Adam and Eve - (Genesis 3:1-13)

In the first book ofthe Old Testament, Genesis presents a story of the origin. The story of Adam and Eve represents the beginning of humanity and its increasing distance from God. Adam was first formed from the Earth and God placed him in the Garden of Eden so that he could work it and keep in good condition. In this garden, also called the Garden of delights, were the tree of life and the tree of knowledge. After disobeying God by eating the fruit of the forbidden tree, Adam and Eve are driven out of the garden. The fall of Adam and Eve, seduced by the temptation of the serpent , represents original sin. Let’s discover the story of Adam and Eve as presented in biblical scripture.

Command of God to Adam

“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”  (Genesis 2:15-17)

The disobedience of Adam and Eve

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”


 2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,


 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”


 4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.


 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”


 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.


 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.


 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.


 9 But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”


 10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”


 11 And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”


 12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”


 13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

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The tree of knowledge of good and evil

When God created Adam and Eve, he gave them the ability to choose. Through this free will, they could decide either to obey God’s command or to disobey it by doing what they wanted. What can this tree of knowledge of good and evil symbolize today in our lives? It represents these things that we know to be contrary to the word of God but whose appearance pleases and attracts us so much. When God speaks to us, it is with his wisdom and foreknowledge of everything. He knows the consequences of disobedience, so he warns us for our own good. However, even if we have fallen into temptation, thanks to Jesus, we can still approach God to ask for mercy and grace! “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” (Hebrews 4:15-16)