12 | Genesis 3:4
the mid dle of the gar den, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”
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“ You will not cer tain ly die,” the ser pent said to the wom an. 5“ For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, know ing good and evil.”
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When the wom an saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleas ing to the eye, and also de sir able for gain ing wis dom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her hus band, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they re al ized they were na ked; so they sewed fig leaves to geth er and made cov er ings for them selves.
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Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walk ing in the gar den in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the gar den. 9 But the Lord God called to the man,“ Where are you?”
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He an swered,“ I heard you in the gar den, and I was afraid be cause I was na ked; so I hid.”
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And he said,“ Who told you that you were na ked? Have you eat en from the tree that I command ed you not to eat from?”
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The man said,“ The wom an you put here with me— she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
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Then the Lord God said to the wom an,“ What is this you have done?”
The wom an said,“ The ser pent de ceived me, and I ate.”
14
So the Lord God said to the ser pent,“ Be cause you have done this,
“ Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. between Ge 3 and ancient Near Eastern material— which also forms the backdrop of passages with similar language( Isa 14; Eze 28)— suggests that the nachash in Ge 3 could be understood in two ways. The narrative may refer to a shining divine being— a member of God’ s heavenly host or council( compare note on 1:26)— in serpentine appearance. In addition, the serpentine imagery may be used to convey the motif of threatening disorder associated with other serpentine figures in the OT( see Ps 74:13 – 14; 104:26 and note; Job 26:12 and note; Job 41:1 and note). Did God really say The serpent’ s question omits the positive statement made by God in Ge 2:16. The serpent also distorts the earlier statement by presenting God as saying Adam and Eve could not eat from any tree at all. 3:2 We may eat The woman corrects the serpent’ s wording, but she does not do so precisely. Instead of echoing 2:16, where God gave the human couple permission to eat from every tree except one, she generalizes the permission, noting simply that they may eat of the trees in the garden. 3:3 you must not touch it Eve adds to God’ s original prohibition, which states nothing about touching the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. or you will die The original threat of 2:17 points to the certainty of death upon disobedience, but it says nothing of an immediate death. The serpent will introduce the idea of an immediate death into the meaning of 2:17 to deceive the woman( see v. 4). 3:5 God The Hebrew word used here, elohim, is plural. Depending on grammar and context, the plural form can be translated as plural or singular— God or gods( divine beings). It is the most common word used in the OT to refer to the singular God of Israel( over 2,000 occurrences). But elohim here may be translated as a plural because of v. 22, where elohim says( according to a literal rendering of the Hebrew):“ they have become as one of us.” Like 1:26, the plurality refers to God and those with him in his abode and throne room: the heavenly host or council( compare Dt 32:8 – 9; Ps 82; note on 82: title – 8; 1Ki 22:19 – 23; note on 22:19). In the ancient Near East, the knowledge of good and evil was believed to be a divine attribute that humans must earn or receive in some fashion. This possibility has seductive power for the woman in the Genesis account and may indicate why God did not reveal this information earlier. God created the test by issuing the prohibition of Ge 2:16 – 17, but he did not intend the temptation to be overwhelming. The serpent is the one who makes it seem irresistible. knowing good and evil This does not refer only to the ability to choose between right and wrong. If the man and woman did not already possess this ability, the original command would have been meaningless. Rather, knowing good and evil refers to divine wisdom, which corresponds with the idea of becoming like God or the gods( elohim in Hebrew). 3:6 husband, who was with her Since there is no mention of the woman leaving the serpent to find Adam, Adam was most likely present for the entire conversation. 3:7 the eyes of both of them were opened Both Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit( v. 6), so they both experienced the new knowledge of rebellion. 3:8 Lord God as he was walking This signals that the writer wants the reader to picture God as a human being( an anthropomorphism) present in the Garden of Eden. This is the first theophany in the OT— an appearance of God to human beings in a manner that can be processed by the human senses. See the table“ Old Testament Theophanies” on p. 924. in the cool of the day Translating this phrase is difficult. The Hebrew term used here, ruach, is normally translated“ spirit” or“ wind”( see note on 1:2), but is often translated here as“ cool.” This may mean that it is intended to evoke the unmistakable power of God’ s presence. 3:10 I was afraid Adam says he is afraid because he is unclothed, but he really fears the shame of appearing naked in God’ s presence. His awareness of that shame exposes his guilt. Before their disobedience, Adam and Eve had no reason to be ashamed( 2:25). 3:11 Who told you that you were naked God asks not because he lacks information, but to elicit a confession. 3:12 woman you put Adam tries to pass responsibility to his wife— and perhaps even to God. 3:14 Cursed are you It is unclear how the serpent( nachash in Hebrew) is more cursed than any other animal. This supports the view that the nachash is not an ordinary member of the animal kingdom and the serpent imagery evokes other ancient Near Eastern parallels. See note on 3:1. You will crawl on your belly The language and context suggest that this condition was new in some way. Since the Hebrew word used for serpent, nachash,