Genesis 2:19 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.

NIV: Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.

NASB: And out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.

CSB: The Lord God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it. And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.

NLT: So the Lord God formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one.

KJV: And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

NKJV: Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name.

This verse reveals another aspect of man's purpose in the world God had made. The man was tasked with using his God-given authority and creativity in order to name the animals. The picture painted is powerful, empowering, and sweet, in a way. We see God forming the wild animals and birds, bringing them into existence, and then, eventually, bringing them to the man to discover what the man would call them.

God seems to be taking pleasure watching the man accomplish this task. It appears that God is not directing the naming of the animals in any way; He is truly leaving it to the man to use his own creativity, judgment, and process to come up with these names. And then God allows those names to stand as the animals' true names. It is truly a privilege and honor which God bestows on this man, by allowing him to participate in the work of building and maintaining this new creation.

More than that, the act of naming something is meaningful in the book of Genesis. This act often implies rule over and responsibility for that thing. God has already instructed man to subdue the earth and rule over all of the creatures (Genesis 1:28). Having the man name the animals is another way of giving him responsibility to rule, subdue, and care for the animals.

This passage is also important in the context of verse 18, where God stated His intent to make a helper for the man. By bringing all the animals in person, God can emphasize the fact that none of them are suitable partners. The man will be able to see, first-hand that no other created being is his equal. Only other people, male and female, are meant to be joined as "one flesh" (Genesis 2:23) and share that level of connection.

Genesis 2:15–25 returns to provide details about the sixth-day creation of human beings. After being crafted out of the substance of earth, man is placed in a garden by God. He is then given responsibility to care for the plants and trees there. God's first and only prohibition to the man is not to eat from the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, in the middle of the garden, on promise of death. Man is also charged with naming the animals, an act reflecting his God-given authority. God recognizes that it is not good for man to be alone and makes woman to be his helper, companion, and wife, establishing the pattern of God's design for human marriage.

Genesis 2 begins with a description of the seventh day of creation, in which God rested from His work. Then it returns to the sixth day and describes in more detail the creation of man, the garden God placed him into, and the work God gave him to do. God recognizes that it is not good for man to be alone and makes a helper for him out of his own rib. This woman becomes Adam's companion and wife, setting the original example of God's design for marriage. The two exist in pure innocence, naked yet unashamed before sin enters into the world.

Genesis 2 concludes the description of God's week of creation and then zooms in on the creation of man, his work, his perfect environment, and the creation of woman as his helper and wife. It is our last glimpse of the world before it is ravaged by human sin and death with the disobedience of Adam and Eve in chapter 3. Where chapter 1 gave a full overview of creation, this chapter focuses more on a few specific events. These are crucial to understanding the fall of man.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.