GENESIS 3:1-22 THE FALL
What happened to the Creation that God declared was “very good”? In one word, it was S-I-N. We could say that is an acronym for: Satan Is Naughty – but “Naughty” is not nearly strong enough a word to describe this powerful enemy of God.
The Satan (a Hebrew word meaning adversary) came to the Woman and began to ask her about restrictions God had placed on her and her husband. He came in the form of a serpent, although the serpent was a manifestation of the evil one. His question had a “spin” that would cause a questioning of the goodness of God.
“Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”
He makes it sound like forbidding one fruit prohibited all fruits, doesn’t he? God actually said, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen 2:16-17).
She pointed this out to the serpent who continued by directly contradicting what God had said: “You will NOT surely die,” adding “for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
“Knowing good and evil” does not mean knowing that there is such a thing as good and something else that is evil. It means she would be able to know within herself what is good or evil – without any reference to God.
God wants his people to be able to discern good and evil (see Hebrews 5:14), but he also says it is not in man who walks to direct his steps (Jeremiah 10:23). The temptation was to desire wisdom to determine good and evil for herself without any reference to God. In other words, she would be able to direct her steps without the discernment that would come through God’s instruction.
What happened as a result?
· Shame came into the world, for they knew they were naked.
· Fear entered the world, for they did not want God to see them naked.
· Blame arrived in the world, for each passed responsibility to another.
· This meant animosity, rivalry and enmity soon followed.
· Pain moved into the world, as labor in childbearing became difficult.
· Conflict between the husband and wife corrupted the peace of Eden.
· The earth itself was cursed with thorns and thistles making man’s work toilsome, sweaty labor.
Even here, though, God promised a day would come when one would “bruise the head of the serpent,” pointing to the purpose of the story as God would reverse the curse.
But we have much to see as the story develops. Since man wanted to make it without God, God let him try – with disastrous results so bad God determined to destroy man from the face of the earth.