What is the meaning of Genesis 3:20?

And Adam

• The man receives mention by his personal name after the fall, underscoring continued personhood and responsibility.

• Adam has already been declared head of the human race (Genesis 2:7; Romans 5:12). Here, despite sin’s entrance, he still exercises God-given authority within marriage (1 Corinthians 11:3).

• The conjunction “And” links this verse to the divine judgments just pronounced, indicating that life must now move forward under God’s curse yet also under His mercy (Genesis 3:15-19).

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named his wife Eve

• Naming conveys leadership and recognition of identity, echoing Adam’s earlier naming of the animals and of the woman before the fall (Genesis 2:19-23).

• “Eve” (as rendered in English) highlights life, an act of faith that God will fulfill His word even after judgment.

• By giving his wife this hopeful name, Adam responds to God’s promise of a Redeemer through the woman’s offspring (Genesis 3:15; Galatians 4:4).

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because she would be the mother

• Adam’s explanation reveals awareness of God’s plan for procreation announced in Eden (Genesis 1:28).

• Childbearing, though now accompanied by pain (Genesis 3:16), remains a blessed vocation (Psalm 127:3-5; 1 Timothy 2:15).

• The phrase looks ahead to literal motherhood: Eve will bear Cain, Abel, Seth, and unnamed sons and daughters (Genesis 4:1-2, 25; 5:4).

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of all the living

• Scripture presents Eve as the historical ancestor of every human being, establishing a single bloodline for the entire race (Acts 17:26; Luke 3:38).

• This truth undergirds the gospel’s universal reach—since sin spread to all through Adam, salvation offered through Christ is likewise available to all (Romans 5:18-19; 1 Corinthians 15:22).

• “All the living” also traces a spiritual line leading to the promised Seed who will crush the serpent (Genesis 3:15), fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

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summary

Genesis 3:20 records Adam’s faithful response to God’s judgment and promise. By naming his wife Eve, he acknowledges her future role as the literal mother of every human being and voices trust that life—and ultimately redemption—will come through her offspring.