Eve's Highest Calling

Genesis 1:27–28, 2:21–24, 3:20, 4:1, 4:25

Eve's Highest Calling

Begin in silence…
Close your eyes and take some deep breaths. Listen to the sound of your breath for a few moments as you settle in for today’s reading.

Set the scene…
We return to the Garden of Eden and spend time pondering God’s creation of Eve and her role as the first woman. While today’s verses encircle the fall of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3, our focus will center on her highest calling as a mother.

Today’s Practice: Visio Divina

Today’s image is Michelangelo’s 16th-century painting, Creation of Eve, on the Sistine Chapel ceiling in Vatican City. It is one of nine scenes from Genesis on the ceiling. In the center of the picture, Adam sleeps while Eve looks intently at her Creator. Imagine what is happening between them. Pay attention to what stands out to you in the image and what may be stirring inside of you.

Linger with the picture for a few moments before reading below.

Meditate
Read aloud or listen to the following passages about Eve’s creation.

Gen 1:27 NIV: So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

Gen 2:21–24 NIV: So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

Reflect on the image and the passage together. Is there a word or phrase that stands out to you?

Now let’s look at God’s creation of Adam in Genesis 2:7:

“Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

In these two creation accounts, God forms Adam and Eve uniquely. He uses dust to form Adam and Adam’s rib to form Eve. It is interesting that God takes from Adam’s side to create Eve, as if to signify the way they are to approach life together: side by side. There is no hint of hierarchy in these verses. Before God creates either man or woman, Genesis 1:26 specifies that they are to rule over every other living thing together.

Look at the image again and read aloud or listen to Genesis 1:27 and 2:21–24 above. Pause and reflect: Is there anything new that stands out to me?

Contemplate
After the creation of Eve in Genesis 2 comes the undoing of God’s created order in Genesis 3 through the couple eating from the one forbidden tree. While Eve is often portrayed as the antagonist of the fall, both Adam and Eve are mutually culpable. They both receive punishment: Adam’s toil in working the earth and Eve’s pain in childbearing.

This phrase in Genesis 3:16, “Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you,” causes much controversy even today in the church. Eve’s desire and Adam’s rule is a description of the consequences of their disobedience, not a prescription for all of creation. God’s original intent in Genesis 1 and 2 is not for the male to rule over the female, it’s for both to rule together.

What is often missed in the midst of Genesis 3 is an important verse for Eve and for all women. Verse 20 portrays the beautifully unique role of woman:

“Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.”

The mother of all the living is a significant role, a stunning calling for Eve’s womb to give birth to future generations. With her first child Cain, she says in Genesis 4:1: “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” She gives birth to Abel in Genesis 4:2 and to Seth in Genesis 4:25. While Eve is absent from Adam’s family line in Genesis 5, there is mention of his other sons and daughters.

Respond
Gaze at the image one more time. Imagine God forming Eve’s womb, giving her breath from his breath. Imagine Eve bearing the profoundly significant role as the first mother, connecting all the way to Mary, mother of Jesus.

Repeat the following breath prayer a few times:

(Inhale) Magnificent Creator
(Exhale) Breathe new life into me.

Resolve
When you think of Eve, remember her as a “mighty helper” and “mother of all the living.”