Columbiana County Jail 02/06/2026
Notes
Transcript
Genesis 3:6-13
Genesis 3:6-13
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.
These are the most tragic words in human history. Sin now enters into the world for the first time. As we studied last week, verses 1-5 describe the temptation to sin, but this is the moment that line was crossed. Satan has led the woman to doubt the words of God and the goodness of God. He has lead her to place herself above God as a moral judge.
What are the three motivations that this verse reveals for Eve to cross that line? The first is she saw the tree could satisfy her body’s appetite for food. The second was Eve saw the tree was visually attractive. And the third temptation was the tree could make her wise. Those motivations line up closely with what the Apostle John describes of what things which still drive the world today.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
In response to this temptation, her decision is to take the fruit and eat it, then give some to Adam and Adam eats it also. Now this leads us into interesting questions. First question that stands out, does the Bible’s statement that “gave also to her husband with her, and he did eat.” mean Adam has been present for the entire conversation? If you believe he was, why did he remain silent? Why didn’t Adam jump in the conversation and stop it? The final question people seem to miss, If you believe Adam came into the picture later, why wouldn’t he question her choice or resist? I mean, if he was not present for the temptation, why would he agree to eat the forbidden fruit? Although there is no proof of this, my opinion is Adam was present for the entire conversation which helped convince him of his decision. Although I can not prove that opinion, but it makes sense.
in any case, The fact is Adam’s sin is no less than Eve’s sin. In fact, according to the Bible....
12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
it is Adam’s sin which causes the fall of man. Some people willingly engage with temptation and dive into sin, and some people let others make that decision for them. Some people will follow the crowd instead of standing up for what they know is right.
The fact is both humans are guilty.
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.
Now what happened in the last verse is very heartbreaking. Part of the reason it resonates so painfully is that we have all had the experience of engaging with and falling to temptation. Although Adam and Eve started the ball rolling , all of us who have lived have kept it going.
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
The immediate consequence of their sin is unexpected and also tragic. Just as Satan had told them, their eyes were opened. Now they understood many things, including both good and evil. But this was not the wisdom they were hoping for.
25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
This verse pointedly told us that before their sin, Adam and eve were both naked and unashamed. They were truly innocent so their nudity was sinless and free of shame. Now instantly, they were ashamed and aware of their nudity. Though they had never worn clothes before, the knowledge of good and evil creates a fearful urge to cover themselves, to hide from each other, to mistrust the other person motives and thoughts, and to protect themselves.
This was just the beginning, though. The consequences for their sinful rebellion would be deeply devastating for them and us to follow.
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.
Adam and Eve have sinned against God. They have directly disobeyed a direct command form Him when they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. we have already discovered the first consequence was that they became self conscious over their nakedness and they were desperate to cover themselves. Now we see that their shame and guilt also drives them to hide from God. Their sin has broken their intimate relationship with Him.
Now if we look at the implication of this verse, we would believe God would come regularly to the garden to spend time with Adam and Eve. This poses an interesting questions. How does God who is a Spirit, “walk”? What form did God take to be with them? There are many interpretations out there. I personally believe that they were with the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ. Why do I believe that?
In this verse, Lord God is described as YHWH Elohim. In Christian theology, this Biblical translation is used for the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ. This identifies this personal, aubible manifestation as the Son of God.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
This establishes that Jesus was with God, was God, and all things were created by Him. Therefore it was Jesus who planted the Garden of Eden. (look at Genesis 2:8 again)
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
This affirms that all things , in heaven and earth, were created by and for Jesus, and He holds all things together, including the Garden of Eden.
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Jesus is the only mediator and path to salvation and communion with God.
What we will see, though, is one of the greatest consequences of sin was the loss of those face-to-face moments with the Creator. Instead of enjoying His presence, Adam and Eve’s first instinct was to hide from Him. Sin always separates us from God.
9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
Adam had never hid from God before. God had never had to ask where the man was. It is not that God did not know ,of course He did. God’s question was no different then that of any other parent asking a question of their child, although they already know the answer. God wants Adam to answer. to reveal himself to God, and to confess.
Another good point to make is God is not calling both of them at this moment. God is not challenging her actions yet. He is specifically calling Adam. Why do you think this is the case?
In my opinion, Adam, right from the beginning, is treated as the one ultimately responsible for the fall of mankind.
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
Adam answers. It is easy to picture Adam wide-eyed, desperate in the awareness of what he has done. Adam is full of shame at his newly perceived nakedness and is fearful of how God will respond. This moment is unprecedented. Human sin had never happened before. No process existed for confession, judgment, or restoration. Realistically, Adam has no idea what to expect. He has no knowledge of how God will react, and knows only a desperate need to hide his sin from God.
Adam’s response is not the whole story. He does not immediately confess to eating from the forbidden tree. Adam admits his fear, very likely an entirely new emotion. He also focuses on his nakedness not wanting to be seen by God.
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?
Overwhelmed with shame after disobeying God, Adam and Eve attempted to hide from God. This was foolish, of course. They have never sinned before and had never thought to hide from God. And yet, they should have known that such a thing is not possible.
When God asked where Adam was, Adam’s response was that he hid because he was afraid and naked. Once again, God asks a question He knows the answer to in order to get Adam to admit his own actions. He demands an explanation of who told Adam of his nakedness. Had they disobeyed Him?
After all these centuries later, each of us can relate to this moment at a fundamental level. Everyone of us knows what it is like to give in to the temptation, to sin, to be caught, and to face the question about what we have done. Because sin entered into the world, this is a foundational human experience being played out for the first time.
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
Adam and Eve have brought sin into the world. They gave in to temptation, they disobeyed God. The wisdom of knowing good and evil turned out to be a gift of shame and separation. They came to know evil by participating in it.
God asks Adam directly if he had eaten from the tree that God commanded him not to. In Adam’s response, we see the next consequence of human sin. The first was overwhelming shame. The second was a deep desire to get away from the Creator. Now we see that their choice to sin together will drive a wedge into Adam and Eve’s relationship together.
What does that mean? In short, faced with his own guilt, Adam looks for someone else to blame. This has been a human instinct ever since, In one skillful sentence, he points the finger at both his wife and God. Basically, the woman (blaming her) who you (blaming God) gave me, did this.
The implication of Adam’s words is an accusation. He basically is implying that God you are actually to blame because you made her. There is something wrong with her. Yes. I went along, but I never would have done this if she hadn’t gone first. the whole thing should be between you and her.
This is an ugly, embarrassing moment, but we should all understand it. Learning to take responsibility for our own sin does not come naturally.
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.
When directly questioned by God about whether he had eaten from the forbidden tree, Adam threw all of the responsibility on his wife and God, anyone but himself. Adam’s claim is not only that Eve gave him the fruit, but Adam goes so far as to remind God that woman is there by God’s decision. Adam has already failed in his responsibility to be the leader and guardian of his wife. And he compounds it by trying to blame others for his actions.
Here, God turns his gaze on Eve and asks her an open ended question. What is this that thou hast done? Eve’s response still shifts some of the blame, but it is far simpler, more direct, and more apologetic than Adam. “The serpent beguiled me and I did eat.”
What we see in both responses is the beginning of another consequence for sin. What is it? Broken human relationships are the result. In fact, God’s pronouncements about what will follow humanity’s choice to sin will become the natural course of life. These include deep strains in marriage relations, and in all the marriages to follow.
Next week we will cover Genesis 3:14-19.
