According to the Genesis account, God saw that it was “not good” for the first man Adam to remain alone. So God made Eve as a “complement” for Adam. (Genesis 2:18) The word “complement” means that which makes something complete.

While he designed marriage to be a source of joy, intimacy, and comfort, the institution has at times also played a key role in fulfilling certain aspects of his will. For example, God’s purpose for Adam and Eve was for them to “be fruitful and become many and fill the earth.” (Genesis 1:28) Neither Adam nor Eve could fulfill God’s stated purpose alone. Rather, each needed the other, and each completed the other in a special sense.