Genesis 2:22

Gen 2:22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

Ver. 22. And the rib which the Lord God had taken.] Matter, in the beginning of time, was taken from man to make a woman. And matter, in the fulness of time, was taken from a woman to make a man, even "the man Christ Jesus". {1Ti 2:5} And as out of the side of sleeping Adam Eve was formed; so, from the blood issuing out of the side and flesh of dying Christ, came his spouse the Church. His chief care therein was to "sanctify and cleanse" {Eph 5:26} his Church, and therefore he "came by water and blood". {1Jn 5:6} So should it be every husband’s; then would not the devil so oft break his head with his own rib; or, as St Gregory hath it, climb so oft by his rib to his heart, as by a ladder. {a} A good wife doth him good, and not evil, all her days. But this is not every man’s happiness. Lucky Sulla, if he should not have had a wife. {Sulla faellx, si non habuisset uxorem!} So Job and Moses, for whom marriage caused problems. {quorum conjugium, conjurgium} There is in most a propension to the nuptial conjunction. The man misseth his rib, say the Rabbins; {b} the woman would be in her old place again, under the man’s arm or wing. "Then Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?" {Rth 3:1}

Made he a woman.] Heb., builded, that is, created with special care, art, and fit proportion, in the manner of a house. A body hath God given the woman more capacious and roomy, both for the conceiving and containing of her young babe, which dwells in her womb, as in its house, and hath all its household stuff, as it were, about it, till time produce it into the light of life. Adam was formed, Eve built; her frame consists of rarer rooms, of a more exact composition than his doth. And if place be any privilege, we find, saith one, hers built in Paradise, when his was made out of it.

And brought her unto the man.] Marriage, then, is of Divine institution. The Saturnalian heretics sinfully said, that it was of the devil. And the blemish will never be wiped off from some of the ancients, who, to establish their own idol, of, I know not what virginity, have written most wickedly and basely against marriage. Three things we have here out of Moses to say for it against whatsoever opposite - viz., God’s (1.) Spoke; (2.) Led; (3.) Blessed. {Gen 1:28} {Dixit, Duxit, Benedixit} God the Father ordained it; God the Son honoured it with His first miracle; God the Holy Ghost did the like, by overshadowing the betrothed Virgin. Papists and others that disgrace it appear herein more like devils than divines, if Paul may be judge; {1Ti 4:2-3} or Ignatius, who saith, If any call marriage a defilement, he hath the devil dwelling in him, and speaking by him. {c}

{a} Diabolus per costam tanquam per scalam, ad cor Adami ascendit. - Mor, lib. iii. e. 5. Sic Phoroneus, apud Bruson, l. vii. c. 22.

{b} Requirit vir costam suam, requirit femina sedem suam. Hinc Rth 3:1; Rth 3:9. Annon quaererem tibi requiem? - Aben- ezra.

{c} Habet inhabitatorem Draconem Apostatam. - Ignat. Epist. ad Philad.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Hebrew, built.

Signifying that mankind was perfect, when the woman was created, which before was like an imperfect building.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

22. And brought her, etc Moses now relates that marriage was divinely instituted, which is especially useful to be known; for since Adam did not take a wife to himself at his own will, but received her as offered and appropriated to him by God, the sanctity of marriage hence more clearly appears, because we recognize God as its Author. The more Satan has endeavored to dishonor marriage, the more should we vindicate it from all reproach and abuse, that it may receive its due reverence. Thence it will follow that the children of God may embrace a conjugal life with a good and tranquil conscience, and husbands and wives may live together in chastity and honor. The artifice of Satan in attempting the defamation of marriage was twofold: first, that by means of the odium attached to it he might introduce the pestilential law of celibacy; and, secondly, that married persons might indulge themselves in whatever license they pleased. Therefore, by showing the dignity of marriage, we must remove superstition, lest it should in the slightest degree hinder the faithful from chastely using the lawful and pure ordinance of God; and further, we must oppose the lasciviousness of the flesh, in order that men may live modestly with their wives. But if no other reason influenced us, yet this alone ought to be abundantly sufficient, that unless we think and speak honorably of marriage, reproach is attached to its Author and Patron, for such God is here described as being by Moses.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(22) Made he a woman.—Heb., he built up into a woman. Her formation is described as requiring both time and care on the heavenly artificer’s part. Thus woman is no casual or hasty production of nature, but is the finished result of labour and skill. Finally, she is brought with special honour to the man as the Creator’s last and most perfect work. Every step and stage in this description is intended for the ennoblement of marriage. Woman is not made from the adâmâh, but from the adam. She is something that he once had, but has lost; and while for Adam there is simply the closing of the cavity caused by her withdrawal, she is moulded and re-fashioned, and built up into man’s counterpart. She brings back more than the man parted with, and the Creator Himself leads her by the hand to her husband. The anthropomorphic language of these early chapters is part of that condescension to human weakness which makes it the rule everywhere for inspiration to use popular language. He who made heaven and earth by the fiat of His will must not be understood as having literally moulded the side taken from Adam as a sculptor would the plastic clay; nor did He assume human form that He might place her at man’s side. Much of this may indeed have been represented to Adam’s mind in the trance into which he had fallen; but the whole narrative has a nobler meaning, and the practical result of its teaching was that neither woman nor marriage ever sank into that utter degradation among the Jews which elsewhere aided so greatly in corrupting morals and men.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

22. made he] Heb. “builded He,” so LXX ᾠκοδόμησεν, Lat. aedificavit: a different word from that in Gen_2:7-19.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he woman,.... It is commonly observed, and pertinently enough, that the woman was not made from the superior part of man, that she might not be thought to be above him, and have power over him; nor from any inferior part, as being below him, and to be trampled on by him; but out of his side, and from one of his ribs, that she might appear to be equal to him; and from a part near his heart, and under his arms, to show that she should be affectionately loved by him, and be always under his care and protection: and she was not "created" as things were, out of nothing, nor "formed" as Adam was, out of the dust of the earth, being in the same form as man; but "made" out of refined and quickened dust, or the flesh and bones of man, and so in her make and constitution fine and lovely; or "built" (n), as the word signifies, which is used, because she is the foundation of the house or family, and the means of building it up: or rather to denote the singular care and art used, and fit proportion observed in the make of her:

and brought her unto the man: from the place where the rib had been carried, and she was made of it; or he brought her, as the parent of her, at whose dispose she was, and presented her to Adam as his spouse, to be taken into a conjugal relation with him, and to be loved and cherished by him; which, as it affords a rule and example to be followed by parents and children, the one to dispose of their children in marriage, and the other to have the consent of their parents in it; as well as it is a recommendation of marriage, as agreeable to the divine will, and to be esteemed honourable, being of God: so it was a type of the marriage of Christ, the second Adam, between him and his church, which sprung from him, from his side; and is of the same nature with him, and was presented by his divine Father to him, who gave her to him; and he received her to himself as his spouse and bride; see Eph 5:29.

(n) "et aedificavit", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Piscator, &c.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

From some place at a little distance, whither he first carried her, that for the decency of the action he might bring her thence; a bride to a bridegroom to be married to him: the great God being pleased to act the part of a father to give his daughter and workmanship to him, thereby both teaching parents their duty of providing marriages for their children, and children their duty of expecting their parents’ consent in marriage.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

22. Made he a woman — Hebrews, Built… the rib which he had taken from the man into a woman. This is a simple statement of fact, and skeptical speculation and jest respecting it are idle and absurd. “The woman was created, not of the dust of the earth, but from a rib of Adam, because she was formed for an inseparable unity and fellowship of life with the man, and the mode of her creation was to lay the actual foundation for the moral ordinance of marriage.” — Keil.

Brought her — Not that she was formed at a great distance from him, but as soon as he awoke from his deep sleep, she was brought to his notice, that is, stood before him.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he (literally, builded into; aedificavit, Vulgate; wjkodomhsen, LXX) a woman. The peculiar phraseology employed to describe the formation of Adam s partner has been understood as referring to the physical configuration of woman s body, which is broadest towards the middle (Lyra); to the incompleteness of Adam"s being, which was like an unfinished building until Eve was formed (Calvin); to the part of the female in building up the family (Delitzsch, Macdonald), to the building up of the Church, of which she was designed to be a type (Bonar); yet it may be doubted if there is not as much truth in the remark that "by the many words used in the generation of mankind, as creating, (Gen_1:27) making, (Gen_1:26) forming and inspiring, (Gen_2:7) and now building, Moses would set forth this wondrous workmanship for which the Psalmist so laudeth God,". (Psa_139:14) (Ainsworth) And brought her unto the man. Ie. led, conducted, and presented her to Adam. "The word implies the solemn bestowment of her in the bonds of the marriage covenant, which is hence called the covenant of God; (Pro_2:17) implying that he is the Author of this sacred institution" (Bush). On awaking from his slumber Adam at once recognized the Divine intention, and joyfully welcomed his bride.

Ver. 22.

The first marriage.

I THE LONELY MAN.

1. Nobly born. Sprung from the soil, yet descended from above. Fashioned of the dust, yet inspired by a celestial breath. Allied to the beasts, yet the offspring of God.

2. Comfortably placed. His native country a sunny region of delights; (Gen_2:8) his home a beautiful and fertile garden; (Gen_3:5) his supplies of the amplest possible description; (Gen_1:30 Gen_2:16) his occupation light and pleasant; (Gen_2:15) his restrictions slight and trivial; (Gen_2:17) his privileges. (Gen_2:16)

3. Richly endowed. With immortality, (Gen_2:17) intelligence, (Gen_2:19) social capacities and instincts, (Gen_2:18) the faculty of speech. (Gen_2:20)

4. Highly exalted. As God"s offspring, he was invested with world-dominion (Gen_1:28; Psa_8:6) symbolized in his naming of the creatures. (Gen_2:20)

Yet5. Essentially alone. Not as entirely bereft of companionship, having on the one hand the society of Jehovah Elohim, and on the other the presence of the animals; but in neither the Creator nor the creatures could he find his other self his counterpart and complement, his consort and companion. On the one hand Jehovah Elohim was too high, while on the other the creatures were too low, for such partnership as Adam"s nature craved. And so Adam dwelt in solitude apart from both. "But for Adam there was not found a help meet for him.

II THE PROVIDED PARTNER.

1. Divinely fashioned (ver. 22).

(1) Woman was the last of God"s creative works; presumably, therefore, she was the best. "Eve"s being made after Adam puts an honor upon that sex as the glory of the man. (1Co_11:7) If man is the head, she is the crown a crown to her husband, the crown of the visible creation" (M. Henry).

(2) Woman was not made till everything was in the highest state of readiness for her reception. Before her creation, not only must there be a home for her reception, provision for her maintenance, and servants to attend upon her bidding; there must likewise be a husband that feels the need of her sweet society, that longs for her coming, and that can appreciate her worth. Hence he who seeks a partner should first find a house in which to lodge her, the means to support her, but specially the love wherewith to cherish her.

(3) Woman was formed out of finer and more precious material than man, being constructed of a rib taken from his side. "The man was dust refined, but the woman was dust double refined, one remove further from the earth" (M. Henry). This was not because of any supposed excellence residing in the matter of a human body. It was designed to indicate woman"s unity with man as part of himself, and woman"s claim upon man for affection and protection. She was made of a rib taken from his side made out of his head, to rule over him; nor out of his feet, to be trampled on by him; but out of his side, to be equal with him; under his arm, to be protected; and near his heart, to be beloved" (Henry).

(4) Woman was constructed with the greatest possible care. The entire operation was carried through, not only under God"s immediate superintendence, but exclusively by God"s own hand. Adam neither saw, knew, nor took part in the work. God cast him into a deep sleep, "that no room might be left to imagine that he had herein directed the Spirit of the Lord, or been his counselor" (Henry). Then by God"s own hand Adam"s side was opened, a rib extracted, the flesh closed in its stead, and finally, the rib thus removed from Adam"s side

Under his forming hands a creature grew, Man like, but different sex; so lovely fair, That what seemed fair in all the world, seemed now Mean, or in her summed up, in her contained, And in her looks; ...

Grace was in all her steps, heaven in her eye, In every gesture dignity and love". (Milton, "Par. Lost," Bin 8:469)

2. Divinely presented (ver. 22). "The Lord brought her unto the man." "Wherein we have exemplified the three great causes of marriage.

(1) The father"s consent, in God"s giving.

(2) The woman"s consent, in Eve"s coming. This was no forced marriage; the woman comes freely.

(3) The man"s consent, in Adam"s receiving. "And Adam said, This is at last bone of my bone (Hughes). And without these human marriages are sinfully contracted. Love for the bride is one of the signs which God vouchsafes of his approval of a marriage; the bride"s affection for the bridegroom is another; while a third is the approbation and the blessing of the parents of both.

III THE WEDDED PAIR.

1. Married by God. "God is the best maker of marriages" (Shakespeare). Nay, unless God unites there is no real marriage, but only an unhallowed connection, legitimized by man"s laws, it may be, but not sanctioned by God"s. As this wedding was of God"s arranging, so likewise was it of his celebrating. What celestial benedictions were outbreathed upon the young and innocent pair, as they stood there before their Maker, radiant in beauty, tremulous with joy, full of adoration, we are left to imagine. Happy they whose nuptials are first sanctioned and then celebrated by the living God!

2. United in love. This first marriage was certainly something more than a social or a civil contract; something other than a union of convenience or a diplomatic alliance; something vastly different from a legalized coenobium. It was the realization of what our Laureate pictures as the ideal marriage:

Each fulfils Defect in each, and always thought in thought, Purpose in purpose, will in will, they grow, The single, pure, and perfect animal; The two-cell d heart beating, with one full stroke, Life". ( "Princess," 7. )

1. Clothed in innocence. Never had bridal pair so beautiful and radiant apparel. The unclothed bodies of our first parents we can imagine were enswathed in ethereal and transfiguring light; in their case the outshining of their holy souls, which, as yet, were the undimmed and unmarred image of their Maker, capable of receiving and reflecting his glory. Alas, never bridal pair has stood in robes so fair! The beauty of holiness, the luster of innocence, the radiance of purity have departed from the souls of men. Never till we stand in the celestial Eden, where they neither marry nor are given in marriage, will garments of such incomparable splendor be ours. Meantime, let us thank God there is a spotless raiment in which our guilty souls may be arrayed, and in which it were well that every bridal pair were decked. Happy they who, when they enter into married life, can say, "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with jewels.

2. Housed in paradise. United by the hand of God, they began their married life in Eden.

And there these twain upon the skirts of time Sat side by side, full summ"d in all their powers, Dispensing harvest, sowing the to-be. Self-reverent each, and reverencing each; Distinct in individualities, But like each other, ev"n as those who love". (Tennyson"s "Princess," 7. )

And so may any wedded pair be housed in Eden who, putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, fill their home, however humble, with the light of love.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

ויבן AND HE FORMED (literally, He built) — as a structure, wide below and narrower above for bearing the child, just as a wheat-store is wide below and narrower above so that its weight should not strain the walls (Berakhot 61a).

ויבן את הצלע לאשה AND HE MADE THE RIB INTO A WOMAN — לאשה means that is should become a woman, like (Judges 8:21) “and Gideon made it לאפוד ” i. e., that it should become an ephod.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

ויבן ה' אלוקים את הצלע, the word צלע here has to be pronounced on the last syllable. The Torah says, in effect, that G’d “integrated” this צלע to be an integral indistinguishable part of Chavah’s other limbs and organs. She became basically a creature similar in all respects to Adam himself, except for her specifically female features.

ויביאה אל האדם, after Adam had woken up G’d brought Chavah to him to be his mate. In other words, when Adam awoke he saw her standing upright facing him.

Radak on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash” (CC BY 4.0); “Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology” (CC BY 4.0); and “R. David Kimhi on the first book of Psalms, Translated by R.G. Finch, London, 1919” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.