The Fall of Man
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’?” 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.’ ” 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.” 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.
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. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” 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?” Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
Genesis 1:1-13 (NKJV)
Typically, we associate the serpent here with the dragon described in Revelation 12:9 and 20:2 where John reveals to us that Satan and the Devil are one in the same; that "serpent of old." He is further described in Revelation 13:2 as the dragon who gives authority to the beast who rules the world. I believe this is the same creature that rules over the principalities and powers of this age (Ephesians 6:12) and tempted Christ in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-2). I believe Isaiah 14:12 tells us he has fallen from heaven and has weakened the nations; I believe he sought Job's destruction and wagers against the Lord (Job 2:3). But, here in Genesis, Moses describes a creature more cunning than any beast of the field, a beast that has language, and great skill in using it too. I doubt Adam or Eve had ever seen a talking animal before, but maybe they were young and naive. I can only imagine the presence this beast must have commanded: talking smoothly and knowing things he ought not even know. I envision his words captivating, enchanting everybody there, they were hanging on to his every utterance.
Eve's heart desired to be more like God and found the fruit "desirable to make one wise" (v. 6), she took and ate. Her transgression was in her being led astray (1 Tim 2:13-14). The serpent deceived her (v.13), saying things that sounded pleasant to her ears. "Just oblige this small thing that, here hold it in your hands, see you do not die" he could say; "you'll see, you be more like God" justifying it with righteous desire and intent. Her given purpose was to be a helper to Adam, and what greater help than to be wise and like God! I'm sure the devil was a captivating and enchanting host for the forbidden tree. While deception may have influenced the situation for Eve, Adam cannot make the same excuse. His sin was deliberate. It was different in motive and consequence. It was by his sin that death entered the world, not by Eve's. He did nothing as his wife took and ate, death lingering close by. Not a word as she took in the serpent’s guile. When she hands him the fruit, there's no protest, no rebuke, just calm communion with death. God deals differently with deliberate sin, as outlined in the Law in Numbers 15, or in 1 John 5:16 those sins of death and others of unrighteousness. This was the first idolatry. Adam full well knew the command God delivered to him, and chose to follow another, even though it be contrary to God’s. I wonder how many times they walked past the tree, and smelled its nectar in the air, and wondered, and desired from afar. James 1:13-15 tells us that temptation is born of one's own lust.
I think this passage gives us an acute example of Satan's superior knowledge, even of human nature; his familiarity with the Word of God and his perfect lies should soberly remind us of the power this creature yields. The phrasing of his question directly contradicts God's command in 2:17, seemingly nullifying the consequences promised by the Lord. It made room for the offense by taking out of context the freedom that God gave them: to eat freely; eliciting a response that yields keen insight into the heart of the woman. It seems that the spirit of the command was already lost in translation: God told Adam and there being no mention of God telling Eve, I would assume that Adam informed Eve. Certainly, one or both got the revelation severely mixed up in the telling and then almost in unison they acted out a corrupted version of their purpose. They quickly added to the command of God, perverting the Word to mean more than it was given to mean. The Law condemns this practice in Deuteronomy 4:2, while Proverbs 30:5-6 implores us not to add to His word, lest we be rebuked and found a liar. It’s no wonder Christ could rebuke the Pharisaic traditions and rigor as hypocrisy, damning those around them (Matthew 23:15). Isaiah 29 prophesies the same scene in Matthew, describing the Pharisees as seeking “deep to hide their counsel from the Lord.”
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
James 1:13-15 (NKJV)
In today’s culture it is common to claim some moral superiority over the Patriarchs. It is important to understand that moral hindsight is clearer than the challenges we face today. Many would condemn Adam and Eve for a single failure simply because of its cost to the world, yet the reality is more likely that the temptation would have been equally as great for any one of us. 1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us that any temptation we have is not unique; the excuses and feelings we go through are common. I would argue that the human response is equally as prevalent. Shame is the natural response when sin is discovered. Adam’s rebellion was conceived prior, his desire prepared for this moment driving a subtle wedge between him and God. When his wife enticed him, it took little persuasion to birth the sin conceived where his desires lingered, laying bare the giant chasm that had opened between what God had desired for Adam and what Adam had desired for himself.
We hide our shame, as if we can deny its reality, whereas when we choose to trust God, we see the escape from the sin that surrounds us and the resolution to our own failures. We are granted the option to follow Him or to be a slave to death. The Lord knows us in our darkest hour and sees our most repulsive desires, yet beyond our failures He is merciful and desires restoration. His calling out to the man and his wife, to acknowledge their transgression (v11), and to lay it before Him, yet in them no repentance was found. They each blamed the one who sinned before them, they pushed the responsibility of their actions on the failings of others. In a few short words the Lord’s imploring revealed the blackened heart. I find it unimaginable that they could not see their own nakedness, that they could not understand their flesh was exposed; but as it is with all mankind, before God our flesh is exposed, intimately declaring our desires. Still, in my flesh, I choose to perform these deeds secretly as if I’ve deceived the all-knowing. So it must never be before Christ, we’re called to expose our most secret desires so we may face Him humbly, knowing only His mercy can relieve us from judgement. (2 Chronicles 7:14)