This article is part of a series called “Read The Bible With Larry”. These are excerpts from letters I wrote to brother Larry in Prison, helping him to get through the Bible one part at a time. Visit the WYLH.org Ministries Home Page for more information.
___________________
Genesis 3:1-24
(1) And the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which Yahweh Elohiym had made, and he said to the woman, “Is it true that Elohiym has said, ‘Do not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
(2) And the woman said to the serpent, “We are to eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden,
(3) but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, Elohiym has said, ‘Do not eat of it, nor touch it, lest you die.’ “
(4) And the serpent said to the woman, “You shall certainly not die.
This of course, was a lie. Both Adam and his wife Chawwah ended up dying eventually as a result of disobeying what our Creator said.
(5) “For Elohiym knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be like Elohiym, knowing good and evil.”
(6) And the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, and she took of its fruit and ate. And she also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Similarly, how she saw it was “good for food” – looks can be deceiving. A lot of people today think pork is “good for food”, but Leviticus 11 shows us that piggy and other animals are outlawed as NOT “good for food”. Will we heed what our Creator says and trust He knows best? Hasn’t eating things we’re commanded not to already caused enough harm? Let’s stop the cycle and eat only what our Creator says is “good for food”.
(7) Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made loin coverings for themselves.
(8) And they heard the sound of Yahweh Elohiym walking about in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh Elohiym among the trees of the garden.
(9) And Yahweh Elohiym called unto Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
Of course, Yahweh our Creator knew where Adam was…. So why did He ask where was he?
You see, Yahweh is loving and gentle and kind. He could have come down with fire and just brought destruction instantly or something else, but He didn’t, did he. A lot of people want to paint the picture of our Creator as being insensitive, mean, and unloving, but maybe they just haven’t read enough of the Bible to understand just who Yahweh our Creator is.
He had just made Adam, the first man in HIS image (and the Image of Yahushua) – the Image of Elohiym. This was the first time in history that man knew nakedness… and became exposed to the despair of sin, and Yahweh didn’t start off his relationship with mankind with immediate judgment when the first man sinned, but with a polite inquiry – “Where are you?”. He didn’t say, “Hey Adam stop hiding I know you’re afraid come out you sinner and face judgment.”
As much as some people want to try to find reason to accuse our Creator’s actions in the Bible as being unloving, we cannot ignore when we see very clearly the complete opposite – that Yahweh is the perfect example of love. So we’ve got to seek to understand Him for who He really is, and humble ourselves enough to read His Word for ourselves.
(10) And he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid myself.”
This is the first time fear of punishment or judgment entered into the world. If we obey Yahweh, however, we don’t need to be afraid.
(11) And He said, “Who made you know that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
(12) And the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree and I ate.”
(13) And Yahweh Elohiym said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
(14) And Yahweh Elohiym said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all livestock and more than every beast of the field. On your belly you are to go, and eat dust all the days of your life.
(15) “And I put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He shall crush your head, and you shall crush His heel.”
(16) To the woman He said, “I greatly increase your sorrow and your conception – bring forth children in pain. And your desire is for your husband, and he does rule over you.”
(17) And to the man He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘Do not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground because of you, in toil you are to eat of it all the days of your life,
(18) and the ground shall bring forth thorns and thistles for you, and you shall eat the plants of the field.
(19) “By the sweat of your face you are to eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are, and to dust you return.”
Notice that Yahweh did not curse Adam. The Serpent was cursed, and the ground was cursed, but he never told Adam that Adam was cursed.
Man and woman were blessed back in Genesis 1:28. Thanks be to Yahweh for His mercy.
The punishments received by Adam and his wife were just that – punishments – not curses. Yahweh never said they were cursed. A punishment is not equivalent to a curse. For example, if a parent spanks their child, they are not “cursing” their child, they are disciplining them and teaching them right and wrong.
If Yahweh doesn’t call it a curse, then it’s not a curse.
(20) And the man called his wife’s name Chawwah, because she became the mother of all living.
Yahweh could have named the woman, but he let the man do it. This shows that husbands have authority over their wife even in regards to re-naming them. However, out of respect for the woman’s father, I would advise getting permission before renaming your wife if you intend to do so. It would show respect to him to make sure he is OK with that first. But in this case, there was no fleshly father since she was the first woman, so Adam did not need to consider that.
The purpose of a man’s authority is to ensure that the commandments and laws of Yahweh are followed. Yahweh determined that the man needs to take charge of His household, so this is by Yahweh’s design not of man’s. Man did not place himself in a place of authority, or ask for it, or do something to “deserve” it, and he should not be viewed as being unloving by exercising authority either. This is part of the duty of a man in order that the man take a stand and do his part in protecting his wife and children from Satan. He may not even want this responsibility or duty sometimes, but he doesn’t really have a choice in the matter.
Of course, the man should be striving to exercise this authority in a righteous manner consistent with the totality of Yahweh’s laws – which exist to teach us how to love Yahweh and love our neighbor as ourselves.
(21) And Yahweh Elohiym made coats of skin for the man and his wife and dressed them.
Satan wanted them to find out about their nakedness, and when that happened Yahweh came in to clothe them. Just like how we need Him to clothe us in garments of righteousness through the blood of Yahushua. Without the atonement through the blood of Yahushua, we would appear naked with our sins before the Father. But through Yahushua, we attain white robes of linen. He doesn’t want us to be ashamed. Through Yahushua there is no shame left for us. Whatever we did before is erased, thrown to the depths of the sea, bye-bye.
Satan brings nakedness, but Yahweh brings covering. Yet another act of love by Yahweh.
(22) And Yahweh Elohiym said, “See, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever…”
Being that the man had not maintained his pure, sinless state of being, he couldn’t just live forever as if nothing happened. The consequence as Yahweh said, death. The day he ate of it, Adam died. For a day is as a thousand years (Psalms 90:4), and Adam died within a thousand years.
(23) so Yahweh Elohiym sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken,
(24) and He drove the man out. And He placed keruvim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
Some people don’t see the big deal about the Creator’s dietary laws in Leviticus 11, but from what I can see all it took was for a man and his wife to eat something they were commanded not to and it resulted in death for all of us. Next time you eat something, think twice and ask – does our Creator permit us to eat this? Don’t make the same mistake and let Satan deceive you into thinking you can eat whatever you want or that it’s “not a big deal”. If Yahweh brought death in the Beginning for breaking a dietary commandment, and Isaiah 66 shows part of judgment to come does include what is being eaten by people, we ought to re-align our perspective with Yahweh’s. Don’t let the society and times we live in define right and wrong – let the one who formed your body in the womb – Yahweh.
Afterall, He designed your body so He knows best. It’s like if someone made a car and then you bought it and they gave you a manual on the car, and you said, “Yeah well I don’t think that’s important.. that’s just what YOU say… I can care for this car however I want and it’ll be fine.”…. um… anyone see a problem with that?
Yahweh desires personal fellowship with us just like He had with Adam and Chawwah in the garden. Notice how he walked about when He came looking for Adam…
Revelation 22:4 And they shall see His face, and His Name shall be upon their foreheads.
In the end… we (His Children) will see His face and maybe again, perhaps, this means He will be walking about amongst us. We won’t just pray to Him, we will SEE HIS FACE!
Do you want to see His face? Do you long for Him as He longs for you? He has been waiting, and waiting, and waiting for thousands of years for that time that will come. He didn’t want man to listen to Satan, what He wants is to be near to His children, His creation. But will we choose to be His children? Or will we turn our faces away to look elsewhere?
Let’s turn to Him… He’s waiting.
___________________
This article is part of a series called “Read The Bible With Larry”. These are excerpts from letters I wrote to brother Larry in Prison, helping him to get through the Bible one part at a time. Visit the WYLH.org Ministries Home Page for more information.