Genesis 2:21

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;

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
LORD	יְהוָ֨ה Yah.weh	H3068	Jehovah · proper noun, a title
God	אֱלֹהִ֧ים 'E.lo.Him	H430	gods in the ordinary sense · noun, common masculine plural absolute
caused	וַיַּפֵּל֩ vai.ya.Pel	H5307	to fall · conjunction + verb, hiphil sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
sleep	תַּרְדֵּמָ֛ה tar.de.Mah	H8639	a lethargy or (by implication) trance · noun, common feminine singular absolute
fall	נָפַל nâphal	H5307	to fall
Adam	אָדָם ʼÂdâm	H121	Adam the name of the first man
slept	וַיִּישָׁ֑ן vai.yi.Shan	H3462	properly · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
took	וַיִּקַּ֗ח vai.yi.Kach	H3947	to take (in the widest variety of applications) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
one	אַחַת֙ 'a.Chat	H259	properly · cardinal number, feminine singular absolute
ribs	מִצַּלְעֹתָ֔יו mi.tzal.'o.Tav	H6763	a rib (as curved) · preposition + noun, common feminine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
up	וַיִּסְגֹּ֥ר vai.yis.Gor	H5462	to shut up · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
flesh	בָּשָׂ֖ר ba.Sar	H1320	flesh (from its freshness) · noun, common masculine singular absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Genesis 15:12 And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.
Job 4:13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,
1 Samuel 26:12 So David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul’s bolster; and they gat them away, and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither awaked:…
Job 33:15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed;
Daniel 8:18 Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright.
Proverbs 19:15 Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 2:21–end

Here we have, I. The making of the woman, to be a help-meet for Adam. This was done upon the sixth day, as was also the placing of Adam in paradise, though it is here mentioned after an account of the seventh day's rest; but what was said in general (Gen 1:27), that God made man male and female, is more distinctly related here. Observe, 1. That Adam was first formed, then Eve (Ti1 2:13), and she was made of the man, and for the man (Co1 11:8, Co1 11:9), all which are urged there as reasons for the humility, modesty, silence, and submissiveness, of that sex in general, and particularly the subjection and reverence which wives owe to their own husbands. Yet man being made last of the creatures…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 2:21

deep sleep--probably an ecstasy or trance like that of the prophets, when they had visions and revelations of the Lord, for the whole scene was probably visible to the mental eye of Adam, and hence his rapturous exclamation. took one of his ribs--"She was not made out of his head to surpass him, nor from his feet to be trampled on, but from his side to be equal to him, and near his heart to be dear to him."

Adam Clarke on Genesis 2:21

The Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, etc. - This was neither swoon nor ecstasy, but what our translation very properly terms a deep sleep. And he took one of his ribs - It is immaterial whether we render צלע tsela a rib, or a part of his side, for it may mean either: some part of man was to be used on the occasion, whether bone or flesh it matters not; though it is likely, from verse Gen 2:23, that a part of both was taken; for Adam, knowing how the woman was formed, said, This is flesh of my flesh, and bone of my bone. God could have formed the woman out of the dust of the earth, as he had formed the man; but had he done so, she must have appeared in his eyes as a distinct be…

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John Gill on Genesis 2:21

The Church Fathers

(Ver. 21.) And the Lord God sent a trance upon Adam. For trance, that is, the departure of the mind, is called Thardema in Hebrew, which Aquila interprets as descent, and Symmachus as heavy and deep sleep. Finally, it follows: And he slept. The same word is used in Jonah (1:5) for a deep sleep.
— Jerome, Hebrew Questions on Genesis

Of whom in the beginning was Eve begotten? What mother conceived her, the motherless? But the Scripture says that she was born out of Adam's side. Is Eve then born out of man's side without a mother, and is a child not to be born without a father, of a virgin's womb? This debt of gratitude was due to men from womankind: for Eve was begotten of Adam and not conceived of a mother, but as it were brought forth of man alone.
— Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lecture 12:29

Did Adam not suffer pain? Did he not experience agony? A single hair is plucked from the body and we feel pain. Even if one is deeply asleep, he will awake from the pain. Here, however, many hairs are plucked out, even a rib torn out, and the sleeper does not awake? God did not remove the rib violently, which would awaken Adam. He did not wrench it out. Instead Scripture, desiring to reveal the quickness of God's technique, says "he took a rib out of him and he did not awake."
— Severian of Gabala, ON THE CREATION OF THE WORLD 5.8

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Eve — Life; living, the name given by Adam to his wife (Gen. 3:20; 4:1). The account of her creation is given in Gen. 2:21, 22. The Creator, by declaring that it was not good for man to be alone, and by…
Fall of man — An expression probably borrowed from the Apocryphal Book of Wisdom, to express the fact of the revolt of our first parents from God, and the consequent sin and misery in which they and all their…
Flesh — In the Old Testament denotes (1) a particular part of the body of man and animals (Gen. 2:21; 41:2; Ps. 102:5, marg.); (2) the whole body (Ps. 16:9); (3) all living things having flesh, and…
Marriage — Was instituted in Paradise when man was in innocence (Gen. 2:18-24). Here we have its original charter, which was confirmed by our Lord, as the basis on which all regulations are to be framed (Matt.…
Media — Heb. Madai, which is rendered in the Authorized Version (1) “Madai,” Gen. 10:2; (2) “Medes,” 2 Kings 17:6; 18:11; (3) “Media,” Esther 1:3; 10:2; Isa. 21:2; Dan. 8:20; (4) “Mede,” only in Dan. 11:1.…
Tree of the knowledge of good and evil — Stood in the midst of the garden of Eden, beside the tree of life (Gen. 2, 3). Adam and Eve were forbidden to take of the fruit which grew upon it. But they disobeyed the divine injunction, and so…
Adam · .History of, before he sinned — .History of, before he sinned
Eve · Creation of — Creation of
Woman · Originally made: From one of Adam’s ribs — Originally made: From one of Adam’s ribs
Women · Creation of — Creation of

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Genesis 2:21

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 2:21–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 2:21

Adam Clarke on Genesis 2:21

John Gill on Genesis 2:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Genesis 2:21

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 2:21–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 2:21

Adam Clarke on Genesis 2:21

John Gill on Genesis 2:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on Genesis 2:21

Keil & Delitzsch on Genesis 2:18-22

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Genesis 2:19-20

Rashi on Genesis 2:21