The idea
God sets enmity between the serpent and 'the woman,' whose seed will crush his head — fulfilled when Mary's Son conquers Satan by the cross. Ancient Jewish tradition already held that death came into the world through a woman; the New Eve reverses it, paired with Christ the New Adam.
Key verses
- Genesis 3:15 — 'enmity between you and the woman… her seed' shall bruise the serpent.
- Genesis 3:20 — Eve, 'the mother of all living.'
- Sirach 25:24, Romans 5:18 — death 'through a woman'; life through one man's obedience.
The connection
| Old Testament root | New Testament fulfilment | |
|---|---|---|
| Eve: virgin, disobedient, brings death by a tree | → | Mary: virgin, obedient, brings life |
Pitre pairs the two women the way Paul pairs the two men (Adam and Christ). The 'virgin Eve / virgin Mary' contrast in the table is the Fathers' own: Irenaeus — 'what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith' — and Cyril of Jerusalem — 'Death came through a virgin, Eve. It was necessary that life also should come through a virgin' (pp 36–37). The reversal is deliberate and complete.
Sources
- Irenaeus of Lyons — Against Heresies 3.22.4 (p 36) · read
- Cyril of Jerusalem — Catechetical Lectures 12.15 (p 37) · read
- 1 Enoch — 62:5–7, the Messiah as offspring of 'the mother of the living' (pp 26–27) · read
- Targums — Neofiti on Genesis 3:15, 'in the day of King Messiah' (p 27) · read
Old Testament root → New Testament fulfilment
- Sirach 25:24 → Romans 5:18
death 'through a woman'; life through one man's obedience.