Sunday, October 7, 2018 Lesson: Genesis 3:1-13; Time of Action: Nobody knows; Place of Action: Garden of Eden Golden Text: And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat (Genesis 3:6). I. INTRODUCTION. One of the hardest lessons to learn is to admit when we are wrong or that we are to blame. The old blame game has been around for a long time. In fact, it started with Adam and Eve, and many of us are guilty of playing it as well. The Scripture for this week s lesson tells us about the first pair of humans and how they started the blame game. As we study this text we will see how that went. Their behavior is the heart of the lesson. II. BACKGROUND FOR THE LESSON. In Genesis 1:31 we have a review and approval of God s completed work. In chapter 2 from which our lesson comes, we have the institution and sanctification of the Sabbath, which was made
for man, to further his holiness and comfort (see Genesis 2:1-3). A more detailed account of man s creation, as the center and summary of the whole work is found in (see Genesis 2:1-7). A description of the Garden of Eden, and the placing of man in it (see Genesis 2:8-15) under the obligations of a law and covenant is given when God commanded Adam saying Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 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 (see Genesis 2:16-17). The creation of the woman, her marriage to the man, and the institution of the ordinance of marriage is found in (see Genesis 2:18-25). Our lesson begins with chapter 3. III. THE SUBTLETIES OF TEMPTATION (Genesis 3:1-5) A. The serpent s attack (Genesis 3:1). Our first verse says Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? The account of Eve s temptation begins without any introductory explanation. We have no hint as to how long Adam and Eve lived in blissful innocence; nor do we know how the tempter came to use a serpent as his mouthpiece. This verse simply begins describing the serpent: Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. The word subtil means clever or crafty. This does not imply that the serpent had an innately evil
craftiness because God had earlier declared that all creation was good. But the serpent s cleverness was used by Satan for his own purpose. Note: Satan is a clever imitator who disguises his true character. He is the great impersonator who has also produced counterfeit or false ministers (see II Corinthians 11:13-15) who preach a false gospel (see Galatians 1:6-10), and he has false brothers (and sisters) who oppose the true gospel (see II Corinthians 11:26). If necessary, he can even masquerade as an angel of light (see II Corinthians 11:14). When Satan came into the Garden, he used the body of a serpent, one of God s creatures that He had pronounced good (see Genesis 1:31). The serpent in this verse is the same as the old serpent of Revelation 12:9 and 20:2. He is also known as Satan (see Job 1:6-12; Matthew 4:10), the devil (see Matthew 4:1-11; I Peter 5:8) and Lucifer (see Isaiah 14:12). Apparently in the Garden of Eden, the devil was able to possess a snake s body. Satan, as a fallen angel was the author of sin who first sinned himself and fell from heaven (see Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Luke 10:18). After Satan is introduced as the serpent, this verse goes on to say And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? The first step in the temptation and deception was to question God s statement. The devil was asking: Is it true that God said you can t eat from every tree in the garden? The real answer of course was no, God didn t say that. What God said was Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat (see Genesis 2:16). Questioning God s word as the absolute truth is the first step toward sin. With this question, Satan wanted to put a seed of doubt in Eve s mind about
God s goodness. We must not think that snakes could speak in Eden. It was only through Satan s power that this happened. Notice that the devil approached Eve while she was alone. If she had stayed close to the side of Adam out of which she was taken, maybe she would not have been so easily tempted. Being in solitude or alone can lead to many temptations, but the fellowship of saints contributes much to their strength and safety. Satan also approached Eve rather than Adam because the command not to eat the forbidden fruit was given to Adam and not to Eve (see Genesis 2:15-16). In addition, the serpent knew when Eve would be alone and vulnerable. Note: We may wonder why God permitted this temptation. Surely He knew what would happen. God had created humans with wills to obey Him voluntarily and this necessarily included the risk that they might also disobey. He could have avoided this risk by programming them to obey Him in all things, but that would have eliminated man s fellowship and service to be willingly and intelligently given to God. B. The woman s answer (Genesis 3:2-3). 1. (vs. 2). This verse says And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. Eve didn t seem to be bothered by the serpent s presence or its speech, so we can assume that she saw nothing threatening about this encounter. Oftentimes when we are tempted by a situation, we may not see anything wrong at the time either. But we must be aware of the devil s wiles and prepared for them (see Ephesians 6:11). In
her reply to Satan s attack, Eve quoted God s instructions. She first assured him that We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. But she left out the word freely (see 2:16) which revealed God s great generosity in allowing them to eat from every other tree in the garden. Her response reveals that she was beginning to take Satan s bait. 2. (vs. 3). In this verse, Eve continued to say to Satan But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. The the tree which is in the midst of the garden refers to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (see Genesis 2:9, 17). God had placed it there as a test of obedience and trust. He didn t give Adam any reason why he couldn t eat the fruit from this tree, but God required Adam, as He does us, to believe that He knew what was best for him. Regarding this tree, Eve told Satan that God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. She added to what God had said by claiming that she and Adam were not to even touch the tree. While it may be true that touching the fruit of the tree could increase her temptation, the fact is that God didn t tell them that they couldn t touch it. But what God said to Adam was that if he ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, he would surely die (see Genesis 2:17). Eve had already left out the word freely when quoting God s command; now she added something that God did not say about the tree when she said, neither shall ye touch it. Therefore, she made God s command greater than He had stated it. Finally, she said lest you die, which presents a possibility of death, instead of You
shall surely die which presents a certainty of death. So, Eve took from God s Word by omitting the word freely, and she added to God s Word when she said God said neither shall ye touch it; and she also changed God s Word when she quoted God as saying lest you die instead of You shall surely die. Note: For sure, diminishing or taking away from God s Word, adding to God s Word, or changing God s Word (see Deuteronomy 4:2; 12:32; Proverbs 30:6; Matthew 15:3-6; Revelation 22:19) are serious offenses. There are many people who would fault Eve for what they see as purposely adding to and taking from God s Word. This is based on the assumption that God never said Adam and Eve could not touch this tree or its fruit. But we need to remember that Eve was there and we were not. We don t know all that God told the first couple. Eve s sin was taking and eating the fruit, not in stretching the truth. That being said, what we have in Genesis is exactly what God wanted us to know. Whether or not Eve knew what she was doing with God s Word is not the point. The point is, we now know that misusing God s Word in any way is wrong and must be avoided. C. The serpent s accusation (Genesis 3:4-5). 1. (vs. 4). This verse says And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die. Sensing that Eve was vulnerable to temptation, Satan abandoned his questions and insinuations and blatantly contradicted what God had said which was in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (see Genesis 2:17). But Satan denied
that statement flatly saying Ye shall not surely die. He put his own word against God s word and challenged Eve to believe him instead of God. According to Satan, God didn t know what He was talking about. But Satan is a liar (see John 8:44) and God is the God of truth (Deuteronomy 32:4), and our response to what God says should be, I esteem (or consider) all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way (see Psalms 119:128). Note: In hind sight, like us, at this point Eve should have reminded herself of God s Word (see Matthew 4:1-11), believed it, left the serpent, and found her husband. It s when we linger at the place of temptation that we get into trouble, especially when we know what we re thinking is contrary to God s truth. God s truth is our shield and buckler (see Psalms 91:4), but it protects us only if we take it by faith and use it. 2. (vs. 5). Satan continued to say to Eve in this verse 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 declared that God gave this prohibition because He didn t want Adam and Eve to become all that they could be. Satan said that when they ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, their eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. This is a promise that would get anybody s attention! The word gods translates the Hebrew word Elohim, which in many cases is translated God. No doubt this is the meaning here. According to Satan, Adam and Eve would be as God, having the same knowledge of good and evil that He has. Satan declared that God knew this and that s why
He forbade them to eat the fruit from this tree. The tempter s claim was partially true; their eyes would be opened to know good and evil. But they couldn t become as God by eating, because the only way they could know evil was to do it. Having once committed evil, they could not be holy as God is holy. The devil s partial truths covered a monstrous lie. And truth be told, that s all a partial truth is a lie. Note: Satan does not fight fairly when he tempts people to sin. As his accusation of God shows, he will boldly lie about God s words and motives. Satan is a deceitful and dangerous foe whose purpose is to destroy God s plan and His people. Whenever Satan can get us to doubt God s goodness, truthfulness, and righteousness, we are susceptible to his enticements. He always weaves together elements of truth and falsehood in order to make his lures believable. His intent is always to deceive. IV. THE DECISION OF SIN (Genesis 3:6-7) A. Violation of God s command (Genesis 3:6). This verse says And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. Satan s arguments began to sway Eve s mind and she most likely saw the tree as something desirable that God had unjustly withheld from them. The Bible teaches that we are tempted to sin in three
ways and all three are found in what Eve did: (1) the lust of the flesh, (2) the lust of the eyes, and (3) the pride of life (see I John 2:16). Jesus was also tempted in these three areas, but He did not sin (see Matthew 4:1-11). Notice that Eve observed first that the tree was good for food. This was the lust of the flesh. This tree may have indeed been good for food, but God had given other trees for food and forbidden this one. Eve didn t need its fruit; she merely lusted after it. She also saw that the tree was pleasant to the eyes. This was the lust of the eyes, a craving for the attractive things the eyes behold. Finally, Eve saw the tree as something to be desired to make one wise. With this she manifested the pride of life. She believed Satan s lie that eating would give her the same knowledge of good and evil that God had, and she wanted this wisdom for herself. Eve thought she was indulging in a pleasurable activity, but she was deceived. She responded to all three temptations without consulting either God or Adam, so she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat. Eve was not content to eat the forbidden fruit herself so she gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. Adam may have done so because he saw that no immediate harm had come to his wife. However, in eating, Adam deliberately ignored God s command and warning of death. Note: Actually, Adam s sin was even more damaging because he was not deceived, but he made a deliberate choice to disobey God (see I Timothy 2:14). Adam had received the command directly from God (see Genesis 2:17), and when he sinned he represented the whole human race before the Lord. Scripture traces mankind s sin to Adam, not Eve. He is the one man (see Romans 5:12)
through whom sin and death entered the world (see I Corinthians 15:22), because the whole human race came from him. By his sin, death infected the entire world. It took the death of the last Adam, Jesus Christ to provide life for humanity (see Romans 5:12-21; I Corinthians 15:20-22). B. Awareness of nakedness (Genesis 3:7). This verse says 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. When Adam and Eve disobeyed by eating the fruit, just as Satan had predicted (see Genesis 3:5), the eyes of them both were opened. But instead of seeing themselves and their world from God s viewpoint, they could see only from the perspective of disobedience. We are told that they knew that they were naked. Far from receiving enjoyment, the first notable consequence of the act of disobedience was the shame of nakedness. Adam and Eve had not changed outwardly; their bodies were still the perfect handiwork of God. But now their impure minds made their bodies seem impure as well, and they were ashamed (see Titus 1:15). As a result, they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons or coverings for their loins. V. THE DENIAL OF SIN (Genesis 3:8-13) A. Hiding from God (Genesis 3:8-9).
1. (vs. 8). After making aprons to cover themselves this verse says 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. All of a sudden their shame from being naked quickly turned into fear when the guilty couple heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden. The word voice here more likely means sound. Note: The Lord is pictured here as walking around in the garden. This may be figurative language to describe His presence, or an indication of a theophany an appearance of God in human or angelic form (see Genesis 16:7-13; 18:1-33; Judges 6:12-16). However, saying that God was walking is more likely an anthropomorphism which means applying human qualities to God. As we know, God is a Spirit and as such He has no limitations like legs, arms, eyes or ears (see Deuteronomy 5:15; Psalms 11:4; 34:15; Isaiah 52:10; 53:1). The writers of the Scriptures used those terms to describe God s actions to help us better understand who He is. The way God s presence in the garden is introduced implies that walking in the garden was something God did regularly. It s noteworthy that Adam and Eve immediately recognized God s presence probably because of past experiences with Him. The phrase in the cool of the day refers to the time of the day when breezes would normally come up which was probably the evening. Prior to this, Adam and Eve had greatly enjoyed their encounters with their Maker; but now, they hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of
the garden. The guilty consciences of Adam and Eve prompted them to hide from God, just like a disobedient child tries to avoid his or her parents. Up to this time, Adam and Eve had enjoyed an intimate, delightful relationship with the Lord, but their sin had ended that! Instead of seeking time with the Lord, they wanted to stay away from Him. In their futile attempt to avoid God, they hid themselves amongst the trees of the garden. Since that day, sin-conscious people have frequently reacted the same way to God s immediate presence (see Isaiah 29:15), forgetting that He knows all and sees all (see Psalms 139:7-12). Note: Sin breaks fellowship with God. This leads to fear, which leads to avoidance of our responsibilities to Him. God had promised death for disobedience (see Genesis 2:17). Death means separation. In addition to eventual physical death, spiritual death came on Adam and Eve (see Romans 5:12). They became separated from God. How sad it is that a human being who was designed for fellowship with God would want to hide from Him. Sin makes the difference! Sin quickly turns to guilt, which in turn leads to hiding. Since we can t hide from God, we need the courage to meet Him face-to-face and confess our sin (see I John 1:9). 2. (vs. 9). Here Moses writes And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? Although these sinners sought to avoid God, He did not abandon them for the Lord God called unto Adam. This is an anthropomorphic (meaning giving God human qualities) way of describing God as calling out to Adam as if He
couldn t find him. God called out to Adam asking Where art thou? not because He didn t know where he was, but because He wanted Adam to think about what he was doing. Of course God knew exactly where they were. The question Where art thou? is always God s invitation to sinners to take stock of their lives. God loved Adam and Eve just as He loves us today. He is not willing that any one of us should perish (see II Peter 3:9), yet many run and try to hide. Note: One of the great truths taught throughout the Bible is that God takes the initiative to seek out sinners. Jesus said, For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost (see Luke 19:10). Because He is gracious, God reaches out to undeserving sinners in order to rescue them. Through His Son, Jesus Christ, God offers His unconditional love to sinful man (see John 3:16). God loved man so much and desires fellowship with him to such a high degree that He provided the way back through the death of His only begotten Son. No matter how horrible the sin, God wants us back. The Lord knew all about what Adam and Eve had done; nevertheless, He came into the garden and called for Adam. By doing this, God was giving Adam an opportunity to come out of hiding and face the fact of his sin. In the same way, God reaches out to us in our sin because He wants to save and restore us (see I John 1:8-9). B. God s confronts Adam (Genesis 3:10-11). 1. (vs. 10). Realizing that he was busted, so to speak, Adam answered God s question. He said, I heard
thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. Adam gave the weak explanation that he hid in fear because he was naked. This reason seemed logical in Adam s now sinful mind. Prior to his disobedience, Adam s nakedness had not been a problem during his meetings with God, but it was a weak excuse now. The truth is, his nakedness had never been a problem until guilt and shame entered his life as a result of sin. 2. (vs. 11). God then asked Adam Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? Adam had been without clothes since the beginning, and until now he considered that to be normal. So God asked Who told thee that thou wast naked? God was really asking Adam who had put the idea that nakedness was abnormal into his mind. Of course no one had told Adam this. The idea of being ashamed of his nakedness came from within Adam himself as a result of his disobedience, and his new sinful nature. God questioned Adam further: Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? God knew that the only possible explanation for Adam s fear and shame was sin. And the only sin that Adam could have committed was disobeying God s command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Note: The intent of God s questions was to drive Adam to admit his guilt. By posing these two questions, God demonstrated His grace to sinful Adam. He gave Adam an opportunity to confess his disobedience and ask for forgiveness. Even when God
confronts us because of our sin, His compassion still reaches out to restore us. God wants people to acknowledge their sinful condition and confess their sins. Then He is more than willing to forgive them, cleanse them, and give them another chance (see I John 1:9). C. Blaming the woman (Genesis 3:12). In response to God s question, Moses writes And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. At this point another characteristic of a sinful heart arises an attempt to transfer blame from ourselves to someone else. Adam told God that The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. Adam admitted that he had eaten the fruit, but he refused to take full responsibility for what he knew was wrong. For some reason, the hardest words for people to say seem to be I was wrong. Will you please forgive me? Undoubtedly this was hard for Adam to say in whatever language he spoke, because he immediately pointed the finger at Eve instead of accepting responsibility for his own actions. In addition, when Adam said The woman whom thou gavest to be with me he was blaming God as well. The implication was that if God had not given him this woman, he might not have disobeyed. Earlier Adam had been delighted with the partner God had given him (see Genesis 2:23), but now that they had become partners in sin, there was no more talk of bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. Instead, he implied that God s creation of woman was flawed. In his sinful condition, Adam forgot about all the benefits of God s gift of woman, and it also revealed that he
lacked love for both God and Eve. D. Blaming the serpent (Genesis 3:13). Our final verse says And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. God now probed the accusation Adam had made against his wife. When God asked Eve What is this that thou hast done? He was giving Eve a chance to confess and seek His forgiveness. Eve followed Adam s example and like her husband she attempted to shift some of the blame away from herself. She said The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. Again, like Adam she admitted that she had eaten the fruit, but she refused to carry the full responsibility for doing so. She blamed the serpent that had beguiled or deceived her. Eve considered herself to be a victim, defenseless in the face of the serpent s deception. Note: There is a joke among people to say The devil made me do it when faced with a wrongdoing. In Eve s case that s exactly what she said when she blamed the serpent. Satan had used the serpent to tempt Eve. The truth is that no one made anyone sin in this whole account. And in the overall scheme of things, no one can make anyone sin; it s a choice. The devil has no power over the believer to make him or her sin (see I John 4:4) however, he can influence one to sin (see Acts 10:38), but it still remains a choice. VI. Conclusion. Do you remember your most serious
encounter with sin? Sin is rebellion against God, and it produces devastating results. It may seem attractive at first, but sin brings bitterness in the end. Proverbs 16:25 says There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. We often blame others for leading us into sins so as to remove our guilt. Not until we confess our sins (see I John 1:9) and recognize our own responsibility for them will we find God s forgiveness and joy in life. God knew that Adam and Eve stood self-condemned although they tried to blame someone else for their sin. Even so, God meted out judgments on the serpent (see Genesis 3:14-15), the woman (see Genesis 3:16), and the man (see Genesis 3:17-19). The judgment on Adam also involved a curse on the environment. To this day we live under the influence of those judgments. Only when Jesus returns will those curses be removed and earthly life fulfills its destiny (see Romans 8:18-23). ***The Bible Expositor and Illuminator, Union Gospel Press***