Key Verses: Genesis 3:1, 6
Genesis 3:1
“Now the serpent was more cunning than any animal of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?’”
Satan, in his subtlety, craftiness, and clever act of seduction, doesn’t come at Adam and Eve with an attack, but rather with a question: “Has God really said…?”
Eve answers in verses 2–3:
“From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’”
Satan counteracts this bluntly in verse 4:
“You surely will not die.”
He continues in verse 5:
“For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil.”
When the enemy speaks, oftentimes there is a modicum of truth, a partial truth, within the lie, used to deceive and twist. If we skip to verse 7, it does say
“The eyes of both were opened.”
He shows the deceptive benefit—the wonders—of what you might see.
Genesis 3:6
“When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.”
The Threefold Temptation
All of Satan’s temptations and deceptions come from one or more of these three categories:
- Lust of the Flesh (“good for food”)
- Lust of the Eyes (“a delight to the eyes”)
- Pride of Life (“desirable to make one wise”)
1 John 2:16
“For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life—is not from the Father, but is from the world.”
In Luke’s Gospel, we see Jesus tempted in the same exact way, using all three categories (Luke 4:1–13).
Where the first Adam failed, Jesus—the “second Adam”—prevailed.
1 Corinthians 15:45
“So also it is written: ‘The first man, Adam, became a living person.’ The last Adam was a life-giving spirit.”
In verse 7, we see the serpent’s partial truth. Their eyes were opened—but they also realized their nakedness. Yes, physically—they were previously naked without shame, like any other animal. But now, as a consequence of sinning against God, they lost their covering of righteousness.
Prior to sin, there was no compulsion to cover themselves. They stood in right standing before God at creation. Now, God must provide a covering for them.
They became self-aware. Their conscience before was without sin, without stain. Now their eyes were opened to the evil they were capable of. Their conscious focus turned from outward and upward—to God—to inward, toward self. This is where the self-life begins; this is where man becomes his own lord, his own master.
Matthew 16:24–25
“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.’”
After disobeying God, they were enlightened—but what they now knew left them ashamed in another’s presence and fearful of God. Before, they had no fear of Him.
We immediately see the consequences of their sin—and those consequences are not over.
Galatians 6:7
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”
And it’s not over yet.
In verse 8, Adam and Eve hear God walking through the garden and hide. He calls out to them in verse 9: “Where are you?”
Verse 10: “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
In verse 11, God asks:
“Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
Here, God gives Adam the chance to confess his own sin. But in verse 12, Adam admits it while shifting blame to the woman:
“The woman whom You gave to be with me…”
Adam blames the woman—specifically the one God gave him—implying not only her fault, but God’s as well. If God had never given him this woman, it wouldn’t have happened.
In verse 13, God turns to the woman, and she blames the serpent. Neither the man nor the woman fully confesses their own guilt.
Then God turns to the serpent. He does not ask questions. The serpent is already confirmed as the evil one—the father of lies, the deceiver—sin personified. And God curses the serpent.
Prayer
Father, help us to be aware of the enemy’s schemes – we know he can be incredibly seductive, sneaky, and decieving. Let us crucify our flesh daily, presenting our bodies to you as a living sacrifice, keeping our temples clean from impurities. Lord, aid us in putting on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6), to be able to fight the evil one’s lies – Your word tells us in every temptation, You will provide a way out. Let us choose that way out each time. Your word, which is alive, tells us to flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace. Your word tells us this life and everything in it are vanity, chasing after the wind. Let us follow in the footsteps of Paul, setting our eyes not on what is seen, since what is seen is temporary, and chasing after the wind, but the unimaginable, incomprehensible, unfathomable glory that awaits us, in Heaven, when we will be with You. We acknowledge right now that your way is not just better than ours, but that our way only leads to death, but your way IS the way, your way leads to live, only in you Yahweh do we find salvation, only in YOU we find Life. Thank you, Jesus, for your sacrifice on the cross, otherwise we would be destined for hell, thank you for forgiving us 70 times 7, when we never deserved it. Only by your love, grace, and mercy were we saved from this wretched body of sin. You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and we know the only way to enter into life is through your Son, Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Jesus, you told us to ask and it will be given to you, knock and it will be opened to you. So, in your name, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we ask all these things. Amen