Genesis 3:20
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NRSV
20 The man named his wife Eve,[a] because she was the mother of all living.
- [a] In Heb Eve resembles the word for living
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
20 And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
20 The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.
20 The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.[a]
- [a] Eve sounds like the Hebrew for life-giver and resembles the word for living
20 Adam[a] named his wife Eve,[b] because she would become the mother of all the living. (NIV)
- [a] Or The man
- [b] Eve probably means living.
Note the biassed translation of the New International Version (NIV) in this verse. The translators have apparently made two assumptions about the accounts of creation in Genesis:
- that they are historical narratives that can be read literally;
- that they can and should be harmonised.
This accounts for their gratuitous use of the Future Perfect tense "she would become...", without even a footnote. A similar fundamentalist error occurs in Genesis 2:18-19. — Bruce
These mistranslations were referenced here (5.3.4) in our responses to the AACE discussion questions.
