The purpose of a woman from a biblical perspective
What defines a woman’s purpose is not a career or a list of acheivements, rather, the purpose of a woman is to glorify God in a unique and beautiful way..
So maybe you’ve wondered, what is the purpose of a woman? You want to find the true purpose, not based on what anyone else says.
Culture seems to be confused as to why women were created in the first place. Some have tried to start movements to prove that women should be held to a different standard; one they might call “higher”. I would argue that those movements are the reason women struggle to understand their value in the first place.
Perhaps, you long to live a life of love, simplicity, and meeting your loved ones needs. God created women to thrive in an environment where each of those needs are fulfilled. Below we will uncover 6 purposes of a woman according to scripture. My goal is to equip you with the knowledge of scripture that will allow you to boldly embrace the way God designed you to be.
Before we dive in, let’s lay a foundation for the list below. God did not create us to be of lesser value than a men, but rather, he created you and me to be skilled in different responsibilities than men. You are not less; you are fulfilling a different role that is equally as vital as the role God gave to man. You were created with dignity and beauty by God.
Purpose 1 – To live with noble character
We all have a different story and circumstances. Maybe you stay home, maybe you work, maybe you have kids, maybe you don’t maybe you’re married, maybe you’re not.
No matter where you find yourself, God’s word highlights the purpose of all woman: living as one of noble character. What is one of noble character?
Noble: possession of personal qualities that people admire (honesty, trustworthiness, generosity, courage, etc.)
Why is this number one on the list? Simply stated, your character defines the rest of who you are as a woman.
Proverbs 31 reminds us, “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.” God designed you to be of great value, be careful not to allow that value to be wasted by falling into the lie that others define how you obtain your worth.
Apart from God’s grace, we will fail at living nobly, but as a child of God he will graciously mold us into women of noble character.
What a woman of noble character practically looks like:
- She is truthful to her husband
- She is generous to those she finds have need
- She possess courage to do what is right when it is hard
- She descerns what the Bible says she is made for
- She refuses to do things for the sake of fitting in
- She becomes a safe place to confide in
A noble wife is worth more than precious jewels. Are you asking the Lord to shape you into a noble woman?
Purpose 2 – To be a suitable helper
Now, before you dismiss this one because a helper seems like a “less than” position, give me a moment to explain how brilliant God was when he made women.
In Genesis 2:18 when God made Eve he said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” The message within this verse indicates a few things about the purpose of a woman.
First, God straight up says it is not good for man to be alone, he needed a woman. Humans are relational beings and God knew man and woman would need companionship.
Second, we see that God was intentional with the skills he gave to the woman. He made Eve fit to help Adam. Where man was found to be lacking, God made the woman strong. This is how a woman is a suitable helper. She is not less than, but rather, a complimentary partner.
Third, you were created to compliment your counterpart. You possess skills and abilities that man does not have and that is not by accident. So don’t be ashamed or frustrated by your differences, learn to embrace them and grow in the ways you were created to do well in.
God created the role of a man to be unique, he is the leader, and he is the provider. Woman is the supporter, the one that will not let man quit when things get hard, she is the voice of reason and truth when others are clouding their judgment, she is the one that deeply longs to connect and encourages the relationship that both men and women were created to experience, she remembers all the things he forgets about, she watches over the home, she is a suitable helper and it is brilliantly beautiful.
You as a woman are the jewels on the crown, the petals on a rose, the sugar in dessert. You are the glory of glories in creation. We must be careful not to replace that with thoughts of insignificance, convenience or control.
Purpose 3 – To provide food for your family
I have found that some women enjoy cooking, others enjoy baking, and some hate both. Regardless, this is one of those purposes that holds great value and needs to be discussed. Even if you don’t like to cook, this role is actually a blessing, let me tell you why.
Providing food for your family gives you incredible control over your family’s wellbeing and health. Proverbs 31:15b says, “she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants.” This proverbs 31 woman is taking the wellbeing of her family seriously. She understands that her family’s wellness and health are, in large part, determined by their nutrition and she is working hard to provide them with what they need to thrive.
Providing food for your family might look different for you than it does for some else but the point is that God gave you that role and you are doing your best with it. He knew we would like to shop so he created our role to do the grocery shopping!
This purpose is a blessing because God gives us the freedom and ability to care for our family with the food they eat. Food is our fuel and the quality of our fuel matters. We get to love those around us by providing them with something that others do not have a responsibility to give them.
If planning, prepping, and providing food for your family is not a regular practice in your home, I would challenge you to start cooking one dinner a week with intentionality and care. Ask God to honor your intentions to fulfill what you were created for.
Purpose 4 – To be a caretaker for the weak
There is a reason the phrase “motherly instincts,” was spoken and continues to rein true. Proverbs 31:20 tells us, “she opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.” God created women to have a tender heart and a motherly instinct that man just does not have.
A caretaker supports someone who needs help with life either physically or emotionally. Women were created, especially when entering into motherhood, to have a desire to be a good caretaker. That desire and instinct were part of the purpose given to women by God.
The purpose of a man tends to be bolder, louder, and stronger (not always but often). God knew he also wanted humans to experience and understand the softer, caretaking, and tender side of the characteristics and he designated woman to carry them out more prominently.
Being a caretaker does not mean you are timid and allow people to stomp on you. The caretaking role means you are one to tend to others needs, especially the weaker such as children, and you are able to identify and resolve things as they arise.
Proudly take care of your family and those around you, it is what you were made for.
Purpose 5 – To watch over the affairs of your household
Here is where the purpose of a woman differs greatly from that of a man. God created two individuals to take care of everything that needed tending to. Man has the responsibility to go out of the home and find ways to provide for their house. Woman “has the role of watching over the home, knowing the needs within the home, and being a good steward of what the husband brings in to provide for the home.
Proverbs gives us examples of how a woman might do this in chapter 31 verse 21, “when it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.” The woman knew what was needed to care for her home during the weather that was present.
Our culture has downplayed the role of caring for the home by celebrating women who do everything but care for their home. This is not to say that a woman cannot successfully have a job and be attentive to the needs of her home but she must recognize her limits and decide where her time would be best spent.
Taking care of your home is equally as important as providing for your home. If you have a house but no one to care for the needs of the house and the people in it, somewhere the full potential of the home is lacking. God designed you as the woman, wife, mom, to be the one to govern and watch over the affairs of your home.
“She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.”
Proverbs 3:27
Purpose 6 – To fear the Lord
To fear the Lord is to be in awe of him, to uphold a reverent respect for his role. A woman who fears the Lord embraces the purpose he created her to fulfill. Proverbs beautifully reminds us, “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised” (Prov 31:30).
If you were to apply each one of the above purposes of a woman but leave out fearing the Lord, it would be as one who deceives with charm or lives off of her beauty. The motive behind everything a woman does should be founded on her fear of the Lord.
A woman who fears the Lord is to be praised because she has found the meaning and purpose of life. She was created by God, for God, and for his purpose. God created man and woman for different purposes and they work together for his good.
Do not get so caught up in being the person that you are supposed to be, that you forget why you are striving to become that person in the first place. You will not be perfect and you will find struggles but when your foundation is in him, he will equip you.
Resources to dive deeper into God’s beautiful design for you:
