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Genesis 2:22

EOB (Eastern / Greek Orthodox Bible):

The output should read: “The LORD God formed the rib he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man.”

EOB Footnote:

The MT includes “the rib which he had taken from the man” whereas some LXX manuscripts read simply “the rib.” The verb rendered “fashioned” or “built” (Greek: oikodomeo) literally means “built” in Greek, corresponding to the Hebrew banah; “fashioned” is chosen as a meaning-based rendering to convey the sense of careful construction rather than architectural building. The pronoun “her” in “brought her to the man” refers to the woman just formed from the rib.

Other Translations:

KJV (King James Version):

And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

WEB (World English Bible):

The rib, which Yahweh God had taken from the man, he made into a woman, and brought her to the man.

Benton LXX (Vaticanus):

And the Lord God formed the rib which he took from Adam into a woman, and brought her to Adam.

Douai-Rheims (Vulgate):

And the Lord God built the rib which he took from Adam into a woman: and brought her to Adam.

Apostoliki Diakonia (LXX):

And the Lord God fashioned the rib which He had taken from the man into a woman, and He brought her to the man.

YLT (Young Literal Translation )(MT):

And the Lord God made the rib, which He had taken from the man, into a woman, and brought her to the man.

BBE (Bible in Basic English):

And the part which the Lord God had taken from man he made into a woman and took her to the man.

EOB COMMENTARY:

EOB Commentary:

Genesis 2:22 Commentary

The Divine Fashioning of Woman

The verb “built” (Hebrew: banah) used here is remarkable, as it differs from the “forming” (yatsar) used for Adam from the dust. The Fathers saw profound significance in this architectural language. St. John Chrysostom notes that God “built” the woman, indicating a careful, deliberate construction rather than mere molding, elevating the dignity of her creation.

Typological Significance for Christ and the Church

The Fathers universally recognize in this verse a prefiguration of the Church being born from the side of Christ. Just as Eve was taken from Adam’s side while he slept, so the Church emerged from the pierced side of the New Adam as He slept the sleep of death upon the Cross. St. Augustine writes extensively on this parallel, noting that the blood and water flowing from Christ’s side represent the sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist through which the Church, the Bride of Christ, is constituted.

Tertullian observes that if Adam is a figure of Christ, then Adam’s sleep represents the death of Christ, and from His wounded side the true Mother of all the living—the Church—was formed. This typology appears in the hymnography of Great Friday, where the Church sings of the life-giving side of the Savior.

Liturgical Connections

In the marriage service of the Orthodox Church, this passage forms part of the scriptural foundation for understanding the mystery of conjugal union. The Epistle reading from Ephesians 5 directly connects this Genesis account to Christ and the Church, declaring this to be a “great mystery.” The prayers of the wedding service invoke the creation of Eve as the archetype of God’s blessing upon marriage.

Anthropological Significance

The building of woman from man’s side—not from his head to rule over him, nor from his feet to be trampled, but from his side to be his equal companion—has been a consistent theme in Orthodox anthropology. St. Basil the Great and other Fathers emphasize the essential equality and complementarity expressed in this manner of creation.

The rib, being near the heart, suggests the intimate communion intended between man and woman. Orthodox spiritual writers see here the foundation for understanding human persons as inherently relational, created not for isolation but for communion—reflecting the eternal communion of the Holy Trinity.

This verse thus stands as a cornerstone text for Orthodox understanding of marriage, ecclesiology, and the salvific work of Christ, whose death brought forth His Bride, the Church, in fulfillment of this ancient type.

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