“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)
After Adam and Eve commit the first act of disobedience, God curses them and their progeny, yet He gives them hope for humankind’s future redemption.
Theologians have interpreted this verse as the first ever prophecy of Jesus’s atoning death. In fact, in Christianity, Genesis 3:15 is known as the protoevangelium. This is a compound of two Greek words, protos meaning “first” and evangelion meaning “good news” or “gospel.” Put simply, Genesis 3:15 is the first place in Scripture where God hints at the good news of salvation.
As theologians explain, Jesus—who is the direct descendant of Eve (i.e. her “offspring”)—figuratively “crush[es]” the head of the serpent by dying on the cross at Calvary, meaning “Place of the Skull” in Latin. Furthermore, by enduring a full Roman crucifixion, Jesus—whose feet were nailed to the cross—undergoes just what God predicted would happen: “[The serpent] will strike his heel.”
Old Testament scholar Derek Kidner has described the protoevangelium as “the first glimmer of the gospel,” and Victor P. Hamilton has emphasized the importance of the redemptive promise included in the curse. Indeed, even when the Israelites disappoint and break their covenant with Him, God shows them mercy, promising that someday their very descendant will redeem them.
“I will deliver this people from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction?” (Hosea 13:14)
Hundreds of years before the life of Jesus, God prophesies of the resurrection in Hosea. Though He is upset with Israel, He makes an amazing promise—He will deliver them “from the power of the grave” and “redeem them from death.” Afterwards, God questions death itself: “Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction?” This is the very Scripture Paul boldly cites in 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 to defend the claims of Jesus’ resurrection: “‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”