We know very little about Eve. Her name is only mentioned 4 times in all of scripture. We know nothing of her appearance, how long she lived, or who her friends were. We don’t know how she handled being a wife and mother, although there has been plenty of theology, speculation, and debate regarding her “place” with respect to Adam. But we all know what she did. Eve’s encounter with the serpent and her actions have echoed through eternity.
Eve was the pinnacle of Creation. The Hebrew expression in Genesis 2:22 regarding Eve’s creation is equivalent to saying God built Eve; she was a custom piece of work unlike anything else in Creation. Based on her being a one-off original piece of creation, we can probably assume she was flawless, a perfect exemplar of feminine excellence.
Unfortunately, she also failed to keep God’s command and opened the door for evil to come into Paradise. However, who wants to be remembered throughout time for their one worst moment? Not me, no thank you. So, given that she was the perfect woman at her creation, what can we learn from her about femininity to apply to ourselves?
First, there is absolutely no mention of her physical appearance. We only know that she was clearly appealing to Adam. So, we can’t learn how we should look in order to be all that God designed us to be. We have no God-given picture of physical perfection. But isn’t that so often what we’re striving for?
Second, we do know that she had a duty to her Creator: be fruitful and multiply (1:28) as well as roles with her husband: rule over creation (1:28) and be Adam’s “suitable helper” (2:18). (And don’t eat from that tree! 2:17)
Women were created to showcase the nurturing, comforting, creating aspects of God’s nature. Even women who do not have children can still “be fruitful and multiply” by teaching and guiding others, bringing beauty into the world by using their talents, and growing God’s family.
Society has long struggled with the idea that Eve could be subject to Adam’s leadership, yet not his slave or otherwise dominated by him. It is not surprising that a world that only looks out for self has difficulty grasping the idea of servant-leadership. However, God knew that man would do better with a helper (2:18) and created Eve to be his perfect complement. Matthew Henry has a beautiful quote regarding Eve’s creation and her relationship to Adam: “Observe…[t]hat the woman was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be beloved.”
Sometimes we love to rest the blame for all the world’s imperfections on Eve. But each of us also know that if Eve hadn’t disobeyed, we could have easily been the one to mess it all up. And even if we were, God would have still had a plan.
If you’ll grant me a moment of extra-Biblical dramatization, I’d like to share a visual I heard years ago that has stuck with me: God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are all present for Creation. God is kneeling down, shaping Adam out of the dust, and He looks to Jesus standing nearby and says, “Are you sure?” Jesus nods and says, “Yes, Father,” knowing full well what will happen in the Garden and that the requirement will be his brutal death and even more painful separation from God.
That’s the same love that He has for each of us today and every day, no matter if it’s a “perfect woman” day or a “fallen woman” day.
Read Eve’s story – Genesis 2:18-3:24
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