After seeing man's first fall and God's proclamation of the glad tidings as recorded in Genesis 3, we now come to Genesis 4. Apparently we are studying the fall; actually we are considering the glad tidings. If there had been no fall, there would have been no glad tidings. Praise the Lord for the fall! Man's fall has brought in God's gospel. In this message we come to a further step of man's fall and also to a further step in the proclamation of God's glad tidings.
At the time of Genesis 4 man had already fallen (Gen. 3:6-8, 22-24). Nevertheless, man had received God's promise of salvation (3:15) and had obtained God's way of salvation (3:21). When God promised Adam that the seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent, Adam believed and responded by calling his wife "Living." Adam and Eve had been awaiting the sentence of death. Thus, when they heard the glad tidings, Adam did not call his wife "Dying," but "Living." As we pointed out in message nineteen, the whole human race is dying; no one is living. Nevertheless, after hearing and receiving the gospel of God, man becomes living. Hallelujah, we are living!
Although Adam's response in Genesis 3:20 proves that he believed the gospel, we find no indication in that chapter that Eve also believed. However, Genesis 4:1 tells us that Eve believed the glad tidings. "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bear Cain, and said, I have acquired a man, Jehovah" (Heb.). Eve brought forth a son and called him Cain, which means "acquired." Although Cain, the person, was evil, his name was very meaningful. When Eve brought him forth, she declared, "I have acquired." She had not acquired a house or some land; she had acquired a man. According to her concept, Cain was the seed of woman promised in Genesis 3:15. God had promised Eve that her seed would bruise the head of the serpent, the evil one. Eve's words in Genesis 4:1 prove that she had believed that promise and that she was expecting to have that seed. When her first boy was born, she declared, "I have acquired a man, Jehovah." If you think that this translation is too bold, I ask you to consult the Hebrew text. In the Hebrew text of Genesis 4:1 there is no preposition between the words "man" and "Jehovah." Although some translators may add prepositions such as "from" or "with," there is no such preposition in this part of the Word according to the Hebrew text. The Hebrew text simply reads, "I have acquired a man, Jehovah." The Concordant Version of Genesis renders it this way in the text, and the New American Standard Version places this translation in the margin. Thus, according to Eve's understanding, the child she bore in 4:1 was the fulfillment of the promise regarding the seed of the woman in 3:15. Therefore, she called her child Jehovah, the Lord.
Such a statement, however, was premature. Eve actually did not bear the man, Jehovah. Four thousand years later the virgin Mary gave birth to a child, and His name was called the mighty God (Isa. 9:6). The child born in the manger at Bethlehem was Jehovah. His name was called Jesus, which means, "Jehovah, the Savior" (Matt. 1:21). Although Eve herself did not give birth to the man, Jehovah, she symbolized the virgin Mary who gave birth to Him. Eventually, the real seed of the woman came through the virgin Mary. Therefore, Jesus, Jehovah, the Savior, is truly the man, Jehovah to whom Eve supposed that she had given birth as mentioned in Genesis 4:1. By giving her child the name Cain, Eve proved that she believed the gospel proclaimed by God in Genesis 3:15. Although four thousand years had to pass, the man, Jehovah eventually came through the virgin Mary.