The Woman and the Serpent

Genesis 3:

Describes the fall of man into sin

Narrative of the temptation that came to Adam & Eve

The OT:

Begins by describing God as creator, and the relationship he has with us, his creation.

And when SIN, DISRUPTED that relationship… SEVERING us from God ETERNALLY… one might expect the scripture to end at Gen 3:14, and we would expect it to say: “And God, DESTROYED the heaven and the earth and EVERYTHING in it, once human beings rebelled against His divine authority”

But INSTEAD, He makes a promise. TO spare/rescue/redeem/save his fallen creatures

Context:

The record of God cursing the serpent who seduced Adam and Eve

Genesis 3:14–15 (NASB95)

The Lord God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

Cursed are you more than all cattle,

And more than every beast of the field;

On your belly you will go,

And dust you will eat

All the days of your life;

And I will put enmity

Between you and the woman,

And between your seed and her seed;

He shall bruise you on the head,

And you shall bruise him on the heel.”

Facts:

Enmity

“I am going to put ENMITY…”

…Hatred/alienation/estrangement between your seed and hers.”

Eve and Satan had been friendly! Conversed with one another! She took his advice!

The friendship of sinners doesn’t last long. How can we as Christians, STAND to allow the presence of sin so often?

So God separated them, put enmity between them… and would raise up a seed to war against Satan

A spiritual seed!

Romans 9:8 “8 It is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.”

A Champion

One from the seed of the woman… one that will oppose the dragon, HE will champion the cause!

That seed is the Lord Jesus Christ

Micah 5:2–3 “2 “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.” 3 Therefore He will give them up until the time When she who is in labor has borne a child.”

Who else could this refer to?

Isaiah 9:6 “6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.”

And He lived PERFECTLY according to the moral law of God and on the CROSS he EXCECUTED SIN once and for all, crushing the head of Satan!

Revelation 12:9–10 “9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.”

God speaks here of a unique descendant/seed from the woman, who at some point in the future will COME, and STEP ON the snake!

To GRIND it in the earth!

To CRUSH it into death!

Giving it a mortal and fatal wound.

A Bruised Heel

In the process of destroying the evil one, the seed of the woman, will Himself be wounded.

As He uses His foot to crush the head of the serpent, His own heel, will be bruised.

You may remember Mary as she bring her child Jesus to the temple in Luke 2, remember what Simeon told her?

Luke 2:35 (NASB95)“… and a sword will pierce even your own soul”

That looked forward to the cross… where Mary stood at the foot of the cross… and watched her son be BRUISED.

Agony… Pain… Shame

His heel, His flesh… bruised for our iniquities

Isaiah 53:3–6 “3 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. 6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.”

Though Christ died. Though the old serpent indeed bruised the heel of our Lord in death, the champion RISES from the grave!! His body not having seen corruption!!

A Crushed Head

As Christ rose, defeating the grave, He also defeated the death that you and I deserve.

Satan’s power, stripped. Foiled

Oh death, where is thy sting? Oh grave where is thy voctory?

This is a prophesy! God is NOT saying the Eve is going to crush the serpents head… but a future event/CONTEST between a descendant of Eve, and the descendants of the serpent.

It is the ultimate conflict between good and evil that is forecast here in these words

The first gospel was preached in Eden.

The first gospel/promise of the coming Redeemer