sex with a single woman, making her ineligible for marriage to someone else, he must marry her upon paying the appropriate bride price and would never be allowed to divorce her (Deuteronomy 24:1–4). The woman would not be forced to marry the man, but he would still be forced to pay the bride price. These laws were to punish a man who unlawfully took advantage of a virgin and also to protect the victim of his crimes from any further exploitation.

from the new testament

• Jesus treated women as equals, counter to the cultural norms at the time. For example, His first miracle was done at the request of His mother (John 2:1-11). He revealed Himself as the Messiah to the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:25–26). When He rose from the dead, He first showed Himself to the women who had come to His tomb (Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:11-18).
• Gender equality isn’t equivalent to gender sameness. God created males and females and has given each different roles and complementary strengths (Ephesians 5:21-33; 1 Timothy 2:12).
• Unfortunately, some societies discriminate purposefully against people of certain genders, races, religions, and social classes. The Bible condemns this and states that we are one in Christ: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28).
• The saving grace of Jesus Christ is equally available to all, meaning God views us all equally (John 14:6; Acts 4:12).
• Our differences are not related to equality but show God's creativity, power, and wisdom. God pours out His Spirit on men and women alike (Acts 2:17). He has designed men and women to operate in this world as equals, even if some of their functions are different.

implications for today

“All things being equal . . .” That phrase is usually a prelude to choosing one circumstance or thing over another. All things rarely are equal, though—especially when human beings are involved. We tend to make the straightest lines crooked. We judge others by their behavior but ourselves by our intentions. We may treat people differently in other ways too. For instance, maybe we were raised to think that men are superior to women. Maybe we feel justified in treating women as lesser because we read in the Bible that those cultures treated women as such.

But descriptions of ancient cultures shouldn’t be our guide to how to treat one another. Instead, we should pay careful attention to what Scripture says about how God views men and women. God loves both genders equally (Galatians 3:28). We are made in His image (Genesis 1:27), so we are precious in His sight (Matthew 10:29-31). Christians should understand that though men and women have distinct roles and should not attempt to act like the opposite gender (Deuteronomy 22:5), we are loved equally as God’s children. No role we strive for on earth can equal that.