Genesis 4:1 (WEB)
The man knew Eve his wife. She conceived, and gave birth to Cain, and said, “I have gotten a man with the LORD’s help.”
As quoted in the map (KJV)
Genesis 4:1 (KJV)
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.
Key words
- יָדַעyada · Hebrew
- 'knew' — the biblical euphemism for marital relations; Adam 'knew' Eve and she conceived.
- ἔγνωegnō · Greek (LXX)
- 'knew' — the same verb Mary uses in the negative: 'I know not (ou ginōskō) a man' (Luke 1:34).
Why it matters
'Adam knew his wife Eve, and she conceived.' Pitre cites this as the standard biblical idiom for sexual relations (p 94) to fix the meaning of Mary's words to Gabriel. 'I do not know man' is not 'I am a virgin' or 'I have no husband' (two mistranslations he rejects) but a statement in the present tense about how she lives — like 'I do not smoke,' it describes a settled practice and intention.