Translation
And YHVH
ELOHIM (read Adonai)
fashioned the rib He had taken from the adam into
a woman
Go to footnote numberand caused her to come near
Go to footnote numberto the adam.
Paraphrase
Then THE PERSONAL AND ETERNAL GOD who is also THE CREATOR AND OWNER OF ALL THINGS fashioned the rib He had taken from the man into a corresponding counterpart to the man, and presented her to the man as his close companion.
Footnotes
1
The word used here for woman is the word that corresponds to, comes from, and sounds similar to, the other common word for “man” that is not the word “adam.” The only difference is that it has a feminine ending. The significance of this word is that it highlights the origin of the woman, she came out of the man, from a place close to his heart, thus establishing a close connection between the two. The man and the woman are the same, and yet they are different; they are two parts of one whole. In the man-woman relationship we find (or should find) unity amid diversity – just like the unity amid diversity that Paul describes in the church (I Corinthians chapters 12 and 14).
2: “come near”
This word choice is curious to me simply because the woman God had made was already close to the man. Usually this word is used in Scripture of something that is brought from another place, either far away, or a small distance away, to this place; it is strange at first glance to use it of someone or something that is present, already close. I think it was used to emphasize greater closeness – God brought her very close to the man. In the paraphrase column I express what I think is the true intent of the statement, namely that God presented her to him as a close companion. God was encouraging closeness. It is as if God, in the person of Jesus, was saying to Adam, “I want the two of you to have a close relationship and always stay close. She is part of you; take good care of her.”