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NOTES: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fBV8Hy1e4l2l47QwEh8txpEG71VqN1sjolvTk2OsTEQ/edit?usp=sharing
Who is this serpent?
Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they were defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (Rev 12:7-9)
Thus we know this is not just a snake…Watch how he deceives.
The first deception: The serpent asked the woman, "Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?” (Gen 3:1)
He changed the command “You are free to eat from any tree except…”
He asked the woman, whom Adam was to protect, along with the garden. Where was the Man? Hang on…
The woman replies: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; it is only about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘'You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest you die.’”
This is a change of the commandment too.
The Second Deception: The serpent replied “You certainly will not die! God knows that the moment that you eat of the fruit of that tree, your eyes will be open and you will be like gods!”
Satan is twisting the image of the Father to one who wants to lord his might over others for his own sake, and who is willingly keeping the man and the woman under his thumb.
“You certainly will not die” – is this true? Hang on…
The Fall: “The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked, so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves” (Gen 3:6-7)
The woman bought it, and ate it
The woman gave the fruit to Adam…WHO WAS WITH HER
THUS Adam - to whom the law was directly given - was not an innocent party. Adam’s sin was to remain silent in the face of the serpent and his temptation.
The Fallout: Their eyes were “open” and they saw that they were naked, and they felt shamed.
What is this Shame?
They saw that they could use each other for selfish purposes
They felt shame upon this realization, and then they covered themselves
Thus we see a DISHARMONY erupt between man and woman, and between all of mankind by extension.
Further Fallout: They hide from each other, and then they hide from God!
The man and the woman feel shame in the presence of their own Heavenly Father, and quickly things spiral into The Blame Game (Gen. 3:10-13)
God asks the man why he hid, and the man responds, “Because I was naked”. God asks the man “who told you that you were naked?” and realizes that the man and the woman have eaten of the fruit.
The man blames the woman
The woman blames the serpent
Both were guilty for not shamaring, but most especially the man.
Ultimate Repercussions:
To The Serpent: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and hers; He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.”
This is called the Protoevangelium or “first gospel” as it is promising a savior to mankind
Not only that, but it actually alludes to a virgin birth, and to the suffering and death of the messiah!
Thus arguably the most IMPORTANT VERSE in the creation accounts is this very line.
Also, “dust shall you eat.” -
This word is the same word for the dust out of which man was made in (Gen 2:7), and the same word for the dust into which man will return (Gen 3:19)
To the Woman: “I will intensify the pangs of your childbearing; in pain shall you bring forth children. Yet your urge shall be for your husband, and he shall be your master.”
The pain is the punishment
The urge and mastership is merely a statement of fact, born out in history.
To the Man: “Cursed be the ground because of you! In toil shall you eat its yield all the days of your life; thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to you, as you eat of the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face shall you get bread to eat, until you return to the ground, from which you were taken; for you are dirt, and to dirt you shall return.”
Man is taken from the garden and forced to labor
The ground is cursed
The fall affected more than just Adam!
(and now Man has to eat his veggies!)
Thus we see the effects of this “original sin” is an utter shattering of what it means to be Mankind: Humanity is Shattered by the introduction of Sin, his relation with his Other (woman), with his God, and even with the world around him.
“The man called his wife Eve, because she became the mother of all the living.” (Gen 3:20)
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