Genesis 2:21-24

And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and he slept: and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made He a woman, and brought her unto the man.
And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

This is the ordination of the male-female relationship, and the beginning of the institution of marriage.  This is where God gave man the "helpmeet" that we have discussed over the past few passages.  There was no other creation that was sufficient for the man.  No other creation could reason with the man; no other creation could give and receive information, consolation and affection in the same manner as the man.  God created one who would be the perfect fit for the man.  

The Bible teaches us that God made the woman for the man (1 Timothy 2:13).  Because God is all-knowing, we can be assured that He knew what He was doing.  He did not make a mistake in creating the male-female relationship.  No amount of fighting against this fact will change it.  God knew exactly what He was doing.  

God placed in the woman a manner of submissiveness, modesty and silence to be used to build up the man.  She would follow his guidance as he followed the LORD.  She was designed to learn from the man (1 Corinthians 14:34-35). This does not mean that she did not have intelligence or opinions or feelings or strengths.  God set man as the one who would answer those questions as a means of protection for her.  He would provide for and protect her.  God gave her a need for security, and the man would be that security on the earth.  

The man was the last of the creatures that God created. Remember the saying, "Saving the best for last"?  God did that. He waited until the last day to create the most sophisticated of all His imaginations.  To put the crown on the head of the man, He gave the man the woman. While the man slept, she was created, and the man had no input as to how she would look, how she would think, how she would behave, or what would be her position in the relationship.  God did all of that.  God left all of that up to Himself, and, as He had done before, God completed this aspect of creation perfectly.

This was the first marriage.  There is a saying, "Marriage is made in heaven"....how true!  God created the institution and made the man and the woman ONE.  The marriage is a "one-flesh" union, and there is no other relationship under heaven that rivals it.  

The man was smart to receive her:  "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh..."  The man recognized the gift God had given him, and he received her joyfully.  She was part of him, she was the wife with whom he had made covenant. (The covenant is an unbreakable promise.)  

The man gave her a name unique to herself.  He was man, so she was woman, because she complimented him so perfectly. She added what was missing, and she would be the only being that was like him while still being uniquely different.

This is the creation of marriage.  God instructed future humans to "...leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife..."  This is the relationship that God ordained to keep the population growing.  No other union can create a human being. This is only one of the many benefits of marriage.  No other earthly relationship creates such intimacy, security and camaraderie.  God designed no two people to be closer than a husband and his wife.

Hebrews 13:4 says, "Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled..."  Marriage is such a good thing, which is why the enemy of our souls works so hard to destroy it.