Could Eve have children before the fall?
Question
Gramps,
Could mother Eve have children before the fall?
Diane
Answer
Diane,
While yet in the Garden of Eden, Eve was named based on the promise of her motherhood (Moses 4:26, Genesis 3:20). The realization of this promise could not come until after the Fall when Adam and Eve entered mortality.
2 Nephi 2:22-23 teaches the nature of their existence in the Garden of Eden:
22 And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end.
23 And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin.
After the Fall, when Adam and Eve learned of the Plan of Salvation, Eve rejoices in their promised future:
“And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying: Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient.” (Moses 5:11)
These verses not only teach that Adam and Eve were unable to have children before the fall, but also that the physical state of everything prior to the fall was unchanging. The ability to bear children is one of the blessings of mortality, and clearly Eve recognized and rejoiced in this.
The Atonement does more than merely restore us to that paradise which before was lost, for eternal increase is the blessing of the faithful (D&C 131:1-4, 132:19-24). It’s akin to our before/after states when passing through probation. Before this life we were in the presence of God. After this life we will again be in His presence, if faithful. We will have improved though. We will have mastered these elements that we call a body and will be like God in that respect. And (most relevant to this question) we will be parents, the title which God applies to Himself!
Gramps
Since I was denied the priviledge of bearing children in mortality I sure hope they let me bear children in the next life and I don’t mean adoption or spirit children. I want to bear physical children and I have heard that nothing will be denied to me. I hope I can trust in that.
“We have been assured that if we will be patient in our afflictions, our
righteous longings will be eased and we shall have all the blessings of
which we are worthy” I take that to mean that every needful thing, everything that we desire that we need, will be fulfilled. I do not take that as all my desires will come to me, but that all my needs will be fulfilled. I have always believed that meant that righteous individuals would have the chance to form a family.
That’s pretty depressing to thing that I will lose out on having physical children.
Respectfully, I think the question is actually a bit deeper than this answer. 2 Nephi 2:22-23 Specifically calls it adams transgression. Eve was after all beguiled. If adam had not trangressed, once eve put him in the precarious position of having to choose between obeying the charge to procreate and the charge to not eat the fruit, then yes the nephi quotes are true. If he had refused to trangress any law then eve would have been sent out and he would have remained in the garden and they each would have been seperate and unable to procreate simply because they were not together. In fact eve makes this exact point to adam that he must transgress the one to keep the greater commandment. But that situation was created by eve’s choice to partake of the fruit before being authorized.
When satan is cursed for giving the fruit, he is incensed for being punished for doing what he says is done in other worlds. If it was always done by a fallen angel in other worlds and they are always cursed simliarly then why would he be incensed or act as if he was being tated unfairly? However if adam and eve always possessed the ability to procreate but simply had not yet done so, is it impossible to imagine that Father would have provided an opportunity to obey both commandments at a later time?
Perhaps other laws are given that children perhaps can break that can also provide the neccessary fall where adam and eve transgress to remain with and raise their fallen child outside the garden. We really dont know. But i just do not think that father would give adam or eve two commandments that required them to break one because that is conflicting with nephis promise. Perhaps eves deception was in thinkiing that there was no other way to fall than to do that one thing at that one time, according to her fallen brother.
After all we do know he was a liar from the beginning. If the Lord promises that he gives no promises that he does not prepare a way for us to obey, then the commands he gave adam and eve to procreate and to avoid the fruit must have had a way prepared as well. But they were decieved and took a shortcut forcing adam to transgress. Well thats another possibility anyway.
The story of Adam and Eve is figurative. It is a story about the beginning of life. It was not an actual event as so many believe. Animals and plants have lived and died on this planet for millions of years, long before the story of Adam and Eve. If the story of Adam and Eve is literal, then it happened millions and millions of years ago. However, the bible indicates that life began on earth only a few thousand years ago. It is simply not possible for a literal and actual Adam and Eve in the time period referenced in the bible. I believe it is story about the beginning of life, not a literal event.
Latter-day Saints are not Biblical literalists; we are not Young Earth Creationists.
We teach that Adam and Eve’s fall was in fact very literal. Recent General Conference talks address this.
This has been a question that I have wondered for a long time. I think that I am more less on the lines with James G. First of all I would like to give my opinion on the creation. First of all I believe that the earth was created millions of years ago in periods of time. For the most part I believe Heavenly Father doesn’t work with time at all so for Him millions of years don’t matter. What does matter is the Earth had to be prepared for His children to live on. This preparation simply took a long time for the Earth to be habitable for Human existence. Whether the Earth was nearer to God or not (Kolob Therom) could have easily changed conditions on which Adam and Eve could live in a terrestrial state. Heavenly Father can also see past, present and future conditions on the earth that He also needed to prepare the Earth for. (Oil, minerals, etc) So these periods of time are translated into the word days but period of time would have been a better choices of words.
Now onto Adam and Eve procreating in the terrestrial state. They and the Earth were created before the fall. Brigham Young taught and Gramps has commented on this very subject ,have said No physical being has ever come into this world but having a literal Mother and Father. So both Adam and Eve were born to a physical Mother and Father not Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother who procreate spirit bodies, a whole different perfect spiritual matter that I believe can only be created by God and Goddesses. So if Adam and Eve had parents who were they? Brigham Young also taught the Adam and Eve were placed here on Earth and so where the animals. The chicken came before the egg!! So Adam and Eve’s parents where of a Terrestrial State similar to what Adam and Eve where when they were placed hear on Earth. Thus being in a terrestrial state they could of procreated. because their physical parents did. Where they taught how? One can only guess No they were naive as little children and once Eve was beguiled it changed her glory which gave her eyes the ability to see the good from the bad (an important part in being a God BTW) But they, Adam and Eve where physically different now and this is why Eve said we cannot fulfill Gods plan because they where separated. Adam realized this and was commanded to multiply and replenish the Earth. I believe this commandment is if full force today on terrestrial planets as well. However, we don’t know to what extent or purpose a terrestrial being is used for other than to populate other worlds like Adam and Eve. There are a lot of stars and planets out there in our solar system. Anyway food for thought and remember they are only my opinions. Thanks for the great comments on this site always fun to come in here and read different opinions.