Despite God’s prohibition and warning of terrible consequences, the humans still chose to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree! What led to this choice and decision?

Genesis 3:1-7

¹ Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

What dangerous dialogue behind the two trees!

Portraits of the Dialogue

The Serpent

The writer of Genesis clearly indicated the qualities and intention of the serpent.

^1aNow the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.

The serpent was described as crafty. He is an expert in deception and dishonesty. Evil existed in the garden before man. The serpent was bent on making humans disregard God and His Word. His objective was to lead humans to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

The craftiness of the serpent was revealed in the nature and type of question he posed to Eve. Many reporters today are skilled in asking questions that would lead the interviewee to say the exact words the reporters desire. It is unfortunate that many interviewees answer before they analyze the questions.

The serpent’s question was already wrong and biased! If a question had flaws, then the answer would also be flawed! Don’t you think so?

^1bHe said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

Let’s analyze the question. It involved:

1. the using of God’s word to gain attention

2. the casting of doubt on God’s Word

3. misquoting God – the implication was that all fruits are prohibited.

The Woman Eve

The other party in the dialogue was Eve. Was she innocent or ignorant? Her reply gives us a glimpse.

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

     1. She negated the statement of the serpent - they could eat the fruits in the Garden.

2. She clearly identified the prohibited tree.

3. She unmistakably knew its exact location - middle of the Garden

4. She added words to what God had said – must not touch

5. She was aware of the consequence of eating the forbidden fruit – death.

Based on her answer, the dialogue continued ….

The Option Opened

The serpent provided Eve with an option; he opened the gateway of possibility that Eve could exercise her gift of free will and choice.

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Note the following statements of the serpent:

1. He made a statement that directly contradicted God’s Word - “You will not certainly die ….”

The enemy will not shy away from contradicting God and His Word. It is his primary objective to oppose God. He will do his best to thwart God’s plan, intention and purpose.

Notice that he doesn’t  have any constructive alternative to offer. If he could cause problems and difficulties, he would be most happy. Disruption, dysfunction, disorder, destruction and death are his objectives. Havoc is what he gives to people, society and the world.

2. He provided a new possibility for Eve -   “Your eyes will be opened ….”

God protected man from evil so that even their eyes were prevented from seeing evil. It intrigued Eve to know she could see further beyond her current view. Unlimited vision is an offer difficult to resist.

3. He offered a new status to Eve – “You will be like God ….”

Equality sounds better than being subservient and dependent on God. Eve was probably tired of the unequal relationship between her and God. Open-ended possibilities are inspiring and attractive – she might be able to do what God could do! Being equal in status and ability with God is irresistible.

4. He reiterated the consequence – “ … knowing good and evil.”

The trademark of God’s enemy is obvious – a drop of truth is mixed in with the falsity. Of the four statements the serpent made, three were wrong and the last was correct. This is a tactic of the wicked. Pure lies aren’t as effective as a drop of truth added to falsehood. Truth is diluted or contaminated. Take note of this strategy. Many unknowingly believe all lies of the enemy of God simply because there’s a bit of truth in them. But when some truth is added to fake news, isn’t it still fake news?

Unless one is very observant and analytical, it’s easy to be fooled by the serpent. Eve unknowingly fell into his trap. Unfortunately, people realize their mistakes only after they have fallen into the trap.

The Response

Eve was given an option. How would she respond?

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.

Before the dialogue, Eve probably ignored the presence of the tree of knowledge. It was prohibited and thus she didn’t pay much attention to it. With the new information, she began to pay attention to it. From ignoring it before, she now began to gaze on it. The more she looked at the fruit, the more she was attracted to it.

The narrative graphically illustrated this development. Notice the process and effects of willful disobedience:

1. It was delicious – ‘good for food’

Maybe Eve ignored the forbidden fruit knowing full well it was prohibited. With the new information, she changed her evaluation of the fruit. By looking at it more and more, she was finally convinced that it tasted better than any fruit she had already eaten.

Her priorities had changed. The stomach was now more important than God and His Word. It is tragic that many people today have changed their values and priority systems. Their choices have turned their lives into a mess.

2. Aesthetics in Food – it was ‘pleasing to the eye’.

The food looked good, so it ought to taste as good as it looked!

3. Appetite Filling – desirable for gaining wisdom

Sometimes eating goes beyond filling the stomach and meeting physical needs. It goes beyond getting enough nutrition. The promise of the forbidden fruit goes further than physical well-being. Eve was probably fed up with absorbing good knowledge from God. She was intrigued with the knowledge of evil. She didn’t spot the fallacy in what the serpent had said. God is not capable of doing evil. She believed that she would be like God. This lie attracted her to the forbidden fruit. She didn’t realize the full impact of being and doing evil. Wickedness was what she in ignorance, desperately desired.

With all these variables working together, Eve then made the final move of picking the fruit and eating it. The first bite of the forbidden fruit completed the process of disregard and disobedience to God and His Word.

Sin Sharing

^6bShe also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 

Eating the forbidden made the meal delicious. It had definitely, a different taste and Eve was eager to share   with Adam.

The simple lesson to learn here is that nobody sins alone. Others would be dragged in. Whether Adam was aware or not that he ate the forbidden fruit, the fact was he did eat it.

Ultra-Shocked Result

^7a Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked;

A sinful act would always result in a shock. Until the act is completed, the consequences will never be realized. Unfortunately, the realization is a step too late. There is no point of return. Sin will run its course just like how water in a stream will empty into the river and ultimately into the sea. There is no stopping the progress and consequences of sin.

Eve had her desire for unlimited vision realized but it was certainly not what she expected! The result of sin will always be different to what is anticipated.

Faulty and Poor Damage Control

 ^7bso they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

When Adam and Eve disregarded God’s Word and followed the word of serpent, they moved from being under God’s authority and care to being under the dominion of the serpent.

And under the dominion of the serpent, they were left by themselves to take care of their problem. The serpent could not be found anywhere! He didn’t care what happened to them.

Adam and Eve had to solve their problem on their own. Realizing their nakedness, they tried to solve the problem of indecency by inventing the first dress. Having no previous knowledge about dressmaking, they took whatever was available and tried to cover up. But fig leaves are unsuitable for clothing; the texture is so rough that it would be uncomfortable wearing them.

When God arrived for their regular date, they hid from God because despite the clothes they wore, they still felt they were naked. They were not happy with their first invention and coverups for sin are always inadequate.

Rev Dr Betia comments, “The dark dialogue behind the two trees resulted in poor and unwise human choices. It, subsequently, led to the downfall of mankind. It seems that many people have not learned from the lessons of history. It is because they have not Simply Listened.”

God’s word is true - it can make us wise.