Genesis 2
God’s Design for Men and Women

Genesis 2

The Creation of Man and Woman

1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. 2 By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.

4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made earth and heaven. 5 Now no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the LORD God had not sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. 6 But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground. 7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. 8 The LORD God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed. 9 Out of the ground the LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10 Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it divided and became four rivers. 11 The name of the first is Pishon; it flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 The gold of that land is good; the bdellium and the onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the whole land of Cush. 14 The name of the third river is Tigris; it flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. 16 The LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

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.” 19 Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him. 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. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Unpacking Genesis 2

If you’ve ever put up a shed, you know that getting the foundation straight is critical to the rest of the project. In fact, if you don’t get the foundation straight and level, even if you manage to build a shed, it will be off-kilter and probably not very stable! The key is to get the foundation straight and then align everything else to it.

Genesis 2 is a lot like that. It brings us to the garden of Eden before sin, rebellion, the flood, or even rain. It gives us God’s original design for men, women, and, ultimately, the world. Although these principles are not popular in our day and age, this is what God has revealed about His design for us. So, let’s listen to Him.

If you have just read Genesis 2, then you’ve seen that it covers similar material as Genesis 1, except for the focus. The focus of Genesis 2 is on God’s creation of mankind, His purpose for mankind, and even His authority over mankind.

Genesis 2 builds on the truth from Genesis 1 that mankind has been created in God’s image. In fact, mankind uniquely has the breath of God breathed into them (verse 7). This makes mankind different from the animal kingdom. We don’t just have life; we have a life that comes from the breath of God. Therefore, all people have a holy worth and value.

In our study of Genesis 2, God hasn’t given us this life, so we’d just pop up and dance around like the Tin Man. He’s given us life so that we might work. For Adam, this work was specifically to keep and cultivate the garden (verse 15). We must never forget that the principle of work goes back to before the Fall, not after it. Work was part of God’s original design for mankind. No wonder people who are not productive often struggle in life. They conflict with God’s design.

Notice that Adam’s work was to “cultivate” in verse 15. The Hebrew word that is translated as “cultivate” refers to farming, but it was also used in the Bible to speak of service and even worship. This gives us an important window into God’s plan for mankind. We must joyfully work in meaningful ways to serve God and fill the earth with His glory.

How? We discussed this in our discussion about being “fruitful” in Genesis 1. Being “fruitful” means having healthy, abundant productivity resulting from the unique kaleidoscope of skills, abilities, and opportunities God has given us. Connecting that principle to “cultivating” in verse 15, we are to take the blessings that God has given to us and use them to cultivate stuff that serves God, glorifies Him, and is a blessing to the world around us!

Going on in our study of Genesis 2, notice that God gave Adam a key command in verses 16 and 17. This command was to eat freely from any tree in the garden except for “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” We’ll talk more about this command in our next study. For now, Genesis 2 is clear: there are limits to our autonomy. Our lives are accountable to God. We can never forget that fact.

This chapter also gives fundamental truths regarding the role of men and women in this world. I grew up being taught by my grade school teachers that there was essentially no difference between boys and girls. Supposedly, any apparent differences are the result of social conditioning. I grew up believing this, and even when I was first born-again, I still thought this was probably true.

Then Corinne and I started having kids (eventually six). Yes, all kids will play with all toys, but they don’t necessarily play with them the same way. I have literally seen my son “driving” a doll flat on her back like a truck, complete with rumbling gear-shifting noises. I’ve also seen my daughter array many Matchbox cars in a semicircle where the cars just hang out and talk with each other. Boys and girls play differently because God wires them to be different. This is by God’s design. Much of our society’s ills stem from the fact that we have denied this basic truth.

Going back to Genesis 2, we see that God gave Adam the responsibility to cultivate the garden and to teach God’s Word to Eve. God essentially handed “the keys” to Adam and said, “You’re responsible. Take care of what I have given you.” In other words, Adam’s fundamental design was to be responsible and competent. This is God’s design for men, and this is what men respect in each another. We like it when guys do what they’re supposed to do and do it well.

Along with this, God created Eve to join with Adam as a companion that is equal to him and also a helper who partners with him in cultivating the garden and filling it with more people. Without Eve, Adam could not fulfill God’s commands.

These two verses give us God’s basic design for men and women. There is much more that they can do, but this gives us the fundamental bedrock of their purpose. Of course, there are a million different ways this basic design can be manifested in our lives, and roles may slide around a bit. Still, as we seek to live out God’s design, we will find peace, joy, meaning, resolve, strength, endurance, and even liberation.

So, that’s the gist of Genesis 2. As you reflect on this chapter, how does your life conform to God’s design? If you are a man, does your life conform to God’s design for Adam? If you are a woman, does your life conform to God’s design for Eve?

Before you work through the following questions, how about coming before the Lord and asking Him to give you the kind of heart, mind, and will that seek to follow His design for your life?

Study And Discussion Questions

Listening to the Key Chapters Podcast on this chapter provides further insights into the following questions.

1. Underline every place where the Lord lays out men’s and women’s purposes and tasks. How are they similar? How are they different? How might these similarities and differences be reflected in our world today?

2. When you think of “utopia,” what does it look like? What is the basis for your thinking about it this way? Does it conform to the picture you see in this chapter? Why or why not?

3. In verse 2, what did God do when He finished His work of creation? Why is that significant? Is there any transferrable principle for our own lives today?

4. In verse 4, God is called “the Lord.” What does this name mean? Why should we call Him this? (By the way, the Key Chapters podcast discusses this in even more detail).

5. Based on verse 7, what makes mankind different than other animals? What does this mean about the value of human life to God?

6. What two trees were named in the Garden of Eden? What were they for?

7. What were some of the reasons Adam was to cultivate the garden? What did God give to Adam to equip him for this task? What talents, resources, or means has God given you to carry out the tasks He has set before you?

8. What are some specific ways you could bring glory to God in your daily tasks?

9. What responsibilities did God give to Adam? How does this help us understand God’s design for men today?

10. How does Eve's separate and distinct creation establish her dignity in the design of God? How does this honor her?

11. What was God’s purpose in creating Eve? Is any of that original purpose still transferable to the role of women today? Why or why not?

12. God’s command to not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil was a command, among other things, to not seek to learn about evil. What are some ways people still seek to learn about evil?

13. Why do you think God decided it was necessary to clearly state that a husband was to leave his family and be joined to his wife (verse 24)? What does it look like when this principle is not followed in a marriage?

14. If you are married, how are you seeking to follow God’s design for men and women in your home? Why would following God’s design bring peace, joy, and meaning to life? Why would it even help resolve some of the other challenges mentioned in the study?

15. As you reflect on Genesis 2, what windows does this give into God’s plan for your own life? Why not take a moment and lay those before the Lord so that He might transform every aspect of your life to align with His design?