"Unto the woman He said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow, thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee" (Genesis 3:16).
Genesis 3:14-19
Part 3
Yesterday: God’s Curse on the Snake and Satan
“And the LORD God said unto the serpent.”
“Because thou hast done this.”
“Thou art cursed above all cattle and above every beast of the field.”
God’s curse on the serpent included the fact that it could no longer walk with legs but must slither on its belly in the dust of the ground.
Satan was defeated at the Cross, Genesis 3:15. He’s just waiting around a bit until his final sentence is carried out.
Today: God’s Penalty for the Woman’s Involvement (a)
Adam and Eve were both guilty of disobeying God. Before He tells them each of their penalties, first, His mercy is clearly given.
“It was not till the prospect of victory had been presented, that a sentence of punishment was pronounced upon both the man and the woman on account of their sin”[1] (K&D).
As we read through this Genesis account of Adam’s sin and Fall, we see that Eve had a substantial part in it. Because of her involvement, by listening to what Satan said, her disobedient actions have brought hardships to women of all generations.
“Unto the woman, he said.”
God spoke directly to Eve. He directed her penalty for her part in the Fall, to the two main features of a married woman’s life: her child-bearing and child-rearing; and her marriage to her husband.
“I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception.”
Before Adam’s Fall, God, their Creator, had already given the man and his wife the command to conceive and bear children.[2]
“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it…” (Genesis 1:28).
God’s command implied they were to “fill up the earth with offspring.” After man’s sin, God’s original command still was in effect. Even, now the process has become more painful, with greater sorrow and difficulty than it would have been before the Fall.
“Greatly multiply.”
In the Hebrew language, these words say, “multiplying I will multiply”[3] (Bullinger).
“Thy sorrow.”
The Hebrew word here means several things, “pain, labor, hardship, sorrow, toil”[4] (BDB). These are multiplied in a woman’s conception. Men and women both know sorrow, but the “unique sorrow of women is well known”[4] (Guzik).
“It is difficult for women in Christian lands to realize the miseries of their hundreds of millions of sisters in pagan lands, where the lot of women is little above that of cattle. Where the gospel has gone, the load has been lifted, and woman in Christ has become the reflection of the redeemed Church, the bride of Christ”[6] (Barnhouse).
“Thy conception.”
“Physical conception, pregnancy…”[6] (BDB).
“In sorrow, thou shalt bring forth children.”
This first part of the curse God has given to Eve and women is a big one. Some think this is only dealing with childbirth, but it is far broader than that. It has to do with the way a woman will experience pain for her child in general. Pain in childbirth is only a small portion of this pain. This points to the pain a woman usually experiences throughout her life over her children. It seems that a woman who has given birth and is bringing up a child to adulthood feels the pain and sorrow of this process in a way that men just are not able to wrap their minds around. Conception and childbirth are still the blessings of God. But now, there is a pain and sorrow attached to it as there never was before their sin. One thing is sure, mothers are special on many levels!
Please come back tomorrow when we see the rest of God’s curse for Eve’s part in their Fall.
Quote: “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so, might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 5:19-21).
[1] Keil & Delitzsch, Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament, the electronic version in eSword. Genesis 3:16-17).
[2] Interestingly, the first command in the Bible from God to man is for the man and his wife to have a sexual relationship, that they might become parents. At the right time, place, and with the right person, sex is beautiful and gratifying. “Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4).
[3] E.W. Bullinger, The Companion Bible, the electronic version in eSword. Genesis 3:16.
[4] Brown, Driver, Briggs (BDB). Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Hebrew Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.
[5] David Guzik’s, Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword. Genesis 3:16.
[6] Barnhouse’s quote is borrowed from Guzik, ibid.
[7] BDB, ibid.