Genesis 2:21-25

R.      Chapter 2:21 – And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh thereof;

·       First recorded surgery, an amputation

·       Why would God do this rather than form the woman from the dust, just like Adam?  See v. 23

·       Indicates here that Adam was indeed a flesh body, so that flesh did exist before the fall (but it was not yet corrupted)

·       Why would God use a rib versus any other bone, what is the significance of the rib?

o      What is the function of the rib cage?

-         Protection of vital organs namely the heart

-        Does this somehow imply man’s new vulnerability as symbolically there is now less protection surrounding his heart?

o      The ribs are pretty much the middle of the body, seems to signify the equality of man and woman and the bond of their partnership.

-         If God would have chosen the foot bone or the skull to create woman it may have signified inequality.

-        My children made an observation that seems to be most logical, Adam could spare a rib, but not a skull or any other bone because all of the other ones have a more essential function.

S.    Chapter 2:22 – And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from the man, made He a woman, and brought her unto the man.

·       How did God make an adult woman out of a much smaller rib? Probably the same way he creates a living child from a microscopic fertilized egg, possibly some kind of accelerated cell division?

T.     Chapter 2:23 – And Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”

·       Answer to question above as to why God wouldn’t create woman from the dust just like He did the man, because He wanted them to be of one flesh.

·       Man - איש 'iysh

o      There are 5 principle Hebrew words for “man” or “men” and are as follows (from Appendix 14 of Companion Bible, E.W. Bullinger):

o אדם 'adam – denotes man or mankind, with the article it means “the man Adam”

o איש 'iysh – male or husband, a man in contrast with a woman (when God is spoken of as a man this is the type used) אשה 'ishshah is the feminine and means woman and is used here in 2:23

o אנוש 'enowsh – Always used in a bad sense such as morally depraved or physically frail

o גבור gibbowr – Identifies man with respect to physical strength, opposite of the physically frail meaning in (3)

o מת math – a plural means to discern adults from children or males from females

U.   Chapter 2:24 – Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

·       Quoted by the Messiah in Matthew 19:5, by Paul in I Corinthians 6:16 & Ephesians 5:31

·       According to H.C. Leupold this verse is often construed as being spoken by Adam, but actually should be a parenthetical remark by the author as Adam obviously would not have left his father and mother.

·       Becoming one flesh – identifies the importance of the bond of marriage and that it is a sanctified institution between man and woman.

V.    Chapter 2:25 – And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

·       Very similar to babies who dart away as soon as that diaper is off, carefree, no guilt, no shame, pure freedom

·       Naked - ערום `arowm – (adjective) - naked, bare

o      Subtil - ערום `aruwm – (adjective) - subtle, shrewd, crafty, sly, sensible  (Notice these words are Hebrew Homonyms, meaning they are spelled identically but have a different meaning; therefore, translaters would have to make a judgment on which word should be used)

No indication of God speaking to the woman regarding the trees in the garden, should we assume this responsibility was left to the man?