Mensa Otabil - This Is It
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We’re still in Genesis chapter 2, and this is verse number 23. 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.» We noticed earlier in verse 20 that Adam needed what is described as a helper comparable to him. A helper comparable to him. God responded to that need and said it is not good for Adam to be alone. So he set out to make that helper comparable to him.
Did God succeed? What a question! Does God ever fail? But we have to ask it anyway. Did God succeed in making this helper comparable to Adam? And how did Adam see what God had made? Did Adam approve of it? How did Adam evaluate God? Does man even have to evaluate God? But we ask that question. In this passage, we see the first reported speech of Adam. We know that in naming the animals he spoke, but what he said is not recorded. This is the first reported speech recorded in Scripture of a human being. He said, «This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.»
Until this time in the Bible, only God has been reported to speak, but now man is reported to speak, and he only spoke after he saw the woman. The kinds of things women will make men do! Adam’s speech is very important because it is written in poetic language. If you read this Bible, you’ll find that he spoke in poetry. Poetry is a language of awe and beauty. When we see something that is so great, overwhelming, and amazing, we wax lyrical, and we become very poetic. This is exactly what Adam did—the kinds of poems and lyrics that people have composed for women. In this passage, we see Adam’s response to what God had given to him. He starts with a statement of exclamation: «This is now!»
If you are speaking today, it would sound like, «Wow, this is it!» because this is exactly what he wanted in his life: a being like himself, but not like him—someone comparable with him. He saw the woman as precisely what he was looking for, and right then and there, he said, «This is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. This is somebody just like me, part of me, comparable to me, equal to me. She’s just like me. She’s not inferior or superior—just like me.» Sadly, this beautiful relationship that started in Eden in this way has deteriorated for a lot of people. Sometimes it deteriorates not into poetry but into insults and mistreatment.
Wouldn’t it be nice for husbands to look at their wives today and say, «Wow, this is it!» and for wives to look at their husbands and say, «Wow, this is it!»? This is how Eden was. May God help you to recapture Eden in your marriage and in all relationships. May we be wowed by the people that God has brought into our lives. Let’s pray. Say with me, «Heavenly Father, I appreciate all the helpers You’ve given me. Help me to honor my relationships. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.» May the Lord bless you with great relationships all the days of your life. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.