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Genesis Chapter Two (Verses 18-25)
Preface
Adam (related to the Hebrew word: ’adamah, ground—literally means “earth man”), as the first man (Hebrew: ’ish), is the forefather and head of the entire human race. He was an actual and historical man; he lived a total of 930 years. He was created in a state of innocence and in the image of God. He was also created with the appearance of age, with a high level of intelligence and the ability to communicate with God. Adam appears in nine references in the New Testament in regard to his headship over the human race.
In this chapter God creates a “help meet” or helper of another sex for Adam, the second most important creative act of God. He creates woman (Hebrew: ’ishah), so named by Adam. Woman is also created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), but she is sexually distinctive from Adam for, in addition to other purposes, the propagation of the human species. It goes without saying that this is the natural order of creation as established by God—that sexual union is designed and intended only for a man and a woman. Any teaching or structure suggesting or establishing that man should be with man (or woman with woman) in sexual union is unnatural, unproductive (propagation) and in violation of God’s will as is taught both in the Old and New Testaments. Prior to this Adam is involved in a cooperative exercise with God in naming all the various animal species God had created.
But of great practical importance is God’s introduction of the “human family.” This commentary will show its beginning and define the purpose and parameters of its members. Genesis 2:18-25 And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” 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. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to 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 a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
The Edenic Covenant is the first of the general or universal covenants between God and man. The following are its provisions:
The Edenic Covenant was terminated by man’s disobedience when Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and this led to and necessitated the Adamic Covenant in vss. 3:14-21.
Much of the following material has been taken from the study notes contained in the Prophecy Study Bible, John C. Hagee, General Editor, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
How the Human Family Began
Genesis 2:18-25 provides details of the statement in Genesis 1:27 regarding the fact and the need for the creation of woman. Three observations should be made:
Woman is an essential part of God’s plan. It was God who recognized the need that it was not good for man to be alone and therefore He determined to make man a helper. And this is the role of woman in God’s plan, to be a “helper,” even though she is also made in the “image of God” and is in every respect the equal to man.
God undertook an “orientation program” to show man the need for such a “helper,” which God alone had observed. He brought to man all existing animals so that man could exercise his dominion over them and name (each species of) them; however, he became aware that there was no “helper” similar to himself.
God caused man to sleep and from his side God took a “rib” (it is impossible to know for certain what is meant by the Hebrew word here translated “rib”) or something from within man’s side. Whatever it was it was sufficient and God made from it “woman whom Adam recognized as his equal, “bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.”
This resulted in what has become known as the universal law of marriage, which is (1) the responsibility for marriage is on the man’s shoulders—he is to “leave his father and mother,” (2) the responsibility for keeping the union together is on the man’s shoulders—he is to be “joined to his wife,” and (3) the union is indissoluble—they “shall become one flesh,” which is a reference to the sexual union between man and woman that consummates the holy union before God (Mark 10:7, 8).
Both man and woman were naked in each other’s presence, but they were not ashamed. There is no shame in nudity within the correct context of marriage. Their nakedness and opposite genders, along with their purpose to populate the earth, indicates that “sex” was God’s idea and is not sinful within the bonds of matrimony (the permanent joining together—becoming “one flesh”—before God, not necessarily before man, which is to say that the actual marriage takes place when a man and a woman permanently commit to each other before God in sexual intercourse, not during the secular “wedding ceremony”).
Sex was instituted by God prior to the Fall of man; and even if there would have been no Fall, there still would be sexual relations between a husband and wife. Today sexual relations between husband and wife are for (1) the propagation of humanity, (2) the promotion of love between husband and wife—Hebrews 13:4, and (3) the prevention of fornication—1 Corinthians 7:2. Because of the holiness of sexual intercourse within the marriage commitment, God is highly displeased with it outside of marriage.
Essentials of a Christian Home
Hear, O Israel: The LORD [Jehovah or YHWH] our God [Elohim], the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)
The instruction set forth by God through Moses in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 establishes three principles, or rules, if you please, that should be in every Christian home, as follows:
The Role of the Husband in a Christian Home
The Christian husband is to love, honor and respect his wife as he loves, honors and respects himself. He must understand that in every respect she is equal (no better; no worse) than he, because she is also made in the “image of God.” This is not to deny that there are distinct and wonderful differences between man and woman, but he is never to take advantage of her because of these differences or of his position or her position as described in God’s Word. (Proverbs 5:18; Ecclesiastes 9:9; Ephesians 5:25, 28, 33; Colossians 3:19; 1 Peter 3:7) This can only be possible if the Word of God governs the husband (John 17:17), and he walks “by faith” in Jesus Christ—filled with or controlled by God’s Spirit (Colossians 2:6).
The Role of the Wife in the Christian Home
The Christian wife not only should return the love, honor and respect that she receives from her husband in an equal manner, but God’s Word places an additional responsibility on her. This commentator chooses to allow the Word to speak for itself. But this one thing for certain, a Christian wife can only carry out her responsibilities if the Word of God governs her life and she too walks “by faith” in Jesus Christ (filled with or controlled by the Holy Spirit).
When the king's decree which he will make is proclaimed throughout all his empire (for it is great), all wives will honor their husbands, both great and small. (Esther 1:20)
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. (Ephesians 5:22-24)
Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. (Ephesians 5:33)
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. (Colossians 3:18)
Likewise their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things. (1 Timothy 3:11)
That they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed. (Titus 2, 4, 5)
Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. Do not let your adornment be merely outward--arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel—rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror. (1 Peter 3:1-6)
This commentator is well aware of the sensitivity of the issue of “subjection” or “submissiveness” (Hebrew: hupotasso, to place in order or to place under in an orderly fashion) as God has conveyed in His Word and pertaining to wives. Because of this he leaves it up to every wife to interpret God’s message for herself.
It should be remembered that the husband-wife relationship is also a message in typology, that is, a proper Christian marriage, one in which both the husband and the wife take seriously and perform God’s instructions for them as written in His Word, mirrors the relationship between Christ and His Bride (the Church). The believer, as a member of Christ’s body and the (collective) Church, should be subject to or submissive to Jesus Christ as the “Head of the Body” and “the Husband” to the Bride (Ephesians 5; Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:27; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Matthew 9:15; 25:1, 6; John 3:29; Revelation 19:7).
The Role of Sex in the Christian Home
Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. (1 Corinthians 7:3, 4)
This commentator will allow each husband and wife to interpret God’s Word in this regard. Suffice it to say that selfishness should never rule the bedroom.
The Role of Children in the Christian Home
The Old and New Testaments both agree. Children have one responsibility in the Christian home, which is to obey their parents. This lesson is first given by Moses in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:12) and later by Paul in several of his New Testament letters. They are admonished by the Apostle Paul to obey their parents “in all things,” not just in spiritual matters (Colossians 3:20). The perfect example of this relationship between child and parent is seen in Christ (Philippians 2:8). See also Ephesians 6:1-3.
The Role of Parents in Regards to Children in the Christian Home
The following is taken verbatim from the Prophecy Study Bible as mentioned above.
The father is the parent responsible for setting the pattern for the child’s obedience in the family. Any disciplining the mother does is an extension of the father’s authority in the home. The husband and father must take leadership in this area of the family, and the wife and mother must be in submission. The father’s responsibility is set forth in two ways: First, what the father is not to do—“do not provoke your children to wrath.” He is not to over-discipline them or reign in terror, with the result that the child can only react in a blind outbreak or rage. Second, what the father is to do—“but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” To “bring them up” involves three ideas:
a. It is a continuous job. As long as the child is a dependent, the father is to be responsible for providing for the child so that he becomes what God wants him to be.
b. It is a loving job. To “bring up” means literally “to nourish tenderly;” children should be objects of tender, loving care.
c. It is a twofold job involving nurture (lit., “child-training”)—all that a child needs for his development physically, mentally, and spiritually, and admonition (lit. “corrective discipline”) of the Lord.
The father is god’s constituted home authority who is to discipline the child when he does not obey as God intends. The father who does not discipline his children is a father who is undisciplined himself and disobedient to God’s will. A Child’s disobedience is not to be tolerated. See Exodus 21:15-17; Deuteronomy 21:18-21; Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15; 23:13, 14; 29:15-17.
Both parents should honor God’s instruction in Proverbs 22:6: Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. This can only be done when both parents are governed by the Word of God and are walking by faith in Jesus Christ.
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