Counseling Adam and Eve

I’ve been thinking a lot about how the Bible can be read and interpreted in so many different ways according to everyone’s own unique gifts, talents, and experiences. A soldier would no doubt be able to read David’s psalms in a way I could only dream of. An infertile woman could offer far greater wisdom than I in reading Sarah’s tragic tail.

So I began wondering, how can I use my psychological knowledge to study God’s word?
Psychology is the study of people. The study of their behavior, their minds, their souls, their feelings. And the only way to counsel people and dig into all of these heavy heart issues is to ask questions. It is a common misconception that psychologists offer advice and perform miraculous interventions (but that’s Jesus’ job). Our job is to love people, and to learn what’s going on under the surface by asking questions.

So I started with Adam and Eve.

I’ve heard all the arguments against them. Eve gave into seduction, seeking to please her husband before the Lord. And Adam stood idly by, not rejecting passivity. Thousands of years later most of us haven’t forgiven them for the fall. That’s all we see them as. The two people responsible for inviting sin into the world. But that’s just it. They’re people. Those written about in the Bible aren’t just fictional characters, they were people, with hearts, emotions, and feelings.

And that got me thinking, if the fall is hard for us to talk about now without placing blame, how much harder was it for them? If we can’t forgive Adam and Eve, how long did it take for them to forgive each other?

What was their marriage like after the fall? How long did Adam blame Eve (Gen 3:12)? How did Eve feel that her husband blamed her? Did she cry? Did she grow embittered towards him? Did she feel scorned by her lover? Did she lose respect for her husband when she realized he just stood there? Did she question Adam’s love for her?

Adam blamed Eve when speaking to the Lord, but deep down I wonder if he blamed himself. Did he feel like a failure? Was he emasculated and guilt-ridden knowing he didn’t protect his wife when he could have? Did he feel weak?

Did he resonate with Amnon’s feelings towards Tamar, that he hated her more than he loved her (2 Sam 13:15)? (Almost three years ago a man quoted that scripture to me when we were having relational difficulties and the words still pierce my soul today.) So, if he did, how did Eve handle such a deep piercing wound? Did she ever get over it?

How many days went by before they could look at each other again? How many days until they would speak to each other again? Even more frightening, how long until the anger and hurt feelings subsided enough for them to desire each other physically?

These are the kinds of questions I think about now when I think about Adam and Eve. But my questions continue…

What if I study the whole Bible this way, coming up with case studies of all the questions I would ask these people if I were there to counsel them? If I could sit down in a counseling session with Noah, Sarah, Abraham, Hagar, David, Hosea, Judas, Pontius Pilate; what would I ask them? How much deeper will these peoples stories resonate with me when I view them as living, breathing, human-beings, and not just characters?

And what about you? What is your story? In what ways can you use your God-given talents, skills, and education to deepen your understanding of the Word?