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Gen Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28 C29 C30 C31 C32 C33 C34 C35 C36 C37 C38 C39 C40 C41 C42 C43 C44 C45 C46 C47 C48 C49 C50
Gen 2 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25
Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible. This view is only designed for doing comparisons of different translations. Click on the version abbreviation to see the verse in more of its context.
The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
OET (OET-RV) Then Yahweh God said, “It’s not good for the man to be alone, so I’ll make a suitable helper for him.”
OET-LV And_he/it_said Yahweh god not [is]_good to_be the_humankind for_him/it_being_alone I_will_make for_him/it[fn] a_helper like_in_front_of_him/it.
2:18 Note: BHS has been faithful to the Leningrad Codex where there might be a question of the validity of the form and we keep the same form as BHS.
UHB וַיֹּ֨אמֶר֙ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהִ֔ים לֹא־ט֛וֹב הֱי֥וֹת הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְבַדּ֑וֹ אֶֽעֱשֶׂהּ־לּ֥וֹ עֵ֖זֶר כְּנֶגְדּֽוֹ׃ ‡
(vayyoʼmer yahweh ʼₑlohiym loʼ-ţōⱱ hₑyōt hāʼādām ləⱱaddō ʼeˊₑseh-llō ˊēzer ⱪənegddō.)
Key: yellow:verbs, red:negative, blue:Elohim, green:YHWH.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
ULT Then Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable helper for him.”
UST Then Yahweh who is God said, “It is not good for the man to live by himself. So I will create a suitable companion to help him.”
BSB § The LORD God also said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make for him a suitable helper.”
OEB Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the human to be alone; I will make a helper suited to him.’
WEB Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to[fn] him.”
2:18 or, suitable for, or appropriate for.
WMB The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to[fn] him.”
2:18 or, suitable for, or appropriate for.
NET The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a companion for him who corresponds to him.”
LSV And YHWH God says, “[It is] not good for the man to be alone; I make him a helper as his counterpart.”
FBV Then the Lord God said, “It's not good for Adam to be alone. I will make someone to help him, someone that's like him.”
T4T Then Yahweh God said, “It is not good for this man to be alone. So I will make someone who will be a suitable partner for him.”
LEB Then[fn] Yahweh God said, “it is not good that the man[fn] is alone. I will make for him a helperas his counterpart.”[fn]
?:? Or “And”
?:? “The man” indicates the noun is singular and occurs with the definite article
?:? Literally “as his opposite”
BBE And the Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be by himself: I will make one like himself as a help to him
MOF No MOF GEN book available
JPS And the LORD God said: 'It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him.'
ASV And Jehovah God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him.
DRA And the Lord God said: It is not good for man to be alone: let us make him a help like unto himself.
YLT And Jehovah God saith, 'Not good for the man to be alone, I do make to him an helper — as his counterpart.'
DBY And Jehovah Elohim said, It is not good that Man should be alone; I will make him a helpmate, his like.
RV And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
WBS And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone: I will make him a help meet for him.
KJB ¶ And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.[fn]
(¶ And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.)
2.18 meet…: Heb. as before him
BB And the Lord God sayde: It is not good yt the man should be alone, I wyll make hym an helpe lyke vnto hym.
(And the Lord God said: It is not good it the man should be alone, I will make him an help like unto him.)
GNV Also the Lord God saide, It is not good that the man should be himself alone: I wil make him an helpe meete for him.
(Also the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be himself alone: I will make him an help meet for him. )
CB And the LORDE God sayde: It is not good yt ma shulde be alone. I wil make him an helpe, to beare him copany.
(And the LORD God said: It is not good it man should be alone. I will make him an helpe, to bear him copany.)
WYC And the Lord God seide, It is not good that a man be aloone, make we to hym an help lijk to hym silf.
(And the Lord God said, It is not good that a man be alone, make we to him an help like to himself.)
LUT Und GOtt der HErr sprach: Es ist nicht gut, daß der Mensch allein sei; ich will ihm eine Gehilfin machen, die um ihn sei.
(And God the LORD spoke: It is not gut, that the person allein sei; I will him one Gehilfin machen, the around/by/for him/it sei.)
CLV Dixit quoque Dominus Deus: Non est bonum esse hominem solum: faciamus ei adjutorium simile sibi.[fn]
(Dixit quoque Master God: Non it_is bonum esse hominem solum: faciamus to_him adyutorium simile sibi.)
2.18 Dixit quoque Dominus, etc. AUG., l. IX de Gen., c. 8 Qui sentiunt ad gignendos filios in paradiso misceri non licere, etc., usque ad anima ex anima, sive alio modo fiat anima.
2.18 Dixit quoque Master, etc. AUG., l. IX about Gen., c. 8 Who sentiunt to gignendos filios in paradiso misceri not/no licere, etc., usque to anima ex anima, if/or alio modo fiat anima.
BRN And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone, let us make for him a help [fn]suitable to him.
2:18 Gr. according to him.
BrLXX Καὶ εἶπε Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς, οὐ καλὸν εἶναι τὸν ἄνθρωπον μόνον· ποιήσωμεν αὐτῷ βοηθὸν κατʼ αὐτόν.
(Kai eipe Kurios ho Theos, ou kalon einai ton anthrōpon monon; poiaʸsōmen autōi boaʸthon katʼ auton. )
2:18 It is not good: This is God’s first negative assessment of an otherwise excellent creation (1:31). The Lord God is portrayed as a father who obtains a bride for his son (cp. ch 24).
• The answer to the man’s need is a helper who is just right for him; she is his perfect complement, made in the same image of God (1:26-27), given the same commission (1:28; 2:15), and obligated by the same prohibition (2:17). The man cannot fulfill his created purpose alone.
Biblical Marriage
At the first wedding, God the Father gave the bride away to the groom and witnessed the couple’s interaction in his sanctuary-garden (Gen 2:18-25). Biblical marriage is a binding covenant commitment before God. Breaching that covenant (e.g., through adultery) is a sin against people and against God, who is a divine witness to and guarantor of the marriage covenant (see Mal 2:10-16; cp. Gen 39:6-9; Jer 3:1; 1 Cor 6:9-10; Heb 13:4). Although marriage is exclusive, it is not private. It is legally declared in public, with community recognition, witnesses, and accountability (see Lev 20:10-12; Deut 22:22; Jer 29:20-23).
Marriage is also a metaphor of the Lord’s relationship with his people, first with Israel (see Exod 19:3-6; 20:2-6; 34:14; Isa 54:5; Ezek 16; Hos 2:19-20), and then with the church (see 2 Cor 11:2; Eph 5:21-33). A marriage points to something greater than itself—God’s people (Christ’s “bride”) await the return of Christ (the “groom”). Married Christians are called to live in unity and dignity as they anticipate the wedding feast of the Lamb (Rev 19:6-9). Christ will live forever with his faithful people in glory (Rev 19:7; 21:2, 9).
Passages for Further Study
Gen 2:18-25; 24:65-67; Ps 45:8-15; Isa 54:5; Hos 2:19-20; Mal 2:10-16; 1 Cor 7:1-40; 2 Cor 6:14-16; Eph 5:21-33; Heb 13:4; 1 Pet 3:1-7
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר֙ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהִ֔ים לֹא ט֛וֹב
and=he/it_said YHWH ʼₑlhīmv not good
Alternate translation: “Next Yahweh who is God declared, It is not good”
הֱי֥וֹת הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְבַדּ֑וֹ
to_be the=humankind for=him/it=being_alone
Alternate translation: “that the man is alone.”
אֶֽעֱשֶׂהּ
I_will_make
Alternate translation: “So I will make”
לּ֥וֹ עֵ֖זֶר כְּנֶגְדּֽוֹ
for=him/it helper like=in_front_of=him/it
Alternate translation: “a helper who is just right for him.” or “someone who is right for him and will help him.”