Eve
After Lilith left the Garden of Eden, God noted that “It is not good that the man should be alone,” and ultimately Eve was created as a helper for Adam. This occurred in an interesting bit of surgery which involved God putting the first Man to sleep, taking one of his ribs out, and closing up the wound, then making him a woman out of the rib.
Tempted by knowledge and/or the possibility of becoming like God, Eve ate from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, despite God’s instructions to the contrary. She then offered some to her husband. When confronted by God, she blamed the Serpent. As a result, God punished her with pain in childbirth and subservience to man.
Eve has been related to Asherah, a Semitic mother goddess figure who was the consort of both Yahweh and Baal. The latter was a fertility god who took serpent form.
The name Eve comes from the Hebrew word hawwa, “living one” or “source of life”.
SOURCES
Asherah – Wikipedia
Eve and the Identity of Women: 6. The Old Testament, Women, & Evil
Eve and the Identity of Women: 7. Eve & Lillith
Eve (Bible) – Wikipedia
IMAGE CREDIT
Eve, by Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528). Image courtesy of Art Renewal Center.
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