“Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.'” [Genesis 2:18 ESV]

Helper is a very poor translation of what the Hebrew says in that passage. In Hebrew, it says “ezer kenegdo“. Ezer indicates a powerful rescuer, and most of its occurrences in the Old Testament refer to God. Kenegdo means “corresponding as to him”.  God didn’t give Adam a weak, subservient assistant; God provided a powerful companion who rescued him from what God said was a bad situation.

While the King James’ “help meet” translation is not horrible, it’s inadequate. Then on top of that are centuries of cultural garbage. I have never wanted a wife who was what helpmeet has come to mean. What I wanted when I was single is what God gave Adam, a powerful companion who was perfectly suited for me. I didn’t need a cook, or a housekeeper, or a concubine, I needed a strong life partner. Fortunately, this is exactly what God gave me when I married my wonderful Lori.

~ Paul – I’m XY, and I have no use for a helpmeet!

Related Articles: 

• As I was working on this post, my lovely ezer kenegdo made mention of a post Scott Means had just published. Give Why I’m a Megamysterian a read, it’s powerful and spot on.
• Lori has written on this issue too, and it is one of her most read posts. Check out Why I Don’t Use the Words “Help Meet”.

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