Eviction/Despair

Recap:

Yesterday we talked about man’s longing for Eden - for what was lost

I ran out of time before I could talk about what it was that was lost so I will attempt to quickly go through some of that before moving on to the next section.

In this four day study I want us to see four things from this using the term EDEN as an acronym:

E= Eviction or Exile

D=Despair & Disappointment

E=Emmanuel

N=New Creation

I want to take us on a journey from Genesis 1-3 to Revelation 21-22 and see Jesus as our Great Restorer of Eden

The Eviction is one of the saddest portions of scripture to me:

Genesis 3:24 KJV 1900

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.

That Hebrew word we translate “drove” is not just a neutral "sent away." It’s a forceful banishment—a severing of intimacy and place. This word underscores:

The seriousness of sin—there are consequences.

The loss of sacred space—the garden represents God’s presence.

The tragic rupture in the relationship between humanity and God.

This EVICTION from EDEN - brought about so many things:

THE RESULTS of the FALL -

I. Immediate Spiritual and Relational Consequences (Genesis 3)

1. Loss of Innocence

Genesis 3:7 – “Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked…”

Shame enters where once there was innocence.

2. Fear and Hiding from God

Genesis 3:8–10 – “I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

The intimacy between humanity and God is broken.

3. Blame-Shifting

Genesis 3:12–13 – Adam blames Eve; Eve blames the serpent.

Harmony between people is fractured.

II. Consequences on Creation and Human Existence

4. Curses Pronounced by God (Genesis 3:14–19)

Serpent: Cursed above all beasts, destined to crawl and be crushed (v. 14–15)

Woman: Increased pain in childbirth, relational struggle (v. 16)

Man: Ground cursed, toil and sweat to eat (v. 17–19)

Holiness: A Biblical, Historical, and Systematic Theology Excursus: The Sabbath Is Holy

As a result of their disobedience, God pronounces a curse against Adam and Eve (

I think part of our hunger for Eden can be seen in our thirst for creature comforts:

I love this enclosed tabernacle for several reasons -

One of the main ones is the air conditioning - boy that is nice - to sit in here at campmeeting and not wear your elbow out fanning

To be able to focus on the Word and enjoy the music and worship God without all the sweat dripping down your face

The padded pews - my shirt doesn’t stick to the bench every time I try to get up.

Far less unwelcomed guests

Many of you knew Bro. John Preston - perhaps his brother David Preston wasn’t as well known - but I often looked to him as the keeper of the Fly Swatter.

It didn’t matter if you were eating lunch, or in the middle of hot fiery sermon - if he saw a fly, or bug he was going to squash it, smash it, stomp on it, or in Texas they had wood bees in their tabernacle some times - I’ve seen him break off a little stick and put it in the holes the bee had bore in the wood after he saw the bee enter it.

But I don’t miss having to constantly swat at, shoo away all of those bugs

Many of those pesty bugs I believe are part of the fall are part of the curse

Sometimes we joke - “Why didn’t Noah swat those two mosquito’s on the ark? Well I don’t know if there were mosquito’s on the ark or not - but they sure can be a pain.

The story is told of Macarius of Alexandria one of the Dessert Fathers who was so penitent after having killed a mosquito that he went and lived for six months in a swamp going naked allowing the insects to sting him as a way of disciplining his body and showing repentance.

History records that When others found him, his body was so swollen from bites that he was nearly unrecognizable.. History records that

The story is reported in several sources from that era - but Joseph Grant Morrison called it The Mosquito Scourge.

He tells about a campmeeting along the banks for the James River that was attempted. and they had more in attendance than people

One described them colorfully like this: “And the mosquitoes -- they were a terrible scourge! Great, wide-winged,long-legged, sharp stinging, loud humming creatures of the "galnipper" variety, were in evidence during those trying days. Great swarms of them would even come up from the woods, as welcoming committees to the campmeeting folks as they arrived. These solicitous clouds of insects would follow one from the city limits to the camp, pointedly pressing their interested inquiries into the physical condition of the attendants.”

It was so bad - Uncle Bud Robinson was the main preacher he commented, “ that they were so big that "a good many of them would weigh a pound."

As Uncle Bud was beginning to preach - breathed one into his mouth - and began to spit vigorously.

They finally had to get two young men to stand by “Uncle Bud” and wave off the mosquito’s while he preached.

What am I talking about - Mosquitos - no - the curse

but it wasn’t just he mosquitos -the curse went beyond just flesh biting, blood sucking pesty bugs

Even the ground was cursed -

I tell you if my family’s food source depended on my agricultural ability - I sure wouldn’t be this overweight.

I seem to do more harm than good to plants - but that is part of the curse

5. Death Enters the Human Experience

Genesis 2:17 – “You shall surely die”

Genesis 3:19 – “Dust you are, and to dust you shall return”

Physical and spiritual death begin.

Man is longing - looking for ways to extend life, to regenerate life - to bring back Eden

III. Separation from God and Paradise

6. Expulsion from Eden

Genesis 3:23–24 – “So He drove out the man…”

Separation from the Tree of Life and God’s immediate presence.

IV. Long-Term Effects in Humanity and History

7. Sin Nature Passed to All Humanity

Romans 5:12 – “Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin…”

Psalm 51:5 – “In sin did my mother conceive me”

All are born with a sinful nature.

8. Universal Death

Romans 6:23 – “The wages of sin is death…”

Romans 6:23 KJV 1900

23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 15:22 – “In Adam all die…”

1 Corinthians 15:22 KJV 1900

22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

9. Enmity Between Man and Evil

Genesis 3:15 – The protoevangelium: enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent.

Genesis 3:15 KJV 1900

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.

I love that our God - in the midst of passing judgment and a curse upon the world - gives us a glimmer of hope - a hope that was so impactful to Eve that she named her child after this.

A promise of a future Redeemer even amid judgment.

V. Theological and Redemptive Implications

10. Need for Atonement and Redemption

Genesis 3:21 – God clothes them with animal skins (the first shedding of blood).

Hebrews 9:22 – “Without the shedding of blood there is no remission.”

11. Christ as the Second Adam

Romans 5:18–19 – “As through one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also through one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.”

1 Corinthians 15:45 – “The first man Adam became a living being. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.”

We have already hinted at were we are going with some of this - but I hope I have driven home the real and terrible situation that mankind is in without God -

In that eviction from Eden we are now longing, hoping, reaching desiring a return

Three times Paul talks about this in the New Testament:

Romans 8:22–23 KJV 1900

22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

2 Corinthians 5:2 KJV 1900

2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:

2 Corinthians 5:4 KJV 1900

4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.

I don’t know how profound this is - but this is exciting and interesting to me - to realize that redemption was not just for humanity

There is a push in some sectors of our society for transhumanism - the next phase in humanistic evolution

Part of this ideaology includes human augmentation or combining humanity with technology - some I heard on a podcast the other day were even speculating that we will evolve into robotic or ai created beings - well I will leave that to the speculators and conspirators

but I do know that man is seeking for something - longing for Eden

Moving on to our next section:

Despair and Disappointment

Adam and Eve seemed to have a sense that even though they had failed and failed miserably - God had a plan.

Now I know many people have taught that God wasn’t sure how it would go, or didn’t even know how the test of Adam and Eve would go - But I believe that God is all knowing -

So I don’t believe at all that God had a plan B - I think God’s plan included, or knew about the Fall

Adam and Eve have been driven from Eden - they are adjusting to their new normal - experiencing things they had never experienced before

And as God intended creation to multiply we find that happens with Adam and Eve and we find an interesting verse in Genesis 3:15 the protoevangelium or the first promise and announcement of God’s saving intention.

Genesis 3:15 KJV 1900

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.

Notice this comes to the first woman, Eve, not to the first man Adam.

It’s the earliest gospel or one has termed it “the embryonic anticipation of the gospel” theologians call it The Protoevengelium

As John Chrysostom put it - The promise is that from her seed would come the promised ONE who would overcome the tempter of humanity.

"God didn’t wait until Christmas to announce Jesus. He promised Him right there in the rubble of Eden!"

This was obviously something Eve took very seriously because when you get to the next chapter:

Genesis 4:1 KJV 1900

1 And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord.

This statement along with the meaning of the name Cain = “gotten” or “acquired” seems to indicate that Eve thought that Cain would be that deliverer.

Can you imagine her hope? The first pregnancy, the first child, the first chance at restoration.

Pregnant Hope: Eve held Cain in her arms thinking she held salvation—but salvation was coming thousands of years later, through another woman holding a baby named Jesus.

All our hopes in the promises of God - but our perspectives may blind us to the realities of how it will transpire:

Genesis 4:8 a tragic verse in the Bible

Genesis 4:8 “8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.”

Instead of being the deliverer, Cain becomes the first murderer.

Hope becomes horror. Expectation becomes devastation.

Despair and disappointment - I can still hear Bro. Lloyd Davolt in the back of my mind, “The Apple Wasn’t Worth It”

“How many of us have put our hopes in a 'Cain'—a solution, a plan, a person—and then watched it crumble?”

It is interesting that we only know of three children by name born to Adam and Eve.

Josephus the Jewish Historian writes that Adam and Eve had 56 children

Thirty-three sons

Twenty-three daughters

That is Jewish legend - but we don’t really know how many children Adam and Eve had - but we are told about a third son born to them

Genesis 5:3 KJV 1900

3 And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:

We find the Bible will now trace the line of Seth to Enoch (now I’m skipping some generations you understand) Methuselah, Lamech,

and then we find an interesting verse in Genesis 5:28-29

Genesis 5:28–29 KJV 1900

28 And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son: 29 And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed.

As Lamech holds the precious bundle of joy in his arms - perhaps tears in his eyes, already in love with little person - full of emotion and hopes for the future

He doesn’t name his son at random - He names him Noah - meaning “rest” or “comfort”

Genesis 5:29 “29 And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed.”

This seems to be a direct reference back to Gen 3:17-19 where the ground was cursed for Adam’s sake - man was condemned to a life of toil and sweat.

You can almost hear the lament in Lamech’s voice - the despair of generations already that have been living under the weight of the curse.

The despair and disappointment of life outside Eden

Lamech prophesied better than he knew.

Though Noah was not the Messiah, his name—Rest—points us to the One who would say thousands of years later:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

NO! Noah was not the one- he was not the deliverer, the serpent-crusher

Noah “found grace in the eyes of the Lord’ and moved by faith built an ark to the saving of his people - and in a form prefigures the coming one -

but no - in fact Noah becomes if you will another Adam - to replenish the recreated after the flood

“Noah may have floated above the flood, but he still couldn't lift mankind out of the fall.”

Hope is broken -despair and disappointment at human failures and not being the One

The Line of Promise Narrows

God gives Seth—“appointed”—and the line continues:

Noah – A righteous man in a wicked generation.

Abraham – Promised a seed that would bless the nations.

Isaac, Jacob, Judah – The lineage narrows.

David – A king after God’s heart.

If Time Take a Little Side Note Trip - (Perhaps just skip to the covenant part)

2 Samuel is full of great stories, adventure, espionage, fierce battles, a coup or two, assassination attempts, Kings, Queens, and miraculous events.

Second Samuel is the fourth book in what is in the canon known as the “Historical Books”

The historical books are valuable because of their vast historical sweep they cover from Joshua’s to the Persian Empire in which Ester lived. a span of at least 800 years.

They begin by describing Israel’s conquest of the promised land (Joshua)

They continue by recounting the period before Israel had kings, when judges ruled the people (Judges, Ruth)

As we move into 1-2 Samuel and 1-2 Kings we find the period of the monarchy- the united kingdom of Saul, David, and Solomon which later divided into Israel in the North and Judah in the south.

1-2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah retell the history from a later theological perspective

Esther illustrates the role of God’s people under Persian rule (Encountering the Old Testament)

The books of Samuel trace the early history of Israel’s monarchy. Samuel, you’ll remember, was a prophet and judge who led Israel through the transition from judges to kings.

The books of Samuel tell the stories of Israel’s first two kings: Saul and David

Second Samuel - is especially devoted to describing the major events of David’s kingship.

It records how David became king of Israel at age 30 (2 Samuel 5:4)

We find that the text highlights several ways in which the Lord uses David to bless Israel. We also see the heartache and tragedy that comes to David and all Israel when David fails to follow God’s ways.

One way to outline 2 Samuel is:

God’s Blessing of Israel as the King Obeyed and Followed God’s Ways (2 Sam 1-10)

Notice this outline of David’s Reign

David’s Rise to Power (2 Sam 1-4)

David’s Reign Over All Israel (2 Sam 5-24)

Bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem 2 Sam 6

God’s Covenant with David 2 Sam 7. (What I really want to talk about)

This chapter famous because of 2 Sam 7:13?

2 Samuel 7:13 KJV 1900

13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.

It records the “Davidic” covenant. God promises to establish David’s throne “for ever” – 7:13.

It has it ultimate fulfillment in the present kingship of Jesus Christ, who “spoiler alert” is a descendant of David).

We also see why God choose to give this unmerited blessing to David? 2 Sam 7:21 God’s word’s sake and God’s heart.

2 Samuel 7:21 KJV 1900

21 For thy word’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all these great things, to make thy servant know them.

Notice three things did God promise David? (2 Samuel 7:16 “16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.” (Ans. 1)

an eternal house,

an eternal throne,

an eternal kingdom.)

David wants to build a house for God

4. Was David permitted to build God a house for His dwelling place? (7:12-13) (Ans. No. His son would do it.)

5. Why was David not permitted to build God’s house? (Read 1 Chron. 22:8; 28:3).

There is a sense in which chapter 7 may be seen as “Making Disappointments His Appointments.”

(1) David desired to build the Lord's house, 1-3;

(2) God refused to permit David's desire to be fulfilled, 4-11;

(3) The Lord had another plan, 12-17;

(4) David accepted God's will without bitterness or rebellion, 18-29. Beacon Bible Commentary Purkiser. 1965

David’s Last Words

2 Samuel 23:1–7 KJV 1900

1 Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, And the man who was raised up on high, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, 2 The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, And his word was in my tongue. 3 The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, Ruling in the fear of God. 4 And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, Even a morning without clouds; As the tender grass springing out of the earth By clear shining after rain. 5 Although my house be not so with God; Yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things, and sure: For this is all my salvation, and all my desire, Although he make it not to grow. 6 But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, Because they cannot be taken with hands: 7 But the man that shall touch them must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear; And they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same place.

David a mighty man - a man blessed and used by God - but a man, in some ways a failure, but he had a covenant with God

Promise

Prophesies

Covenants

but still... no serpent-crusher.

Isaiah 7:14 – “Behold, a virgin shall conceive…”

Centuries pass. Israel waits. The seed is promised, but still delayed. And disappointment builds.

It has had different meanings through the centuries - But this is some of the thoughts of ADVENT the series of four weeks leading up to Christmas - part of that is waiting - longing - hoping - anticipating the coming promised ONE

The serpent-crusher, the Deliverer - the ONE.

We come to the next letter in EDEN

E = Eviction/Exile

D=Despair/Disappointment

E= Emmanuel

We will look at that tomorrow:

The Fulfillment is Born – Luke 1:31–33

“Thou shalt conceive… and bring forth a son… and he shall reign…”

Galatians 4:4 – “But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman…”

Hebrews 2:14 – “…that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil…”

Jesus is the Seed who crushed the serpent’s head—but not with a sword, but a cross!