Detailed question
Why does the devil hate women so much? We see it throughout history and in various cultures.
**Burning of widows on funeral pyres, Sati, was legal in India until 1829. **The “Rule of Thumb” was from 1857 and forbid a man from England or Wales from using a rod thicker than his thumb to beat his wife. **The head to toe covering and silencing of women in Afghanistan is done in modern times. **In our own country and time, transgender males claiming to be females invade women and girls safe spaces, domestic violence and rape shelters and prisons and claim women’s awards in sports or even beauty pageants. **Female genital mutilation is still done in Africa. **There are many modern examples of “honour killings”, sometimes by horrific methods such as burnings and there are examples in some cultures of control and punishment by throwing acid in a woman’s face. This is just a small sampling of focused evil and oppression being directed towards women.
Summary
Why does the devil seem to have a particular hatred for women? In this thought-provoking episode of Ask FGBC, Pastor Jim Butler and Wim Kerkhoff explore the deep spiritual roots of this question, drawing from Scripture, history, and theology. From biblical enmity in Genesis to the tragic realities of oppression and violence in our world today, they shed light on how Satan’s hatred for God’s order—and especially the life-giving role of women—fuels this ongoing assault. Whether you’re wrestling with these realities or seeking to understand God’s heart for women, this conversation invites you to reflect and anchor your thoughts in gospel truth. Watch the video or read the full transcript to go deeper.
Got a question on Christianity, Gospel, Scripture, Theology? Submit your own questions here.
Transcript
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Devil’s hatred, women, historical oppression, rape, weaker vessel, total depravity, biblical doctrine, protection, security, family structure, pro-death, mass shootings, soft targets, God’s order, sin.
SPEAKERS
Wim Kerkhoff, Pastor Jim Butler
Wim Kerkhoff 00:07
The question is: Why does the devil hate women so much? So someone submitted this with a lot of examples. You see it in history, burning of widows on funeral pyres, the rule of thumb, apparently, like, we use that expression all the time, and apparently you couldn’t use a rod thickened in your thumb to beat your your wife in England and Wales. Afghanistan is still covering and silencing women. Obviously you have rape. The list goes on. So yeah, this was on somebody’s mind or heart, just a lot of evil and oppression more towards women than men.
Pastor Jim Butler 00:48
I would suggest — teologically, I’m familiar with that questioner, and thankfully, we’ve been able to hash it out a little bit. But theologically, there may be an ax to grind against the woman from whom the seed of the woman would be born that would crush the devil. So the devil certainly would have an active interest in opposing women if woman was going to be the vehicle by which his destruction was going to come. But I think too just you know, something that is not obviously common or popular today, either outside the church, and unfortunately, in some in some churches, is that women are the weaker vessel. Paul says that, or Peter says that in first, Peter, chapter three, giving honor to the weaker vessel. Well, weaker vessels are more easily victimized. And we cannot forget the doctrine of total depravity and the abject wickedness of men, and men love to exploit, men love to hurt, men love to bully. And I would suggest that some of that targeting is on women because they’re easy, easier prey. You know, the bully doesn’t pick on somebody that’s a foot taller and is carrying a sidearm. You know, when you see these mass shootings, they’re always soft targets. They don’t have mass shootings at gun shows. They don’t have mass shootings and, you know, military installations, for the most part, they have mass shootings in schools, in movie theaters, where there’s soft targets. So, and that’s not to denigrate and that’s not to offend women. I think it’s just the opposite. Peter specifically says giving honor to them as the weaker vessel, if anything, we should be, you know, promoting the protection and stability and security for women. It’s just another symptom of God’s or man’s aggression against the living and true God, and is Christ. It’s God’s order that men lead, women submit, men protect, but we invert that, and we want to hurt, we want to destroy, we want to victimize, and it’s a symptom of our sin.
Wim Kerkhoff / Pastor Butler (mixed) 02:58
Yep, yeah, I’ll put enmity between you and and the woman that’s right, yeah, so yeah, attacking family structure. Hates life. Women bring life into the world. Yeah, he’s [the devil] obviously pro death.
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