The punishment for woman was a painful childbirth... the punishment for man was he would till the soil and it would return thorns...
Also, because of Adam, they were expelled from the garden.
There are two types of sin.
1. Ignorance and unbelief. As it relates to the OP: I refer you to 1 Timothy 1:13 though I was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: howbeit I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief;
In essence, Paul didn't have the knowledge of who Christ was. As such, Eve was much like Paul in that she sinned in ignorance and disbelief when she ate of the forbidden fruit. Like Paul, she was deceived.
2. Sin done in defiance.
Within the Law, we clearly see that those who committed sin in ignorance and disbelief could be atoned for. However, for those who sinned through defiance, they were expelled. (Numbers 15:22-31) We also see that this is in agreement with what Jesus said in Matthew 18:15-17.
So we must ask, was Adam defiant when he disobeyed? Is this why sin and death came through Adam and is this why they were expelled from the Garden?
Back to Eve.
Paul doesn't leave women with the stigma of sin. Paul clearly says: But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.
We know that all are saved by grace, and not works. So we cannot take this verse in the manner that all women would be saved. As well, we cannot say that if a woman has a child, they will be saved. Likewise, we also know that women who can't have a child, can also be saved. So what in the world is Paul talking about? I would suggest that he's releasing the stigma associated with woman in regard to Eve and the sin she committed in ignorance. Also, he bolsters women because they are the essence of humanity! As Paul writes to Timothy 1:5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.
So we see that a woman's role is crucial to raising Godly children... I am very certain Lois and Eunice were a mirror of the type of woman written about in Proverbs 31
Listen though, why do you think the serpent went after the woman? Don't you know that if he could have killed the woman, the Christ would never have come? Or don't we know that everyone on earth has a mother, including Jesus. And how blessed was Mary to have the messiah in her womb! Perhaps this can give us some insight into Genesis 3:15
I could write much, much more... but I'm sure I'll get enough flack from this post.
For those of you with a tender heart, enjoy.
Grace and Peace.
