Genesis 3 – The Fall of Man
Timeline: Before 4000 BC
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Ezekiel 28 tells us Satan, before his fall, was an angel of the highest rank and prominence, even something of a leader of worship in heaven. He was full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. Isaiah 14 reveals Satan’s fall had to do with his desire to be equal to or greater than God, to set his will against God’s will. Revelation 12 explains that he was cast out of heaven along with his angels. It was the craftiness of Satan that made him successful against Eve. 1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” As God had preached to Adam, so Satan now also preaches to Eve. Satan will often attack a chain at its weakest link, so he gets at Adam by tempting Eve. She did not receive the command directly from God but through Adam. Satan twists God words. God said they could eat of every tree except one. Satan quoted the command wrong. He spoke in a taunting way. 2 And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” Eve misquoted God by adding that they could not touch it. Obviously, miscommunication is a problem here. Satan is really good at confusing us and twisting words. He uses half-truths to make his lies more convincing 4 Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Satan's sin was pride. He desired to be like God; so he sought to talk Adam and Eve into having the same desire. He lied about the fatal consequence of partaking in the fruit. What the serpent did not say was that knowing evil would damage Adam and Ev's relationship with God. Half-truths can be as deceptive as full-blown lies. This was the first falsehood the woman had ever hear so naturally she was inclined to believe it. 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. God gave man freedom and dominion, with only one limitation. The temptation was overwhelming. The lust of the flesh: she saw that the tree was good for food. The lust of the eye: it looked so delicious. By the pride of life: desiring to make one wise. The scripture never says that Adam rebuked or persuaded Eve not to eat the fruit. 1 Timothy 2:14 tells us that he was not deceived. He ate by his own free will. By eating the fruit, man did obtain the knowledge of good and evil. Unfortunately, the knowledge they received was not was they were expecting. They quickly felt guilty as soon as they had broken God's commandment. Their increased knowledge brought only shame. They used leaves to conceal their shame. 8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. It was probably God's habit to visit them in the afternoon, when a cool wind springs up. Before they sinned, they welcomed God's gracious visits with humble joy; but now they were afraid and so they both hid from God. 9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, "Where are you?" God knew exactly where they were. It's like when you ask a child if he had eaten the cookie. You know perfectly well he ate the cookie because he had crumbs on his mouth. The questions are put, not to obtain information, but to give opportunity for self-examination and acknowledgment of guilt. 10 So he said, "I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” Adam and Eve had always been naked but sin made them self-aware. The nakedness caused them to be shameful and it stripped their soul of purity and holiness. Therefore they could not appear before a pure and holy God. Adam makes no mention of his sin. He was not ready to repent of his sin. 11 And He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?" God used this question to awaken Adam's conscience, to put him under a conviction and to solicit a confession. However, sins have consequences which cannot be avoided. Then the man said, "The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate." Instead of acknowledging the sin to its full extent, and taking shame to himself, Adam excused the sin, and laid the blame on God. This is the same tactic Satan used on Eve. It was true God gave Eve to Adam but he twisted it to justify his transgression. And the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?” The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” In offering these excuses, neither of them denied the fact. Although Satin drew Eve into sin, she was still the sinner. 14 So the Lord God said to the serpent: "Because you have done this, Tame animals are subjected to man's service and "among all beasts of the field" — that is, the wild animals. Commentators have speculated that the serpent was originally erect and beautiful, and that Adam even had serpents in his household. Scripture tells us that Satan once occupied a place among the angels of God but because of his pride, has now been cast down to the earth. 15 And I will put enmity This is the first messianic prophecy in the Bible. Spiritual warfare is declared between the Seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. Notice that the Seed of the woman is capitalized. That was not a mistake but a reference to the Lord Jesus Christ, our Messiah. The seed of the serpent are those of Eve's descendants who receive Satan's spirit and obey his rule. The serpent will one day be completely destroyed, with a fatal wound to the head. The "heal"; implies that Jesus will be wounded, but not destroyed. 16 To the woman He said: "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” The woman's punishment is twofold. First, God causes her more pain than any other creatures during childbirth. Next God commanded wives will be subject to your own husbands. Among the Hebrews the females are subordinates, though were not to be oppressed, and certainly not be slaves. Some peoples do not understand this. 17 Then to Adam He said, "Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, "You shall not eat of it":
Instead of protecting his wife and shielding her from evil, Adam had passively followed her lead in disobeying God's command; and therefore the soil outside of the garden is accursed because of his disobedience. Before they sinned, caring for the garden was a constant pleasure to him. Their bodies never grew sore and tired. The fruits of the garden and the herbs of the fields grew spontaneously. The earth was to be a comfortable dwelling place. But outside the Garden of Eden, the earth was not as hospitable. God did not curse Adam, as He did the serpent, but for man's good He cursed the ground instead. it. Sin brought death into the world: if Adam had not sinned, he would have lived forever. Jesus took man's sin upon himself. He was tempted by Satan but did not give in. Blessed be God for giving us His Son, our Savior, our Lord, Jesus Christ. 20 And Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. Before this, Adam named Eve "Woman" because she was taken from the man. God named the man Adam, which signifies red earth. Now Adam named the woman Eve, that is, "life" in reference to her being a mother of the promised Savior, as well as of all mankind. Thus Adam bears the name of the dying body, Eve, of the living soul. 21 Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. God selected the skins of beasts for the clothing, therefore causing the death or slaughter of beasts for that purpose. This act of God laid the foundation for the sacrifices. The beasts were sacrificed, to typify Christ, the great Sacrifice. 22 Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"— therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. Here is another evident proof of the Trinity. The man was as one of Us, as to the knowledge of good and evil. Man was created for eternal life. If they would have eaten from the tree of life, they would have lived forever with sin and that would lead to an unending, hopeless existence separated from God. To be spiritually dead while remaining physically alive forever could only bring endless suffering. We will see this tree again in the new heavens and the new earth at the end of the age and the beginning of eternity where the curse will be no longer. In consequence of man's disobedience the tree of life is withdrawn from the reach of man. He was expelled from the Garden and returned to the ground where he was first made, for he was made outside of Paradise and then put into it. God did not destroy or remove the tree of life; however he did preserve it until the end of time when it will bear fruit for the redeemed. Far from fairytales of cute, cuddly creatures, the cherubim are the mighty and powerful guardians of God. He left these angelic warriors to prevent entrance into the Garden of Eden. Bible Study Questions 1. Which animal was more subtle than all the other land animals?
2. According to the serpent, why didn't God want Adam and Eve to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
3. What does it mean for Adam and Eve's eyes to open?
4. Where did Adam and Eve hide themselves when God called? 5. Who did Eve blame for her sin?
6. For how long would the serpent be under the curse God pronounced on him?
7. What was the serpent's response when Eve said they would die from eating the forbidden fruit?
8. Which factors led Eve to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit?
8. When Adam and Eve's eyes were open, what did they learn immediately?
10. Did Adam and Eve really become like God?
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