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Lessons Learned: Eve From Paradise to Punishment

Lessons Learned: Eve

Genesis 1-3 (NLT) All scripture is written in italics.

27So God created human beings in his own image.

In the image of God, he created them;

male and female he created them.

28Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it.

8Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. 9The Lord God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground—trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit. In the middle of the garden he placed the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

15The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. 16But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—17except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

18Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.”

21So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. While the man slept, the Lord God took out one of the man’s ribs and closed up the opening. 22Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man.

23“At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman, ’because she was taken from ‘man.’”.

Eve’s Story (The following comes from the Bible but some of it is written fictionally, as I see her, to fill in the story.)

What? Where did I come from and who are you?  What is this place?  I have so many questions!  Why do I know things?  Ah, the Lord has put knowledge in my mind.  He is so wonderful!  He has given me a man to keep me company.  He has also given me a beautiful place to live.  Everywhere I look it is beautiful.  Even the man is nice to look at.  And the animals.  So many different kinds and I enjoy being with all of them.  But, most of all, I enjoy being with God.  He is with us and talks with us all the time.  It is so wonderful to be loved by God who created us and this wonderful place we live.  I can do this forever!

One day I was walking in the garden and there in a tree was a snake.  He seemed special somehow, so I went over to him to talk to him.  He started talking to me. 

“Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

2“Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” I replied. 3“It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”

4“You won’t die!” the serpent replied (to the woman). 5“God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”

Wow!  That is interesting.  I looked at the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and it was beautiful!  The fruit was so fresh and yummy looking I was having a hard time not looking at it, wanting it.  Oh, but I shouldn’t!  But I want to know so much more!  I want to be like God!  Just then Adam came over.  I told him what the snake said.  He did not stop me when I reached up and took a fruit from the tree and bit into it.  It tasted so wonderful I handed it to Adam, and he took a bite.  Suddenly, we knew!  We knew life as we knew it was over.  I felt so ashamed.  The snake was right I did know so much more.  I knew shame and fear and a bunch of other emotions I never knew before.  Suddenly the world seemed darker.  I realized I was naked in front of Adam and the rest of the animals.  That snake was a liar and I should not have listened to him.  I hate how I feel!

I told Adam we should sew leaves together to cover our nakedness.  We did and hid in the trees.  We knew God would be looking for us.  We did not want Him to see our naked bodies.  Sure enough the Lord came looking for us.  We knew He knew where we were since He was all knowing but we hid anyways. 

The Lord called to us.  ”Where are you?” He asked.  Adam replied “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.”

11“Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?”

12The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.”

Sure, blame it all on me!  “It was the snake” I replied, “he tricked me into thinking we would be more like You.”  “I’m sorry I listened to him.  Please make this all go back to the way it was.  I don’t want to feel like this anymore!”  I knew we could never go back.  We were doomed.  My heart was broken.  What surprised me next was what God had to say to us.  First, He spoke to the snake.

“Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild.

You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live. 15And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”

Wonder what the Lord meant by all of this.  No time to find out though because the Lord started talking to me. 

“I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth. And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you.”   It figures.  No more being equal, Adam will rule over me.  Well, we will see about that.  Then the Lord spoke to Adam.

 “Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat the ground is cursed because of you.  All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it.  18It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains.  19By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made.  For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return.”

Ugh!  Life is going to be so hard from now on.  Oh, why did I listen to the snake?  He is evil and now I am so afraid of all snakes.  Adam laughs at me, but I am really terrified when I see a snake now.  Now we cannot live in our beautiful garden anymore.  The land we now live in has so many rocks and thorn bushes in it.  There are other nasty plants.  One gave me a rash and I itched for days.  Adam made a tool to cut up the hard ground so we could plant seeds to grow our food.  God killed two sheep and made coverings for us to wear.  He said the meat was to be burned for an offering to Him for the forgiveness of our sins.  He said it was a sign of the One to come who would restore the perfect world and our hearts to Him. 

God continued to care for us by giving us knowledge to live.  For instance, He taught us what was an acceptable offering and what was not and why.  He also taught us what foods to eat and how to prepare them.  He gave us knowledge how to make a shelter to keep us safe from the animals who used to be our friends.  There is plenty of water here, but I must go fetch it all the time if I need it for cooking or to water the garden.  Life’s no fun anymore!

I’m pregnant!  I am getting bigger with this child growing inside of me.  The Lord told us to go have lots of children.  It’s not fun being pregnant.  The first three months I threw up a lot, especially in the morning.  Making a baby seems enjoyable but these nine months of misery is not!  Hope this baby comes soon! 

It’s a boy!  It hurt so much to give birth to him, but he is so adorable it was so worth it!  Just a few months later I realized I am pregnant again.  All I seem like is I am is barefoot, pregnant and cooking something.  Adam seems to like my cooking though and he sure loves Cain.  Our next child is also a boy.  We named him Abel.  They are growing up to be fine men.  I have given birth to a few girls too.  Girls seemed to be easier than boys to raise.

My heart is broken beyond belief.  Cain killed Abel!  I could not believe it when Adam told me.  Now Cain has left us, and we will probably never see him again.  He took one of his sisters for a wife when he left.  I miss them both so much. 

Pregnant once again.  This time I hope it is a boy to “replace” my dear Abel.  When he came out, we promised ourselves we would raise this boy to follow the Lord and to teach him about the coming Messiah.  Adam and I grew old together having many sons and daughters.  We have lots of grandchildren too.  Our grandchildren are having children and grandchildren too.  It has been a life of many ups and downs.  We are thankful our son Seth is closely following the Lord.  Come Messiah, come.

Lessons Learned from Eve

Don’t you want to yell at Eve not to eat the fruit or to even listen to the snake!  But think about it, we would probably do the same.  Life changed in an instant when Eve took that first bite.  Oh, how we have suffered since then.  Thankfully, God had a plan of salvation.  He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on a cross to save us from our sin.  Jesus was the perfect sacrifice pictured in the first sacrifice so long ago.  And, because of Jesus’ sacrifice we can have paradise once again when we get to Heaven.  For now, we must live in the sinful world where there is evil and illness.  But, do not fear!  God is with us.  We only must trust Him and believe.

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Here are some books which might interest you.

From Eve to Esther: Rabbinic Reconstructions of Biblical Women
By Leila Bronner / Westminster John Knox Press

This is the first book-length attempt to focus on female biblical figures in the ancient rabbinic writings of midrash and Talmud. Primary rabbinic sources employed by the author bring new life and insight into the stories of Eve, Deborah, Hannah, Serah bat Asher, and others. As women and men today attempt to reevaluate past historical models, it serves us well to understand the values and inner workings of rabbinic thinking. The examination of what the sources actually say, and not what others would like them to have said, enable reinterpretation of women’s role to proceed on an honest and authentic basis. Biblical women, reclaimed with contemporary midrash, can become paradigms for our modern lives.

Twelve Extraordinary Women: How God Shaped Women of the Bible and What He Wants to Do with You
By John MacArthur / Thomas Nelson

Celebrated for their courage, vision, hospitality, and spiritual giftedness, it’s no wonder women were so important to God’s place revealed in the Old and New Testaments. It wasn’t their natural qualities that made these women extraordinary but the power of the one true God whom they worshipped and served. Their struggles and temptations are the same trials faced by all believers at all ages.

In Twelve Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur, you’ll learn more than fascinating information about these women, you’ll discover–perhaps for the first time–the unmistakable chronology of God’s redemptive work in history through their lives. These women were not ancillary to His plan, they were at the very heart of it. And this book includes their amazing stories.

The twelve women studied in this book are Eve (Genesis 3:20), Sarah (Genesis 11-25), Rahab (Matthew 1:5-6), Ruth (Ruth 1-4), Hannah (1 Samuel 1-2), Mary, the mother of Jesus (Luke 1-2), Anna (Luke 2:36-38), The Samaritan woman (John 4), Martha and Mary (Luke 10:38-42), Mary Magdalene (Matthew 27:56-61), and Lydia (Acts 16:14).

This edition includes a Study Guide for group discussion.

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Comments (50)

  • Linda Egeler 5 years ago Reply

    Love hearing this well-know Bible story from Eve’s point of view.

  • Magan 5 years ago Reply

    That is an interesting way to portray her story. I love historical fiction, and I think this is great.

  • Angie Gezelman 5 years ago Reply

    Very nice and very enlightening

  • Lori 5 years ago Reply

    This was an interesting retelling of the story.

  • Jill DeMasi 5 years ago Reply

    I like your storytelling abilities. Eve is such a critical figure and yes I always feel like come on why did you give in to your temptation! But it’s part of life and a huge lesson. Thanks for sharing!

  • Debbie 5 years ago Reply

    Genesis is such a great study!

  • Julia Kelahan 5 years ago Reply

    Clever idea to add your own fiction!

  • jen 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you. I needed to read this today.

    Pauline 5 years ago Reply

    Interesting interpretation. Thank you for sharing.

  • Santana 5 years ago Reply

    What an interesting way to tell the story!

  • Karie 5 years ago Reply

    It’s always fascinated learning from the few women in the bible.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    I have written six of these stories under the Lessons Learned series and I am working on number seven.

  • heather J jandrue 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you for sharing.

  • Jaclyn 5 years ago Reply

    Interesting read!

  • Tricia Snow 5 years ago Reply

    I love how you included information from a Rabbi. I am messianic, Christian, but we keep the Torah. Jews offer a lot of insight into the Torah that Christians can benefit from.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Absolutely! I agree with you. The Torah does offer a lot of benefit for Christians and Jews alike.

  • Suzan | It’s My Sustainable Life 5 years ago Reply

    I am not a religious person at all. That being said, woman are powerful, intuitive, and warriors in their own right. I believe that strength and power comes from within us.

  • Sydney 5 years ago Reply

    This is a great narrative! I felt like I could place myself into the writing, and become Eve. Great post!

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you!

  • Lisa Manderino 5 years ago Reply

    I don’t blame Eve for eating the fruit. I think she was smart because she knew that God had commanded her to multiply and replenish the Earth and she wasn’t able to in the Garden of Eden. Maybe it was just me but once I got married I wanted to start a family with all my heart. I wasn’t able to get pregnant right when I wanted to and it was hard. I imagine Eve wanted to be a mother so bad that it was worth knowing good and evil and falling.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Interesting! I never thought about it that way. I, too, struggled to get pregnant and we ended up adopting.

  • Lisa 5 years ago Reply

    Such an interesting read, thank you!

  • Candy 5 years ago Reply

    This is an interesting interpretation. Thank you for sharing the book ideas.

  • Holly 5 years ago Reply

    Wow..thank you for sharing your inspiring story.. I loved it!

  • Cathy 5 years ago Reply

    I like the way you interpreted what Eve thought and felt. It was very interesting to me! Thank you! I’m going to read more and more!

  • Eva Keller 5 years ago Reply

    I love the formatting of your posts! It’s such a creative way to tell the story.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you!

  • Barbara 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you for sharing!

  • Ruth Iaela-Pukahi 5 years ago Reply

    I’ve thought a lot about Eve and her experience in the garden of eden. One thing I’ve thought about was we don’t know how soon the snake approached her. Had she already been thinking, there must be more to just walking around in this beautiful perfect garden. Women tend to see the bigger picture of what is happening. Men are more focused on their goal. I wonder if Eve was already wondering if there was more the snake came to encourage her thoughts to know more…hmmm…I will ask her someday. 🙂

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Good discussion thoughts. Yes, we will have to ask her!

  • Lina 5 years ago Reply

    Very good read! So true in that life does change in an instant. Much like now with COVID-19. One minute we are able to move around freely. In the next, we are placed in quarantine. But I believe we will all get through this.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Agree! I wrote this before it really got bad and everything locked down. But, yes, it did happen fast and we will get through this!

  • Kendra 5 years ago Reply

    I love the voice you give to these Bible stories.

  • Shirley 5 years ago Reply

    You role playing with Eve in the Garden of Eden really does make a person think. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and the bible verses.

  • Nissa Haight 5 years ago Reply

    Great post on Eve. I myself have always wondered what it would be like if she never gave into the temptation.

  • Abbie 5 years ago Reply

    I have also wanted to yell at Eve for disobeying, but if she hadn’t done it, someone else would have.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Agree

  • Linda Egeler 5 years ago Reply

    Love your storytelling style!

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you!

  • ANgela 5 years ago Reply

    Thank you for your words on this.

  • Cindy 5 years ago Reply

    It’s so easy to want to blame Eve for everything. And yet, in the same situation would we have done differently? Of course we will never know, but probably not!

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    I agree I would have probably eaten the fruit.

  • I am reading “Made to Crave” by Lysa Terkurst and she makes some interesting observations about Eve as well. She also references Eve in her book “It’s Not Supposed to be This Way”. I highly recommend both of these books if you haven’t already read them.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    I’ll have to check that out. This is just one of my series Lessons Learned where I write about women in the Bible.

  • Stephanie Veach 5 years ago Reply

    So i am not a super religious person, but when you said “Life changed in an instant when Eve took that first bite” and “oh how we have suffered since then” why is that? Don’t we all make our own choices? I feel like we can’t blame anyone but ourselves for the situations we are in. Would you agree or disagree with that? I love hearing different perspectives especially coming from a completely opposite one 🙂

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Because the world was perfect before Adam and Eve gave in and took the first bite. I do agree we make our own choices and have to live with them. But because sin entered the perfect world we now have sickness, crime, natural disasters and all things bad in the world. The world will be perfect once again when Jesus returns. These are my beliefs based on a lifetime of Bible study.

  • Sandi 5 years ago Reply

    Interesting interpretation of the Book of Eve. Thank you for sharing.

  • Cindy Mailhot 5 years ago Reply

    I think in my case I might not have eaten the fruit because the snake told me too. About the time I saw a snake I would be too busy running and screaming to know what he had to say.

    admin 5 years ago Reply

    Me too!!! Although at the time I don’t believe there was fear for anything. Fear entered the world when Adam and Eve sinned.

  • Melissa Jones 5 years ago Reply

    Thanks for sharing!

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