וַיִּבֶן יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים אֶת-הַצֵּלָע אֲשֶׁר-לָקַח מִן-הָאָדָם, לְאִשָּׁה; וַיְבִאֶהָ, אֶל-הָאָדָם. וַיֹּאמֶר, הָאָדָם, זֹאת הַפַּעַם עֶצֶם מֵעֲצָמַי, וּבָשָׂר מִבְּשָׂרִי; לְזֹאת יִקָּרֵא אִשָּׁה, כִּי מֵאִישׁ לֻקְחָה-זֹּאת. עַל-כֵּן, יַעֲזָב-אִישׁ, אֶת-אָבִיו, וְאֶת-אִמּוֹ; וְדָבַק בְּאִשְׁתּוֹ, וְהָיוּ לְבָשָׂר אֶחָד.
God made the rib God had taken from Adam into a woman and brought her to Adam and he said: This time, she is it! Bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh! She shall be called woman (ishah) for from man (ish) she was taken. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and cleave to his wife, and they become one flesh. [Translation by Rabbi Steve Greenberg]
Suggested Discussion Questions:
1. How was woman created? Why is she called ishah?
2. What lesson is learned from this conclusion?
3. How is gender characterized in this text?
Time Period: Biblical (early ancestors to 165 BCE)