Women of the bible: EVE

Eve

Eve means “life” or “life-giving,” or “mother of all who have life,” — And Adam called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. (Genesis 3:20)

We all know the story of Eve. A woman born from man, who came into a world that was perfect in every way. She lived in Paradise, possessing every pleasure imaginable. She never knew the meaning of embarrassment, misunderstanding, hurt, envy, bitterness, grief, pain or guilt until she listened to her enemy and began to doubt God. 

And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. (Genesis 2:25)

One day as Eve was wandering around the Garden of Eden she met a very cunning serpent. She knew she wasn’t to touch or eat fruit from one particular tree — “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.” (Genesis 3:2-3) But the serpent was very good at convincing Eve that it would be just fine to eat the fruit (we all know the feeling of being sucked into something when we know it is wrong) — So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. (Genesis 3:6)

Everything changed forever, not just for Eve and her husband Adam, but for us all. They were banished from Eden and to Eve, God said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16)

And to Adam: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread. Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”

We do not know how many children Eve had and what happened to her in her future years. What we do know is: 

. . . Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. After he begot Seth, the days of Adam were eight hundred years; and he had sons and daughters. So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died. (Genesis 5:3-5)

What can we learn from Eve: 

* Eve’s first child was a boy, Cain, followed by his brother Abel. As God promised, she suffered much pain in child-birth (as all women still do today) but that pain didn't stop as her son Cain, in his anger murdered his brother Abel. Whilst’s Eve’s life was full of unbearable sorrow, I am sure, like any mother, it was also filled with much joy as she watched her children grow. As women we will experience highs and lows — sadness, tears, grief but also laughter, happiness, joyfulness. We must not allow our sorrows to overshadow us and destroy our joy in life. 

* God created Adam but he was lonely on his own so God created Eve (Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. Genesis 2:22) to be his help-mate and companion in life (Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Genesis 2:24). When we marry, we too, become our husband’s help-mate and best friend, to work together as one. This is very important to note, to work together as one there must be harmony, peace, agreement with no fighting and arguing as this only tears apart a marriage which we see all too often today. 

*  Eve was easily persuaded by a source that acted in opposition to her husband and to God. She did not consult them or submitted to their authority or protection. She failed to remember all that God said to both herself and Adam which allowed her to focus on the one thing she was not to have. She acted impulsively — I think we can all relate to this from time to time. As a result of Eve's activities with the serpent, God said that Adam was to rule over you (Eve). Even though husbands and wives are of one flesh, wives are to submit to their husbands in all things. We see this first in Genesis and then reminded again in Ephesians 5:22 and in Colossians 3:18 (Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.)

* Eve was the first woman on the earth. Eve was the first wife and she was the first mother. She played a very important part in God’s plan for the human race. Yet she sinned. Her sin is truly beyond the total comprehension of any of us. But God continued to love her and he provided a covering for her and he forgave her. God continued to use her and her husband in His eternal plan and purpose. From Eve, we need to remember the following:

     * Temptation to sin will come from the most unexpected circumstances

     * Satan will constantly play on our flesh to persuade us to disobey God

     * Failure and sin is the direct response of unfamiliarity with God and His Word

     * You cannot hide from your sin

     * Sin has consequences and hardships

     * The Lord is merciful and gracious even when we sin.