Seed of the woman
Encyclopedia
The seed of the woman or offspring of the woman is a concept, drawn from Genesis 3:15, which is viewed differently in Judaism and Christianity. In Christianity it is often given a Messianic
interpretation.
Although a possible Jewish messianic interpretation of Genesis 3:15 in some schools of Judaism during the Second Temple Period
has been suggested by some Christian scholars, no evidence of such an interpretation has yet come to light. Maimonides
commented that the passage was "obscure".
and the phrase "Seed of the woman" is sometimes counted as one of the titles of Jesus in the Bible
. A tradition found in some old eastern Christian sources (including the Kitab al-Magall
and the Cave of Treasures
) holds that the serpent's head was crushed at Golgotha, described as a skull-shaped hill at the centre of the Earth, where Shem
and Melchizedek
had placed the body of Adam. More commonly, as in Victorian homilies, "It was on Golgotha that the old serpent gave the Saviour the deadly bite in his heel, which went quite through his foot, fastening it to the cross with iron nails."
of December 1854, and is defended in the Catholic Encyclopedia
(1912), where Anthony Maas
acknowledges that the Douay–Rheims does not follow the Hebrew. The New Jerusalem Bible
retains "she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel".
Maas also writes: "One may be tempted to understand the seed of the woman in a similar collective sense, embracing all who are born of God. But seed not only may denote a particular person, but has such a meaning usually, if the context allows it. St. Paul (Galatians 3:16) gives this explanation of the word "seed" as it occurs in the patriarchal promises: "To Abraham were the promises made and to his seed. He saith not, and to his seeds, as of many; but as of one, and to his seed, which is Christ".
The more recent New American Bible
reads, "...He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel."
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
interpretation.
Source text
Judaism
In rabbinical Judaism the contrasting groups of "seed of the woman" and "seed of the serpent" are generally taken as plural, and the promise "he will bruise your head" applied to Adam / mankind bruising the serpent's head.Although a possible Jewish messianic interpretation of Genesis 3:15 in some schools of Judaism during the Second Temple Period
Second Temple period
The Second Temple period , in Jewish history, is the period between 530 BCE and 70 CE, when the Second Temple of Jerusalem existed. It ended with the First Jewish–Roman War and the Temple's destruction....
has been suggested by some Christian scholars, no evidence of such an interpretation has yet come to light. Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
commented that the passage was "obscure".
Christ
Identification of the "seed of the woman" with Christ goes as back at least as far as IrenaeusIrenaeus
Saint Irenaeus , was Bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, then a part of the Roman Empire . He was an early church father and apologist, and his writings were formative in the early development of Christian theology...
and the phrase "Seed of the woman" is sometimes counted as one of the titles of Jesus in the Bible
Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament
Two names and a variety of titles are used to refer to Jesus in the New Testament.In Christianity, the two names Jesus and Emmanuel that refer to Jesus in the New Testament have salvific attributes...
. A tradition found in some old eastern Christian sources (including the Kitab al-Magall
Clementine literature
Clementine literature is the name given to the religious romance which purports to contain a record made by one Clement of discourses...
and the Cave of Treasures
Cave of Treasures
The Cave of Treasures, sometimes referred to simply as The Treasure, is a book of the New Testament apocrypha.-Origin:This text is attributed to Ephrem Syrus, who was born at Nisibis soon after AD 306 and died in 373, but it is now generally believed that its current form is 6th century or...
) holds that the serpent's head was crushed at Golgotha, described as a skull-shaped hill at the centre of the Earth, where Shem
Shem
Shem was one of the sons of Noah in the Hebrew Bible as well as in Islamic literature. He is most popularly regarded as the eldest son, though some traditions regard him as the second son. Genesis 10:21 refers to relative ages of Shem and his brother Japheth, but with sufficient ambiguity in each...
and Melchizedek
Melchizedek
Melchizedek or Malki Tzedek translated as "my king righteous") is a king and priest mentioned during the Abram narrative in the 14th chapter of the Book of Genesis....
had placed the body of Adam. More commonly, as in Victorian homilies, "It was on Golgotha that the old serpent gave the Saviour the deadly bite in his heel, which went quite through his foot, fastening it to the cross with iron nails."
Luther's view
Luther in his Lectures on Romans identifies the seed of the woman with the word of God in the church.Mary
Some Catholics may understand the promise of a "seed" to Eve as primarily relating to Mary herself not Christ. The English Douay–Rheims Bible 1609 onwards has "she (Mary) shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel." The reading was supported in the Bull Ineffabilis DeusIneffabilis Deus
Ineffabilis Deus is the name of a Papal bull by Pope Pius IX. It defines ex cathedra the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary...
of December 1854, and is defended in the Catholic Encyclopedia
Catholic Encyclopedia
The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia and the Original Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language encyclopedia published in the United States. The first volume appeared in March 1907 and the last three volumes appeared in 1912, followed by a master index...
(1912), where Anthony Maas
Anthony Maas
Anthony John Maas was a noted catholic exegete, or writer of critical interpretation of scripture. He was born in Bainkhausen, Province of Westphalia, Prussia and died in Saint Andrew's-on-the-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, New York, 1927....
acknowledges that the Douay–Rheims does not follow the Hebrew. The New Jerusalem Bible
New Jerusalem Bible
The New Jerusalem Bible is a Roman Catholic translation of the Bible published in 1985 by Darton, Longman & Todd and Les Editions du Cerf, and edited by the Reverend Henry Wansbrough.- Contents :...
retains "she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel".
Maas also writes: "One may be tempted to understand the seed of the woman in a similar collective sense, embracing all who are born of God. But seed not only may denote a particular person, but has such a meaning usually, if the context allows it. St. Paul (Galatians 3:16) gives this explanation of the word "seed" as it occurs in the patriarchal promises: "To Abraham were the promises made and to his seed. He saith not, and to his seeds, as of many; but as of one, and to his seed, which is Christ".
The more recent New American Bible
New American Bible
The New American Bible is a Catholic Bible translation first published in 1970. It had its beginnings in the Confraternity Bible, which began to be translated from the original languages in 1948....
reads, "...He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel."