Eden means “Paradise”

Although the intent behind the name Eden is unclear, any Hebrew audience would have heard it’s meaning as that of Paradise, Delight or Luxury.

What we do know is that Adam was created above all the other living creatures. God asked Adam to name the creatures, a position of co-authorship. God also describes Eden as a garden of endless abundance.

Infact, the Book of Genesis starts with mankind in Eden’s paradise needing nothing.

Eden Paradise

The Book of Genesis ends with mankind in a desert and about to be starving. And in that desert of Egypt the man they are going to turn to is a man in the bottom of Pharaoh’s prison who is still listening to the Creator.

Step Pyramid of Djoser

Eden:

Root עדן (‘eden) has to do with free exchange of broadly diverse information, services and goods — which is where wealth comes from, in the modern understanding of economy. Nouns עדן (‘eden), עדנה (‘edna) and מעדן (ma’adan) mean delight, finery or luxury. Adjective עדין (‘adin) means delightful or luxurious. Verb עדן (‘adan) means to luxuriate or to delight.

Adam in Hebrew

The Hebrew word adam is translated either as “man” or “Adam” depending on context and on the presence or lack of the definite article (“the” in English, ha in Hebrew). So “ha-adam“ is translated usually as “the man”

Adam also means “son of the red Earth.” Its meaning comes from the Hebrew word “adamah” meaning “earth,” from which Adam is said to be formed. So, Adam is additionally a Hebrew name meaning “son of the red Earth.”

In modern Hebrew Adam is: אדם

Alef in Hebrew

Above is the Hebrew Alef in ancient and modern form.

Alef is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It represents God Himself, the silent letter that starts everything.

Interestingly it is also the same letter or symbol of the three (3) letter Hebrew word: Adam (אדם).

In Genesis 1:27 we read:

“God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them”

Eve in Hebrew

The image above is the word “Eve” in modern Hebrew. It begins with the Hebrew letter/symbol Chet, which is also the number eight (8).

Eight is the number of new beginnings. Eight is the number of people on Noah’s ark.

So, in the word “Eve” we start with the Chet חַ (new beginning), then the Vav וָ (the number of man), then the He ה (meaning “look” or “behold”.

The common meaning of Eve is life or “living”. It can also mean full of life and mother of life.

Nachash in Eden meaning

In Genesis 3 it reads: Now the serpent (Nachash) was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.

The word Nachash commonly translated as serpent has three (3) meanings in one:

As a noun, it means serpent.
As a verb, it means to be divine; or the diviner.
As an adjective, it means shining; or the shining one.

In Biblical Hebrew there is a strong connection between the ‘Nachash’ and dark supernatural forces. The Biblical Hebrew word for ‘sorcery’ or ‘witchcraft’ is serpent, meaning “Nachash”.