Significant Women
By Pastor Richard Foster
Eve
All about Eve
Genesis 3:20
The name of Eve is inseparable from Adam and the creation story in Genesis. We know her as the first woman, she was also the first mother and wife and even dress maker, but was never a daughter or sister. We don’t know how old or where she was when she died, though Jewish Legend is that she was buried in the cave of Machpelah, later secured by Abraham as a family burial place. We know from Genesis that she bore three sons who are named, but other sons and daughters were born to Adam and presumably Eve (Genesis 5:4). Eve wasn’t the only name given to this first woman, and there are two different accounts of her creation, just to confuse things. Despite all this, she is undoubtedly the most significant woman who has ever lived.
The first account of Eve’s (as we will call her) creation is in Genesis 1:26,27. In this description, we are told that God created man in his image, both male and female were created, and they shared the title of the name ‘man’. This name in the original language is Adam, and male and female were not distinguished from one another and shared the name. They were both created in his image and shared equal responsibility in caring for and managing God’s creation.
There is a Jewish legend drawn from the Babylonian Torah, called the Alphabet of ben sirah, that argues that Eve was the second woman to be created. Briefly, it states that God first created a female known as Lilith who was entirely equal to Adam but felt she was treated as inferior. She rebelled and left Eden, and while she was away, God created a second woman to support Adam. This woman became Eve. There is not enough space to deal with this in more detail here, but we will return to it in a future reading. For now, we will treat it as a myth designed to explain why there seem to be two creation accounts and move on to Eve’s significance.
Genesis 2 provides the second account of Eve’s creation, and at this time, God instructed Adam to call her woman (Genesis 2:23) because she was taken out of man. In the story of creation we read that in every stage after God had had acted he declared that what he had made was good and after he created man, all of creation was very good (Chapter 1:31). However by the time we move to Chapter 2:18 God says that it was not good for man to live alone and so he decides to create woman. Most scholars believe this is a description of what happened in the account of man and woman being created in Genesis 1 and not something that occurred later.
God gives his explanation for the creation of woman. It was to provide companionship to Adam (it was not good for him to be alone) and to work with him in caring for creation. The word ‘helper’ is used in Genesis 2:18 to describe the woman’s role. Many have understood this to mean that she had a lesser role; she was subordinate to Adam, who was the boss, and she just did as he directed. The word in its original language is pronounced ezer and is used of God in Psalm 70:5: ‘But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God! You are my help (ezer)and my deliverer; Lord, do not delay!’ So it is clearly not intended to mean that the woman was inferior to the man. It can also be translated as ‘complement’, not to suggest that man was somehow deficient, after all, he was created in the image of God, but that together they would reflect God’s image in the manner in which they cared for his creation.
We have yet to get to the passage where a woman is named Eve, and that occurs after the tragic events in the garden, which we will look at next time. What is important, though, is to note that woman was created in the image of God in every respect equal to man. God intended that man live in relationship with others, and together with woman, he and she are expected to care for God’s creation and show every aspect of his nature.
In what way do men and women reflect the character of God together?
God said it was not good for man to live alone, but why not?
3. Do you think that women are created as a little less important than men?
2 The man and his wife
Genesis 2:24,25
Another term is introduced for this first woman, that is, she is a ‘wife’. There is obviously no history to draw from to explain this word, and it is the same Hebrew that is translated elsewhere as ‘woman’. The significant difference in Genesis 2:24,25 is that she was brought to the man to be united as one flesh (Verses 23,24) in what became the first act of marriage. This union is described as being indivisible, and God creates in each of them a desire to hold on tightly (cleave) to one another. In some translations, the word ‘cleave’ is used, and the same word can mean cut apart at other times, which can be confusing! Here, it is used to put the new relationship of a husband and wife in the context of the husband’s (and wife’s) relationship with their parents. They must leave one in order to cleave to the other! This new relationship of marriage is the most important. Historically, the definition of marriage was understood as the union of a man and a woman, to the exclusion of all others for life. The husband’s first responsibility was to care for, protect, pursue and cling to his wife. It will not be long before Adam fails in this task. Both Adam and his wife were completely innocent at this stage. While the possibility of rebellion against God existed, it had not happened. Sin had not entered the world, and therefore, there was no consciousness of evil, guilt or shame. This is summed up in the statement that they ‘were both naked and were not ashamed.’ There was no embarrassment, they knew nothing else. They also had no one to compare themselves with, and so as far as they were concerned, whatever shape they were in was just as it should be, perfect. God had imposed one restriction on Adam, they he was not to eat of tree of knowledge of good and evil, and if he did he would die. Some scholars believe that this instruction was given some time before the creation of Eve and that he had already begun his work of naming all the animals, and it was only after completing that task that the woman was created. Most, however, think that both Adam and his wife were included in the warning. At some point, which may have been very soon after Adam and his wife were joined together or sometime later, a serpent appeared and began to speak to Adam’s wife. There would be no reason for her to suspect anything; she was entirely innocent and naïve. There is no explanation of why a serpent would be able to speak or whether this was unusual, either, but this one was craftier than all the other animals. He began to question Eve and challenge her understanding of what God had said. He accused God of misleading her and asked her to repeat exactly the instructions she and Adam were given. She did this, but added an extra; she said God had told them that they could not even touch the tree, while in fact, he did not do that. She also described it as the tree in the middle of the garden, while God had said it was the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
Eve gave in to the temptation that was presented to her and encouraged Adam to do the same, which he did. Adam was with her and failed in his primary responsibility of caring for and protecting his wife. There is no suggestion that he tried to dissuade her or prevent her from taking the fruit. Instead, he may even have been waiting to see what would happen next, and when there were no obvious ill effects, he was quick to join in. The basis of the temptation was not the attractiveness of the fruit, but that Adam and his wife could become like God and decide for themselves what was right or wrong. Immediately, they gave in to the temptation, sin entered the world, and they were ashamed.
What do you think an ‘indivisible union’ means?
What do you think are the most important responsibilities of a man toward his wife?
What are a wife’s responsibilities to her husband?
The Mother of all living
Genesis 3:8-24
Once Adam and his wife realised they were naked and were ashamed, they tried to hide themselves by sewing together some fig leaves. It seems like it was God’s custom to visit them in the cool of the day, whether he was visible to them or just made his presence known is not stated, but they heard him and recognised who it was. Still ashamed, they hid behind the trees, hoping that God would not notice them. But he called out to them and asked where they were. When God asks a question, it is not because he is looking for information. Nothing is hidden from him, he knows all things – he is asking Adam to admit to what he has done. Adam betrayed himself by stating he was naked; he could only know that if he had eaten of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, and God challenged him to confess that he had. Instead of just asking God’s forgiveness and mercy by acknowledging his fault, he immediately blamed his wife. Rather than protect her, he tried to make her responsible for his own failing. In fact, he went a step further and blamed God. If God hadn’t given this woman to him, none of this would have happened! God didn’t argue with Adam but turned to the woman and asked what she had done. She, in turn, tried to avoid responsibility and blamed the serpent. There was no defence and no justification; all three parties were guilty, and all would suffer the consequences of their actions. First of all, the serpent was condemned to live in the dust and be at war with the woman and all of her offspring. Even in this judgment, God reveals that he has not abandoned the woman, and it is through her that the final judgment on the serpent would come. In the very act of executing the sentence on humanity, God reveals his plan to redeem it. The woman receives a twofold judgment. In the first place, she would experience increased pain in childbirth. Since she had not yet given birth, she would have had no idea what this meant, but she knew she was going to have children. God had not abandoned her; God’s decree that she and her husband multiply and fill the land had not been removed. God would still be with her and help her. Later in Chapter 4:1, she names her first son Cain, declaring that she had him with the help of the Lord. The second judgment had to do with the relationship between her and her husband. Where once they were to act in harmony, cooperating and supporting each other, now there would be competition and disunion. Some translations state that verse 16 reads “your desire will be for your husband”, while others put it that ‘’your desire will be contrary to or against your husband. As this is a judgment or curse, it must have a negative effect.
The word 'desire' appears three times in the Bible, once here, again in Genesis 4:7, when Cain is told that sin was crouching like a lion because its desire was contrary to him. The third time is in the Song of Solomon when it speaks of sexual desire, which is a legitimate expectation in marriage (7:10). It is most likely that what is intended is that the cooperative relationship that should typify marriage would be broken. Wives would seek to control or make choices independently of their husbands, and husbands would try to impose their authority, dominate and force their wives into submission. Adam was condemned to a life of toil, where once food would be plentiful, and labour enjoyable, but now it became a burden. The seeds of decay had been sown. From the moment sin entered the world, so did death. It wasn’t immediate, but it was inevitable. God’s plan of redemption is to bring healing to all of these relationships, to restore marriage to his original plan that ‘creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.’ (Romans 8:21)
On hearing this, Adam named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all living. And then God hid their shame by making for them clothes from sacrificed animals.
If God were to ask you where you are, how would you answer?
When Adam and Eve were caught out, they tried to avoid responsibility. How easy is it to do that?
God plans to restore marriages to the biblical ideal. How do you see that reflected in your life, if you are married, or in broader society?
What about Lilith?
Genesis 1:26-28
There are a number of myths associated with Lilith, who, in some Jewish writings, is presented as the first wife of Adam. The most well-known account of her creation and life is found in the Alphabet of Ben Sirah, written sometime between 700 and 1000 A.D. It is sometimes used to explain what seems to be two different accounts of the creation of the first woman in chapters one and two of Genesis. Much of the ‘alphabet’ account is graphic and only suitable for adult readers, and so will only be touched on here! According to the most popular account, Adam and Lilith were created at the same time, equal in every way, with the shared responsibility for subduing the world and managing it. Adam, however, insisted that he had authority over Lilith and she had to serve him. This was reflected in their most intimate relationships: ‘They quarrelled immediately. She said, “I will not lie below you.” He said, “I will not lie below you, but above you. For you are fit to be below me and I above you.” (Alphabet of Ben Sira 23a-b). Lilith would not accept Adam’s dominance and left Eden to live in the wilderness near the Red Sea, where, according to Jewish legend, she became a demon. Adam complained to God that Lilith had left him, so God created another woman who was named Eve. God sent three angels after Lilith to bring her back, but she refused, claiming: ‘’I was created only to cause sickness to infants. If the infant is male, I have dominion over him for eight days after his birth, and if female, for twenty days.” She is attributed to be the cause of child deaths, abortion and other sicknesses. Children could be protected if they wore a bracelet with the names of the angels inscribed on it. Lilith is also said to have had relations with other demons, which produced demonic offspring, and to assault males while they were sleeping alone and producing offspring through them.
Lilith did return to Eden, where she saw Adam and Eve embracing and was filled with jealousy. She then took on the form of a serpent and approached Eve with the temptation to eat the forbidden fruit, which ultimately caused sin to enter humanity. This myth, and others with some similarities, seem like fantasy, and yet in recent times it or at least the character of Lilith, has been adopted by sections of the feminist movement. There is a Lilith Fair, and the magazine ‘Lilith’ was inspired by Lilith’s fight for equality with Adam. In that magazine, Avina Zuckoff writes: ‘Not only does Lilith immediately recognise tyranny for what it is, but she immediately resists it, too. Nowhere do we see her complain (as Adam does); she states her case and takes risks for her dignity. She is courageous and decisive, willing to accept the consequences of her actions. Her strength of character and commitment to self is inspiring.’ To these women, Lilith is seen as heroic and a champion of the cause of equal rights. Of course, that does require ignoring the unsavoury aspects of the myth.
The Genesis account ascribes equality to men and women without the need to resort to the level of fantasy familiar to ancient pagan cultures. In the first statement of their creation, it is clear that equal responsibility was given to man and woman to manage and care for God’s world and to reflect his character in their union together. Paul writes to the Galatians: ‘There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus’ (Galatians 3:28). While he writes to the Christians at Ephesus about relationships in marriage he prefaces his comments with: ‘submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ’ (Ephesians 5:21) and he says this in the context of being filled with the Holy Spirit. While within marriage, husband and wife may undertake different roles and responsibilities, they do this from the place of equality and unity. There is no place for a domineering attitude or enforced submission to either party.
Lilith is not a representation of an ideal that women can identify with as an independent woman who challenges the oppressive system in which she is placed. She is a myth. The ideal is presented for us in the pages of the bible, and the nearest we may find to an ideal is in Proverbs 31. The reality is that all of creation, including men and women, are flawed and their example will always be short of the ideal.
Why do you think people find it necessary to create a mythical figure like Lilith?
How should equality between men and women be demonstrated?
What do you think about women’s groups adopting the name Lilith to promote themselves?