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.
What does Genesis 3:16 mean?
There are high declarations of God's favour to Abraham in this confirmation of the covenant with him, exceeding any he had yet been blessed with.
Key themes
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Keep this verse inside Genesis 3:14-16 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Genesis 3:16
The sentence of the woman Genesis 3:16 consists of three parts: the former two regard her as a mother, the last as a wife. Sorrow is to be multiplied in her pregnancy, and is also to accompany the bearing of children. This sorrow seems to extend to all the mother's pains and anxieties concerning her offspring. With what solicitude she would long for a manifestation of right feeling toward the merciful God in her children, similar to what she had experienced in her own breast! What unutterable bitterness of spirit would she feel when the fruits of disobedience would discover themselves in her little ones, and in some of them, perhaps, gather strength from year to year!
Key words
- thy sorrow of thy conception
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thy sorrow of thy conception.
- Desire
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Desire. Genesis 4:7 . It means, in general, "turn," determination of the will.
Context in Genesis 3
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Genesis 3 belongs to the early movement of the book, especially the section often described as primeval history from creation to Babel. Genesis opens the whole Bible with creation, fall, flood, Babel, and the long patriarchal story that carries the reader from Eden to Egypt. Read this chapter with the wider themes of creation, fall, and covenant in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
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A collection of passages on hope under pressure, future inheritance, resurrection expectation, and confidence in God’s final faithfulness.