Genesis 3:15 kjv
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Genesis 3:15 nkjv
And 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."
Genesis 3:15 niv
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
Genesis 3:15 esv
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
Genesis 3:15 nlt
And I will cause hostility between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring.
He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel."
Genesis 3 15 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Isa 7:14 | "...behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." | Prophecy of Messiah born of a woman. |
| Mic 5:3 | "...until the time that she which travails hath brought forth: then the remnant..." | Continues the theme of a birth bringing hope. |
| Gal 4:4 | "...when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman..." | Christ's incarnation fulfilling "seed of woman". |
| Rom 16:20 | "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly." | Direct New Testament fulfillment of crushing Satan. |
| Heb 2:14-15 | "...that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil..." | Christ's death as the blow to Satan. |
| 1 John 3:8 | "...For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." | Christ's mission to undo Satan's work. |
| Rev 12:9-10 | "...that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan... cast out... accuser of our brethren..." | Identifies the serpent as Satan. |
| Rev 20:1-3, 10 | "...laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him... into the lake of fire..." | Satan's final defeat and imprisonment. |
| Col 2:15 | "[Christ] having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing..." | Christ's victory over spiritual foes. |
| Luke 10:19 | "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy..." | Authority over demonic powers given to believers. |
| Isa 53:5 | "...he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him..." | Messiah's suffering (heel) for humanity. |
| Psa 22:16 | "...they pierced my hands and my feet." | Prophetic image of the Messiah's wounds. |
| John 19:1-30 | Accounts of Jesus' crucifixion. | Fulfillment of the 'heel bruise' through suffering. |
| Luke 24:26 | "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?" | The necessity of suffering before glory. |
| Phil 2:8 | "...became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." | Christ's humility and suffering on the cross. |
| Matt 3:7 | "But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come... he said... O generation of vipers..." | Serpent's "seed" includes those spiritually aligned with evil. |
| John 8:44 | "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do." | Spiritual lineage of the "seed of the serpent". |
| Gen 12:3 | "...and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed." | Promise of blessing through Abraham's "seed". |
| Gal 3:16 | "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds... but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." | Identifies Abraham's "seed" as singular, referring to Christ. |
| John 5:39 | "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." | Scriptures point to Christ's role as the promised Deliverer. |
| Heb 12:2 | "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross..." | Jesus' endurance through the suffering (heel bruise). |
Genesis 3 verses
Genesis 3 15 Meaning
Genesis 3:15, often referred to as the "Protoevangelium" (the first gospel), is God's prophetic declaration to the serpent following the sin of Adam and Eve. It foreshadows a perpetual conflict between the serpent (representing Satan and evil) and humanity, specifically highlighting a decisive victory over evil. It prophesies that a specific descendant of the woman will ultimately deliver a fatal blow to the head of the serpent, while the serpent will only succeed in delivering a non-fatal, yet painful, strike to this deliverer's heel. This verse immediately presents hope and the beginning of God's redemptive plan after the fall of humanity.
Genesis 3 15 Context
Gen 3:15 occurs immediately after Adam and Eve have disobeyed God by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God is pronouncing judgment upon all parties involved: the serpent, the woman, and the man. The verse itself is directed as a curse upon the serpent, placing the promise of future conflict and ultimate defeat for evil squarely within the context of divine judgment. This marks the initial divine response to the entrance of sin into the world, showing God's sovereign hand in establishing the means of redemption even as He enacts consequences for disobedience.
Culturally and historically for the ancient audience, the serpent could have been associated with various deities or mythical figures embodying wisdom, chaos, or fertility. In this biblical context, the serpent is stripped of any divine mystique, cursed, and destined for defeat by the Creator God. This constitutes a direct polemic against any pagan worship or reverence for serpents, asserting Yahweh's absolute sovereignty over all creatures, even those used by spiritual forces of evil. The prophecy introduces the concept of a Redeemer who will overcome the evil introduced, a stark contrast to ancient cosmologies where cosmic evil powers might contend with gods indefinitely or triumph. The promise concerning "the woman's seed" is significant in a patriarchal society, subtly hinting at a unique lineage or birth for the ultimate deliverer, emphasizing God's supernatural plan.
Genesis 3 15 Word analysis
- And I will put: (וְאֵיבָה אָשִׁית, wə'eivah 'ashit) - "And enmity I will set." Emphasizes God's sovereign initiation and ongoing establishment of this conflict. It is God Himself who engineers this hostility.
- enmity: (אֵיבָה, 'eivah) - Means deep-seated hostility, antagonism, hatred. Not a temporary quarrel, but an enduring, irreconcilable opposition, both literal (between humans and serpents) and spiritual (between good and evil, specifically believers and forces of darkness). This enmity is divinely instituted.
- between thee: (בֵּינְךָ, beynkha) - Refers directly to the serpent. The initial literal interpretation relates to physical snakes, but its deeper meaning points to Satan, the spiritual power behind the serpent.
- and the woman: (וּבֵין הָאִשָּׁה, uvēyn ha'ishshah) - Refers to Eve and, by extension, all women and humanity. Spiritually, it signifies the conflict between Satan and God's people.
- and between thy seed: (וּבֵין זַרְעֲךָ, uvēyn zar'aka) - "Thy offspring." The "seed" (zera') of the serpent refers to those, both demonic and human, who align with the devil and his purposes. These are the spiritual offspring of rebellion, following the nature of their father (cf. John 8:44).
- and her seed: (וּבֵין זַרְעָהּ, uvēyn zar'ah) - "Her offspring." While zera' typically refers to male lineage in a patriarchal society, its use here with "her" (zar'ah, specifically feminine possessive suffix) is unique and highly significant. It points to a singular descendant who would not come by typical male procreation but specially from the woman, ultimately identifying with the virgin birth of Jesus Christ (Isa 7:14; Gal 4:4). This seed is not merely humanity, but the specific, singular Deliverer, the Messiah.
- it: (הוּא, hu') - The pronoun in Hebrew is masculine singular, grammatically referring to "her seed." While some ancient translations render it "she," the Masoretic Text firmly supports the masculine pronoun "he," decisively pointing to a male figure who will crush the serpent.
- shall bruise: (יְשׁוּפְךָ, yĕshûf'kha / תְּשׁוּפֶנּוּ, tĕshûfenū) - The Hebrew verb is shuwph (שׁוּף), meaning to "crush," "bruise," or "strike at." It is used symmetrically for both blows. The repetition emphasizes the direct conflict and interaction.
it shall bruise thy head(הוּא יְשׁוּפְךָ רֹאשׁ) - "He will crush for you the head." The first shuwph refers to the definitive, mortal blow delivered by the seed of the woman to the serpent.and thou shalt bruise his heel(וְאַתָּה תְּשׁוּפֶנּוּ עָקֵב) - "And you will bruise for him the heel." The second shuwph describes the serpent's counter-attack, which, while painful and weakening, is not fatal to the Victor.
- thy head: (רֹאשׁ, ro'sh) - The head is vital; crushing it signifies a mortal, decisive, and irreversible defeat. It represents the complete overthrow of Satan's power, authority, and existence as an active force against God.
- his heel: (עָקֵב, 'aqeb) - The heel is a vulnerable but non-fatal part of the body. Bruising it signifies pain, suffering, and temporary injury, but not death. This foreshadows Christ's suffering and crucifixion—His "wound" was grievous and seemed like defeat, but it led to His ultimate victory over sin and death, allowing Him to "rise up" again.
Genesis 3 15 Bonus section
The specific use of zar'ah ("her seed") in a society that tracked lineage almost exclusively through the male line is exceptional. It underscores the unique, possibly supernatural, origin of this promised Seed. It hints at the virgin birth without explicitly detailing it, making it clear that this Deliverer's origin would set him apart. The imagery of head-crushing versus heel-bruising also reflects the severity and consequences of the conflict. The serpent's bite often targets the heel, injecting venom. Christ's "heel bruise" was indeed venomous and painful—leading to His suffering and death—but His resurrection completely negated the "venom's" effect, leaving Satan's power fatally undone by a decisive strike to his head (authority and power). This verse also encapsulates the biblical narrative of agape love – God's unwavering commitment to His fallen creation, providing a pathway back to Himself even amidst judgment.
Genesis 3 15 Commentary
Genesis 3:15 is the theological bedrock of redemptive history, an unparalleled prophetic promise immediately following the tragic fall. God's first word after human rebellion is not unmitigated condemnation but a foundational promise of salvation. It lays out the perpetual conflict between light and darkness, the forces of evil (the serpent and his "seed") and the righteous line ultimately leading to the "Seed of the woman," Jesus Christ. The language is deceptively simple yet profoundly theological. The masculine pronoun "he" unequivocally points to a specific male deliverer, establishing the Christological trajectory of the entire Old Testament. The prophecy of crushing the serpent's head signifies Christ's complete and ultimate victory over Satan, sin, and death, achieved through His crucifixion (the bruising of His heel) and resurrection. This passage explains the ongoing spiritual warfare, defines the enemies, and most importantly, announces God's guaranteed triumph through the coming Messiah. It serves as a continuous reminder that while humanity faces consequences for sin, God's plan for redemption was set in motion from the very beginning.