Chapter Two Creation of Woman

Creation of Woman

On the very first day of Adam's life, when everything about him was new, fresh, and beautiful beyond our imagination, there was only one thing that was not altogether good for him. It wasn't that God had made any mistakes or created anything not good. It was only that there was one thing not yet completed; not yet finished, and so it's full beauty and potential could not yet be seen and felt.

God had a purpose, I believe, in waiting a little while, perhaps a few hours, though we do not know the exact length of time, to finish his most valued creation. We do know that he completed the work in one day. It may be that He wanted his man to get an idea of just how important that part, yet to come, was to him, to truly sense the need for it and desire it.

Perhaps he even took some time to talk to Adam about what was about to happen and about to be created; for that which was about to be created, was what would cause Adam to truly be the reflection of God. It was the one thing that would complete the picture. It was the other half of who and what Adam was to be.

It was Woman.

The way the woman was to be created, was to be different from the creation of anything up to this time. God had taken dust of the earth and formed the man who reflected the father part of the Godhead. But for the woman God was going to perform an operation unlike anything he had yet done. It may be that he took time to explain to Adam what he was about to do and to put him through, as well as the reason for it. We do not know, but scripture will show us that as soon as Adam saw the woman, he had understanding of her purpose and the reason God went to the lengths he did in her creation.

Gen. 2:21-25 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; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 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. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

The first thing we are told that God did, was to put the man to sleep. So Adam had to submit himself into the hands of God, trusting himself and his life to God in order to receive his bride. One day in the future Jesus would submit himself into the hands of His Father and be put to death in order to receive his bride. Interestingly, in the New Testament, Christians who died were referred to as being asleep; those who sleep in Christ. When a child of God dies, it is known that he will get up once again, so sleep is a good description of their condition.

I think we can see many representations of the work of our Savior in the process of creating the woman, including Adam's sleep, as representative of the death Christ would suffer in order to have a bride .

While Adan slept, God opened his side and took out a rib. It does not say a piece of a rib, but a rib. While Jesus was on the cross, his side was opened and he shed blood. Not one of his bones were broken. As far as we know not one of Adam's bones were broken in the process of the creation of his bride, but one was removed.

Adam would say, after he was awakened, that the woman was both bone of his bones and also flesh of his flesh. So apparently some of Adams flesh was taken to be used in making the woman. Verse 21, tells us that God “closed up the flesh instead thereof.”

In the Hebrew, the words 'closed up' is 'cagar', meaning to shut up; figuratively – to surrender:- close up, deliver (up).… 
This could suggest that God actually opened Adam up as in an operation, rather than to remove his bone supernaturally.

But if we took the meaning “to surrender or to deliver up,” he might be saying that Adam surrendered a piece of his flesh to the Lord for the creation of his bride.

The blood is in the flesh. The life of the flesh is the blood. (Lev. 17:14) So Adam shed blood in order to receive a bride that would truly be part of himself and would have his own blood in her. He gave lifeblood. Jesus would one day shed his blood in order to receive a bride for himself.

I believe this was a serious blood covenant. Adam first shed blood. After this women would often shed blood when the hymen was broken in intercourse. This was only to happen in marriage when a covenant had been made.

When Adam saw his bride for the first time, he was looking at his own rib, his own flesh and his own blood flowed through that flesh. While the woman was indeed an individual, yet at the same time she was a very real part of her husband. They truly were one flesh.

Now Adam, being created by God, had never seen a marriage before. He had never seen a father and mother together nor witnessed human birth. Yet with knowledge and understanding, he made this statement upon seeing the woman.

“ … This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

When Adam first saw Eve, he knew what had taken place while he slept. He also knew that after this, God would not be putting every individual male to sleep to perform the same operation on them in order for them to have a wife. He knew that children would come by means of the marital union of man and wife and that in due time a man should leave his parents and, by choice, join himself to one woman. He was to cleave to his wife and the two of them were to be considered literally one flesh.

To cleave, according to the Hebrew is to - impinge, that is, cling or adhere …

But there was a reason. Adam said “ … Therefore shall a man ...” Because of the way God had created Eve of Adam's own bone and flesh, which I believe is to say, because God made the two of them to be one, which is in the likeness and image of God, every man after this is to view himself and his wife in the same manner.

It had not been good for Adam to be alone, or that is, incomplete. (see the first pages of The Beauty and Power of Woman). But now that -

Gen. 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him;male and female created he them.(e.m.)

He then saw that -

Gen. 1:31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was VERY GOOD. … (e.m.)

This word 'very' in the Hebrew means – prop. vehemence, that is, (with or without prep.) vehemently; …

According to the Dictionary, 'vehement' means -

1 – showing great force or energy

2 – highly emotional

It appears that God had very strong feelings about all that he had created and was highly pleased. I have an idea that when Adam saw Eve, his feelings were pretty vehement as well, don't you? I am sure he found her to be well worth what he had gone through to get her!

And our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ believed it was worth what he went through in order to receive us, his church, his bride.

Notice that Eve was literally part of Adam's body, made of his own body, and in the New Test. God's children are called 'the body of Christ'.

In fact in Eph. Men are told this -

5:25-32 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loves his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: For we are members of his bosy, of his flesh, and of is bones. - For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.(e.m.)

I hope to go over this set of scriptures in more detail later, but for now let me ask you this. Can you see, after reading these scriptures, why I see a reflection of the work of Christ for our salvation and to be able to receive his bride, in the steps God took to create Adam's bride? Here husbands are told to love their wives in the same way Christ loved the church (which is his bride) and laid down his life for it, so that he might cause it to be pure and glorious. Not only does he tell the men that they should love their wives 'as' their own body, but also states that when he does love his wife HE IS loving HIMSELF. The way a man nourishes and cherishes his wife is to be in the way that Christ loves us, his church, his bride; FOR (because) we are members of our Savior's body, of HIS flesh and bones. This is the reason a man is to leave his father and mother and become one with his wife.

You see here that the marriage IS to be a reflection, not only of God himself; the father and the son, who are, as Jesus said -

John 10:30 I and my Father are one.

But also because they are a reflection of Christ and the church, who is his bride. And so on the day God created the Woman and the marriage, he did so in a way that would tell the story, so to speak, of future events that would take place in our Saviors life in order to be able to present 'his' bride, the church, to himself.

Of Christ's church it is said that they are members of his own body, flesh and bones. And God considered Adam and Eve to be so literally one body, one flesh, one person, that on the day he created them he called them both by only one name. Adam's helpmate, did not receive a separate name until after she had sinned. (Gen. 3:20)

Gen. 5:1-2 This is the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God created he him; Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

Some Bible translations say only that God called them 'man' or perhaps 'human'. To do this however, is to leave out the Hebrew word - “shem' - which means: an appelation, as a mark or memorial of individuality; … Appelation means,- the act of calling by name. It is the same word used in Gen. 3:20 to say that Adam called his wifes 'name' Eve and in Gen. 4:25, to say that Adam called his son's 'name' Seth.

Let us never devalue what God has done with great purpose, power and beauty. God who is wonderful beyond our comprehension chose to create an image and reflection of himself to live on this earth. To do so necessitated there being two who were one, as the Father and Son are one. It may be hard for us to fathom this oneness, but the clearest picture we will ever have of it's reality, until the day we see God face to face, is to be the picture of the man and woman; husband and wife.

Adam felt what it would be like to be 'alone' that is, incomplete and I believe he rejoiced to see his helpmate, in all of her loveliness on the day they were created. But I imagine that Satan was furious. He would not enjoy seeing reflections of God all across the earth. Nor would he be happy seeing man in dominion on the earth. He has worked hard to destroy both the image of God reflected in marriage and to keep man from his proper position. But we can know the truth. We can appreciate the work of God's hands and heart. We can praise him for the creation of marriage and believe him to fulfill his will in us.

Those of us who are women can know and be thankful for the purpose we fulfill in the image of God and all that he purposed for us to be and do.

So let us look at the amazing creature – WOMAN - and see how God designed and wired her. When a thing is made for a specific purpose, it is designed and wired to function for the desired end. Looking at the make up of the woman will tell much about God's plan for her.