Genesis 2:20 Commentary and Bible Study

Now it is not that this process was an effort to find such a partner for Adam, a help suitable for him – we mustn’t see that implication in the words. This wasn’t a conscious search as though God was searching for a partner for Adam, or Adam himself was searching, or both together. No, the point is that Adam was being made increasingly aware that there were all kinds of life and all kinds of animals, and some higher animals, and yet he was alone; he had no companion. He was not looking for a companion among the animals, but when he saw so much life in front of him, and so many existing in male and female forms created by God, the conclusion became abundantly clear that unlike them, he was alone, so that the verse is really giving us a little insight into Adam’s sense of loneliness. It is not quite right to put it that way, because this was paradise, and it wasn’t the kind of loneliness that would make you unhappy: it was a consciousness that he was alone. He wasn’t jealous, he wasn’t envious, but he was aware that he was alone. Adam was being taught that he was a creature with needs that only God can supply, and about which needs God to do something that Adam cannot do. He cannot make a help meet for himself, nor can he find one among the other creatures God had made. None of them can speak as he can speak, relate as he can relate, be aware of their Creator as he is aware. This is going to require a special creative act of God. Unlike the other higher animals, the Lord has initially made Adam on his own. This is so that it is apparent that all the human race comes from him, and he is the single representative head of all men, and it is so that the provision of a suitable helper by God becomes all the more clear.