Genesis 2:21-24 - Man, Woman, and marriage
Scripture:
Genesis 2:21-24
21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he
slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that
place.
22 The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from
the man, and brought her to the man.
23 The man 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 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be
joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
NASU
Thoughts:
This is such a beautiful picture of the formation of woman and the
intimate relationship we call marriage. It is clear that the woman was
intended to be unique. She was given to Adam as a complementary
companion to him. This does not mean that a single woman today is
missing her purpose in life, but clearly the first woman's main purpose
was to be a helpmate for her husband:
Genesis 2:18
18 Then the Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone; I
will make him a helper suitable for him."
NASU
It is grievous that today the elements of this story are all under
attack. Modern thinking wants to blur the lines between what is
feminine and what is masculine. Marriage itself, a cornerstone of
civilization for time immemorial, would be redefined from what God
created to whatever people decide. The moral and spiritual aspects of
marriage being tossed aside, we would be left with a legal contract
between some number of parties. A contract that, like any other human
contract, can be revoked, unlike the lifetime union that God has made.
In God's design, marriage is not a contract, but a spiritual union:
the two (one man and one woman) becoming one.
Prayer:
Lord, thank You that You made man and woman as complements of each
other, not competitors. We think differently because we were made to
be different. And thank You for marriage. There is no closer
relationship on Earth. It is beautiful, though also challenging!
Help us -- especially those of us blessed to be married -- to enjoy the
differences, and not despise or repress them. To help each other, and
to benefit from the strengths of one other.
Amen