The Fall of Adam and Eve

Open the Bible Question Form to send your own question.

Printable Version

Introduction: Man’s first chance at paradise was lost because he listened to the lies of the devil and did the one thing that God had kept from him.

I.           THEIR SIN (3:1-6)

A.    The Serpent Questions God’s Word (v.1)

B.    The Woman Misquotes God’s Word (v.2-3; cp.2:16-17)

C.    The Serpent Contradicts God’s Word (v.4-5) – Satan’s Four Lies

1.   Yea hath God said (v.1) –God’s word is not absolute

2.   Ye shall not surely die (v.4) –Death is not final

3.   Your eyes shall be opened (v.5) –You can know the secrets of God

4.   Ye shall be as gods (v.5) –You can become like God

D.    The Woman Disobeys God’s Word (v.6)

1.   The threefold temptation (see 1John 2:16; Luke 4:1-13)

a.    Good for food – lust of the flesh

b.    Pleasant to the eyes – lust of the eyes

c.    Desired to make one wise – pride of life

2.   The taking of the fruit

a.    For herself

b.    For her husband

II.          THEIR SHAME (3:7-13)

A.    Covering Their Nakedness (v.7)

1.   Their eyes opened

2.   Their shame revealed

3.   Their attempt to cover themselves

B.    Hiding From God (v.8-10)

1.   The time of fellowship comes (v.8a)

2.   They hide from the presence of God (v.8b)

3.   They are sought by the voice of God (v.9-10)

C.    Blaming Others (v.11-13)

1.   The man blames the woman (v.11-12)

2.   The woman blames the man (v.13)

III.         THEIR SENTENCE (3:14-19)

A.    On the Serpent (v.14-15)

1.   The serpent punished (v.14)

a.    Cursed above every beast

b.    Cursed to crawl on his belly

c.    Cursed to eat the dust (Isaiah 65:25)

2.   The seed promised (v.15)

a.    The serpent and his seed (Antichrist) to be forever at war with the woman and her seed (Jesus – Isaiah 7:14; Galatians 4:4)

b.    The serpent to bruise the heel of the woman’s seed

c.    The woman’s seed to bruise the head of the serpent

B.    On the Woman (v.16)

1.   Sorrow in childbearing

2.   Subjection to her husband

C.    On the Man (v.17-19)

1.   A curse on the ground (v.17-18)

2.   Much sorrow in his labor (v.17,19)

3.   A return to the dust (v.19)

IV.        THEIR SENDING (3:20-24)

A.    The Naming of Eve (v.20)

B.    The Coats of Skin (v.21)

1.   God’s covering (contrast verse 7)

2.   Required the shedding of blood

C.    The Casting From the Garden (v.22-23)

1.   To separate them from the tree of life (v.22)

2.   To till the ground from whence he came (v.23)

D.    The Guarding of the Tree of Life (v.24)

1.   The Cherubim

2.   A flaming sword

Conclusion: Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, we all live under the curse of sin. However, God makes a way for us to overcome this curse through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ.

COMMENTARY:

v.1 – The serpent was a “beast of the field.” However, it was also the embodiment of Satan. In scripture, Satan is called “the piercing serpent” (Isa.27:1), “that crooked serpent” (Isaiah 27:1) and “that old serpent” (Revelation 12:9; 20:2). To be subtil (modern spelling is subtle) is to be crafty or sly. Eve was beguiled through the serpent’s subtilty (2Corinthians 11:3).

v.3 – God had not said that they could not “touch” the tree. Eve’s heart is evidently already being swayed by the attacks of the devil on God’s word. As today, we turn from the Lord in our hearts before we outwardly disobey Him.

v.6 – Adam was evidently with Eve when she partook of the forbidden fruit (“she gave also unto her husband with her”). Just as Abram did two millennium later (Genesis 16:2), Adam “hearkened unto the voice” of his wife (Genesis 3:17). See also1 Kings 21:25. However, there are times when God wants men to hearken to their wives (see Genesis 21:12).

v.8 – Sin always causes separation from God (Isaiah 59:1-2). Notice also that God had a certain time of the day in which He met with Adam and Eve—“the cool of the day.” We should have a time every day when we meet with God.

v.15 – This is the first and one of the most outstanding prophecies concerning the coming Messiah found in the entire Old Testament. Jesus Christ is the “seed of the woman” because He was born of Mary but without a human father (Luke 1:30-35). The “heel” of Jesus is bruised. That refers to His temporary pain on the cross. The “head” of the serpent will be bruised. That refers to his future destruction (Rev.20:10).

v.16 – The statement, “thy desire shall be to thy husband,” is illustrated in Numbers 30:10-14. The husband, if he so chooses, has the last say in the sight of God.

v.21 – Just as the offering of vegetables (4:3-5) so the covering of vegetables (3:7) is unacceptable. Abel’s sacrifice (4:4) and God’s covering (3:21) have in common the shedding of blood (see Hebrews 9:22).

MEMORY VERSES:

1. Psalm 66:18

2. Genesis 3:15

3. 2 Corinthians 11:3