Neville Goddard’s teaching on manifestation centres on one core idea: reality flows from identity. What we assume ourselves to be shapes what appears in our world. The Bible supports this idea when read as a symbolic drama of the mind — especially through its recurring use of men and women.
In Scripture, man and woman are not separate beings in conflict. They are personified aspects of the same mind. “Man” represents the declaring awareness — the I AM. “Woman” represents the part of the mind that remembers, responds, and forms according to that declaration. What the I AM assumes, woman carries forward.
Seen this way, the repeated theme of barren women is not biological or moral — it describes a disconnection between assumption and imagination. Desire exists, but the inner agreement has not yet settled.
Genesis 2:23 — One Mind, Two Functions
“This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” — Genesis 2:23
This verse is not describing separation but recognition. Woman is taken out of Man because she reflects him. She is the responding aspect of the same being.
Symbolically, this is the moment awareness realises that what it assumes does not remain abstract — it is echoed, remembered, and shaped into form. Woman is not lesser, passive, or external. She is the inner witness that agrees — or disagrees — with the I AM.
To “cleave” (Genesis 2:24) is to bring these two functions into harmony. When identity and response are aligned, creation follows naturally.
Barrenness — When Assumption and Imagination Are Not Yet United
The Old Testament repeatedly presents women who long to conceive but cannot. This is not repetition for drama — it is instruction.
Barrenness symbolises a state where the I AM desires, but the responding mind has not yet fully agreed. There is effort, yearning, even faith — but not rest. Each barren woman shows a different stage of this inner process:
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Sarah — the first stage of learning the law of assumption. She laughs at the idea that joy and pleasure themselves could be creative. Her laughter is not mockery — it is surprise. Isaac (“laughter”) is born when joy itself is trusted.
“And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said…” — Genesis 21:1
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Rachel — frustration: desire exists but agreement is incomplete. Her breakthrough comes when the text says, “God remembered Rachel,” showing that alignment, not effort, opens the womb.
“And God remembered Rachel…” — Genesis 30:22
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Leah — though unloved, she conceives, showing that even neglected inner states respond when identity is engaged.
“When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb…” — Genesis 29:31
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Hannah — devotion. She does not merely discover the law; she commits the whole mind to it. Peace arrives before conception, showing that agreement has already been reached.
“If thou wilt… give unto thine handmaid a man child…” — 1 Samuel 1:11
These women portray stages of the mind learning to unite assumption with imagination. Barrenness reflects inner division. Fruitfulness reflects agreement.
Mary — The Mind That Fully Agrees
With Mary, the Bible shows a decisive shift. There is no struggle, no delay, no bargaining. She hears the word and agrees.
“Thou shalt conceive… and bring forth a son.” — Luke 1:31
Mary represents a mind that no longer argues with identity. Her so-called virginity symbolises freedom from contradiction — a mind not reacting to appearances, but responding only to the word accepted within.
Her reply says everything:
“Be it unto me according to thy word.” — Luke 1:38
This is imagination fully aligned with assumption.
Jesus — The Union Made Visible
If woman is taken out of man in Genesis, then Jesus represents the visible outcome of that union restored. He is the Word made flesh — assumption fixed, agreed with, and embodied. He is called the Son of God and the Son of Mary because he is born from identity and response perfectly joined.
The Many Marys — Unified Functions of the Mind
The repetition of the name Mary in the New Testament highlights different expressions of the same unified mind:
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Mary Magdalene — the mind healed from past error and no longer divided.
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Mary of Bethany — the receptive mind, listening rather than striving.
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Mary the Mother of James — the enduring mind, faithful even in difficulty, holding memory and resurrection.
Each shows a state of inner agreement rather than fragmentation, demonstrating that the mind has become fully responsive and fertile.
Martha — Activity Without Alignment
Martha represents the mind busy with doing, trying to assist creation rather than resting in being.
“Martha was cumbered about much serving…” — Luke 10:40
Her energy is not wrong — but it is not creative. Creation flows from agreement, not activity.
Conclusion — From Genesis to Fulfilment
Genesis 2:23 introduces the twofold operation of the mind. The rest of the Bible shows its education. Barrenness reflects inner division. Fruitfulness reflects agreement. Mary represents the mind that has stopped resisting itself.
Jesus symbolises what is born when assumption and imagination are fully united. This is the biblical teaching Neville pointed to: when the mind agrees with its own declaration of being, reality must follow.
About The Author | Genesis 2:23 Series | Women in the Bible Series