Strange Story: THE MEANINGS OF THE NAMES IN EARLY GENESIS ADD TO THEIR STORIES

If Adam heard you say the names Adam and Eve, he would likely say, “Adam and who?”

Where did you get the name Eve? Her name is Chavvah, pronounced with a hard H at the beginning and the emphasis on the last syllable.”

“What? You say you pronounce it Eve in your language? How did it get from Chavvah to Eve? I probably don’t want to know.”

The names given in the text of Genesis were Hebrew names, but Hebrew developed after the flood. We don’t know what Adam and Chavvah were speaking, but it wasn’t Hebrew. Notwithstanding, I have chosen to stay as close to the Hebrew names as possible in order to remind you of their meaning.

Adam means “red and man.” Besides being his name, it is also one of the Hebrew words for “man.” The reason he was red was that he was made from red dirt, thus his name can be rendered “The red man made from dirt.”

Chavvah means “to live, to show life, to give life.” However, they would have been careful to not put anyone in the place of God who is the true giver of life. Therefore, an accurate rendering of the name needs to take into consideration the assumptions that were made about the giving of life. I believe the best way to render this name might be, “The one through whom God gives life.”

Qayin means “acquired or gotten” because Chavvah had “Acquired” a son from God. The part about her receiving this son from God is assumed to be in the name, but such assumptions were common in ancient times. Therefore, I will use the name “Acquired from God.”

Habel means “breath or vapor” He was likely named this because God had given this one the breath of life as well. We might express the idea as, “He has breath from God.” His name, “vapor” is the same word that is used over and over again in Ecclesiastes.

Shayth means “Substituted” because he took the place of “He has breath from God,” who had been killed.

The name of Shayth’s son Enosh, meant “mortal man, or weak and sickly man.” I will render it as “The weak, mortal man.”

Enoch meant “Well trained”

Noah meant “rest or comfort.” I will render it as “The comfort of rest.”

Eden meant “delicate delights.” Garden meant “protected enclosure.” So “the Garden of Eden” meant “the protected enclosure of delicate delights.”

Yeshua comes to us in English as Jesus. It means “The Lord is Salvation, or YHVH saves.” Even though the name Yeshua does not appear in the story of Adam and Chavvah, we know from other parts of Scripture that Jesus was present and active in creation. I believe that when Adam and Chavvah walked and talked with God, they were fellowshipping with Yeshua, the revealer of God, the one who would later take on human flesh and be God with skin on.

The next part of this story is ADAM AND CHAVVAH’S FIRST 24 HOURS OUTSIDE OF EDEN