THE FALL OF MAN
[Genesis:3:1-24 [1] 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? [2] And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: [3] 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. [4] And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: [5] 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. [6] 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. [7] 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. [8] 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. [9] And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? [10] And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. [11] And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? [12] And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. [13] 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. [14] And 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: [15] 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. [16] Unto the woman he said, 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. [17] And unto Adam he said, 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; [18] Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; [19] 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. [20] And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living. [21] Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them. [22] And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: [23] Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. [24] So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life. ].
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (I Corinthians 15:22).
I The Temptation by the Serpent
1. The subtle doubt was presented to the mind of the woman, [Genesis:3:1Now 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?
]; [Matthew:4:3And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
]; [Revelation:12:9And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
].
2. The woman's reply indicated her knowledge of God's commandment, [Genesis:3:2-3 [2] And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
[3] 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.
]; [Matthew:4:4But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
].
3. The forbidden fruit was represented as something desirable, [Genesis:3:4-5 [4] And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
[5] 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.
]; [Matthew:4:8-10 [8] Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
[9] And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
[10] Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
].
4. Eve and Adam fell into sin by eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, [Genesis:3:6-7 [6] 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.
[7] 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.
]; Roman:5:12-21.
II Adam's and Eve's Excuses for Their Fall
1. Adam and Eve hid themselves from the voice of the Lord, [Genesis:3:8And 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.
].
2. The Lord called, and Adam had to admit his undone state, [Genesis:3:9-10 [9] And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
[10] And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
].
3. Adam attempted to lay the blame upon the woman, [Genesis:3:11-12 [11] And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
[12] And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
].
4. Eve attempted to lay the blame upon the serpent, [Genesis:3:13And 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.
].
III Sin's Penalty and the Messianic Promise
1. The serpent was first to receive God's curse for deception, [Genesis:3:14And 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:
].
2. At this early period of history, God gave the Messianic promise of Christ's coming to redeem lost mankind, [Genesis:3:15And 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.
]; [Matthew:1:21And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
]; [John:3:16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
].
3. The Lord pronounced judgement upon the woman, [Genesis:3:16Unto the woman he said, 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.
].
4. God's curse fell upon man for his part in the transgression, and upon nature as well, [Genesis:3:17-19 [17] And unto Adam he said, 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;
[18] Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
[19] 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.
]; [Ecclesiastes:12:7Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
].
5. Adam and Eve were ejected from the Garden of Eden, [Genesis:3:20-24 [20] And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
[21] Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
[22] And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
[23] Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
[24] So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
].
Satan’s Design
It is the aim of Satan, and has been since the beginning of creation, to bring all humanity into his ranks, to gain absolute control over all the earth, and to set himself up as God. There was no fear between man and beast in the Garden of Eden before sin came in, and it was therefore a part of Satan's subtilty to approach Eve through the serpent, when discussing God's commandment. Satan appeared as an "angel of light," as he continued to do even to this day. Since the fall of man, he takes possession of men who willingly become his ministers and emissaries.
God had placed Adam in the Garden of Eden and made him lord over His handiwork, the virtual prince of this world. It was, no doubt, a part of Satan's design to put Adam down, and make himself prince of this world, which he succeeded in doing through the downfall of man. The fight of right against wrong has been raging in this world ever since. Referring to Satan, Jesus once said, "The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me" [John:14:30Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me. ]).
Seeds of Unbelief
Satan's first cunning step was to approach Eve with a question: "Hath God said?" Eve's answer reveals that she was well aware of God's commandment, and, had Eve kept the true value of that commandment in her heart, all would have been well. But Satan kept right on talking; he did not give the woman a chance to recover her sense of values. A doubt was instilled in Eve's mind regarding what God had said. Then Satan sowed the second seed of unbelief by insinuating that God did not mean what He said: “Thou shalt surely die." Satan followed quickly with the third dose of unbelief, representing to Eve that the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was an item of desire, not only for food, but also for making one wise. The seeds of doubt concerning God's Word entered Eve's heart, and she became an easy tool in the hands of the devil and a useful agent for the downfall of Adam.
The Devil's Pattern
The devil has had approximately 6,000 years in which to learn the best methods to tempt the hearts of men away from God. Through reading the warnings in God's Word upon this matter, and through personal experience, we learn that the devil's methods have not changed much through the years. From Adam's day to this, doubt and unbelief concerning the Word of God has been a besetting sin of humanity. (See [Luke:24:25Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:
].)
Through a study of Satan's methods, much can be learned of the manner and means one must use to avoid his snares. The devil is ever ready to challenge the authority of God and His Word. The devil tries to cast doubt upon the authenticity of the Bible; he tries to say that the Bible contradicts itself; he insinuates that the Bible is not true to present day "facts"; and a thousand and one other arguments does he bring. But the child of God knows that God has spoken and that God cannot lie.
If the devil cannot cause a person to doubt the Word of God itself, then he will try to cast a doubt upon the meaning of what God has spoken. God has plainly said, "The wages of sin is death" [Romans:6:23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. ]); but the devil quickly adds, "Ye shall not surely die." The evil one whispers into the ears of men that they can sin for a long while, then repent just before they die, and all will be as though they had never sinned. God has uncovered the deceitfulness of the devil on this point. Did Adam and Eve go unpunished for their sin? Neither can any other man expect to do so. "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap" [Galatians:6:7Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. ]). Thank God, the mercy of God willingly receives with open arms the repenting sinner, and the grace of God forgives the contrite heart; but too often those who wilfully spurn the love and mercy of God find that the devil drives them to perdition without a stopover. "The wicked . . . shall be driven from light into darkness, and chased out of the world" [Job:18:5Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine. ], [Job:18:18He shall be driven from light into darkness, and chased out of the world. ]). God means exactly what He said, and those who please Him will order their lives according to what "Thus saith the Lord."
Seemingly Desirable
Failing in his other attempts to draw the hearts of men away from God, the devil will try to make sin appear as a thing very desirable. He told Eve that the forbidden fruit would open her eyes and make her wise, that God was actually withholding much good from her and Adam by His commandment. The devil represented to the woman that she would know good and evil if she would only partake of the tree; but what was the result? Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and she gave of the fruit to Adam, and he ate also. Their eyes were opened, truly, but what they saw was their nakedness, their shame, and their undone condition before God. Were they wiser than before? Yes, they were wiser -- in a very depraved way. Did they have the knowledge of good and evil? Yes, to their sorrow. They had the knowledge of good through the loss of it, and they had the knowledge of evil through the sense and guilt of it. Sin is a thing never, never to be desired!
Placing the Guilt
Adam set the pace, and seemingly all his children have followed his footsteps, in trying to place the blame of sin upon another person: "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat." God turned to the woman, and immediately she accused the serpent of beguiling her and causing her to eat. God directed His attention to the serpent and meted out judgement and a curse to that subtle creature for allowing the devil to use him as a cloak.
Adam and Eve may have thought for a few moments that their excuses were valid and sufficient, for the Lord turned from the one to the other and then to the serpent. In like manner, today, because in great mercy God does not bring immediate judgement, many people are fooled in the thought that they are getting away with their sins in the sight of God. "Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil" [Ecclesiastes:8:11Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. ]).
"Be sure your sin will find you out" [Numbers:32:23But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out. ]). Judgement upon Adam and Eve may have been delayed a few moments, but it was certain to fall upon them. God has made ample provision for the salvation of man's immortal soul today; therefore no excuse for sin is valid in the sight of God. Men may try to hide behind a refuge of lies, but God will sweep the refuge away [Isaiah:28:15Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: ], [Isaiah:28:17Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. ]). Many will come to God's judgement with their sins following after them, and they will stand before God speechless and without excuse.
Terrible Cost
Adam and Eve would have given the world, no doubt, if they could have undone in that instant the sin that they had committed; but the die was cast. Through sin their downfall was complete. Adam lost the righteousness and true holiness in which he was created. He lost his purity of heart and mind. He lost his fellowship and sweet communion with God. He lost his high estate as prince over God's creation and was ejected from the Garden of Eden. He lost his righteous Lord and Master; and came under the dominion of a cruel taskmaster, with an inevitable death facing him, as Cod had pronounced [Genesis:5:5And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
]). Toil and sorrow attended him and Eve the remaining days that they lived. The effects of Adam's sin were not limited to him and to Eve, nor to their immediate children. Through Adam, sin passed to all humanity [Romans:5:19For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
]). Adam not only lost the blessings which God bestowed upon him, but a sinful nature was conceived in his heart, which was passed on to his posterity as an inheritance [Psalms:51:5Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
]). That was not all. God pronounced a curse upon the fields, upon the grass, upon the trees, and upon the beasts. A semblance of beauty still continues in this earth, but God's curse is upon it. War and famine and plagues are the result of sin. Sickness, sorrow, disease, and death are in the world because of sin.
The fearful scope of the curse which Adam's sin brought upon this poor world may appear to some to be all out of proportion to the seeming lightness of his transgression. But the exceeding sinfulness of sin is not to be measured alone by either the apparent lightness or the heinousness of one transgression. The seriousness of Adam's transgression is that it consisted of a willful breaking of God's commandment, and that is rebellion against God. Men today are minimizing sin, but no man can treat lightly the commandments of God and retain God's favour, any more than Adam retained God's favour.
Beam of Light
A verse here, [Genesis:3:15And 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.
]) written into this dark picture of sin, sheds a beam of light for lost humanity. In this verse is revealed God's wonderful mercy. No sooner did the fall occur than God disclosed a way back to the Father's house. This is the first verse in Scripture pointing to Christ, the Redeemer of men. Through Him the "image" lost by the fall is to be restored. "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God" ([1 John:3:1Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
]).
The promised Messiah is here called the seed of the woman, because in the fullness of time, in His incarnation. Jesus Christ was born of a virgin and took upon Himself the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men [Philippians:2:6-9 [6] Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: [7] But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: [8] And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. [9] Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: ]). Even though first in the transgression, the woman was honoured of God as the one through whom the Holy Child was brought forth. As God had said, Satan bruised Christ's heel when Jesus was crucified for the sins of the world; but Satan's head was bruised when Jesus arose from the dead, triumphant over death, hell, and the grave. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, in redeeming believing men from sin [John:3:16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. ]), has continued to deal the stunning blow to the archenemy of God. One day the Lord will complete the conquest; for the devil, and death, and hell will be cast into the lake of fire to be tormented day and night for ever and ever [Revelation:20:10And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. ], [Revelation:20:14And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. ]).
1. Whence came the subtilty and power of speech, which the serpent in the Garden possessed?
2. With what question did the serpent approach Eve?
3. What is the Bible definition of sin?
4. Wherein consisted the sin when Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
5. What were the curses, which God pronounced because of their sin?
6. What was the promise, which God also made at this time?
7. What effect did that sin in the Garden of Eden have upon all humanity?
8. What was the object of Satan in bringing about the downfall of man?
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