AMUSING, INTERESTING, OUTRAGEOUS, or PROFOUND

The Hebrew noun translated as "rib'', tzela (tzade, lamed, ayin), can indeed mean a costal rib. It can also mean the rib of a hill (2 Samuel 16:13), the side chambers (enclosing the temple like ribs, as in 1 Kings 6:5,6), or the supporting columns of trees, like cedars or firs, or the planks in buildings and doors (1 Kings 6:15,16). So the word could be used to indicate a structural support beam. Interestingly, Biblical Hebrew, unlike later rabbinic Hebrew, had no technical term for the penis and referred to it through many circumlocutions. When rendered into Greek, sometime in the second century BCE, the translators used the word pleura, which means side, and would connote a body rib (as the medical term pleura still does). This translation, enshrined in the Septuagint, the Greek Bible of the early church, fixed the meaning for most of western civilization, even though the Hebrew was not so specific.

Or so goes the claim.

But the danger puppy is so fluffy

Mysterious ways

Underrated comment.

I think it's a weak explanation for the apparant contradiction between the initial Yahwist creation narrative at Genesis 2:4 where Adam proceeded most animals and his "helper" and the subsequent 6-day Priestly narrative at 1:1 where man and woman were created at the same time on the sixth day.

Yes, the chronological order of the stories is reversed, according to most scholars. Lilith isn't in sacred scripture (unless you could words based on other forms of the origin of the name, but that's a stretch). She appears in post-second temple Jewish folklore (read: after Christianity branched off Judaism) if that's of any significance to you.

My theology is a little rusty so bear with me, but; I believe the teaching here is that initially God did create 'companions' for Adam from the earth by way of creatures/animals/critters/etc and then had Adam go around naming them all. But then it goes on to say something like 'there was not a helper fit for him from them', so God made this "helper" (I'll elaborate on that word) directly from Adam who immediately recognised her as being from himself. Genesis isn't really literal either, especially not the first half of it so think of this more as a metaphor.

If you dive into the linguistics a bit (my memory here is also a bit rusty) the term "helper" is translated from the Hebrew word "ezer" and is the same word used to describe God's relationship with humanity. There's a lot of misinterpretation (understandably so IMO) about the word "helper" in most translations, but what most theologians believe it to mean by the use of the word "ezer" is the relationship between man and woman is collaborative and supportive, and not hierarchical despite the English translation making it sound a bit not like that.

Well, he doesn't really "need" anything... Because omnipotence. He could have just made them long for each other. He could have just made Lilith less independent. Or he could have just made Adam not terrified of the second, unnamed wife... The whole thing really starts to break down the more you think about it :/