The Formation of Eve and the First Marriage
Genesis 2:18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
19 And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
20 And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.
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 instead thereof;
22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
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.
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Background Notes
Let’s begin with some background notes. Critics of the Bible like to claim that there
are three problems with this section of Scripture. First of all, they say there is a
contradiction between Genesis 1 and this part of Genesis 2. Genesis 1 says that God
created animals before man, but here in Genesis 2, they say it sounds like man was created
before the animals. Let’s read verses 19 once again, “Out of the ground the LORD God
formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see
what he would call them.” The simple solution to this problem is that verse 19 could be
translated as follows: “Out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field
and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them.”
Genesis 2 does not say that man was created before the animals.
A second problem, the critics say, is that Adam would not have had enough time to
name all the animals. If Adam and Eve were both created on Day Six, according to Genesis
1, and if Day Six was only 24 hours long, and Adam named all the animals between his
creation and Eve’s creation, then there would not be enough time for Adam to name all the
animals. Sounds like a good argument at first, but it doesn’t carry weight when a few
simple facts are considered. Let me briefly list four:
1. The Bible doesn’t say that Adam had to name all the fish and all the insects, but
only (v19), cattle, the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. And remember, in the beginning there were only “kinds,” not all the varieties that we have today.
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2. Adam didn’t have to run all over creation to find the animals and catch the birds.
God brought them to Adam (v19).
3. How long do you think it would take Adam to name these various kinds of animals
and birds? Today we can walk through a zoo in just a few hours, and in a very short period
of time we can view perhaps an even wider variety of animals than Adam was asked to
name!
4. Remember that Adam was in his unfallen state. Think of the mental ability and
acuity that Adam had, unaffected by any genetic disorder, or genetic decline, or genetic
deterioration!
A third “problem” that some naïve critics of the Bible like to mention is that men and
women still have the same number of ribs, so how could God have used one of Adam’s ribs
to form Eve? Well, how stupid can you be, Mr. Critic? Come on! Just because a man has a
rib removed, does not mean his male descendants will be born with one less rib than
women! by the way, the Hebrew word translated “rib” here doesn’t necessarily mean rib,
but rather “side,” or “from his side.”
One more background note: Those folks who believe you can harmonize the theory
of evolution with the Bible have a very hard time with the Genesis 2 account of the
formation of Eve. If Adam was only an “advanced male ape” into which God put a spirit,
then certainly there would have been an “advanced female ape” around for God to make
into Eve. But verse 20 says, “But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to
him.” You follow the argument there? More we could say! But we have to move on to
the doctrinal points.
Doctrinal Points
1. Adam and Eve are a picture of Christ and the (eternal) Church.
Why did God form Eve in this unique way? Why didn’t God form Eve in the same way that He formed Adam? Well, certainly one reason was because of what Adam said in verse 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.
Because Eve was formed out of Adam, Adam realized how much a part of him Eve
was, and he certainly understood what God said in verse 24 about marriage: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Because of the way God formed Eve, Adam appreciated that his counterpart was part of him.
Another reason why God formed Eve in this way is the spiritual picture that He wanted to convey of Christ and the (eternal) Church. God has placed a number of these spiritual pictures (or “types”) in the book of Genesis and the rest of the Old Testament as well.
Follow the spiritual picture here. As Adam, the first man, was put to sleep, so Christ, the second man from heaven (1 Corinthians 15:47) was put to death. As Eve, the bride of Adam, was formed because Adam was put to sleep, so the Church, the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5), was formed because Christ was put to death. As Eve was thus united and one with Adam, so the (eternal) Church is united to Christ and one with Him.
I’m reading Ephesians 5:30-32 in this connection:
30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. 32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.
Adam and Eve are a picture of Christ and the church.
2. Adam and Eve are a model for husbands and wives.
Genesis 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
These verses say a lot about marriage, don’t they? First of all, we see that marriage is to be monogamous. What does it say? “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife.” Not wives, wife. In addition, we see that marriage is to be heterosexual. As someone has said, God created marriage for Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.
Furthermore, we see that marriage is to be the complete union between a man and a woman. It is more than a brother and sister relationship. They should become one flesh.
This oneness certainly includes sexual oneness. In fact, verse 25 would indicate that in an ideal marriage, as God intended it, a husband and wife can be naked before one another and not be ashamed. In addition, “nakedness” should involve more than just physical nakedness. Husbands and wives should not wear masks and hide things from one another.
So more is involved in the oneness here between husbands and wives than just physical oneness. Husbands and wives should function as one; they are to complement or complete one another. Eve was formed from Adam’s side not from his head, or from his foot, but from his side. This emphasizes that Eve was Adam’s equal, a helper suitable for him. The word “helper,” by the way, definitely does not imply an inferior position or inferior person – in fact, the same word translated “helper” is used to describe God in the Bible!
What a beautiful thing it is to see a husband and wife who function as a team!
Another thing we learn about marriage here is that marriage begins a new social unit. Again in verse 24, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”
This does not mean that a new couple has to move to a different town then the parents, but it does mean that mothers and mothers-in law should not make the decisions and call the shots for the new couple or fathers and fathers-in law, either, for that matter! The new couple should make their own decisions. They can ask advice from their parents and from other people as well, but the “chain of command” has ended between parents and children. The chain of counsel remains, but not the chain of command. A new chain of command begins with marriage. Marriage begins a new family unit.
One further thing we learn is that marriage, as God designed it from the beginning, is to be permanent. A man is to “cleave” or cling closely to his wife. He is joined to her. He is united with her. In Mark 10:6-9, when the Pharisees asked the Lord Jesus about divorce, the Lord quoted this passage:
6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.
7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; 8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
We have seen a number of truths about marriage taught in these last two verses of Genesis 2. Marriage is not something that man dreamed up. No, God instituted marriage for mankind, and it is good in God’s sight. Verse 18, “It is not good that man should be alone…” Adam and Eve are a model for husbands and wives.
Practical Application: Let God bring the right person to you.
Let me ask you a question: Do you think Adam and Eve were compatible? Yes, of course they were in every way. Why? Because God designed them for one another and brought them together. Now do you think Adam was pleased with what he saw when he woke up from his surgery, and first saw Eve? You better believe that he was pleased! Look at what he said when he woke up (v23):
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.
Do you think that God can do the same for you? Can He bring the right person to you? Of course He can! If God has chosen you to be married, He can bring the right person to you.
Now to the married folks this morning: God has brought the right person to you. You might not think so, and maybe there were some mistakes on your part in the decision making process, but listen God can make something beautiful out of your marriage. And now that you’re married, the Biblical way to think is that God has brought the “right” person to you.