God's daughters are not merely support structures to God's sons in his building
Psalm 144:12
That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth that our daughters may be as corner stones polished after the similitude of a palace
Comment: Many Bible translations wrongly call God’s daughters pillars in God’s building. How do they justify that seeing as God’s building (1 Corinthians 3:9) is the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27), and God’s building has no pillars, … because it is shaped like a pyramid, and Pyramids have no pillars.
There is a vast difference between supporting pillars in a building and angles (called cornerstones in antiquity). Angles are crucial to the building of, support, stability, and functionality of all buildings.
Every building has cornerstones/angles, but only one structure sports a chief angle, a chief cornerstone, and that is a pyramid.
In Psalms 144:12, God’s Daughters are called cornerstones. And that is significant.
God’s pyramid-shaped building is a four-square structure (Revelation 21:16) made of living stones—some of which are cornerstones/angles, but all of which are connected in an unbroken and interconnected line to every other stone and cornerstone in the structure, including the Chief cornerstone, the Capstone.
Jesus is our capstone.
What is entirely missing from pyramids?
Pillars.
The Holy Jerusalem coming down from heaven in Revelation 21, is a four-square structure. It is not, as most scholars claim, cube shaped. It is a pyramid-shaped structure. We know this because God’s building has a capstone, and cubes do not have capstones.
Aside from Jesus, the Capstone (Chief Cornerstone), there is no hierarchy among the many angles/cornerstones that comprise God’s building (1 Corinthians 3:9-11).
Like other structures, pyramids have many angles/corner stones, which, as the structure is being built, add support to, connect to, and contribute to the stability and functionality of every other part of the building.
Scholars and Bible translators, because of gender bias, have erroneously inserted the word “pillar” into our Bibles and into biblical definitions of cornerstones/angles, because God forbid women should be cornerstones, which are crucial and preeminent parts of every building, … but within God’s building, that doesn’t make them rulers (1 Peter 5:3-4).
God’s building is compared to a pyramid, which is the only structure in existence that has a chief angle, a capstone. The capstone in every pyramid is the chief cornerstone, of which there is only one per pyramid. And, as stated, unlike other structures, pyramids do not have support pillars, or beams, or different types of angles. The angles in a pyramid are uniform, with every stone equally connected to every other stone, leading in an unbroken and interconnected line to the capstone.
Jesus is our capstone.
The pyramid shape of God’s building, both literally and figuratively, illustrates that there is no difference in the way his daughters or his sons contribute to or are connected to any and every part of God’s building. The very shape of the structure, with Jesus as the capstone, precludes gender or any other type of hierarchy within the Body of Christ.
Are there differences of functionality among the members of his Body? Of course, but not hierarchical differences (1 Peter 5:3-5).
The difference between earthly-built pyramids, which are the best earthly illustrations of God’s heavenly building—the city on a hill (Matthew 5:14)—is that God’s building (1 Corinthians 3:9-11) is built from the top down, with the Capstone being laid first.
The foundation of God’s building is laid at the top, with Jesus, the Chief Cornerstone, being laid first, and each member of his Body (living stones) is added from the top down, all connected by cornerstones—which include God’s daughters as well as his sons.
Even so, the twelve apostles of the lamb are honored as foundations of this building/city (1 Corinthians 3:9-11, Matthew 5:14) and featured as all foundations are, at the bottom (Revelation 21:14). The twelve tribes of Israel are featured on the gates. It is no coincidence that these august persons and significant tribes are not featured in a hierarchical flow from just beneath the Capstone.
Jesus is both our foundation and our capstone (1 Corinthians 3:9-11). Jesus is the Alpha and Omega. The Aleph Tav. The First and Last. In the beginning Elohim Aleph Tav created the heavens and the earth….
Aside from Jesus the capstone, each and every stone in God’s building holds a position of autonomous equality. Jesus said so while he walked the earth, “Only one is your Father and all of you are brethren.” Peter said so when commanded every believer to submit themselves to (prefer one another before) themselves (1 Peter 5:5). That verse alone refutes the claim that the biblical definition of the Greek compound word hypotasso is a hierarchical, military-like, subjection. 1 Peter 5:5 is found in over 5000 extant texts and in every Bible translated from koine Greek.
With the exception of Jesus, the Capstone, every stone in God’s building holds equal connectivity and cruciality with every other stone in the structure, without hierarchical preeminence over any other stone in the building.
Scholars and Bible translators are not infallible. We must all become scholars, defined as those who have an aptitude for study (2 Timothy 2:15). Study with critical eyes, understanding that even Bible lexicons, interlinears, and concordances can and often do reflect the biases of their authors. But the truth is not hard to find when we prayerfully search for it. Jesus said we would know the truth and the truth would set us free.
Complementarian, male governance, doctrine is wrong. Women are not merely support pillars to men in God’s building but are equal and autonomous cornerstones.
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Jocelyn Andersen is author of, Woman this is WAR! Gender, Slavery, and the Evangelical Caste System.
WHAT READERS ARE SAYING
I was pleased that translation bias was covered in a chapter, an issue that needs to be addressed, and one that I find quite hard to bring up with lay people or everyday believers who lack knowledge about Bible translation. We can trust our Bibles, but we also need to acknowledge that certain passages are hard to translate, and bias can come into play. ~~ L. Martin (4-stars)