Israelite Homicide Law and the Term "Enmity" in Genesis 3:15

Abstract

Biblical translation is partly science and partly the ex parte efforts of translators subtly to support their various theologies. Genesis 3:15 is a case in point. The Revised Standard Version (Protestant) translates it as: I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. Protestant tradition sees Jesus as the ultimate “he” in 3:15c. The Catholic tradition elevates Mary to equal status here and, indeed, visitors to Catholic churches can often find statuary depicting Mary treading upon a serpent. Understandably, Jewish tradition has no use for either of these ideas. The new Jewish Publication Society translation (1962) has “they” and “their” for “he” and “his.” Because the three parties to this polite dispute have a heavy theological stake in their own interpretation, none of them has paid much attention to the rare and curious term ' eyvah that characterizes the relationship between Jesus or Mary, humanity and serpentkind.