Eve’s Temptation Genesis 3:1-6

“The LORD God commanded the man saying, ‘From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die’” (Gen. 2:16-17, NASB).

In the majority of cultures men are above women. The husband is the head of the wife. The reason often given in Christian circles is that women are weaker than men physically, mentally, and morally. Christians claim that the evidence that the woman is weaker is found in the scriptures. The Bible records that the woman, later named Eve, is confronted by the serpent who deceives her into believing that she can eat fruit from the forbidden tree without suffering the consequences that God has said will take place if she does eat. In the New Testament Paul writes: “A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. For it was Adam who was first created and then Eve. And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived fell into transgression” 1 Tim. 2:11-13, NASB).

In today’s world women are rejecting the limits placed on them by society. Women are proving that they are just as capable as men in decision making, executing authority, and just about anything that men want to limit women to. It is also true that while Christian men look to the scriptures as the authority that makes the man head over the woman, at the same time men fail to see in the scriptures the accomplishments of women like Deborah and Priscilla and the women that shared in the ministry of Jesus. How do we explain these differences? I believe that we must come to an understanding of what happened in the garden. How was the woman deceived and tempted in the garden? What were the consequences of her actions? Can I the husband of my wife blame her for my own failures? Do I the husband in this union have the right to misuse and abuse my wife and other women because of Eve’s deception and temptation? I believe that we should look again at what took place in the garden.

In the Genesis account, the Lord creates the man and places him in a garden. The man is given responsibility to take care of the garden. Because the man has responsibility he necessarily must have ability and authority to carry out his responsibility. God plants a tree in the middle of the garden and commands him not to eat of the tree. If the man eats of the tree, he will die.

After giving the man these instructions, God recognizes that the man needs someone to help him. So, the Lord takes a rib from the man and creates a woman. Adam calls his new mate Woman saying, ‘”This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man’” (Gen. 3:23, NASB). Verse twenty-four and twenty-five tell us that the man and the woman are equal; that is they are one flesh, and if one flesh, they are equal. Both the man and the woman are naked, and they do not know it. Because of their innocence at this time they are unashamed. Have you noticed that newborn babies are not ashamed of their bodies and the bodies of other people? Although innocent, the man and the woman are capable of being disobedient to the Lord’s commands. It is possible for them to submit to temptation and to fall into sin.

Temptation can be defined as the desire to do something that one knows that they are not supposed to do. For example, the little boy knows that he is not supposed to eat cookies from the cookie jar. Mom has warned that he will be punished if he eats. The boy knows that he is wrong, but his friend encourages him to get a cookie. The friend convinces him that his mother will not know that he ate a cookie. His friend’s encouragement creates a desire for the cookie that is stronger than his will to obey his mom. So, he eats from the cookie jar, and enjoys the taste. Mom discovers what the little boy has done. She takes away the cookies, and she does not allow him access to the cookies again for several days.

In the garden, the man and the woman see the tree, but the tree does not bother them. They have a relationship with the Lord. They accept the Lord’s commands for their lives. The tree itself poses no problem at this time. However, the serpent confronts the woman, and he uses deceptive tactics to cause the woman to be tempted to rethink and reconsider what she knows that the Lord has commanded her.

The first thing that we should notice is that the tree does nothing different to cause the woman to be tempted. Rather, it is the words of the serpent that deceive the woman. The serpent suggests that the Lord limits her in order to hold back from her something that will be better for her. The serpent assures the woman that the Lord is wrong when He says that she will die if she eats fruit from the tree. Instead of dying her eyes will be opened. She will be like God in that she will know both good and evil. Although this sounds good, the woman is not God. The woman is the creation of the Lord, and the Lord knows what is best.

This is what Genesis 1 tells us. God creates the heavens and the earth according to His desires. When God creates, He creates according to laws that are set in place to keep everything functioning as things should. God does not create human being to be another God. They are created in His image and likeness to be like Him but not Him.

The second thing that we should notice is that the tempter comes from the field; not the garden. The field represents the world while the garden represents the place that God assigns to the man and his wife. The serpent is the enemy of God. He invades God’s space to attack the crown of God’s creation, the man and the woman. The serpent wants to destroy the works of the Lord. He hopes to do this by causing a separation between God and the man and his wife. Romans 8:18-23 tells us that all of creation is affected adversely when the man and the woman disobey the Lord. The good news is that Jesus Christ came to repair the breech between God and man. His sacrifice makes possible the restoration of the relationship between God and human that existed at the beginning. Once their relationship is restored, the whole creation will be restored to its original purpose.

The third thing that we should notice is that Eve is deceived when she begins to look at things from her own perspective. “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 from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her and he ate” (Gen. 3:6, NASB).

God creates humanity with the ability to reason. We have the ability to make choices, and we are responsible for the choices that we make. This is at least a part of what it means to be created in the image of God. God is not a product of creation. Rather, creation is a result of God making a decision to create the worlds. God takes responsibility for His choices and decisions. As bearers of the image of God, we too are responsible for the decisions and choices that we make. God holds Himself accountable to Himself, and He also holds us accountable. The remainder of the Holy Scriptures tells us the results of Eve’s deception and temptation.

The woman convinces her husband to join her in her decision, and the man agrees to do as the woman asks him to do even though he is fully aware of the Lord’s commands. God does not allow the man to blame the woman. “Then to Adam He said, ‘Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’” (Gen. 3:17, NASB). We are to obey the Lord regardless to what others do. Jesus teaches us that obedience to God has the potential to destroy all human relationships. “‘They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law’” (Lk. 12:53, NASB).

In conclusion the deception and temptation of Eve is not a reason to blame women for everything wrong in the world. This false belief has led men to believe that they can forgo their responsibilities. It takes both a man and a woman to create a child. Many people hold that the woman must give birth to the child, but often these same people do not hold that the man is to be held responsible for taking care of the child. The subjection of women has led to one parent families. Children of one parent families are more likely to fail in school, live in poverty, commit crimes, and commit suicide.

The Scriptures do not support the subjection of women. Rather, the Scriptures record that the Lord drives the man and his wife from the garden. The Lord gives the man responsibilities and laws so that the community can have a good life. The temptation story is not about blaming women. Rather, it is the story of how humankind lost its fellowship with God. It is about the consequences of sin. It is a prophecy that the seed of the woman will bruise the head of the serpent. Yes, Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah, the seed of the woman who dies for the sins of the world. His sacrifice destroys the power of the seed of the serpent.

In next week’s article we will raise the issue of the responsibility of Adam. We live in a world that supports the rights and privileges of men. How we interpret the temptation story often leads to worse outcomes for all people, both Christians and non Christians.