Walking with God, Adam Was Still Alone

In the early stages of this relationship, God and Adam were close.  Adam experienced a level of intimacy in the Garden that no other human has ever fully experienced.  There was no sin.  There was no separation.  There was no Fall, curse, or corrupt nature.  God strolled through the Garden that Adam tilled.  We are talking face to face, eye to eye, life to life interaction.

And yet, amidst this intimacy, God says one of the most shocking statements concerning the only creature he formed in his very image: “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18).  The rolling rivers were good.  The berries on the tree were good.  The curiously formed duckbilled platypuses were good, and yet Man, made in God’s own striking image, was not good.

He was alone.

Genesis 2:18 Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone: I will make a helper fit for him.”Pre-Fall, God believes that his creation, Adam, who he is walking and talking with in the Garden is simply alone and he dislikes the scenario so much that he does something about it.  Scanning the animal kingdom, it is obvious that the hippopotamuses and the likes are unable to make a good helper for one that was replicated from the image of Yahweh.  Instead of giving something that is already created, he gives Adam something new and unique and beautiful.

God causes Adam to fall into a deep sleep, procures one of Adam’s ribs that he gave him, and fashioned something similar to him yet with striking distinctions (Gen. 2:21-22).  As Adam wakes from his slumber, he beholds a woman for the first time, and he is quite giddy with the Garden’s recent development.  The couple were both naked and yet unashamed (Gen. 2:25).  The two of them together became one.  As this relationship buds, they are not described as a pair, couple, or a team.  They are one.  Linked together physically, sexually, spiritually, and emotionally, these two of entered into a unique covenant that should be shared with no other.

As Creator, God reveals himself early on as able to do anything he desires.  If he can make the galaxies upon galaxies by mere words dancing from his lips, he should be able to meet the simple needs of this Adam creature.  Yet, while apparently he could meet Adam’s need for loneliness, he decides not to meet that need solely by himself.  He creates Eve (“woman”) to be a helper for Adam.  They will be one together.  While they were both made to enjoy the fellowship with Yahweh, he has also purposed that they enjoy the fellowship with one another.  They can relate to one another.  While God will prove time and time again to empathize with Mankind throughout Creation’s harrowing story, he also provides a helper for Adam in order to navigate through this good place in which he has landed.

In the opening pages of the Old Testament, the absence of a stated purpose for Creation leaves much to the imagination.  Yet, what it doesn’t say outright speaks volumes.  God creates an impressively massive galaxy that seems grossly oversized for these newlyweds.  All of this fuss seems much too glamorous to provide these two with mere luxurious living conditions.  God doesn’t appear to be lonely or needy, so this couple doesn’t seem to have been created to fill God’s love tank.

The reality is this: Creation wasn’t for Mankind, and Mankind wasn’t made to meet a need in God.  The universe is oversized if it was made for Mankind, yet it is tailored just right to accommodate one like Yahweh.  As the story unfolds, God creates a very good world yet untouched by sin’s pollutive power for one purpose only — to display his glory.

1 thought on “Walking with God, Adam Was Still Alone”

  1. It certainly hurts so much for us men to be alone, and we’re hoping to meet that special woman to share our life with.

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