She Shall Crush Your Head
Why is this? It relates to Mary becoming the New Eve through her obedience to God, specifically through the conception and birth of Jesus Christ, the God-Man.
More precisely, it has to do with the translations of the Bible used by the Church, namely the Latin Vulgate, translated by St. Jerome from the original languages of Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. Later, when French and English Catholics translated the Bible during the time of the Reformation, the Douay-Rheims Bible was used by English-speaking and reading Catholics. This version later heavily influenced the King James Bible. Both the Douay-Rheims and the King James Bibles were revised for modern English from Elizabethan English, otherwise known as Shakespeare's English.
In the Douay-Rheims Bible, Genesis 3:15 is rendered: "15 I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel."
Whereas the King James Bible translates this passage as: "15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
So, which is the more accurate of the translations? The latter is generally considered more accurate, as most other Bibles do not translate this passage as the Douay-Rheims does, which was derived from the Latin Vulgate Bible.
The Latin Vulgate Bible is the only official translation of the Catholic Church, although there are many authorized translations, such as the beloved Douay-Rheims Version. After the Douay-Rheims Bible, no other translation rendered Genesis 3:15 in this specific way.
St. Jerome translated the Latin Vulgate with piety and true devotion to the Mother of God, and while his translation is spiritually true, it is not technically accurate to the original language in this particular instance.
Here are some examples from both Catholic and Protestant translations of the Bible:
Genesis 3:15
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
They will strike at your head,
while you strike at their heel.[a]
New International Version
15 And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring[a] and hers;
he will crush[b] your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
Genesis 3:15
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your seed and her seed;
he shall bruise your head,[a]
and you shall bruise his heel.”
Genesis 3:15
English Standard Version
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring[a] and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”
Revelation 12:17
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
17 And the dragon was angry against the woman: and went to make war with the rest of her seed, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Mary is described as the Gate of Heaven because through her, Christ came into the world through her flesh. Furthermore, the first of Jesus's public miracles in His ministry, as recounted in the Gospels at the Wedding at Cana, occurred through her intervention and intercession. Thus, Mary, through her cooperation with God's graces and His will, serves as an intercessory portal between Heaven and Earth. The actions of Jesus and Mary are intertwined; therefore, the seed (Jesus) of the Woman (Mary) crushes the serpent's head, or She (Mary) shall crush your head (through her offspring, Jesus Christ). This "gate" swings both ways, as described by St. Louis de Montfort in his works True Devotion to Mary and The Secret of the Rosary, emphasizing "Jesus through Mary." And in St. Alphonsus Liguori's The Glories of Mary who was inspired by St Louis De Montfort and the Fathers of the Church such as St. Jerome.
For further exploration into Mary's unique role in salvation history check out Virgin Most Powerful and Saints.
Mary Queen of Heaven
Sovereign Queen of Angels,
you who at the beginning received from God the power and the mission to crush the head of Satan, we beseech you humbly: send your holy legions so that, on your orders and by your power, they will track down demons, fight them everywhere, curb their audacity, and plunge them into the abyss.
Who can be compared to God?
Oh, good and tender Mother, you will always be our love and our hope.
Oh, divine Mother, send the Holy Angels and Archangels to defend me and to keep the cruel enemy far from me.
Holy Angels and Archangels, defend us, protect us. Amen.
Note:
"Who can be compared to God?" is a reference to the rhetorical question that echoes the Archangel Michael's challenge and rebuke of Satan. This battle cry, which translates from Hebrew as "Who is like God?" (מִיכָאֵל - Mi-cha-el), is the very meaning of the name Michael. In Latin, this phrase is rendered as Quis sicut Deus? (or Quis ut Deus?). Additionally, Divine Mother does not refer to Mary being divine or that she is the Mother of Christ's divinity but instead refers to her title of Mother of God or God Bearer (Theotokos).
"Who can be compared to God?" is a reference to the rhetorical question that echoes the Archangel Michael's challenge and rebuke of Satan. This battle cry, which translates from Hebrew as "Who is like God?" (מִיכָאֵל - Mi-cha-el), is the very meaning of the name Michael. In Latin, this phrase is rendered as Quis sicut Deus? (or Quis ut Deus?). Additionally, Divine Mother does not refer to Mary being divine or that she is the Mother of Christ's divinity but instead refers to her title of Mother of God or God Bearer (Theotokos).
This prayer was revealed to Blessed Louis-Edouard Cestac (1801-1868), who was given a vision by the Blessed Mother. In this vision, he witnessed Hell unleashing demons upon the world, and he was instructed to compose a prayer to combat the forces of Hell.
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