Bible Study
A Commentary on the Book of Genesis
Chapter Three
Act One Scene Two
3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”
The Bible does not include any “garden talk” or any other details of life in Eden, until we are introduced to a serpent. At this point we are able to listen in on a conversation between the serpent and the woman. The serpent was described as being “more crafty” than any of the other animals. The word ‘crafty’ is translated from the Hebrew word ‘ā·rûm’,[1] which can also mean shrewd and sensible, it can be used to express either a positive or negative connotation. The serpent (Hebrew ‘nā·ḥāš’)[2] was a literal animal, which will be changed later in this chapter (by God, see verse 14) to represent more of what we know today as a snake.
We also know that the serpent is Satan (see below under Considerations); his approach was subtle and effective. He caught the woman alone and took advantage of her naivety. The first thing this serpent says is a question regarding the truth spoken by God. This is a ploy that the devil still uses today, as he continually attempts to place a wedge between humans and God. He asks the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” by starting out with this question, he is already distorting the truth. God never made that statement, God only restricted eating the fruit of one particular tree.
3:2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
Even though the instructions regarding what was acceptable to eat and what was restricted were given to Adam, the woman responded correctly by saying God allowed them to eat the fruit from the trees in the garden and that there was only one tree that was restricted. But she added that they were not allowed to touch the fruit of the restricted tree, something that God never said. Was this an exaggeration by Adam when he conveyed God’s instructions to the woman, a “slip of the tongue” or something more serious such as the first lie? Probably none of these, however we can view this as potential indicator of something far more dangerous, the willingness to alter God’s Word. Since God is truly omniscient, He can always be trusted to say exactly, and precisely, what He means (see Deuteronomy 4:2; Proverbs 30:5-6; Revelation 22:18-19).
3:4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
Satan continues by challenging the authority of God, responding to the woman, “You will not surely die.” As we read about the first deception or lie, we need to see that there are two things going on here:
- The obvious intentional deception; and
- The insinuation that God could not be trusted thereby questioning the authority of God’s Word.
Prior to this moment the very idea of intentional deception, whether from the serpent or God, would never have been considered since all was perfect. Where did this atrocious idea come from? The corruption of the perfect came from an outside-of-perfection element, Satan, a fallen angel. He implies that God, the giver of all they have and know, was being less than honest to them. The serpent tells the woman that God is a liar and that if she would eat of the fruit of the “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,” her eyes will be opened and she will be like God, knowing what is righteous and what is evil. Satan is now corrupting her mind further by luring her to think about her own position in life, tempting her with thoughts of how great it would be to be like God! Love of others and God, now turning inwardly. This, of course, was the same temptation that ultimately resulted in Satan’s downfall (see Isaiah 14:13-14).
The sad reality about most deceptions is that they often have a portion of the truth mixed into the lie to give it some credibility. We might call that today a “hidden agenda” or perhaps “not telling the whole story.” Satan did say that Eve would know good and evil, which both the man and woman did obtain (Genesis 3:7, see below), but that knowledge does not make one a god. Satan knows his craft very well. Jesus, referring to the devil said, “When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44b, NIV)
3:6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
The woman looks at the fruit from the “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,” and sees that it is good for food (somehow appealing to eat, some like to state that this sounds like an excuse), a delight to observe (sounds innocent enough but the word translated here as ‘delight’ is the Hebrew word, ṯǎ·ǎwā(h)’[3], which can also carry the meaning of lust and crave) and then she remembered that it could also make her wise, a shortcut to wisdom. In perhaps the first selfish thought and action by mankind, the woman takes the fruit and eats.
We see that her husband was with her, he was probably not with her during the conversation she had with the serpent, as we do not hear any dialog from him which would have been likely. The discussion between the woman and the serpent could have even taken place somewhere else in the garden. It was not until they were near the forbidden tree that she noticed the fruit. But now, to most people’s surprise, the man accepts the fruit from his wife and eats it too.
We read in Paul’s first letter to his protege Timothy that, “Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.” (1 Timothy 2:14b) One could argue that Paul is simply inferring that the man knew what he was doing and therefore was not deceived or perhaps he is saying that the woman was the first to eat, thereby the one that was deceived. But there is a third and perhaps a more appropriate way to interpret Paul’s statement. The man seeing his wife eating the forbidden fruit, knowing that what she did will likely result in her being punished or at minimum be taken from him, decided to share in her sin. His motives, regardless of how ‘pure’ they might have been, does not excuse him, as this little act of disobedience was deliberate and truly wicked.
3:7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
Well, their eyes were indeed opened and the first thing they noticed was that they were naked. We were given an advanced warning that something like this was going to occur back in Genesis 2:25, “And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.” They instantly became aware that they were naked, why would they care? Who is going to see them? That’s right, God! Did they recognize that they had done something wrong? Absolutely! So, in response they quickly assemble some form of makeshift clothing to cover themselves out of fig leaves.
Considerations
It is not unusual to read stories or watch movies that include talking animals. This has been a common literary device used by authors for many years. However, this is not the case here in Genesis chapter three. Did the animals understand language and communicate with humans? Perhaps, we know of a story later in the Bible about a talking donkey (see Numbers 22:22-35), so animals pre-curse, may have been able to reason and communicate, however, there is no evidence in the text either way. But we do know this serpent talked and the woman didn’t seem to be startled by this interaction. Out of this perfect world comes this serpent seemingly hell-bent on challenging the authority of God (sorry for use of the pun, it seemed appropriate), so much for perfection. So, who was this serpent? His name is Satan (see Revelation 12:9; 20:2).
This is not an easy subject, as we must go to several places in the Bible to compile information as to who and what is this entity Scripture calls Satan or the devil. Many people do not believe that he exists, but Jesus referred to him by name and that evidence alone should be enough evidence to convince someone of his existence. It appears that he was able to manipulate and influence this serpent, more on that shortly.
We do not know exactly when God created the angels, but we do know that throughout Scripture they are used by God to do several tasks, especially around God’s throne. One of the greatest angels created was called Lucifer (Latin for the Hebrew word ‘hê·lēl’,[4] essentially meaning ‘shining one’), a Cherub (please do not picture in your mind a cute little angel with a bow and arrow; these Cherubs were mighty in every sense of the word). He led an angelic rebellion against God as well as against all who serve God. A total of one-third of all angels chose to follow Lucifer (see Revelation 12:4-9), who is best known in the Bible as Satan (Hebrew word meaning adversary or accuser). Most scholars believe that Lucifer did not sin, nor cause the rebellion until after God called everything good (see Genesis 1:31). So how did something that started out perfect, spawn an entity that was totally against the ways of God?
The vast percentage of what we know about Satan comes from two prophets that God called to speak to two different kins, the King of Babylon (see Isaiah 14:12-15) and to the King of Tyre (see Ezekiel 28:13-15). It would be accurate to say that the prophets were speaking to the “power behind” these kings, and that would be none other than Satan. We read that Lucifer’s “heart was proud” because of his beauty and he corrupted his understanding and wisdom for the sake of his own splendor and brightness (see Ezekiel 28:17). Though a created being himself, he was deluded by his own pride and said in his heart, “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’” (Isaiah 14:14). He thought that he was a god or could become like God. He began a campaign against God organizing various ranks and positions of authority of dark angels (called principalities and powers in Ephesians 6:12) to fight God, His angels, and anyone who serves God.
Satan is referred to by many names and titles in the Bible, including: the devil (Greek word ‘diabolos’[5] meaning an accuser or slanderer); “a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44); the wicked or evil one (see Matthew 13:19, 38); a tempter (see Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Thessalonians 3:5); the “ruler of this world” (John 12:31); “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4), “the deceiver of the whole world” (Revelation 12:9) and several others.
The apostle Peter wrote that “the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). However, he will ultimately be destroyed (see Isaiah 14:15; Matthew 25:41). We read in the last book of the Bible, “the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10) The Lake of Fire is another name for hell.
The Bible also teaches about how some ‘spirits’ have the ability to indwell human beings or animals, often referred to as being possessed, (see Luke 8:33 as one example). We will discuss demons in more detail as part of the flood narrative later in Genesis chapters six and seven. Here in the garden, we find a serpent talking and tempting the woman; was this the serpent talking or Satan? The Bible clearly teaches that the serpent was Satan, so it really doesn’t matter if he was indwelling in the serpent or somehow appeared as a serpent, it was still Satan.
While the Bible shows Satan as a formidable enemy of ours, we need to remember that he is a created being and, in as such, is no match for God. Christians often make one of two common errors regarding Satan. The first is thinking that Satan cannot affect a Christian and that he will obey Christian demands in the name of Jesus. While that is most-often true, it would be recommend that if you consider engaging any dark force, do so only after confirmation from the Holy Spirit. This is a serious issue; the devil and his minions (not the yellow variety) are much more powerful than we are and should be avoided, if possible (see Acts 19:11-17). Satan is very smart, plus he has had a long-time observing humanity and he knows exactly what buttons to push in our lives to tempt us. In those cases remember to “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” (James 4:7-8). The second error people make is thinking Satan and God are equals. Satan is not equal to God!
The drama of Act One Scene Two almost seems surreal, but it was very real. The remaining verses in chapter three sets the stage for an entirely different act, so different that some might even call it a different story. The following verses record the greatest tragedy ever recorded in history, mankind went from the created state of innocence that included direct fellowship with God, to the current state of sinfulness and alienation from God.
God created man and woman with the ability to think and reason. He did not create some form of automaton robot that has no choice to obey. God gave them freedom to choose, namely a free will. Why would God do that, especially if He knew that they would disobey (which He did)? Let’s first answer a quick question, how do you know if someone loves you? Most people probably would agree that the answer would be somehow related to one’s actions and not by words alone. The first answer to the question as to why God gave them free will to choose, was to evaluate their willingness to accept God or reject Him, a concept that has never been revoked. We might think of it as an unfair test, but only God can truly evaluate fairness. In simple terms, God gave mankind one rule and they disobeyed, they failed the test. But we also know that God is omniscient and knew that man would disobey, even before creation began (see Ephesians 1:4; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 1:2; 1 Peter 1:18-20; Revelation 13:8). Knowing that mankind could not fully comply (all it takes is one offense), God had a plan for all of mankind that would involve His Son, to bring us back to perfection and fellowship with Him for eternity. The first mention of the coming Messiah, is hidden in the middle of the following verses, making this next section of great misery also one of unspeakable joy!
There have been many theologians and church leaders who, for multiple unfounded reasons, believe that the Book of Genesis is nothing more than some form of fairy tale. This is a lie, because from man’s perspective the stories in Genesis violate much of what is believed to be current science and political correctiveness, so they dispose what they feel is too difficult for people to accept. Who is right, God or man? Let’s look at this another way. If the man did not fall into sin, would we need a Savior? This book is vital for so many reasons. It is wrong to consider Genesis, or any other book of the Bible, not being the truth and from God Himself. The tragic fact is that the first man did sin and as a result, brought sin and death into the world (see Romans 5:12; 1 Corinthians 15:22), and that’s the truth!
Disappointed
Was God disappointed with the first man and woman? Since God is truly omniscient and not affected by time (which He created for us), He would have known exactly what was going to happen. Perhaps He was saddened or dismayed, but not disappointed. We may think we disappoint God, but the truth is we really can’t disappoint Him either. He loves us and wants us to always trust in Him. The only time we grieve God is when we insist on doing things our way and not His.
One question that is often overlooked is, “What was Eve and Adam doing near the restricted Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil?” Were they nearby and just happened to notice the tree, or did they go there deliberately? Temptation begins by being in the vicinity of something that is tempting. Pastor Dr. R. Kent Hughes calls this the “cookie jar syndrome.”
A little boy’s mother had just baked a fresh batch of cookies and placed them in the cookie jar, giving instructions that no one touch them until after dinner. But it was not long until she heard the lid of the jar move, and she called out, “My son, what are you doing?” To which a meek voice called back, “My hand is in the cookie jar resisting temptation!” The fact is, no one can resist temptation with his or her hand in the cookie jar.
There are open cookie jars all around us. The ubiquitous cookie jar of our culture is the television, dwelling in the heart of nearly every home in America. Turn it off, and the goodies are present in an open magazine or a billboard. There are living cookie jars everywhere, inviting passersby to taste their wares. It would be so easy … But when these wares are removed from the jar, their sweetness soon turns to rot, and the decay is shared by the hand that plucked them, resulting in gangrene of the soul.
Keeping one’s hand out of the cookie jar is a challenge for all of God’s children.[6]
The first defense against temptation is to avoid being near anything that has the potential of leading to sin. That varies from person to person, and everybody should be aware of their own weaknesses, not only to pray about but also to avoid being tempted.
The Excuses
3:8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.”
Fellowship with God may not be fully appreciated until we miss it. The man and woman no longer had close fellowship with their creator and chose to hide when they knew He was coming. They apparently felt some shame and remorse for what they did, which means there was hope for them. Throughout the Bible we read that God repeatedly calls His people to repentance. If no repentance, the only remedy that is left is judgment and condemnation.
God was “walking in the garden in the cool of the day.” Wait stop, God has legs? Jesus said His Father was a Spirit (see John 4:24), so is this an anthropomorphism? No, have you ever heard of a theophany or a Christophany? Anytime there is visible appearance of God in the Old Testament in a tangible form, it is considered a theophany. Some examples include Genesis 12:7-9; 18:1-33; 32:22-30; Exodus 3:2-4:17; 24:9-11 and Deuteronomy 31:14-15, all of which we will explore later. While some visible forms include sights like a cloud by day or a pillar of fire at night, some appear more human like, and are considered a Christophany; these would be pre-incarnation visits of Jesus. Since Jesus has always existed and is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow (see John 8:58; Hebrews 13:8; Revelation 1:4, 8) we know that He always existed, not just since the day of His earthly birth, as recorded in the gospels. The apostle John explains, “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.” (John 1:18, NIV)
The wording here in Genesis seems to imply that God regularly walked through the garden at this time. Except on this dark day, instead of finding the man and woman eager to fellowship with Him, they are hiding. Obviously, God knew what happened and where they were, but as we know of God, He always provides a time for repentance and this time was no different; He was giving an opportunity for them to come forward voluntarily. The man did respond, but like many of us, he offered a rather weak excuse. He said he was afraid! Afraid of what? That’s right, they were afraid of being found by God, and apparently the fig leaves didn’t help their shame, nor their guilt.
3:11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Here again, we know that God knows the answer to both of those questions, but He is giving the man an opportunity to confess. Before we proceed, did you notice how fast sin took root in their hearts and they then proceeded to play the blame game? The man blamed God for the woman and the woman goes on to blame the serpent. Would God have given them “lighter sentences” or a lesser punishment if they confessed? Perhaps, no one may ever know the answer to that question. However, we will see God’s character and nature being revealed as we read the Bible and we realize that mercy could have been the case. But regardless, neither one accepted responsibility, so the answer to that question has no relevance.
Therefore, as pointed out earlier, if no repentance, the only remedy that is left is judgment and condemnation.
The Curse (A.K.A. Act Two Scene One - The Fall and The Hope)
The following passages contain what has commonly referred to as “The Curse.” In reality it is a series of curses, grouped and presented to each of the three characters involved in this garden drama. God begins with the serpent. This can be called Act Two because everything changes as the result of these curses. The fall of man may appear to be a dark story without hope of restoration between God and man, but we also find the first verse of the Bible that promises a coming Savior. Dark, yes, but there is hope.
3:14 The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
God responds to the disobedience with a curse given specifically to the serpent, and here he is cursed above all livestock (usually a term that describes domesticated animals) and above all the beasts of the field (wild animals). Note that the serpent will be cursed above all the other animals, pointing out that all of creation will be cursed, including all the animals (see Genesis 5:29; Romans 8:20-22). All life was now destined to die.
As discussed before, the problem was not the serpent, it was the personality behind the serpent, namely Satan. So why curse the whole line of serpents from that time on? God undoubtedly cursed the serpent by removing its legs to remind both mankind of their disobedience and Satan of the ultimate, yet future event, of his destruction. Every time we see a snake, we should remember what took place years ago in this garden.
The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘offspring’ both times in verse 15 is ‘zǎr’ǎ’,[7] you probably remember it as the English word ‘seed’ (KJV, NKJV, NASB, CSB). It can refer to a literal seed, such as ones used to plant crops, but here it is referring to one’s offspring, descendant, or children. The Greek equivalent is ‘sperma’,[8] which is used in the same manner in the New Testament. Although probably not found in any English Bible translation, the word can also be translated as ‘sperm’. The word is first used as the offspring of Satan (or seed of the serpent). Now who would be considered his offspring? Probably anyone who opposes God, as we know Satan was responsible for the fall of one-third of his fellow angels and has been encouraging men and women to follow him ever since this time in the garden. Now, what about the offspring of the woman, could they be considered those that have embraced the correct relationship with God and therefore would experience enmity (hostility) between these two groups? Perhaps, while to some degree that does occur, but is that really a good interpretation of this verse?
When we evaluate this verse using the translation of ‘offspring’, we may not see what is really going on. So, the word ‘seed’ will be used to help clarify. The seed of the woman would be both a biological error (remember the word sperm above) and a grammatical error (these words are singular, not plural), thus the concept of a woman having the seed would be considered incorrect. But this is the Word of God, so it must be correct! It is correct, but God is not talking about all of humanity when He said, “the seed of the woman.” He was specifically referring to one singular person, Jesus! This is the first verse that speaks of someone bruising (Hebrew word ’yešûp’,[9] which means to crush, bruise or strike) one singular person’s (Satan’s) head. The text implies that someday one person will be supernaturally conceived and born of virgin (see Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31-37), that would be none-other than the Messiah. He would not be born like other men; being born of a virgin He would not inherit sin from the first man. But He himself will be bruised (heel crushed) by Satan on a cross (see Isaiah 53:5), but the story doesn’t end there, as Jesus rises to life again on the third day! Emerging victoriously from the grave, Jesus freely offers salvation to all those who recognize their sin, repent of their sins, and accept Him as their Savior.
3:16 To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.”
Next in line was the woman. We really have no idea what conception and reproduction were originally created to be like, but we know that due to this first-woman’s disobedience to God, there is a lot more pain involved. The word translated here as ‘contrary’ is the very common Hebrew word ‘ěl’[10] (used over 5,500 times in the Old Testament), a preposition that carries the meaning to, into, or concerning something; most English Bible translations refer to the desire of the woman to be for the husband, not contrary (although the ESV does offer “shall be toward” as an alternate wording). But in either case we see that God places the man over the woman to rule over her, a theme that is repeated several times in the New Testament (see 1 Corinthians 11:3; 14:34; Ephesians 5:22-24; Colossians 3:18; 1 Timothy 2:11-12; Titus 2:5; 1 Peter 3:1-7).
3:17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
Now comes the dramatic moment, one can almost hear the sound of a kettledrum during the pronouncement of these curses. The man was next, since he was given the instructions directly by God, he will face the more severe response for his disobedient actions.
God begins by cursing the ground, this is the Hebrew word ‘ǎḏā·mā(h)’, which is found over 40 times in the book of Genesis, usually translated as ‘ground’, however, it can be translated as soil, earth, and land.[11] Again, we do not have a good grasp as to how things worked prior to man disobeying God, we see here that the process of gathering food will now require significant effort. While the man was always responsible to “work the ground” and keep it (see Genesis 2:5, 15), it now had weeds and thorns, requiring a lot more time and energy, ultimately resulting in the man’s face being covered in sweat (many of you will probably want to talk to Adam about this one).
We are then introduced to the “cycle of life,” man was created out of the ground (see Genesis 2:7) and when life on earth is finished, man will return to the ground as dust. This verse essentially defines death, or perhaps more accurately, it defines the death of the body. Prior to man disobeying God, death did not have meaning; none of God’s breathing creatures had ever died, or could die, until now. Was death a punishment for disobedience? Yes, but it was also a blessing.[12]
Considerations
There are a number of potential motivations for Satan to tempt man into disobeying God. We know that man was given dominion over all living things on earth (see Genesis 1:26, 28; Psalm 8:6-8), and perhaps he was envious and wanted that dominion for himself. Some propose the idea that he may have wanted to create some form of alliance with man and his descendants to aid him in dethroning God. As we discussed earlier, Satan is very smart. Did he understand what was going to happen? Perhaps, but in any case, Satan did get dominion over the world, both the apostle John and the apostle Paul referred to him as “the god of this world,” (see John 12:31 and 2 Corinthians 4:4, respectively). There is only one God and Satan is not him; the book of Revelation refers to him as, “the deceiver of the whole world.” (Revelation 12:9) But he must know that he will be defeated and destroyed (as recorded in Revelation 20:1-10), so is he deceiving himself to think he can still defeat God?
So, what could possibly motivate him? We saw that he attempted to stop God’s plan for salvation (hostility towards the Hebrews, Israelites, and Jews, etc.) in the Old Testament. We saw how he tempted Jesus and had Him killed in the New Testament (as prophesied in Genesis 3:15). But Jesus was victorious, He conquered death anyway. So, what else is going on? Bottom line, he wants to hurt God in every way possible, he wants to persuade mankind into following him and reject Jesus, that’s his mission, that’s his motivation.
Everything prior to these curses was perfect, meaning that there was no deterioration, no rotting, and no decay. Another way of looking at it was that energy was given to everything to maintain whatever it was supposed to be doing (or perhaps no energy was required). If something was to provide light, it would remain lit, without dimming. If something needed to rotate, like a planet around the Sun, it would continue to rotate without slowing down. One could use the analogy that “the plug” was pulled on creation, things started to dim, slow down, and decay as the result of these curses. This concept of decay is so predictable that a fundamental principle or ‘law’ has been formulated, called the Second Law of Thermodynamics (also known as the Law of Entropy, as we discussed in the Considerations section under Evidence of Creation above). This law explains that any isolated system when left on its own, will eventually degrade. Some describe it as ‘order’ moving to ‘disorder’ (chaos).
Life As We Know It Begins
3:20 The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Adam named his wife ‘Eve’ (Hebrew word ‘ḥǎw·wā(h)’, meaning living or making alive), because she would be the mother of all humanity. Including the “seed of the woman,” the Savior.
The man and woman were now different, they were mortal, and all their offspring would be mortal as well. We don’t know what human beings looked like before the curses, but they undoubtedly noticed pain for the first time and probably didn’t like it. It was time to settle down and listen to God, trusting this time in His every word.
3:21 And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.
Since Adam and Eve now considered themselves as being naked, God provided a covering for them. No one really knows where these ‘skins’ came from. As God He could have easily spoken them into existence, however, more than likely, something far more eye-opening and horrific took place. God may have chosen and killed two animals in front of them to fashion the garments needed to clothe them. This would then be a model of atonement, a key theme in our salvation. The shedding of innocent blood is a necessary part of the law that will later be given to Moses on Mount Sinai as summarized in these words: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.” (Leviticus 17:11) Perhaps they knew these animals, regardless, this would be a powerful lesson, still valid for us today, and that is…SIN IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM! For those who believe in Jesus, “…we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10) Because “…under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” (Hebrews 9:22) Never forget what Jesus did for all of us, He paid our entire debt for our salvation (see John 19:30).
3:22 Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” 23 therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.
Once again it appears that we are privileged to hear a conversation between those in the Godhead. We are given insight on a couple of things. First, we see that man has become like God in the sense of knowing good and evil. No, that doesn’t mean anything more than that; humans are NOT gods! But knowing good and evil is not always a good thing, or at least as far as mankind goes it isn’t. God can know good and evil, but since He is perfect, that knowledge is not a problem. We, on the other hand, knowing good and evil and not being perfect means that if man eats of the fruit of the tree of life, man will live forever in a fallen, less-than perfect state (God desires something better for us). Therefore, God removes Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden and places them somewhere outside, east of the garden.
Then we read that God assigns two cherubs (cherubim is the plural form of cherub) to guard the garden. Wait, what? Two of God’s highest-ranking angels to guard against Adam and Eve entering the garden of Eden? Not hardly! Adam and Eve weren’t the threat or concern, true, having them eat the fruit of the tree of life would have been a problem, but that is not who God was keeping out of the garden. These are serious angels; how do we know? The Mercy Seat (the lid for the Ark of the Covenant) had two cherub figures facing each other fashioned in gold (see Exodus 25:18-22; 37:7-9), their images were on the tapestry for the Tabernacle (see Exodus 26:1, 31; 36:8, 35), God’s voice was heard coming from between the two golden cherubs (see Numbers 7:89), they surround God’s throne (see Isaiah 37:16; Ezekiel 1:4-28; 10:1-22; Revelation 4:6-8) and we know that Satan himself was considered “an anointed guardian cherub” (see Ezekiel 28:14). So why send the greatest and most powerful warriors to guard a garden? It undoubtedly was to keep Satan from gaining access to the tree of life, to prevent him from attempting to circumvent God’s plan by getting the fruit to the man or woman. Cherub versus cherub makes more sense than cherub versus man, something we might call today, overkill!
The Garden of Eden apparently remained for a while, no one knows for how long. The garden is not mentioned again until the book of Revelation (see Revelation 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19). The phrase does appear in the book of Proverbs; however, it is only used as a metaphor (see Proverbs 3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4).
Considerations
The discovery of DNA has changed the landscape of most biological based sciences. DNA has certainly changed the discussion regarding evolution and so much more in regard to how science relates to God’s Word. While science has been slowly closing the gap between what is believed by the scientific community and those that believe in the Bible (the Word of God doesn’t change, science, on the other hand, is seemingly always in a state of flux), most scientists still accept bizarre theories and unproven premises before accepting the idea that God exists. They often deny any involvement of God or His Word, regardless of what the evidence might be saying (that blind spot we discussed earlier).
Here is another example: Even though DNA essentially points to one mother for all of humanity (see Genesis 3:20), scientists have attempted to date how many years ago that may have been. Some have calculated that to be approximately 200,000 years ago, making the date way outside the Biblical-narrative time frame. However, many other scientists have said that those initial calculations may have incorporated some invalid assumptions. This should not surprise anyone as most scientists have embraced an evolutionary presupposition, that requires an extremely long period of time as we discussed earlier.
Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, so does that mean they knew God’s Law? What knowledge did they obtain? What is right and what is wrong can only be determined by the Creator. In verse 22, we heard that both the man and the woman now understand as God does, in that they knew what is right and what is wrong. There are a few hints in the Bible that those that lived before the Law was given to Moses knew certain things that would not have been normally intuitive. Such as what was an acceptable offering (Cain and Abel, see Genesis 4:2-7) and which animals were considered clean and those that were not (Noah brought into the Ark seven or seven pairs of each clean animal and only two of those considered unclean, see Genesis 7:2; 8:20). However, these are probably best explained as being heard directly from God rather than some instinctive knowledge. This is most often referred to as the oral law, given from one generation to the next until God’s law was written. But that doesn’t mean that man cannot have written in their hearts a basic understanding of what is right and wrong (see Jeremiah 31:33; Romans 2:15). For example, most people understand that stealing, lying, murdering, etc. are wrong. Does that include the statutes on all the procedures and protocols of the Torah? Apparently not, as we all should still today have retained those in our hearts, unless of course, since we no longer need to know them (Jesus fulfilled the law, freeing believers from the bondage of sin and the protocols of the law), perhaps they have been removed from our hearts. We will never know for certain, of course perhaps, not until we are in heaven!
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[1] Strong’s Hebrew 6175.
[2] Strong’s Hebrew 5175.
[3] Strong’s Hebrew 8378.
[4] Strong’s Hebrew 1966.
[5] Strong’s Greek 1228.
[6] Hughes, R. K. (1990). Ephesians: the mystery of the body of Christ (pp. 154–156). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
[7] Strong’s Hebrew 2233.
[8] Strong’s Greek 4690.
[9] Strong’s Hebrew 7779.
[10] Strong’s Hebrew 413.
[11] See also Considerations under Genesis 2:25 regarding “Man or Adam.”
[12] See discussion in the Considerations section under Genesis 2:215-17 regarding “The Garden of Eden.”