How well do you know Eve? For most people, she is the symbol of disobedience and sin. For some, it is a reminder that the judgement of women should not be trusted. Yet, others believe that after God presented Eve to Adam, and Eve caused Adam to fall, God stopped giving wives to men. Some people also consider Eve to be an epitome of the weaknesses of womanhood: fragile, tender, easily deceived, lacking protection etc. Personally, I see Eve as the first female created by God who experienced life in a very dramatic way based on a wrong choice. Eve is a depiction of humanity, we take decisions based on our free will without consulting God and then we have to deal with the consequences. Eve and Adam’s action of eating the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil had bad consequences that the couple lived with for the rest of their lives. To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16) When God asked Adam about eating the forbidden fruit, Adam’s response was, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it” (Genesis 3:12). Eve was blamed by the same man who called her the bone of his bones and the flesh of his flesh. God cursed all those involved in the fall: the man, the woman and serpent. “To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16). Thus, Eve, like all those cursed, carried the burden of the pains of child bearing, painful labour, and had to deal with subjecting under the authority of Adam. With the pains of childbirth, Eve brought forth Cain and Abel after they had been driven from Eden to a cursed land growing with thorns and thistles. “Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.” (Genesis 4:1-2) Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. (Genesis 4:8) Eve must have been excited because of the birth of her children. However, that excitement was short-lived. Cain, the first child of Eve, killed his own brother Abel out of Jealousy. The circle of sin introduced in the Garden of Eden was working. Eve must have grieved for Abel. First, she was a cursed woman and then a grieving mum. The effect of the single conversation with the serpent was a series of misfortunes. Whenever we talk about Cain and Abel, we don’t consider the grief of the parents. Adam and Eve suffered the pain of child loss, the burden of seeing the child which was brought forth in pain dead. Eve must have been very sad knowing that for as long as the earth remains, she will be considered the main reason for the curse on humanity and she had to mourn her son who was killed because sin entered the world through a single conversation she had with the serpent. The grieving Eve must have taken consolation in Genesis 3: 15, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Eve didn’t know how soon that seed would crush the head of the serpent but she was hopeful and trusted in God to bring this seed to pass. Sometimes, the ripple effect of a wrong choice may prolong and cause us pain and sorrow. Whenever we fall, we should quickly ask for God’s forgiveness and trust Him to restore us. Further, if there are people in our church or community who are going through painful times because of a decision they made, we should show them love and comfort. God’s ultimate goal to rescue the world was through the seed of Eve. God can use anyone for His glory. Don’t leave people in pain alone, be a support system.
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