Eve was told of the sorrow and pain that must henceforth be her portion. And the Lord said, "Thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." In the creation God had made her the equal of Adam. Had they remained obedient to God--in harmony with His great law of love--they would ever have been in harmony with each other; but sin had brought discord, and now their union could be maintained and harmony preserved only by submission on the part of the one or the other. Eve had been the first in transgression; and she had fallen into temptation by separating from her companion, contrary to the divine direction. It was by her solicitation that Adam sinned, and she was now placed in subjection to her husband. Had the principles 59 joined in the law of God been cherished by the fallen race, this sentence, though growing out of the results of sin, would have proved a blessing to them; but man's abuse of the supremacy thus given him has too often rendered the lot of woman very bitter and made her life a burden.

Herren fortalte Eva om al den sorg og smerte, der fra nu af skulle blive hendes lod. Og han sagde: "Til din mand skal din attrå være, og han skal herske over dig!" Ved skabelsen havde Gud gjort hende til Adams lige. Hvis de var forblevet lydige imod Gud i overensstemmelse med hans store kærligheds lov ville de altid have været i harmoni med hinanden; men synden havde medført disharmoni, og nu kunne deres forening kun bevares og harmonien genoprettes ved, at en af parterne underkastede sig. Eva var den første, der syndede, og hun var faldet i fristelse ved at fjerne sig fra sin ledsager på trods af Guds forskrift. Det var ved hendes overtalelser, Adam syndede, og hun blev nu stillet i et afhængighedsforhold til sin mand. Hvis de principper, som er påbudt i Guds lov, var blevet efterlevet af den faldne menneskehed, ville denne dom have vist sig at være en velsignelse for menneskene, skønt den udsprang af syndens følger; men mandens misbrug af det overherredømme, han således havde fået, har alt for ofte gjort kvindens lod bitter, så at hendes liv er blevet en byrde.