What Scripture says
Genesis tells of one first woman. God forms Eve from Adam’s side, and Adam says, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (Genesis 2:23, ESV). Adam names her Eve, “because she was the mother of all living” (3:20).
The word lilith appears once in the Bible, in Isaiah’s prophecy against Edom, describing the ruined land:
“And wild animals shall meet with hyenas; the wild goat shall cry to his fellow; indeed, there the night bird [lilith] settles and finds for herself a resting place.” (Isaiah 34:14)
What the evidence says
Context
Isaiah 34:14
Isaiah 34 describes Edom after judgment, a desolate land inhabited by wild creatures: hyenas, wild goats, owls, kites and jackals (34:11–15). Lilith is translated in different ways:
| Translation | Rendering |
|---|---|
| ESV | “night bird” |
| KJV | “screech owl” |
| NIV | “night creatures” |
| NRSV | “Lilith” |
The word may come from a Mesopotamian demon name (lilitu), or be a kind of nocturnal animal. Either way, it is part of a list of creatures in a deserted ruin. It says nothing about Adam.
The “two creation accounts”
Some later interpreters noticed that Genesis 1:27 says God created humans “male and female”, while Genesis 2 describes Eve’s creation separately. They speculated that Genesis 1 described a first woman. Most scholars read Genesis 1 as a summary and Genesis 2 as a closer look at the same event.
History
How the legend developed
| Source | Date | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Mesopotamian texts | 3rd–1st millennium BC | Lilitu, female demons associated with the night and wind |
| Isaiah 34:14 | 8th–6th century BC | A creature in a ruined land |
| Dead Sea Scrolls (Songs of the Sage) | 1st century BC | Lilith among demons |
| Babylonian Talmud | c. AD 500 | A night demon with long hair and wings |
| Aramaic incantation bowls | c. AD 500–800 | Protection against Lilith, who harms infants |
| The Alphabet of Ben Sira | c. AD 700–1000 | Lilith as Adam’s first wife |
The Alphabet of Ben Sira, a medieval Jewish text with a satirical tone, first tells the story: God made Lilith from the earth, like Adam. She refused to be subordinate to him, pronounced God’s name and flew away. She became a demon who harms newborn babies. Eve was then created.
Later, the story developed further in Jewish mysticism (the Kabbalah, especially the Zohar, 13th century). In the 20th century, some feminist writers adopted Lilith as a symbol of independence, which made her widely known.
Where they meet
Lilith wasn’t Adam’s first wife. She comes from medieval Jewish legend. Isaiah 34:14 mentions a night creature, not a wife.
What’s still open
Exactly what creature Isaiah meant.
Bottom line
No. She comes from medieval Jewish legend. Isaiah 34:14 mentions a night creature, not a wife. This is rated Settled.