Eve: The Mother of all Living
Eve was the first female upon the earth. Genesis 1:27 records her creation in brief. She was created in the image of God. According to Genesis 2 she was created after the first man, Adam. Eve was created from a rib which God took from Adam. She was created because there was not found a help who would be a mate for Adam. After God created Eve, He brought her to Adam. The first recorded words Adam spoke to this female were: “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” The first recorded command by God to Eve, including Adam, was: “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
The mention of Eve’s name occurs only four times in scripture. Genesis 3:20, 4:1, 2 Corinthians 11:3, and I Timothy 2:13. The first passage mentioning her is interesting. Adam “called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.” The reason this passage is interesting is that to this point no children had been mentioned. Were there children already? How could she be a mother, especially of all living, if she did not? Additionally, what did Adam call her before she became the mother of all living? It would not be shocking if she had a different name prior as many well known individuals in the Bible were renamed: Abram, Jacob, Gideon, Daniel, Cephas, and Saul to name a few.
Genesis 4:1 is the second passage Eve’s name is mentioned. Adam and eve had sex and she conceived a son. The boys’ name is Cain and Eve gives honor to God. Was this the first child? It is the first child recorded. Eve and her husband were obediently following the command given by God to be fruitful and multiple.
Assuming Genesis was written by Moses by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the Bible does not mention Eve’s name again for over 1600 years. In 2 Corinthians 11:3, the apostle Paul recalls a life altering event from Genesis 3. In the garden, Eve was deceived by the serpent (The serpent is identified in Revelation 20:2 as Satan, the devil.). The context of Paul’s usage is his concern over the Corinthian Church. He uses the language of marriage in explaining he was instrumental in their betrothal (by baptism) to Christ. Paul is worried that they will be deceived by others and led away from their “sincere and pure devotion to Christ”. Paul’s comparison comes from the fact that God had told Adam in the garden that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was not to be eaten. This command had been shared with Eve, likely by her husband. Rather than being devoted to him and respecting his authority and God’s, she fell to deception and ate of the fruit, and gave Adam to eat as well.
The final passage mentioning the name of Eve is found in I Timothy 2:13. The context of this passage begins with verse 9. The apostle Paul is proclaiming in this letter to Timothy that godly women are not to be focused on drawing attention to themselves by their adornments but rather their focus should be upon good works. They are to learn quietly and in subjection. They are not to conduct themselves as a teacher or exercise authority over a man. Why? “For Adam was first formed then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in transgression.” These are the two eternal reasons given. They are given by God through the Holy Spirit to Paul and shared to Timothy. The reminder of the woman’s role and Eve’s sin in the beginning (An eternal reminder of the need to be devoted to her husband, a given role and responsibility, not an inherited sin.) is not meant to overwhelm a woman. As a comfort to her, she will find healing and fulfillment (“shall be saved”) in the raising of godly children (Genesis 3:16). This was from God’s intention from the beginning: Malachi 2:15 “And did not he make one? [He Bound them like a rope with the breath of life]. And why one? That he might seek a godly offspring...”.
Although Eve is only mentioned 4 times by name in scripture, she still plays an important role in the shaping of mankind. She was created to be a loving help to her husband. Her role was not to lead, but to be devoted to Adam’s wellbeing. Additionally, serving in her role she was to bring about godly offspring. These items are what God desired from Eve, the mother of all living, and He still desires the fulfillment of women in this same role today.