“The Lord God formed from the ground every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens, and brought them to the man to see what he would call it; and whatever the man would call every living creature, that was its name” (Genesis 2:19). “The Lord God formed from the ground [every beast of the field]” – they raised a question before Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Zakai: It is written: “God said: Let the earth produce living creatures after their kinds” (Genesis 1:24).
Why then does the verse state [here again]: “The Lord God formed [vayitzer] from the ground every beast of the field”? He said to them: There [the previous verse] it was referring to the creation [of the animals], and here it refers to domination,13He claims that “vayitzer” does not mean “God formed” the animals, but that He placed them under man’s domination. as it says: “When you besiege [tatzur] a city many days” (Deuteronomy 20:19).
Rabbi Aḥa said: When the Holy One blessed be He came to create man, He consulted with the ministering angels. He said to them: “Let us make man” (Genesis 1:26). They said to Him: ‘This man, what is his nature?’ He said to them: ‘His wisdom is greater than yours.’
He brought the animals, the beasts, and the birds before them and said to them: ‘What is its name of this one?’ And they did not know. He passed them before Adam and said to him: ‘What is the name of this one?’ He said: ‘This is an ox; this is a donkey; this is a horse; this is a camel.’ [He then asked:] ‘And you, what is your name?’
He said to Him: ‘It is appropriate that I be called Adam, as I was created from the ground [adama].’ [He asked further:] ‘And I, what is My name?’ He said to Him: ‘It is appropriate to call you my Lord [adonai], as You are the Lord [adon] over all your creatures.’ Rabbi Aḥa said: “I am the Lord, that is My name” (Isaiah 42:8) – that is My name that Adam the first man called Me. He then passed them [the animals] before him in pairs.
He [Adam] said: All of them have partners, but I do not have a partner – “and for the man, he did not find a helper to be alongside him” (Genesis 2:20). This is bewildering; why, in fact, did He not create her for him at the outset? The explanation is that the Holy One blessed be He foresaw that he [Adam] would complain about her in the future;14See Genesis 3:12. therefore, He did not create her until he requested her explicitly. After that, “the Lord God cast a deep slumber…” (Genesis 2:21).