As each player in the original sin had to face judgment for their part in the sin, it was now time for judgment for the woman. This devotional reading looks at how pain would now be experienced in childbirth and how the wife would be submissive to the husband.
Nuggets
- The woman’s sin was different from the man’s as she not only sinned, but she also led others to sin.
- The woman’s punishment is also psychological and social because it deals with her relationship with her husband.
Once the serpent/snake and Satan had received their punishments, it was now time for the humans to receive their punishment. This devotional reading looks at
Have you ever thought about how God was interrogating the humans and stopped? It seems kind of like a hard break from the interrogation to the punishment of the humans to punishment of the serpent/snake.
Well, God found out – from the human perspective – what happened. He was showing them mercy.
- “I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings” (Hos. 6: 6 NLT).
- “Then he [Jesus] added, ‘Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: “I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.” For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners’” (Mt. 9: 13 NLT).
Then, God took care of the root cause. He punished Satan.
But that doesn’t mean the humans would get a pass. Both the woman and the man would get their own punishment.
Let's Put It into Context
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Devotions in the Celebrating Creation’s Story series
Pain in Childbirth
“Then he said to the woman, ‘I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth ...’” (Gen. 3: 16 NLT)
The woman’s sin was different from the man’s as she not only sinned, but she also led others to sin.
The woman was dealt with after Satan and the serpent/snake had received their judgment. It was appropriate that God dealt with Satan’s sin first as he was the tempter.
It was also appropriate that the woman’s sin was addressed first as she sinned first. That, however, did make her sin more than the man’s. Because she offered the fruit to the man, she invited him to sin.
With that in mind, it is interesting to note that the woman’s judgment was just this one verse. Satan got two verses; the man got three verses.
But the man’s punishment was for humankind regardless of gender.
God gave the woman a two-part judgment. One regarded childbirth; the other, her relationship with her husband.
Since we know the man’s judgment at this point, we also know that she gained physical death. But we are going to wait to talk about that.
God blessed the woman and man, calling them to multiply. “Then God blessed them and said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it …’” (Gen. 1: 28 NLT).
The multiply process goes by several names. Procreation and childbirth are two of them, though it can be argued that they describe two separate processes that make up the whole.
Both man and women are needed for the procreation process. An X chromosome and a Y chromosome are needed to fertilize the egg.
The childbirth processes happens exclusively within the woman’s body. This may be a reason why it was chosen for the woman’s judgment.
Childbirth would no longer be easy. A woman would now suffer from physical pain during the birth process. In other words, every time a woman gives birth, there will be a reminder of that sin that had occurred in the way distant past.
Bonar thought that reminder caused God to backtrack some on that first blessing. How can a blessing be a reminder of sin?
No, Bonar didn’t think it cut back on the multiply part. Now, sorrow was going to be mingled with the joy.
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Part of me gets what Bonar is saying. The other part of me says, “Oh, no.”
How many times has God told us in His Word to remember where we were before we gave our lives to Jesus? Remember what He did for us?
- “Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. You were called ‘uncircumcised heathens’ by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope” (Eph. 2: 11-12 NLT).
- “remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me” (Isa. 46: 9 NLT).
- “But then I recall all you have done, O Lord; I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago” (Ps. 77: 11 NLT).
God uses our memories of sin to show us His love for us. He wants us to recognize how better off we are with Him than we are without Him.
But go back to Satan’s judgment. “And 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” (Gen. 3: 15 NLT emphasis added).
We just said it takes two to tango, but God talked about her offspring, not theirs. The woman was the first to sin, but it is through her offspring that salvation would come.
Look how Jukes said it. He wrote,
“Then comes a promise, full of grace and truth, touching the woman’s Seed; a promise not to old Adam, for the old man is fallen and must pay the penalty — no reprieve is given to the flesh: the cross which saves us is Adam’s condemnation — but a promise to the Seed or New Man, who shall be born, in and by whom man shall regain paradise.”
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- Even after we disobeyed Him, God interacted with the couple in grace and truth.
- The man, being created from dust – therefore made of flesh – was as he was. He became sinful, so even if we believe that he asked for and was granted forgiveness for his sin, there was nothing he personally could do to rectify the matter.
- The woman, on the other hand, through childbirth, could fulfill the promise of a Messiah to be born in the future, Who would save the world from its sin.
Brooke equated the ability to have children to our relationship with God. This creation of a new life is what salvation through this Man is all about. “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (II Cor. 5: 17 NLT).
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Think about it. Carrying a child in our bodies is one of the most unselfish things women can do.
- Our figures get stretched to the max while being a hotel for our bundle of joy.
- I may have gotten most of my figure back, but I sure didn’t get back to my weight before Adam was born – and I only gained ten pounds and he was six of that.
- We give up all sorts of things to ensure the safety of the fetus.
- The discomfort is real, especially if we are pregnant during the heat of the summer.
- Then we get to the pain of the birth process itself.
- After that, our lives are no longer our own.
Submission in Marriage
“... ‘And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you’” (Gen. 3: 16 NLT)
The woman’s punishment is also psychological and social because it deals with her relationship with her husband.
There was a book in the early 1990s entitled Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus. It highlighted the difference between males and females.
In a way, that is true here. A woman’s desire is psychological; a man’s rule is social.
No, this does not mean all women are to be submissive to all men. A woman is to submissive to her husband only. This is to be a loving role, not subjugation.
Don’t miss this. This submission was not present before the sin. In God’s perfect world, men and women are equal. “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gen. 3: 28 NLT).
We also know that there are times that woman do rule over men. A mother rules over her son.
Jesus did not limit His disciples to just the men. “Her [Martha’s] sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught” (Lk. 10: 39 NLT).
Just the opposite. When Martha wanted Mary to help doing women’s work, Jesus said, “There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her” (Lk. 10: 42 NLT).
Babington thought this judgment derived from the fact that the woman was not with her husband when the serpent/snake tempted her. He made it sound like the woman was too bold and went above her place to talk with the serpent.
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God expects wives to be obedient to their husbands. I think Colossians 3: 23 is for everyone. “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people” (Col. 3: 23 NLT).
Wives – and husbands, children, slaves/employees – must work willingly. The product of our work is for God’s glory.
To me, this says our work has to be done from the heart, not just going through the motions.
Making the Connections #1
In a past devotion, we talked about how many relationships were made when God created man and woman. When sin entered, those relationships were broken.
Our relationship with God was severed. Humankind was banished from His presence. Before this, God had come to visit His creation.
Now, He couldn’t.
Our relationship with each other was damaged. Shame, jealousy, envy, and hate were now elements causing that damage.
The relationship between people and God’s creation was strained. Adam was told that “… All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it” (Gen. 3: 17 NLT).
But that also changed the way we view God’s creation. Some can view our role as owner or controller. God has not given us authority over the earth. He maintains that for Himself.
Our view of ourselves have changed. We became self-conscious. We see ourselves as fat or ugly – along with a lot of other derogatory ways.
True, God sees us as sinners now – until we accept His Plan of Salvation. Then He seems us as redeemed.
It is only through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross that we are able to restore our relationship with God.
Making the Connections #2
Brooke was right. He noted that disciples, as do mothers, need to sacrifice self in order to serve others. We can’t count the cost, as Paul said.
What we gain is seeing others come to a new life in Christ.
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This self-surrender is vital to serving God. We can’t put limitation on where He can call us and to what we will do for Him. We certainly can’t dig in our heels and say we won’t do His Will at all.
We, as do mothers, sacrifice for another life – an eternal life.
How Do We Apply This?
Remember our sins so that we don’t repeat them.
Learn from the sins of others.
Have right relationships with others.
Father God. You lovingly correct Your children. Increase our desire to what to be obedient to You. Forgive us when we give into temptation. Help us in our relationships with others, especially our spouses. Amen.
What do you think?
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