Men are from Mars, and women are from Venus.
Have you ever heard that? It’s a book. It’s an expression. It’s an idea. It’s an attempt to explain why men and women are so different.
It’s not just physical attributes that make men and women different. It’s also how we process, engage, interact, and think. For as different as we are, we are still human. We still need each other.
Another expression related to this said, “Men are from Earth; women are from Earth. Deal with it.”
Not bad advice and Scripture certainly isn’t silent on how to “deal with it.” But there was a time when a man and a woman didn’t have to deal with the “battle of the sexes.”
When we left off last week, we’d seen the final phrase of Genesis 2:20, which sets up today’s passage: “But for Adam no suitable helper was found.”
We are given the result of that observation in Genesis 2:21-25.
So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.”
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Genesis 2:21-25
New International Version
The Lord created a woman since Adam had no suitable companion among the animals. Returning to the end of Genesis 2:20, how is the woman a “suitable helper” for Adam? The Hebrew word translated as “helper” refers to someone who comes to the aid of another. This word is often used for God coming to the aid of His people. As such, nothing is implying the woman was subservient to the man.
When we consider how the woman was a “suitable helper” for the man, it helps us to understand this as a “partner” or “counterpart.”
Therefore, the Lord performed the first surgery: taking part of the man to make the woman. The Hebrew word translated here as “rib” isn’t usually used for the bones around our lungs. It might benefit our understanding by thinking of it more as Adam’s side was used to create her.
Regardless of which part of Adam’s side the Lord used, the woman is created by the Lord and brought to the man. The phrases imply this is an act of grace to Adam.
And just as the man named the animals of creation, he now names her: woman. Adam saw her as the Lord created her: his equal. In this place of perfection in Genesis 2, there is the man’s commitment to take and care for her. Returning to what we’ve said throughout Genesis 1 and 2 (and will come many times more), naming means possession.
The man is taking her to his side as his partner, his wife. This is further underscored by the Bible telling us they consummated their marriage. Immediately following this, marriage is addressed (verse 24). This small section may seem out of place, but we must remember the Bible isn’t just telling us what happened. It’s teaching us.
Before we run too far with the man’s possession of the woman, we must observe how all the creation events of Genesis 2 are presented. The most important things are presented last in the Ancient Near Eastern mindset.
In Genesis 1, this was the concept of the Sabbath. But what is the final creative act in Genesis 2?
The creation of the woman.
The text doesn’t say nor imply that the man was lording authority over her. There was no sin (yet). Their relationship was perfect (for now). The final verse of our text isn’t only a transition but also reminds us of the bliss they lived in, “…they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25b).
There is so much I could write about this passage. It’s one of my favorites because it establishes women, marriage, the home, and love in just a few verses. It reminds us that the Lord doesn’t want the “battle of the sexes.” We need each other, and the struggle is worth it.
We’ll break from Genesis for the Advent and Christmas season starting next week. When we return in January, we’ll find out what occurred between the perfection of Genesis 2 and the mess we have today.
Life Meets Theology 