Gender Wars vs. Combat Readiness: How Protestant Denominations Can Assist Military Planners

Headlines abound about the recent military action in Venezuela, and there is growing speculation about the international implications. Tensions between the United States and China, primarily over the status of Taiwan and the economic direction of the Pacific region, are just one example. How these situations unfold is known only to God. 

However, in the event of a major conflict, our military will almost certainly need to expand quickly to meet the challenges. That means we will face the very real possibility of a draft. Given our national environment, one where the natural understanding of men and women is drastically distorted by the lies of progressive secular feminism, there are more calls to support the expansion of the military draft to include young women as well as young men. However, as Christians committed to the biblical understanding of man and woman, we must seek to understand what the Scripture commands regarding this issue.

As recently as 2020, a congressional commission declared that including women in the military draft is “necessary and fair.” Although Democratic congressmen almost universally adhere to progressive feminism, even some Republican congressmen have begun to waver on this issue.

What Are Men and Women Designed for?

When one looks at the creation mandate given by God, there are two main tasks at hand: fill the earth and rule over it.

Then God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. – Genesis 1:28 (NKJV) emphasis mine

God’s mandate is evident in His design of the physical bodies of men and women. A man’s physical body is more suited to exercising dominion over the world. He is naturally stronger and more physically capable. A woman’s body is more suited to filling the world. She is more emotionally and relationally capable. Both men and women are required for both tasks, but one body type is primarily suited for each role. Women also tend to be more nurturing than men, further solidifying their designed roles as life-givers on the earth.

What Are the Implications for Military Service?

While many texts help us understand the overall created order and the actual divine purposes of men and women, the key text for us to consider here regarding military service is Deuteronomy 22:5, which states,

A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God.
– Deuteronomy 22:5 (NKJV), emphasis mine

At first glance, it appears that this is simply a command that a woman does not wear a suit and tie, and that a man must not cross-dress. However, as we study the phrase underlined above, “anything that pertains to a man,” we must examine the compound Hebrew word behind that translation, keli-geber. That Hebrew word means the “raiment of a valiant man or warrior.”

Why would the Scripture forbid women from wearing combat clothing? The answer to this question gets to the heart of what a woman is for in God’s created order. Women were created to be givers of life, and the Bible describes any effort to conscript them as instruments of death as an abomination.

Furthermore, the Bible describes instances where men have ceased to defend their homeland as an example of divine judgment. In Jeremiah 51:30, the city of Babylon is under the judgment of God. The men of Babylon stopped fighting, and their strength failed such that they became “like women.” The clear biblical implication is that the men failed in their assigned task to defend their city. Since God designed men with exercising dominion, part of that task is protecting His creation from evil. Consequently, the warrior ethos resides chiefly with men.

What Should Be Done?

There are many upcoming annual meetings for various Protestant denominations. These bodies should consider this matter and make clear statements for at least two reasons. First, to increase the pressure on government officials to honor God’s natural design. Second, to provide pastoral cover for women who would seek a religious exemption to an obviously un-Christian understanding of humanity. The Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches has a brief statement that could serve as a starting point for other denominations.

“It is neither lawful nor honorable for women to be mustered for combat service (Deu. 14:21b; 22:5). It is the duty of men—not women—to protect their homelands and nations (Num. 1:3; Jer. 51:30). Christian fathers must protect their daughters from being seduced or coerced into such a circumstance, and the Church must support them as they do.” – CREC Book of Memorials, rev. ed. 2022, Memorial E

Based on Holy Scripture, therefore, it is immoral and unlawful for governments to draft women for military service. Neither can governments open service in combat units to women. Women can certainly serve their nation in support roles, as many have done in previous wars with courage and steadfastness. But according to Scripture, the burden of direct combat falls on men. Let us pray that the men of our nation will be able to rise to meet the call of duty and that our Christian denominations can find the courage to apply Scripture to our national defense.

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