No — men do not have fewer ribs than women, because Eve was formed not from a bone removed from Adam but from the female reproductive part that God had placed in his side.
Les Feldick explains that the Hebrew word translated "rib" can be understood as "side chamber." In his teaching, God created Adam with both male and female within him, and when He created Eve, He removed the female reproductive part—what Les calls the germ plasm—from Adam's side, not a skeletal rib. Therefore, Adam was not left missing a bone, and men today have the same number of ribs as women.
Genesis 2:21-22 — These verses describe the actual event of God taking from Adam's side and making the woman, which is the basis for the question about missing ribs.
Genesis 1:27 — Les uses this verse to show that both male and female were present in Adam at creation before the forming of Eve.
Scripture records in Genesis 2:21 that "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." Verse 22 adds, "And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man." The King James Version uses the word "rib," but the text does not specify whether this was a skeletal rib or another part of Adam's body. Genesis 1:27 also says God created man in His own image, "male and female created he them," before the detailed account of Eve's formation. The biblical text is silent on whether men would consequently have fewer ribs, because it does not describe the physiology of Adam's body after the procedure.
Les Feldick consistently teaches that the word translated "rib" should be understood as "side chamber." In Clip 1, he says he prefers "side chamber, which is also the same definition for that Hebrew word." Genesis 2:21 says God "took a side chamber" and "closed up the flesh instead thereof." Les also teaches that God created Adam with both male and female within him, so Eve was in Adam at creation. When God made Eve, He took out the female reproductive part—what Les calls the germ plasm—from Adam's side, and from that part made the woman. Because it was a reproductive portion, not a bone, that was removed, there is no reason for men to have one less rib.
Les Feldick says no. In Clip 1, he notes that he prefers to use the term "side chamber, which is also the same definition for that Hebrew word." In Clip 0, he paraphrases Genesis 2:21 as: "And the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept, and he took a side chamber, and closed up the flesh instead thereof." For Les, the "rib" was not an ordinary skeletal rib but a portion of Adam's side from which Eve was made.
Les Feldick teaches that God removed the female reproductive part from Adam. In Clip 4, he says, "Eve wasn't a rib, but rather she was taken out of the side of Adam, and it was probably the reproductive part of Eve, and I think that the correct term is the germplasm." In Clip 6, he describes God creating Adam with Eve within him and then later "takes that part of Eve out of Adam, and creates the woman." This removal of reproductive material, rather than a bone, is why men have the same number of ribs as women.
Les emphasizes that Adam was created with both male and female within him. In Clip 3, he says, "when God created Adam, within Adam were both the male and the female," and he connects this to Genesis 1:27—"male and female created he them." In Clip 5, he says, "Eve was in Adam at creation." Then, in Clip 6, he summarizes: "God created Adam with Eve within him, and then sometime later, He takes that part of Eve out of Adam, and creates the woman." This is central to his answer because it reframes the "rib" as the site of the female reproductive element rather than a missing bone.
For Les, the method of Eve's creation has ongoing implications. In Clip 5, he says the creation of the woman out of the man is why "the husband was to be the head of the woman," not as a slave master, but in the order God established. In Clip 0, he also notes that because Eve came out of Adam, she was part of the fall when Adam sinned. These points stem from his reading of Genesis 2 as showing Eve already present in Adam, rather than a separate creation from a single rib.
Eve Made From Adam's Side Chamber
Les paraphrases Genesis 2:21 as God taking a "side chamber" and closing up the flesh, and he stresses that Eve came out of Adam.
The Hebrew Word "Rib" Means Side Chamber
Les says he prefers the term "side chamber" because it is also the definition of the Hebrew word translated "rib" in Genesis 2.
What 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Really Says About Who Goes to Heaven
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 God had taken from man he made a woman, and brought her unto the man. Now verse 23. The man, Adam, said, This is now bone of my bones, this is flesh of my flesh, she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man.
Male and Female Were in Adam at Creation
Les teaches from Genesis 1:27 that God created Adam with both male and female within him, so the woman was not a separate creation from the beginning.
Eve Was Made from the Female Reproductive Part (Germ Plasm)
Les explicitly says Eve wasn't a rib; she was taken from Adam's side, and the part removed was the reproductive part of Eve—the germ plasm.
Adam Was Created with Eve Within Him
Les stresses that Eve was in Adam at creation and that this order of man then woman is what God ordained for headship.
God Took the Female Part Out of Adam to Make Eve
Les explains that God created Adam with Eve within him, then "takes that part of Eve out of Adam, and creates the woman," leaving no missing rib.
Adam's Body Contained Both Male and Female
Les reiterates that within Adam was both male and female, and he says this had to be that way.
Genesis 2:21: 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;
This is the verse that raises the question of whether Adam lost a rib when Eve was formed.
Genesis 2:22: And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
This shows the same Hebrew "rib" material was used to make the woman; Les interprets this as the side chamber.
Genesis 2:23: 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.
Adam's declaration underscores that woman was taken out of man.
Genesis 1:27: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Les uses this to show that both male and female were present in Adam at creation before the forming of Eve.
No. Les teaches that God did not remove a skeletal rib from Adam. The word translated "rib" can be rendered "side chamber," and it was the female reproductive part within Adam that was removed to create Eve.
He teaches it was a side chamber—a portion of Adam's side that contained the female reproductive elements, which he sometimes calls the germ plasm or reproductive part. This portion was used to make the woman.
Les says yes—Eve was in Adam at creation. Within Adam were both male and female reproductive capacity. God later took the female part out of Adam and created the woman.
Les doesn't teach a missing bone. He says God took a side chamber and closed up the flesh instead thereof; the removed part was the female reproductive portion, not a rib bone.
Watch the Teaching: Creation Completed: Why God Rested & How Man Was Formed