A Serpent and the Fall of Man  
– Genesis Three –

          Genesis three is one of the saddest chapters in the Bible. It is here that we read of the temptation of Eve by the serpent, her sin in eating the forbidden fruit and the rebellion of Adam against God. The actions of Eve were very sad. She listened to the serpent; she ate the forbidden fruit; she brought fruit to Adam and encouraged him to eat. Sadly, the woman was deceived but Adam sinned knowingly. Sin broke man's fellowship with God. Man even found himself trying to hide from his Maker. "And they heard the voice 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 amongst the trees of the garden." (Genesis 3:8) There was a lot of blaming others for the sin. Adam blamed Eve for his sin and Eve blamed the serpent for what happened. God both cursed the serpent and promised the Savior. "The LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 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." (Genesis 3:14-15) There was likewise punishment for the woman. She would endure pain during childbirth. Woman would also have man as her head. God said to the woman, "Thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." Man did not go unpunished. God said to Adam, "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." (Genesis 3:17-19) The result of the sin of Adam and Eve was death for them and for all of humanity. Adam and Eve had lost their innocence so God make coats of skins and clothed them. He sent them out of the Garden. An angel with a flaming sword was placed at the gate of the garden to prevent anyone from returning and eating of the Tree of Life.

          The temptation of Eve and her failure -- Genesis 3:1-7: It is obvious that Satan first led a rebellion in heaven against God and then proceeded to tempt man to also disobey God. "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment." (2 Peter 2:4) The angels were at first in communion with God but sadly some of them rebelled against Him "And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." (Jude 1:6) At what time Satan rebelled against God we cannot say. We only know for certain that it was before the events of Genesis 3:1. Satan's manner of operation is to cause people to doubt God and His word. So the serpent said to Eve, "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" Satan wanted Eve to believe that God was wrong in His command or that He had some evil motive in giving the command concerning the tree of knowledge of good and evil. At first Eve responded to the serpent correctly. She told him what God had told Adam before she was created. "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." (Genesis 2:17) She even added, "God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." Either Adam had taught her well or God had restated the commands in her presence. The Devil is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44) He openly lied to Eve. "The serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Satan is a deceiver. He told Eve that she and Adam could be as "gods." Pride is an appealing thing. It led to the condemnation of the Devil. (1 Timothy 3:6) The thought of being like God must have been a prideful thing for Eve also. The fruit looked good and was desirable and so Eve ate it!  Eve's main failure was that she did not believe that God meant what He said. Eve failed God and she failed Adam as his help meet. Interestingly, in the New Testament the blamed for what happened was placed upon Adam. (Romans 5:12, Romans 5:18, and 1 Corinthians 15:22) The immediate result of their sins was stated in these simple words, "And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons." (Genesis 3:7) Let us remember that there is no way we, on our own, can cover or hide our sins!

          The shame caused by sin -- Genesis 3:8-11: Sin brings shame and separation from God. "And they heard the voice 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 amongst the trees of the garden." (Genesis 3:8) Man withdrew from God and tried to hide from Him; it was not God withdrawing from man. The effect of sin is always separation from God. (Isaiah 59:1-2) God has given man the power of choice and has made us aware of what is good and what is evil. Still we, like Adam and Eve, choose disobedience and its consequences.  Man is incapable of running his own life. "O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." (Jeremiah 10:23) Sin makes you ashamed and afraid. Adam said, "I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." (Genesis 3:10) The righteousness of God exposes our sin and we know we have no defense for our disobedience.

          The punishment that resulted from sin -- Genesis 3:12-19: Adam and Eve did not want to take personal responsibility for their actions. When will we ever come to realize that this is my doing; I am responsible? Adam and Eve tried to justify their actions by blaming others. Adam placed the blame on Eve and on God. He said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat." Sadly, Adam would say this even after he, with full knowledge willfully disobeyed God. Eve then blamed the serpent. The woman said, "The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat." She was saying that she was not responsible for her actions. Let us be honest and take responsibility for our actions. Then and only then do we make ourselves available for God's grace and mercy. Every sin must receive proper punishment. "Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward." (Hebrews 2:1-2) God punished the serpent by making him the lowest of the animals. He would crawl on his belly and eat dust. There would be enmity between the woman and the serpent. "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." (Genesis 3:15) Christ would crush the head of Satan with a fatal blow. God punished the woman saying, "I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." Woman would always be in subjection to man. Man would have to sweat and toil in order to have food. Man's life would be difficult as he seeks to make a living for his family. After a difficult life man would die and return to the dust from which he was made.  

          The bleak picture of man being driven from the garden, yet there is hope -- Genesis 3:20-24: Adam believed God so he "called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living." He believed there would be both a human race and a Savior. "Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them." God made a "covering" for man. The covering deals with "atonement." The coverings were made from the skins of animals. There had to be the shedding of blood. This causes us to look to Jesus, the true source of our atonement. Peter wrote, "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." (1 Peter 1:18-19) God drove Adam and Eve from the garden and placed "Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." Man died spiritually that day and physical death also came into the world through sin. "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23) Genesis three provides us with a look at man's sinfulness and a look at God's mercy and grace.