Seed of the woman

The seed of the woman or offspring of the woman is a concept, drawn from Genesis 3:15, which is viewed differently in Judaism and Christianity. In Christianity it is often given a Messianic interpretation.

Contents

Source text

The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.”(Genesis 3:14-16, ESV)

Judaism

In rabbinical Judaism the contrasting groups of "seed of the woman" and "seed of the serpent" are generally taken as plural, and the promise "he will bruise your head" applied to Adam / mankind bruising the serpent's head.[1]

Although a possible Jewish messianic interpretation of Genesis 3:15 in some schools of Judaism during the Second Temple Period has been suggested by some Christian scholars,[2] no evidence of such an interpretation has yet come to light.[3] Maimonides commented that the passage was "obscure".

Christianity

Christ

Identification of the "seed of the woman" with Christ goes as back at least as far as Irenaeus [4] and the phrase "Seed of the woman" is sometimes counted as one of the titles of Jesus in the Bible.[5] A tradition found in some old eastern Christian sources (including the Kitab al-Magall and the Cave of Treasures) holds that the serpent's head was crushed at Golgotha, described as a skull-shaped hill at the centre of the Earth, where Shem and Melchizedek had placed the body of Adam.[6] More commonly, as in Victorian homilies, "It was on Golgotha that the old serpent gave the Saviour the deadly bite in his heel, which went quite through his foot, fastening it to the cross with iron nails."[7]

Luther's view

Luther in his Lectures on Romans identifies the seed of the woman with the word of God in the church.[8]

Mary

Some Catholics may understand the promise of a "seed" to Eve as primarily relating to Mary herself not Christ. The English Douay–Rheims Bible 1609 onwards has "she (Mary) shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel." The reading was supported in the Bull Ineffabilis Deus of December 1854, and is defended in the Catholic Encyclopedia (1912), where Anthony Maas acknowledges that the Douay–Rheims does not follow the Hebrew.[9] The New Jerusalem Bible retains "she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel".

Maas also writes: "One may be tempted to understand the seed of the woman in a similar collective sense, embracing all who are born of God. But seed not only may denote a particular person, but has such a meaning usually, if the context allows it. St. Paul (Galatians 3:16) gives this explanation of the word "seed" as it occurs in the patriarchal promises: "To Abraham were the promises made and to his seed. He saith not, and to his seeds, as of many; but as of one, and to his seed, which is Christ".[10]

The more recent New American Bible reads, "...They will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel."[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ Jacob Neusner, Our sages, God, and Israel: an anthology of The Talmud of the land 1984 p165 "Man became frightened, saying: This is the one concerning whom it is written: He will bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel Genesis 3:15. Perhaps this one has come to bite me."
  2. ^ such as Johann Andreas Eisenmenger, in the English abridgment of The Traditions of the Jews by John Peter Stehelin 1748
  3. ^ Patai The Messiah Texts 1988
  4. ^ Josh McDowell Nueva evidencia que demanda un veredicto 9780311050482 p334 "Aquí Dios promete que la simiente de la mujer aplastaría la cabeza de la serpiente. Claus Westermann, un experto en el Antiguo Testamento, afirma: "Desde el tiempo de Ireneo, la tradición cristiana ha entendido este pasaje como una profecía acerca de Cristo (y María)"
  5. ^ Michael C. Armour A newcomer's guide to the Bible: themes & timelines 1999 p43 "To remove those barriers, God made a special promise to Eve. Before He sent her from the garden, He promised that one of her descendants would eventually crush Satan's head, receiving a painful bruise in the process (Genesis 3:15)."
  6. ^ The Book of the Cave of Treasures ed. Sir Ernest Alfred Wallis Budge p127: "And it was called "Gaghulta," because it was round Pike the head], and "Resiphta" (ie a trodden-down thing), because the head of the accursed serpent, that is to say, Satan, was crushed there, and "Gefifta" (Gabbatha), because all the nations were to be gathered to it." Kitab al-Magall: "The place was called Gumgumah, "of a skull", because in it was placed the skull of the Father of mankind, and Gulgulah, because it was conspicuous in the earth, and was despised by its sons, for in it was the head of the hateful Dragon which seduced Adam."
  7. ^ Rev. William Arnot The Family Treasury 1871
  8. ^ Martin Luther, Wilhelm Pauck 1961 p183 "The seed of the devil is in it; hence, the Lord says to the serpent in Gen. 3:15: "I will put enmity between your seed and her seed." The seed of the woman is the word of God in the church,"
  9. ^ "(2) The second point of difference between the Hebrew text and our version concerns the agent who is to inflict the mortal wound on the serpent: our version agrees with the present Vulgate text in reading "she" (ipsa) which refers to the woman, while the Hebrew text reads hu' (autos, ipse) which refers to the seed of the woman. According to our version, and the Vulgate reading, the woman herself will win the victory; according to the Hebrew text, she will be victorious through her seed. In this sense does the Bull "Ineffabilis" ascribe the victory to Our Blessed Lady. The reading "she" (ipsa) is neither an intentional corruption of the original text, nor is it an accidental error; it is rather an explanatory version expressing explicitly the fact of Our Lady's part in the victory over the serpent, which is contained implicitly in the Hebrew original. The strength of the Christian tradition as to Mary's share in this victory may be inferred from the retention of "she" in St. Jerome's version in spite of his acquaintance with the original text and with the reading "he" (ipse) in the old Latin version."
  10. ^ Anthony Maas, Catholic Encyclopedia article Blessed Virgin Mary 1912
  11. ^ NAB,Gen.3:15