Genesis 3:10

Hebrew Bible

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God moving about in the orchard at the breezy time of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the orchard. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 The man replied, “I heard you moving about in the orchard, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid. 11 And the Lord God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave me, she gave me some fruit from the tree and I ate it.”

Ezekiel 23:29

Hebrew Bible

27 So I will put an end to your obscene conduct and your prostitution that you have practiced in the land of Egypt. You will not seek their help or remember Egypt anymore. 28 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look here, I am about to deliver you over to those whom you hate, to those with whom you were disgusted. 29 They will treat you with hatred, take away all you have labored for, and leave you naked and bare. Your nakedness will be exposed, just as when you engaged in prostitution and obscene conduct. 30 I will do these things to you because you engaged in prostitution with the nations, polluting yourself with their idols. 31 You have followed the ways of your sister, so I will place her cup of judgment in your hand.

 Notes and References

"... Recalling the garden of Eden narrative, nudity and shame are closely linked. “Knowing good and evil” refers to practical wisdom, enabling a person “to master one’s own life by making the right decision.” Nakedness creates fear before YHWH (Genesis 3:10), and the fear of YHWH is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge (Proverbs 1:7; 2:5). In the context of the Eden narrative, knowing good and evil also refers to the sexual sphere. Adam and Eve were naked but not ashamed (Genesis 2:25) until they had eaten from the tree of knowledge. Then, when their eyes were opened, and they lost their state of innocence, they were ashamed when they recognized themselves as being naked and made themselves clothes (Genesis 3:7; compare 3:21). Shame is an expression of guilt, and being ashamed expresses uncovered guilt. Shame and clothing are closely connected. Clothes cover nakedness, a source of shame. Forced nakedness is a sign of judgment (Ezekiel 16:39) and associated with prostitution (Ezekiel 23:29). In contrast, clothes preclude shame ..."

Fischer, Stefan "Women's Dress Codes in the Book of Proverbs" in Berner, Christoph (ed.) Clothing and Nudity in the Hebrew Bible: A Handbook (pp. 543-556) T&T Clark, 2019

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