Day 105

Of the fall of Man, of Sin, and of the Punishment thereof.

Chapter 6, Paragraph 1.

“...yet he did not long abide in this honour; Satan using the subtlety of the serpent to seduce Eve, then by her seducing Adam, who, without any compulsion, did willfully transgress the Law of their Creation, and the command given to them, in eating the forbidden fruit; which God was pleased according to His wise and holy Counsel to permit, having purposed to order it, to his own glory.“

Scripture Lookup

Genesis 3:12,13

2 Corinthians 11:3

Reflection

The paradise of Eden did not last. God had commanded Adam, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day you eat from it you shall surely die.” (Genesis 2:16,17). Immediately following the command of God we read of the creation of Eve, a helper suitable to Adam. Their relationship with each other and with God was harmonious.

Satan, however, through the serpent questioned Eve about God’s command. Notice in Genesis 3:1 how he turned God’s command on its head: “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden?'” We as readers know that this is not true, and Eve did as well. Yet in her answer to the serpent she showed her weakness. For she added that not only eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but touching it as well would lead to death. While no disobedience had yet occurred, there was already confusion as to what was God’s command.

What deceit from the serpent! He not only contradicted God’s word – “You surely shall not die!” – but he appealed to a desire that on the surface seems reasonable – “you will be like God”. Isn’t being like God, the holy and wise Being, a noble endeavor? Eve saw that the tree was desirable to make one wise, so she ate from it. Foolish Eve! She encouraged her husband to eat, and he freely did so. They broke God’s law. Sin had entered into paradise.

We may shake our heads at the naivete of Eve, or try to make excuses for her. Yet how often are we amiss at knowing God’s word? How often do we hear professing Christians justifying questionable actions that God has not commanded or has even forbidden as attempting to be more godly? “God knows my heart.” We must be sure that we understand what God has commanded, and we must be sure that we obey His commands, not what we think would please Him. Thankfully, He has given us His Spirit to guide us into all truth and to enable us to obey. To Him be the glory.

Questions to Consider

• Are you treasuring God’s word in your heart that you might not sin against Him (Psalm 119:11)?