“And Adam called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.” Genesis 3:20.
The story of Eve is a fascinating one, made all the more so because we don’t know a lot about her. I’ve included in this post what we do know from the Bible, as well as some points about the Creation and the Fall. I’ve noted the Bible verses and some notes of conjecture which have been marked as such. The Bible scholar I’ll be referencing most is the late Dr. Michael Heiser, who had some controversial viewpoints as you will see. I’m not saying I agree or disagree with any of them, but they are food for thought.
The verse quoted above may be surprising to some. Eve wasn’t named by God but by Adam. The word ‘adam’ means ‘earth’, and this was the name God gave him. From Genesis 2:18-23 we see that Adam has provided names for all the animals, which showed that he had intellect and the ability to speak. God notices that there isn’t a suitable companion for Adam and so causes a deep sleep to fall on him, removes a rib, and just as he created Adam from the dust of the ground He fashions a woman from Adam’s rib.
We can humorously imagine Adam’s reaction when he sees Eve. Preachers love to make jokes about it. At any rate, his words are telling: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man.”
Notice the pronoun ‘she’!
Verses 2:14-15 read: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother, and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and they were not ashamed.”
THE GARDEN OF EDEN
Where was it located?
There are a lot of theories. At any rate, it is now hidden and there is no access to it. It’s protected by the flaming sword of a cherubim (spiritual being). Dr. Heiser speculates that Eden was not itself the garden, that Eden was a specific area upon the earth, and God created a garden within Eden which was a perfect environment for the man and woman he had created. It was more than a garden, it was more like a celestial park. Also, ancient Hebrew ideology defines a garden as “a place where God is.” Once Adam and Eve defied and disobeyed God they were driven out into the world beyond Eden.
Here’s where Dr. Heiser’s speculation comes in. He believed there were humans on the earth created in Genesis 1 who were to be his ‘imagers’ (representatives/ambassadors). They were not in Eden. Adam and Eve were created in Genesis 2 as a separate and unique pair of humans who, through their genealogy, would eventually bring about the birth of Christ. If this seems far-fetched there are other respected scholars who believe in a pre-Adamic race; two of them are Derek Prince and Timothy Alberino.
https://nakedbiblepodcast.com/
https://www.derekprince.com/en-us/resources
https://timothyalberino.com/
Of course the traditional view is that Genesis 2 is simply providing additional detail to Genesis 1.
WHY DID SATAN PICK EVE OVER ADAM?
Did Satan, biding his time, watch and study the pair and decide that Eve was the “weaker vessel”? Or was she just naïve and spiritually immature? Was it part of his strategy in destroying mankind that it would be easier to get to Adam through his wife?
Why did Eve not seem surprised that a serpent was speaking to her? Did Satan indwell the serpent, or is this an allegorical representation of the entity that spoke to her?
Whatever the case, we see that Eve was willing to engage in conversation with this creature. There were two trees specifically mentioned as being in Eden: the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and the Tree of Life. Obviously he must have been beside the very Tree she was to avoid.
Satan asks, “Did God really say not to eat of every tree of the garden?”
Eve replies that they could eat of every tree except the one in the midst of the garden, and she even added to what Adam had told her by saying, “We are not even to touch it, lest we die.”
Satan responds by saying that she would not die, that God knew her eyes would be opened and she would be like Him, knowing good and evil—implying that God had made the command out of jealousy.
Now we see in Eve’s character desire and defiance in her willingness to partake of what Satan offered. She took it and offered it to Adam as well, perhaps pleading or demanding that he take it. Was she partially innocent or wholly guilty? Isn’t partial guilt as fully incriminating? It seems certain that Adam knew better but “ate” after he saw what happened to Eve and he didn’t want to be separated from her, thus choosing obedience to his wife over his obedience to God.
The Bible says their eyes were opened and they knew they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together to clothe themselves and tried to hide from God.
Being ashamed of their nakedness brings up some interesting points but it’s too much to go into within this article. One assumption would be that the fact they were aware of being naked would inform God of what they had done—as if He didn’t already know!
So God confronts them—Adam blames Eve (not very chivalrous of him), and Eve blames the “serpent”.
No excuses. They had deliberately disobeyed God and must be punished, or He would not be a just God. He couldn’t just wink at them and let them get away with it. More importantly, He couldn’t allow them to eat of the Tree of Life and live forever in a sinful state that would bring them misery and ruin and eventual destruction. He drives them out of the garden, out of Eden, into the world beyond.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Garden-of-Eden
But first the punishments. The serpent is judged first. Eve is punished by having to endure pain in childbirth, and by the desire to rule over her husband but he will rule over her. Adam is punished by having to overcome multiple hardships in tilling the ground and trying to make a living from it. And they have both begun to die physically and will eventually “return to dust”.
But in the midst of all this tragedy there is a redeeming verse, and it has to do with Eve. It’s within God’s curse of the serpent.
“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” Genesis 3:15.
Satan is alerted here of someone who will defeat him. Damage to a heel is nothing compared to damage to a head! This is a prophecy of the birth of Jesus, and it will take place through the genealogical line of Eve.
One more thing I can think of about Eve: She lost a child. Not only did she lose him, but he was murdered by his brother. She may have lost others as she continued to have children over the years, but this one must have been particularly painful.
SIDE NOTE: WHAT KIND OF FRUIT WAS IT?
What could have been so attractive that Eve couldn’t resist it? Surely the garden was full of all kinds of beautiful fruit! Some say an apple, some say a fig, some say the fruit is allegorical or symbolic of something else. Bible scholar Arthur Custance is of the opinion that whatever it was had toxic properties which is why they were not permitted to eat it. A glossy cluster of grapes, for instance, which may have fermented if they delayed eating it immediately, rendering it alcoholic in essence.
https://custance.org/papers
THE REASON FOR THE CREATION OF ADAM AND EVE
It’s been noted by many scholars and teachers that God wanted a family. Not because He was lonely but because He loves fellowship. Intimacy with angels wasn’t satisfactory. Intimacy with sinners was impossible. His two special creations, Adam and Eve, had to pass a test, which they failed. Their failure enabled Jesus Christ to come into the world. Jesus paid the penalty for man’s sin which permits mankind to come into the presence of God, creating the family that God originally wanted.
Did God have foreknowledge of this? The Bible says yes. This had to come about because of His laws and principles of justice. His law recognized that Satan had legally gained temporary rule over the earth, but was forced to relinquish it back to Jesus.
One more point I’d like to make from Dr. Heiser’s research. We’ve all heard of “original sin” and that we’re all infected with sin because of Adam. Not necessarily so. We didn’t inherit his guilt—we sin because we want to! Yes, he brought death into the world due to his disobedience, but Jesus by his obedience brought eternal life.
See John 1:1-18 and John 3:16-20.
SUMMARY
Eve was a unique creation by God, but it appears she was just like any other woman. She had a husband she loved, but she wanted to be the boss! She desired knowledge and power. She was susceptible to temptation. She obviously suffered pain and grief and remorse.
She took what Satan had to offer, but how many of us have done the same thing in other ways?
What would you have done?
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