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GENESIS CHAPTER THREE
OBSERVATION STAGE
The purpose of
the observation stage is to maintain focus on the text at hand within the
normative rules of language, context and logic 
which limits the observer to the content offered by the book of Genesis.
This will serve to avoid going on unnecessary tangents elsewhere; and more
importantly, it will provide the framework for a proper and objective
comparison with passages located elsewhere in Scripture.
Remember that something elsewhere may be true, but in the text at hand it may not be in view.
Genesis chapter 3 continues the context of Gen 2:25 with Adam and the woman in view in the Garden of Eden:
****** EXCERPT FROM GENESIS CHAPTER 2 STUDY ******
Gen 2:25
declares, "And they are both of them naked, the man and his wife, and
they are not ashamed of themselves." This implies that there was no
mandate for them to wear clothing, and nothing sinful about being naked
before God and one another. On the other hand, the phrase rendered, "And
they are not ashamed of themselves," implies the possibility that
they might be ashamed as will occur after the Fall, (Gen 3:1-7). Note that
the Hebrew word transliterated "arûmmîm" in Gen 2:25
rendered "naked," in the YLT signifies being naked in the sense
of complete nudity with no association of judgment from Jehovah Elohim,
but rather one of innocence. On the other hand, the Hebrew word
transliterated " 'êrummim" in Gen 3:7 signifies "naked,"
in the sense of including an acknowledgment of being under God's judgment
for being sinful. And thus is concluded the account of day number six in
creation - after which God rested on the seventh day from all His work
which He had made; and He blessed that seventh day and sanctified it, (cf.
Gen 1:26-31 ;
2:1-4a ).
****** END OF EXCERPT FROM GENESIS CHAPTER 2 STUDY ******
(Gen 3:1 YLT) "[Now] the serpent [has been] [clever] [like no] animal of the field which Jehovah [Elohim] [has] made, and he [the serpent] [has said] [to] the woman, ['Indeed] [Has Elohim said], [You, lit., they] do not eat [from] every tree of the garden?'
(Gen 3:2 YLT) And the woman [says to] the serpent, '[From] the fruit of the trees of the garden we [have eaten],
(Gen 3:3 NASB) but from the fruit of the tree which [is] in the middle of the garden, God has said, '[They] shall not eat from it [and] [you shall not] touch it, or you... die."
(Gen 3:4 YLT) And the serpent [says to] the woman, ['You shall not surely die, lit., 'Dying, ye do not die],
(Gen 3:5 YLT) for God [is the One Who knows] that in the day of your eating of it - your eyes [they] have been opened, and [you] have been as God, knowing good and evil.'
(Gen 3:6 YLT) And the woman [sees] that the tree is good for food, and that it is pleasant to the eyes, and the tree is desirable to make one wise, and she [takes] of its fruit and [eats], and [gives] also to her husband with her, and he [eats];
(Gen 3:7 YLT) and the eyes of them both are opened, and they know that they are naked, and they sew fig leaves, and make [for] themselves [loin coverings].
(Gen 3:8 YLT) And they hear the sound of Jehovah [Elohim] walking... in the garden at the breeze of the day, and the man and his wife hide themselves from the face of Jehovah [Elohim] in the midst of the trees of the garden.
(Gen 3:9 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [calls to] the man, and [says] to him, 'Where [are you]?'
(Gen 3:10 YLT) and he [the man Adam] [says], '[Your] sound I have heard in the garden, and I am afraid, for I am naked, and I hide myself.'
(Gen 3:11 YLT) And He [Jehovah Elohim][says], 'Who [has] declared to [you] that [you are] naked? Of the tree of which I have commanded [you] not to eat, [have you] eaten?'
(Gen 3:12 YLT) and the man [says], 'The woman whom [You] [have placed] with me - she [has] given to me of the tree - and I do eat.'
(Gen 3:13 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [says] to the woman, 'What is this [you have] done?' and the woman [says], 'The serpent [has deceived me] and I do eat.'
(Gen 3:14 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [says to] the serpent, 'Because [you have] done this, cursed [are you] above all the cattle, and above every beast of the field: on your belly [do you] go, and dust [do you] eat, all [the] days of [your] life;
(Gen 3:15 YLT) and enmity I put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel.'
(Gen 3:16 YLT) [To] the woman He [Jehovah Elohim] said, 'I am greatly multiplying, [(lit., multiplying I multiply)] [your] sorrow and [your] conception [i.e., pregnancy], in [pain] [do you] bear children, and [to your] husband is [your] desire, and he [rules] over [you].'
(Gen 3:17 NKJV) Then to Adam He [had] said, 'Because you have [listened to] the voice of your wife, and [eat] from the tree of which I [have] commanded you, saying, 'You [do] not eat of it': Cursed is the ground [on account of you]; In [hardship] you shall eat of it All the days of your life.
(Gen 3:18 YLT) and thorn and bramble it [does produce for you] and [you will have] eaten the herb of the field;
(Gen 3:19 YLT) by the sweat of [your] face [you do] eat bread till [your returning to] the ground, for out of it [have you] been taken, for dust [you are] and unto dust [you return]'
(Gen 3:20 YLT) And the man [calls] his wife's name Eve: for she [will have been] mother of all [the] living.
(Gen 3:21 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [makes for] the man and his wife coats of skin, and [He clothes] them.
(Gen 3:22 NKJV) Then the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [says], 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he [reaches] out his hand and [has taken] also of the Tree of Life, and [has eaten] [and will have lived] forever' [in such a depraved rebellious condition as he is now in]' -
(Gen 3:23 NKJV) therefore the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [puts] him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he [has been] taken.
(Gen 3:24 NASB) So He [drives] the man out; and at the east of the Garden of Eden He [positions] the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the Tree of Life."
[NOTES: This account of the temptation of man belies blaming sin on environment or heredity or experience]
(Gen 3:1 YLT) "[Now] the serpent [has been] [clever] [like no] animal of the field which Jehovah [Elohim] [has] made, and he [the serpent] [has said] [to] the woman, ['Indeed] [Has Elohim said], [You, lit., they] do not eat [from] every tree of the garden?' (Gen 3:2 YLT) And the woman [says to] the serpent, '[From] the fruit of the trees of the garden we [have eaten], (Gen 3:3 NASB) but from the fruit of the tree which [is] in the middle of the garden, God has said, '[They] shall not eat from it [and] [you shall not] touch it, or you... die. (Gen 3:4 YLT) And the serpent [says to] the woman, ['You shall not surely die, lit., 'Dying, ye do not die], (Gen 3:5 YLT) for God [is the One Who knows] that in the day of your eating of it - your eyes [they] have been opened, and [you] have been as God, knowing good and evil.' (Gen 3:6 YLT) And the woman [sees] that the tree is good for food, and that it is pleasant to the eyes, and the tree is desirable to make one wise, and she [takes] of its fruit and [eats], and [gives] also to her husband with her, and he [eats]; (Gen 3:7 YLT) and the eyes of them both are opened, and they know that they are naked, and they sew fig leaves, and make [for] themselves [loin coverings]." =
The first clause of chapter 3 is structured so as to signify a new section of narrative:
"[Now] the serpent [has been] [clever] [like no] animal of the field which Jehovah [Elohim] [has] made, and he [the serpent] [has said] [to] the woman, ['Indeed] [Has Elohim said], [You, lit., they] do not eat [from] every tree of the garden?' "
So verse one gives background information for the narrative that follows. The serpent is characterized in Gen 3:1 as "clever like no animal of the field which Jehovah Elohim has made," in the sense that there was no other animal of the field, nor any animal which Jehovah Elohim had created like him - which had the ability to be crafty, in the sense of devious / evil like the serpent in view, (cf. Gen 3:14). He evidently could communicate on a level with man, and with the mental capacity of understanding what God had communicated to Adam and the woman. No other animal could do this, and certainly not in such a devious manner. The Hebrew word transliterated " 'Arûm" which characterizes the serpent means clever in a crafty, evil and devious sense; is contrasted with the Hebrew word transliterated " 'arûmmîm" rendered "naked," in the previous verse, Gen 2:25, which characterizes Adam and the woman as naked in the sense of complete nudity with no association of judgment, but rather one of innocence.
The serpent's first recorded communication was with the woman. Jehovah Elohim and Adam did not evidence their immediate physical presence, nor were they included in the conversation. By the substance of his question to the woman, it was evident that the serpent could communicate with the most intelligent of beings, mankind, in a subtle, devious, and provocative manner. The serpent asked the woman if Elohim had said, "You [lit., They] do not eat from every tree of the garden." From the Hebrew text, the serpent is reported to have actually said, "They do not eat from every tree," using the verb form that is rendered with the 3rd person plural pronoun. This is remarkable because the serpent was speaking directly to and about the woman requiring a 2nd person singular verb form. In this scenario, the pronoun "They," would then tend to objectify and put distance between Jehovah Elohim and the woman and the man - the serpent's intention.
Furthermore, that was not all of what Jehovah Elohim had said to Adam on this matter. The serpent not only twisted the words of Jehovah Elohim from what He said to Adam, which were His original words to Adam as follows: "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die;' "
but the serpent left out Jehovah's specific command to not eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil or Adam would surely die, creating a question of the integrity of Jehovah Elohim with his question to the woman, as follows: "[Indeed] [Has Elohim said], [You, lit., they] do not eat [from] every tree of the garden?"
The ability of the serpent to be crafty like none of the animals of the field - to communicate with the woman on a superior intellectual level, was notably not surprising to the woman. Perhaps the snake was new to her at the time which would then have been shortly following her creation; or perhaps her willingness to be deceived into thinking she could be like Jehovah Elohim was in view. She was certainly in a vulnerable position.
The serpent's clever capacity was testified to in the rest of the narrative. It is evident that the serpent knew precisely what God had said to Adam, (ref. Gen 3:1, 4). Although Jehovah Elohim declared only one tree was off limits for food - the Tree of the Knowedge of Good and Evil, the serpent determined to present this restriction in a way which made the woman consider why she could not eat of all the trees in the garden. So his question was deliberately framed in order to prompt the woman to respond in a manner which would question the integrity of Jehovah Elohim and deceive the innocent woman into disobeying, disbelieving and discrediting Jehovah Elohim - causing her to sin.
Contrary to what some contend, first came the words of the LORD which brought truth, order and life - a context of everything being very good, especially with the man and the woman, (Genesis chapters one and two). Then this was followed by the first words of the serpent which brought deception, lies, chaos and death to the man and woman and the whole earth, (Genesis chapter three).
The serpent's question had deliberately presented what God had commanded of Adam relative to not being permitted to eat of every tree in the garden in a manner designed to prompt the woman to consider why she could not eat of all the trees in the garden - a provocative and devious question. This was done in order to prompt the woman to question Jehovah Elohim's wisdom, authority and integrity. By this the serpent was usurping the authority of Jehovah Elohim.
Later on in Genesis chapter 3, beginning with verse 14, Jehovah Elohim is reported to have spoken to the particular serpent in the Garden of Eden in a manner consistent with one who had demonstrated highly intelligent, subtle and evil qualities; but the serpent's capacity was inconsistent with such an earthly creature as God had created it. For of all the earthly creatures, only man was created to have a soul which reflected the image of God with high intelligence and capacity to exercise rulership over all the other created beings on the earth. The serpent's capacity was evidently far beyond the limits of any animal that Jehovah Elohim had created - as if another sentient being had taken over it faculties. Hence we may conclude that the particular serpent in view in Genesis 3 was possessed / influenced by another highly superior created being other than the two humans God had created which leaves an angelic being.
As a result of the serpent / Satan deceiving Eve, causing her to sin and being instrumental in instigating Adam into sin, (ref. Gen 3:1-7), Jehovah Elohim would curse the serpent more than any other creature, relegating serpents to crawl on their bellies, eating dust as a sign of His judgment upon Satan, (Gen 3:14). And then Jehovah Elohim would turn directly to Satan himself and pronounce judgment upon him as well, (Gen 3:15). Previous text in Genesis does not directly connect Satan as the one controlling the serpent's behavior, but other passages in Scripture corroborate and provide more details on this. In view of the significance of this, it is important to divert to those key passages to verify this.
(Gen 1:26 NKJV) "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.' "
2) [Compare Gen 1:25, 31; 2:3]:
(Gen 1:25 NKJV) "And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind...And God saw that it was good."
(Gen 1:31 NKJV) "Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day,
(Gen 2:3 NASB) "Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made [lit., to make]."
Notice that no non-human earthly creature had been equipped to behave in an evil manner. Furthermore, God said by the end of the 6th day that all that He had created was good - very good, not evil. And after that He rested on the seventh day. He blessed that day and sanctified it, implying that there was nothing in His creation that had not yet become evil, (Gen 1:30-31; 2:3).
Some time after that seventh day, the serpent had to have been possessed by a superior created being who had chosen to do evil and usurp the authority of God as demonstrated in Gen 3:1-6. The only highly intelligent creature in the image of God left besides the two humans, Adam and the woman, who might be suspect of such behavior, was the most powerful angelic creature, Lucifer, the fallen angel, renamed Satan, literally meaning Adversary [of God]:
(Ez 28:1 YLT) '''''And there is [the] word of Jehovah [coming] unto me, [again, cf. 27:1], saying:
(Ez 28:2 NKJV) ''''Son of man, say to the prince [ruler] of Tyre, '''Thus [has said] my Lord [Jehovah]: "Because your heart [has been] lifted up [i.e., proud], And you say, 'I am a god ['El], I [have sat] in the seat of the gods, In the midst of the seas,' Yet you are a man, and not a god ['El], Though you set your heart as the heart of [one of the] gods [elohim].
(Ez 28:3 NKJV) (Behold, you are wiser than Daniel! There is no secret that can be hidden from you!
(Ez 28:4 NKJV) With your wisdom and your understanding You have gained riches for yourself, And [gather] gold and silver into your treasuries.
(Ez 28:5 NKJV) By your great wisdom in trade you have increased your riches. And your heart is lifted up [i.e., becomes proud] because or your riches)," '''
[The Bible Knowledge Commentary, OT, Walvoord & Zuck, Eds, Victor Books, USA, 1988, p. 1282]:
"28:1-5. Ezekiel's third message against Tyre was directed specifically to the ruler of Tyre. 'Ruler'... Ezekiel had prophesied against the whole city; he was now singling out the city's leader for a special word from God. This ruler was Ehtbaal III, who ruled from 591-590 B.C. to 573-772 B.C.
The underlying sin of Tyre's king was his pride, which prompted him to view himself as a god... Evidently in Ezekiel's day the kings of Tyre believed they were divine.
The king's claims to deity were false. God said, You are a man and not a god. Ethbaal III was only a mortal. Evidently he felt he had wisdom that only a god could possess. In a statement dripping with irony Ezekiel asked the king, Are you wiser than Daniel? Is no secret hidden from you? The 'Daniel' in view was probably the Prophet Daniel... He had already achieved a reputation for his wisdom in the courts of Nebuchadnezzar... The irony was that Ethbaal III felt his wisdom exceeded that of even Daniel who served the country that would ultimately defeat Tyre. Daniel who attributed all his wisdom to God, (cf. Dan 2:27-28), was much wiser than Ethbaal III, who claimed to be a god.
Ethbaal III had been able to use his wisdom and skill to acquire material possessions. His lucrative trade had produced great wealth, including gold and silver, but it also increased his pride (his heart had grown proud)."]
(Ez 28:6 NKJV) Therefore thus [has said] [my] Lord Jehovah: Because [of your setting] your heart as the heart of [one of the] gods [elohim].
(Ez 28:7 NKJV) Behold, therefore, I [am bringing] strangers against you, The most terrible [i.e., ruthless] of the nations; And they shall [have drawn] their swords against the beauty of your wisdom, And defile your splendor.
(Ez 28:8 YLT) To [the grave] they bring [you] down, You [will have died] ... the deaths of the slain, in the heart of the seas.
(Ez 28:9 NKJV) Will you still [i.e., continue to] say before [the one killing you] I am a god [lit., one of the gods]? But you [are] a man, and not a god ['El], In the hand of [those profaning, i.e., slaying you]
(Ez 28:10 YLT) The deaths of the uncircumcised [you die], By the hand of strangers, for I have spoken, An affirmation of [my] Lord Jehovah.
[The Bible Knowledge Commentary, OT, Walvoord & Zuck, Eds, Victor Books, USA, 1988, pp. 1282-3]:
"28:6-10. God would not let the pride (vv. 2, 5) of Tyre's ruler go unchallenged. The foreigners whom God would bring against Tyre had already been identified as the Babylonians (26:7-11). Babylon was ruthless... in her treatment of others... Unimpressed with Ethbaal's beauty and wisdom, Babylon would destroy him in a violent way in the heat of the seas (cf. 27:26). When slaim by his enemies, it would be evident that he was no god. Ethbaal III was removed from his throne by Nebuchadnezzar in 573-572 B.C. and Baal II was put in his place. Ethbaal III paid a high price for rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar. In fact Ethbaal would die the death of the uncircumcised at the hands of foreigners. While the Phoenicians practiced circumcision, Ezekiel's words conveyed a meaning that went beyond this cultural practice. To 'die the death of the uncircumcised' meant to die in shame (cf. 32:30)... This king who claimed to be a god would suffer an ignoble death as a man."
Notice that verses 1-10 refer to the actual king of Tyre of history which predicts what actually happened in history: his defeat under military attack and violent death "in the heart of the seas... at the hands of his foreigners"]
(Ez 28:11 YLT) And there is [the] word of Jehovah [coming] unto me, [again, cf. 27:1], saying:
(Ez 28:12 NKJV) ''''Son of man, take up a lamentation [i.e., a funeral dirge] for the king of Tyre, and [you will have] said to him, Thus [my] Lord Jehovah: "You were the seal of perfection Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
(Ez 28:13 NKJV) You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, Beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald [and] gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and [settings] [having been] prepared for you on the day [of your being created.
[Note that the setting of vv. 11-19 is not the earthly one of the time of the king of Tyre. The king of Tyre never took residence in the Garden of Eden, nor was he adorned with every precious stone prepared at the moment of his creation, nor was he a guardian cherub angel. Furthermore, it cannot be figurative, for the details are not consistent with the person of the king of Tyre himself. It is however consistent with an actual angelic being - one of great power who beyond the capacity of the human king of Tyre, was the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty who dwelt in Eden, the garden of God, was adorned with every precious stone set in gold, which was created on the day he was created. Note that the human king of Tyre would be referred to as being born not created in a mature state. This perfect being is the one who was behind the evil actions of the human king of Tyre ]
(Ez 28:14 NKJV) You [were] the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
[Note that a cherub angel was one of supreme authority and power, fully capable of doing what the Serpent did in the Garden of Eden, (Gen 3:1-15) Furthermore, it is stipulated that this cherub angel was ordained by God to such a position and was on the holy mount of God among what is described as "the fiery stones". None of this corresponds with a viable description of the human king of Tyre, symbolic or otherwise]
(Ez 28:15 YLT) Perfect [i.e., blameless] [are] [you] in [your] ways, From the day of [your] being [created], [until being found] [wickedness] in [you].
[Notice that Lucifer, the name of the angelic creature in view, (cf. Isa 14:12-14), was blameless and perfect in his ways from the day that he was created, until wickedness was found in him. Also note that the King of Tyre was not blameless from the day he was created, but born in sin]
(Ez 28:16 NKJV) By the abundance of [your] merchandise [i.e., your trading] [you have become filled with violence within], And [you do sin], Therefore I cast you as a profane [i.e., defiled] thing Out of the mountain of God, And I [have] destroyed you, O covering cherub, From the midst of the stones of fire.
(Ez 28:17 NKJV) Your heart [has been] lifted up [i.e., prideful] because of your beauty; You [have] corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor; I [have] cast you to the ground, [I have put you] before kings, That they might gaze at you.
[Notice that this angelic being was expelled from the mount of God in heaven to the earth with no restriction of his behavior so he still could choose to express his evil anywhere on the earth, including the Garden of Eden which he evidently did, (cf. Gen 3:1-15)]
(Ez 28:18 YLT) From the abundance of [your] iniquity, By the perversity of [your] [trade], [You have] polluted [your] sanctuaries, And I bring forth fire from [your] midst, It [has consumed you], And I make [you] become[as] ashes on the earth, Before the eyes of all beholding [you].
(Ez 28:19 YLT) All [those] knowing you among the peoples Have been astonished [i.e., appalled] at [you], [Calamities] [you have become], and [you shall be no more forever].
[BKC, op. cit., p. 1283]:
"28:11-19.... Ezekiel was not describing an ideal man or a false god in verses 11-26. But his switch from 'ruler' to 'king' and his allusions to the Garden of Eden do imply that the individual being described was more than human. The best explanation is that Ezekiel was describing Satan who was the true 'king' of Tyre, the one motivating the human 'ruler' of Tyre. Satan was in the Garden of Eden (Gen 3:1-7), and his chief sin was pride (1 Tim 3:6). He also had access to God's pressence (cf. Job 1:6-12). Speaking of God's judging the human 'ruler' of Tyre for his pride (Ezek 28:1-10), the prophet lamented the satanic 'king' of Tyre who was also judged for his pride (vv. 11-19). Tyre was motivated by the same sin as Satan, and would suffer the same fate.
Ezekiel described the beauty and perfection of Satan as God originally created him (vv. 12-15a). He was the model of perfection, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. God did not create Satan as some prime minister of evil. As with all God's Creation, Satan was a perfectly created being - one of the crowing achievements in God's angelic realm.
Satan was given an exalted place; he was in Eden, the garden of God. Eden was the epitome of God's beautiful Creation on earth (cf. Gen 2:8-14). Satan's beauty matched that of Eden: every precious stone adorned him. Ezekiel listed nine gemstones in describing Satan's beauty... The precious stones probably symbolized Satan's beauty and high position.
God had anointed Satan as a guardian cherub (Ezek 28:14). The cherubim... were the 'inner circle' of angels who had the closest access to God and guarded His holiness (cf. 10:1-14). Satan also had free access to God's holy mount (28:14), heaven, and he walked among the fiery stones (cf. v. 16)... God's fiery wall of protection (cf. Zech 2:5)... Ezekiel was stating that Satan had access to God's presence.
As originally created by God, Satan was blameless... til wickeness was found in him (Ezek 28:15) and he sinned (v. 16). The sin that corrupted Satan was self-generated. Created blameless, his sin was pride, (1 Tim 3:6), because of his beauty. Satan spoiled his wisdom because of his splendor... Satan's pride led to his fall and judgment.
Though Ezekiel presented the fall of Satan as a single act, it actually occurred in stages. Satan's initial judgment was his expulsion from the position of God's anointed cherub before His throne. God expelled him from the mount of God (heaven, v. 16; cf. v. 14). Satan was cast from God's government in heaven (cf. Luke 10:18) but was still allowed access to God (cf. Job 1:6-12; Zech 3:1-2)...
One of the elements of Satan's sin was his widespread dishonest trade. The word for trade comes from the verb 'rAkal' which means 'to go about from one to another.' Ezekiel had used that noun in speaking of Tyre's commercial activities (Ezek 28:5)... Ezekiel was comparing the human 'prince' of Tyre and his satanic 'king.'
So Ezekiel used a word that could convey a broad meaning. Satan's position in heaven involved broad contact with many elements of God's creation much as the prince of Tyre's position enabled him to contact many nations.
Though Ezekiel was describing the 'ultimate' ruler of Tyre, Satan, the purpose of the lament was to speak of the city's destruction. So he began to blend the characteristics of the satanic king with the human ruler. Satan would be cast to the earth (v. 17), and the king of Tyre would also be cast down before other kings, his enemies. Satan's ultimate destiny will be the lake of fire (cf. Rev 21:10), and the defeat and death of the human ruler of Tyre was pictured as being consumed by fire (Ezek 28:18). Both Satan's and Tyre's defeats would shock those nations who had followed them. They would be appalled because of Satan's and Tyre's horrible end (cf. 27:35-36)."
(Isa 14:12 NKJV) "How you [have] fallen from [the heavens], O Lucifer, son of the morning! [ref. son of the morning star]. How you [have been] cut down to the [earth], [the one weakening] the nations!
At this point in chapter 14 the subject switches from the king of Babylon who is portrayed as fallen in physical death to Sheol, in the depths of the earth, to the same fate as other rulers, to a rebellious angelic being as if the latter were somehow responsible for the former's cruel rulership on earth.
The Hebrew word "heylel" rendered "Lucifer" in the KJV literally means light bearer, or morning star which the latter most readily fits the context since such a light bearer is portayed as coming from heaven above and is referred to in verse 12 as "son of the dawn" which implies a light bearer above the earth at dawn, i.e., a morning star. The planet Venus is often referred to as the morning star.
The term Lucifer in fourth century Latin was a name for Venus, the morning star. The Latin word Lucifer is composed of two words: lux, or in the genitive form used lucis, (meaning "light") and ferre, which means "to bear" or "to bring." So, the word Lucifer means bearer of light as does "heylel" in the Hebrew. Hence the name Lucifer has been adopted over into English to mean "light bearer" and in specific contexts such as Isa 14:12, refers to the fallen angel, later named Satan, as rendered in a number of key versions, (KJV, NKJV, etc.).
On the other hand, since the beginning of verse 14:12 describes a morning star having fallen from heaven; and since stars don't occupy the heaven where God's throne resides; and since a star would destroy the earth if it fell to it; then we can conclude that verse 12 is figurative, with a literal meaning behind it. "Heylel" is further described as having fallen from heaven to the ground, i.e., to the earth resulting in weakening the "gowy" literally people or nations, i.e., mankind, corroborating that "Heylel" refers to an angelic being. Hence we can conclude that verse 12 portrays an angelic being who has fallen from his residence in heaven, evidently having committed some kind of offense toward God, i.e., sin; and was cast down to earth where his actions have caused mankind to weaken, i.e., become sinful]
(Isa 14:13 NKJV) For you have said in your heart: 'I will ascend into [the heavens], I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north;
(Isa 14:14 NKJV) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.'
[The reason why an angelic being was thrown out of heaven is made clear in verses 13 and 14: Lucifer aspired to ascend to heaven to raise his throne above the stars of God which most likely refers to angelic beings because the position of inanimate stars in the heavens is hardly something for an angelic being who already has access to heaven and the throne room of God to aspire to]
(Job 1:6 NKJV) '''Now there was a day when the sons of God [lit., “sons of God”; unfallen angels are God’s “sons” in the sense that they are His creation; (cf. 38:7)] came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.
(Job 1:7 NKJV) And the LORD said to Satan, "From where do you come?" So Satan answered the LORD and said, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it."
(Job 1:8 NKJV) Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?"
(Job 1:9 NKJV) So Satan answered the LORD and said, "Does Job fear God for nothing?
(Job 1:10 NKJV) Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
(Job 1:11 NKJV) But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
(Job 1:12 NKJV) And the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person." So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.'''
[So the evil angel Satan = literally, "Adversary" of God], roamed the earth "going back and forth in it" looking for faults in humans in order to show them to God. He especially opposed God when God blessed, protected and enabled Job to walk blameless before Him. In Job 1:11, Satan indicated that he wanted to provoke an individual to curse God to His face by causing him great harm, (Job 1:11). Such an angel demonstrated a capability, willingness and availability on earth to possess the serpent in the Garden of Eden and deceive Eve into sinning, (cf. Gen 3:1-15).
(Rev 12:7 NKJV) "And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought,
(Rev 12:8 NKJV) but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.
(Rev 12:9 NKJV) So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
(Rev 20:2 NKJV) "He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years."
This indicates that Satan must have sinned and fallen very close to the time that God created Adam and Eve, shortly - a matter of a few 24 hour days - after God had created and finished forming the heavens for the angelic beings to occupy - and to serve Jehovah Elohim's purpose:
(Heb 1:13 NKJV) "But to which of the angels has He ever said: 'Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool'?
(Heb 1:14 NKJV) Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?"
A cont.) (Gen 3:1-7 cont.) CHAPTER 3 BEGINS A NEW NARRATIVE: NOW THE SERPENT HAS BEEN CLEVER / DEVIOUS LIKE NO ANIMAL - EVEN BEYOND THE CAPACITY OF ANY ANIMAL JEHOVAH ELOHIM HAD CREATED - INDWELT BY SATAN. THE SERPENT SAID TO THE WOMAN TO MANIPULATE HER INTO DISOBEYING JEHOVAH ELOHIM, "HAS ELOHIM SAID, 'THEY DO NOT EAT FROM EVERY TREE OF THE GARDEN?' " THE WOMAN THEN SAYS TO THE SERPENT WITHOUT HESITATION, SUBMISSIVELY AND WITHOUT QUESTION, "'FROM THE FRUIT OF THE TREES OF THE GARDEN WE HAVE EATEN BUT FROM THE FRUIT OF THE TREE WHICH IS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE GARDEN, ELOHIM HAS SAID, 'THEY SHALL NOT EAT FROM IT AND YOU SHALL NOT TOUCH IT, OR YOU DIE" - EDITORIALIZING WHAT JEHOVAH ELOHIM HAD SAID. THE SERPENT'S RESPONSE QUESTIONED THE INTEGRITY OF JEHOVAH ELOHIM, CONTRADICTING WHAT HE HAD SAID BY SAYING, "YOU SHALL NOT SURELY DIE, FOR GOD IS THE ONE WHO KNOWS THAT IN THE DAY OF YOUR EATING OF IT - YOUR EYES THEY HAVE BEEN OPENED, AND YOU HAVE BEEN AS GOD, KNOWING GOOD AND EVIL." THE WOMAN WAS TEMPTED AND DECEIVED, EATS OF THE TREE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE GARDEN, GIVES TO HER HUSBAND AND HE EATS. THEIR EYES ARE OPENED, THEY REALIZE THEIR NAKEDNESS AND COVER THEMSELVES UP WITH FIG LEAVES SOWN TOGETHER, (cont.)
(Gen 3:1 YLT) "[Now] the serpent [has been] [clever] [like no] animal of the field which Jehovah [Elohim] [has] made, and he [the serpent] [has said] [to] the woman, ['Indeed] [Has Elohim said], [You, lit., they] do not eat [from] every tree of the garden?' (Gen 3:2 YLT) And the woman [says to] the serpent, '[From] the fruit of the trees of the garden we [have eaten], (Gen 3:3 NASB) but from the fruit of the tree which [is] in the middle of the garden, God has said, '[They] shall not eat from it [and] [you shall not] touch it, or you... die. (Gen 3:4 YLT) And the serpent [says to] the woman, ['You shall not surely die, lit., 'Dying, ye do not die], (Gen 3:5 YLT) for God [is the One Who knows] that in the day of your eating of it - your eyes [they] have been opened, and [you] have been as God, knowing good and evil.' (Gen 3:6 YLT) And the woman [sees] that the tree is good for food, and that it is pleasant to the eyes, and the tree is desirable to make one wise, and she [takes] of its fruit and [eats], and [gives] also to her husband with her, and he [eats]; (Gen 3:7 YLT) and the eyes of them both are opened, and they know that they are naked, and they sew fig leaves, and make [for] themselves [loin coverings]," (cont.) =
Although the
woman had the capacity and mandate from Jehovah Elohim as Adam's
counterpart to subdue and corule over all the animals and the domain of
the earth; nevertheless, she responded submissively, without hesitation
and without question to what the serpent had asked. The woman should have
chosen to respond toward him in a manner which took charge over her domain
.
Notice that the serpent used "Elohim," to refer to God, instead of Jehovah Elohim - leaving out the part which signified having a personal relationship with God. And the woman did likewise, following the serpent's lead - both were at the time at enmity with Jehovah Elohim, (Gen 3:1).
So the woman responded to the serpent's question of "['Indeed] [Has Elohim said], [You, lit., they] do not eat [from] every tree of the garden?' " by saying to him, "[From] the fruit of the trees of the garden we [have eaten], but from the fruit of the tree which [is] in the middle of the garden, God has said, '[They] shall not eat from it [and] [you shall not] touch it, or you... die." Notice that the woman followed the serpent's lead and switched to the same verb form for the 3rd person plural in, "They shall not eat from it." And she used the name that the serpent used for God, leaving out the name Jehovah as well - the name portraying having a personal relationship with the Creator God, Elohim - almost as if she was following the lead of the serpent in all of this - portraying her alienation from Jehovah Elohim. Then she added to what Jehovah Elohim had commanded Adam when she said, "[You shall not] touch it, or you... die." And then the woman did not repeat what Jehovah Elohim had said to Adam - that if [she] ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil he would "môttAmût" = surely die, lit., die dying. Instead she left out the emphatic rendering of "surely die," which is what Jehovah Elohim had said to Adam, and she simply said "or you die."
(Gen 2:16 NKJV) "And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
(Gen 2:17 NKJV) but of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.' "
The serpent's response to the woman, in Gen 3:4 included, " 'You shall not surely die." By this the serpent indicated that he had overheard and fully understood what God had said to Adam. He did not leave out the emphatic "surely," which the woman left out. It is evident that the woman did not accurately report what Jehovah Elohim had said to Adam. This reflects upon Adam, who was responsible for properly instructing his wife - especially relative to the importance of accurately acknowledging and obeying what Jehovah Elohim had commanded them to do. Since she was a part of him - his counterpart, she shared the responsibility of subduing and ruling over all the animals and the domain of the earth, given to them by Jehovah Elohim, (Gen 3:2-3).
The serpent further responded to the woman, "You shall not surely die, for God [is the One Who knows] that in the day of your eating of it - your eyes [they] have been opened, and [you] have been as God, knowing good and evil," implied that Jehovah Elohim was lying when He said to Adam, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die," (Gen 2:16-17).
The serpent's
declaration to the woman, twisted and added words to what Jehovah Elohim
had said. The serpent declared that in the day, i.e., from the moment on -
of her eating of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, her eyes
would be opened. There would be a momentous change in her being - her
consciousness and capacity; such that she would be as Elohim in knowing
good and evil. And by prefacing his declaration to the woman with "For
Elohim is the One Who knows that..." the serpent had viciously and
boldly challenged the authority, veracity and integrity of Jehovah Elohim.
The fact that the serpent left out the personal name of "Jehovah"
for God, saying only "Elohim," was a sign that the one behind
the serpent, Satan, was at enmity with Jehovah Elohim. In all of this, the
serpent implied that Jehovah was a liar, Who was jealous of others'
gaining knowledge that might challenge His authority and power. The
serpent's declaration to the woman further implied that Jehovah Elohim was
attempting to hold Adam and the woman back from their destiny to become
like Him if they ate of the forbidden fruit - knowing good and evil, even
transforming themselves into beings like God. Ironically the serpent /
Satan was suggesting that Adam and the woman attempt to do what he,
Lucifer / Satan had tried to do - to become like God. And for that he was
earlier thrown out of heaven and cut down to the earth by Jehovah Elohim,
(Isa 14:12-15
).
The serpent's devious declaration should have prompted an authoritative response from the woman against the serpent. She should have rebuked the serpent's implication that he knew how Jehovah Elohim thinks - making himself equal with God. And she should have rebuked the serpent for impugning the character of Jehovah Elohim. The serpent's declaration to the woman should have prompted her to ask, "If what you are saying is true, why haven't you eaten of the forbidden fruit and received godly enlightenment of good and evil and become like God yourself?
Ironically,
Adam and the woman were already created in the image of God, hence they
were like God in the sense of having finite
characteristics like those of God on His infinite plane that nevertheless
set them apart from the animal world. And, unlike the animal world, they
were blessed with the capacity to enjoy fellowship with Jehovah Elohim,
and fulfill their role of representing Him in ruling over all the animals
and the domain of the earth which Jehovah Elohim had created for them,
.
But they could never be Eternal, Uncreated, Almighty and Infinite, as
Jehovah Elohim is.
The serpent in his two short communications to the woman, had done great damage. He had completed his evil work and left the woman to bring about her own destiny. She could have chosen:
¤ to accept what the serpent, a relative stranger, said to her which contradicted what God had said, impugning Who He was without evidence, in order to become as God, knowing good and evil;
¤ or she could have chosen to believe in and obey Jehovah Elohim - Creator of the universe; Who had created her and her husband Adam in His image; Who created and provided the Garden especially for them; Who spent time there with them, instructing them; and Who granted within them a capacity to take dominion over all the animals and the earth for Him, (Gen 3:4-5).
So despite the evidence, the woman chose to disbelieve in, disobey and discredit Jehovah Elohim in her mind and in her actions: she allowed herself to become fully deceived; then fully tempted; then she committed to act upon that temptation; then while exercising her natural desire and physical appetite for the forbidden fruit that was pleasing to the eye and good for food, she ate of it. She was further compelled by what she evidently believed had the potential for gaining the wisdom of God and even attaining deity. So by disobeying Jehovah Elohim, she believed that she could nevertheless attain His wisdom - apart from Him - and enjoy the 'good' of it on her own by eating of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. She compounded her sinful actions by including her husband Adam, who was evidently nearby. After she ate of the fruit, she handed it to him and he ate of it. Despite the command Jehovah Elohim gave Adam directly not to eat of that tree, Adam ignored his responsibility to instruct the woman and lead her to repentance toward Jehovah Elohim. Adam responded to his desire for his wife over his desire to stay in fellowship with Jehovah Elohim. So he ate of it himself. Note that Gen 3:17 indicates that Adam "[listened to] the voice of [his] wife, and [eats] from the tree of which [Jehovah Elohim has] commanded [him], saying, 'You [do] not eat of it,' " implying that the woman had spoken to Adam relative to this matter.
So Adam was most responsbible for their disobedience:
(Ro 5:12 NKJV) "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned"
(1 Tim 2:13 NKJV) "For Adam was formed first, then Eve.
(1 Tim 2:14 NKJV) And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression."............................................................................................................. (Gen 3:6).
The account in Genesis chapter 3 goes on to say that the eyes of both Adam and the woman were opened in the sense that they became aware of their nakedness before one another and before Jehovah Elohim - their guilt and their shame - with a view to Jehovah Elohim's judgment being upon them. They gained the realization that their disobedience caused their personal estrangement from Jehovah Elohim, and a change in their characters from innocent to sinful. They realized that the so called good that they sought to accomplish should have been actual good through trusting in and obedience to Jehovah Elohim; and not in the serpent / Satan.
In Gen 2:25, the Hebrew word transliterated " 'arûmmîm" and rendered "naked," signifies naked in the sense of complete nudity with no association of judgment but rather one of innocence. But in the case of Gen 3:7, the Hebrew word transliterated " 'êrummim," rendered "naked" signifies naked in the sense of including an acknowledgment of being under God's judgment for being sinful. Hence when the man and the woman disobeyed Jehovah Elohim and thereby sinned, they sewed fig leaves to cover themselves up - to cover up their loins - their nakedness - their guilt and their shame before one another and before Jehovah Elohim.
Contrary to what the serpent said, as a result of their eating of the forbidden fruit, Adam and the woman died spiritually. Evidence of this was their becoming aware and ashamed of their nakedness; and their estrangement from Jehovah Elohim indicated in Gen 3:8-10 examined below, when they hid fearfully from Him. After they had experienced fellowshipping with Him in the garden from the beginning of their creation, they now hid from Him in fear.
Adam and the
woman - his wife - had become knowledgeable of good and evil - but not as
the serpent had promised. For through their experience of rebelling
against God and committing sin, they learned that being obedient to God
was the only way to know righteousness and goodness; and disobeying Him
was the way to lose their righteousness and the blessings that accompanied
that good. Their disobedience gave them the experience of knowing evil by
committing sin themselves. And for that they also experienced sins'
negative consequences, including guilt and shame, spiritual and physical
death, and spiritual insanity. Their learning was a finite / limited and
evil experience - falling short of God's knowledge which is infinite and
Righteous. They demonstrated sinfulness in their character, as opposed to
God Who is Perfect Righteousness. Adam and the woman did not become like
God in the sense of being absolutely Righteous, nor did they become
omniscient - knowing all good and evil as the serpent had promised. They
became spiritually dead and mortal in their physical lives, leading to
physical death .
(Gen 5:5 NKJV) "So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died."
Adam's and the woman's disobedience was not only an act of sin, but an act of folly. For they had all the "good" they would need which Jehovah Elohim had provided for them in the Garden; but they wanted more - they wanted to be like God, (Gen 3:7).
(Gen 3:8 YLT) "And they hear the sound of Jehovah [Elohim] walking... in the garden at the breeze of the day, and the man and his wife hide themselves from the face of Jehovah [Elohim] in the midst of the trees of the garden. (Gen 3:9 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [calls to] the man, and [says] to him, 'Where [are you]?' (Gen 3:10 YLT) and he [the man Adam] [says], '[Your] sound I have heard in the garden, and I am afraid, for I am naked, and I hide myself.' (Gen 3:11 YLT) And He [Jehovah Elohim][says], 'Who [has] declared to [you] that [you are] naked? Of the tree of which I have commanded [you] not to eat, [have you] eaten?' (Gen 3:12 YLT) and the man [says], 'The woman whom [You] [have placed] with me - she [has] given to me of the tree - and I do eat.' (Gen 3:13 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [says] to the woman, 'What is this [you have] done?' and the woman [says], 'The serpent [has deceived me] and I do eat.' (Gen 3:14 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [says to] the serpent, 'Because [you have] done this, cursed [are you] above all the cattle, and above every beast of the field: on your belly [do you] go, and dust [do you] eat, all [the] days of [your] life." =
The phrase in
Gen 3:8 is rendered, "And they, [Adam and the woman], hear the sound
of Jehovah Elohim walking in the garden at the breeze of the day" in
the sense of the cool of the day. It implies that Jehovah Elohim - the
LORD God - was appearing in human form to regularly meet with Adam and the
woman in the Garden .
This also implies that the sound of His walking through the garden was
familiar to Adam and the woman, further implying that this had been a
repeated occurrence. The time of the day was evidently characterized by
the regular occurrence of a breeze - usually associated with late
afternoon or early evening. But now in the case of the man and woman
having disobeyed Jehovah Elohim, and having heard the familiar sound of
Jehovah Elohim in human form walking through the garden, instead of going
to Him to meet with Him, they hid from Him in fear amongst the trees in
the Garden. They demonstrated a new found fear of Jehovah Elohim - an
estrangement indicating that they had become spiritually estranged / dead
to Him. They evidently knew that they were naked in the sense of having
become sinful beings under the judgment of Jehovah Elohim for eating the
forbidden fruit, (ref. Gen 3:10).
So, on the day when they ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, (ref. Gen 2:17), Adam and Eve died spiritually as evidenced by their trying to hide in fear from an omniscient God, showing an ignorance and fear of Him and an alienation, (separation), from Him; whereas before they were in an intimate relationship with Him. An effect of sin is an estrangement from Jehovah Elohim.
And on that day Adam, as the federal head and representative of the human race, insured that all of humanity would be born spiritually dead and that all new born babies would inherit a sin nature and spiritual death through his seed as it passed on from generation to generation. So instead of having a close relationship with Jehovah Elohim, mankind would now be estranged, fearful and in rebellion against Him.
[Henry Morris states, ("The Genesis Record", Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1976, p. 113)]:
"...Because Adam had the sentence of death imposed as an actual operational feature of his biological life, his descendants also have inherited a life principle which involves a built-in death principle. The moment a child is conceived he begins to die, and eventually the death principle wins out over the life principle and he does die."
(Ro 5:12 NKJV) "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned."
[Morris, cont., p. 113]
"As the tendency toward death is inherited by all men, so also is the tendency toward sin. No descendant of Adam has ever lived to an age of conscious awareness of right and wrong without actually choosing wrong. He has become a deliberate sinner because he has inherited a sinful nature, which leads him to sin in practice. Thus, 'death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.'
[So] Each person continues under the divine judgment of death, not only because of Adam's sin, but because of his own deliberate sin."
The New Testament verifies the doctrine of spiritual death, especially in Paul's letter to the believers in Ephesus:
(Eph 2:1 NKJV) "And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins"
["And you" who must be physically alive in order for you to hear this message, "He," Jesus Christ, "made" spiritually "alive when you were" spiritually "dead," (obviously not physically dead) "in your trespasses and sins."] So spiritual death became a reality, as testified to in Genesis 3:8 and Ro 5:12-19.
And so mankind and nature were sadly changed. Man's offspring and the whole earth would now reflect this change so that no longer could God treat man as He did before:
(Gen 3:22a NKJV) Then the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [says], 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil."
[Man caused and experienced evil which contaminated his nature; in this sense mankind knows of evil. But God, Who is sovereign and omniscient, knows of evil without committing it, without experiencing it and hence without contaminating HisPerfect nature.
Note the singularity of God which is expressed in this passage in the sense that there is only one God as indicated in the singular form of the verb "says" in the Gen 3:22a above. Yet notice the plurality of the Godhead in the same verse, indicating that there is more than one Personality that makes up Who God is, as indicated by the word "Us" and by the Hebrew word "Elohim" = "God," plural].
(Gen 3:22b NKJV) "And now, lest he [reaches] out his hand and [has taken] also of the Tree of Life, and [has eaten] [and will have lived] forever' [in such a depraved rebellious condition as he is now in] -
(Gen 3:23 NKJV) therefore the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [puts] him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he [has been] taken," (Gen 3:8).
Gen 3:9 stipulates that Jehovah Elohim calls out to the man, and says to him, "Where are you?" This does not imply that Jehovah Elohim was finite and unable to know where the man and the woman was. It does indicate that Jehovah Elohim Who is the Eternal Creator, already knew because He is omniscient and wanted them to confess to Him where they were and acknowledge what they had done, (Gen 3:9).
Gen 3:10 provides an account of Adam's confession - his admission of fear and guilt before Jehovah Elohim - a picture of mankind's estrangement from Him: "And he [the man Adam] [says], '[Your] sound I have heard in the garden, and I am afraid, for I am naked, and I hide myself.' " The man replies that he heard the sound of Jehovah Elhoim walking in the garden and became afraid because he was naked. Before this, he had never had a concern that he was naked; but now, after his sin, he was so painfully aware of his nakedness that he feared Jehovah Elohim and hid from Him - indicating a change in his nature from innocence to sinful, (Gen 3:10).
In Gen 3:11, Jehovah Elohim responds to Adam's confession, "Who [has] declared to [you] that [you are] naked? Of the tree of which I have commanded [you] not to eat, [have you] eaten?"
Jehovah Elohim first asked "Who [has] declared to [you] that [you are] naked?" The question was actually not one of finding out who informed Adam that he was naked, but of getting Adam to admit that the cause of his knowing and being ashamed of being naked which resulted in his response of fear and estrangement from Jehovah Elohim was caused by his own disobedience. For when Adam and his wife were innocent, Gen 2:25 indicated that both Adam and his wife were naked and not ashamed. But they were not aware of their nakedness in the way that they were after their disobedience. So this was not an indication that there was a mandate from Jehovah Elohim for them to wear clothing. Their nakedness was not a problem with Jehovah Elohim. Their disobedience led to their being ashamed of being naked before Jehovah Elohim and before one another. Their becoming aware and ashamed of their nakedness, which led to sewing fig leaves together to wear as a loin cloth, was symptomatic of their having disobeyed Jehovah Elohim's command to not eat of the forbidden fruit. It was their disobedience which prompted Jehovah Elohim to question them, not their nakedness. Adam's awareness and shame of being naked implied his disobedience and the change in his nature.
Jehovah Elohim then asked a follow up question, "Of the tree of which I have commanded [you] not to eat, [have you] eaten?" His question implied that He knew that Adam had eaten of the forbidden fruit which caused Adam's awareness and shame of being naked, (Gen 3:11).
The man answered Jehovah Elohim by putting the blame upon the woman and Jehovah Elohim for placing the woman with him: "The woman whom [You] [have placed] with me - she [has] given to me of the tree - and I do eat." Adam quickly forgot that Jehovah Elohim was his Creator, Who was and is omniscient. The man also forgot that he had longed for a mate for himself which Jehovah Elohim provided for him. Instead, Adam claimed that the woman was the source of his trouble, and implicated Jehovah Elohim for creating her for him.
(Gen 2:18 YLT) "And Jehovah God saith, 'It is not good for the man to be alone, I do make to him an helper - as his counterpart.' [lit., corresponding to him]."
(Gen 2:23 NKJV) "And Adam said: 'This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, [Hebrew = "isshâ"]. Because she [lit., "this one"] was taken out of Man [Heb. "ish."]."
Note that Adam neither objected nor refused when his wife offered the forbidden fruit to him to eat. Nor did he take responsibility for allowing the woman to be put in a position to be deceived by not seeing to it that she was fully instructed as Jehovah Elohim had instructed him, (Gen 3:12).
So Jehovah Elohim turns to the woman and says to her, "What is this [you have] done?" And the woman says, "The serpent [has deceived me] and I do eat," putting the blame upon the serpent for deceiving her. She did not mention Adam. It was evident that she had allowed herself to be deceived, never once questionning the serpent's outrageous claims, nor checking what he had said to her with her husband. Notice that the woman did not try to put any of the blame upon her husband. Although Adam was not totally remiss in informing her of her responsibility to obey Jehovah Elohim relative to not eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, he nevertheless was most responsible for her sinful actions. For she had earlier stipulated in her conversation with the serpent that she was not permitted to eat from the tree which is in the middle of the garden, implying that that Adam and / or Jehovah Elohim had informed her of this. On the other hand, the woman did not confess to her own responsibility in choosing to eat of the forbidden fruit when she had already made it clear that it was forbidden fruit, (Gen 3:13).
Whereupon, Jehovah Elohim turned to the serpent and said to him, "Because [you have] done this, cursed [are you] above all the cattle, and above every beast of the field: on your belly [do you] go, and dust [do you] eat, all [the] days of [your] life."
As previously
addressed, Jehovah Elohim spoke to the serpent in the Garden of Eden in a
manner consistent with one who had demonstrated highly intelligent, subtle
and evil qualities. This particular serpent's capacity was inconsistent
with any of the animals that Jehovah Elohim had created. Of all the
earthly creatures He created, only man was created to have a soul which
reflected the image of Jehovah Elohim thereby providing such high
intelligence and capacity to exercise rulership over all the other created
beings on the earth. Since all of the creatures that Jehovah Elohim had
created were declared as good - very good, (ref. Gen 1:25, 31); and since
He rested on the seventh day, and blessed that day and sanctified it,
implying that there was nothing in His creation that had yet become evil;
then we may conclude that the particular serpent in view in the Garden of
Eden in Genesis 3 was possessed / influenced by another and
highly superior being who was created in the image of Jehovah Elohim,
other than the two humans Jehovah Elohim had created. This may be
concluded to be an angelic being who had evidently become evil shortly
after the seventh day of creation - the ruling fallen Angel, Lucifer
renamed Satan, (cf Rev 12:9, ).
So Satan, through evil deception, was successful in causing the woman, and then Adam to eat of the forbidden fruit which resulted in a change in the nature of Adam, the woman and their descendants from perfect and innocent to sinful and rebellious toward their Creator Jehovah Elohim. Thereafter, mankind - who will inherit their sinful natures from Adam and the woman - will naturally be sinful in its thoughts and actions; and hence be easily manipulated by Satan to be rebellious toward Jehovah Elohim.
Although the earth had been originally placed under man's dominion, (ref Gen 1:26); since Satan had deceived and persuaded the woman and Adam to follow what he said, violating and rebelling against Jehovah Elohim; and resulting in a change in mankind's nature giving them the propensity to sin - to rebel against Jehovah Elohim; then Satan would now have the opportunity to further persuade Adam and the woman and their descendants to rebel against Jehovah Elohim all the more and thereby align themselves with Satan in a manner which gave him control of them and their dominion - the earth.
Bit
Jehovah Elohim would put enmity between Satan and his followers and the
woman and her Seed and those of humanity who become followers of her Seed,
(Ref Gen 3:15); such that Satan would not be able to control humanity like
he planned to do, ().
And history has shown that mankind is out of control; and Satan as ruler
of this world, cannot control mankind consistently to his end, (cf. 2 Cor
4:4).
So
for deceiving Eve and causing her and Adam to sin, (Gen 3:1-7), the LORD
GOD [Jehovah Elohim] cursed the
serpent who was possessed by the rebellious angelic creature Satan,
Jehovah Elohim's adversary. Jehovah Elohim cursed the serpent more than
any other creature, relegating serpents permanently to crawl on their
bellies, eating dust as a sign of judgment upon Satan's rebellion
.
Biologically all snakes throughout history have had rudimentary leg like
formations on their undersides that do not develop into legs causing them
to travel on their bellies. This judgment will evidently be a permanent
one - even throughout even the kingdom rule:
(Isa 65:17 NKJV) " 'For behold, I [the LORD God - Adhônai Yahweh] create new heavens and a new earth; And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.
(Isa 65:25 NKJV) The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,' Says the LORD.' "
In view of the evidence that serpents, i.e., snakes all have continued to travel on their bellies throughout the ages; and since all of the consequences that Jehovah Elohim pronounced upon the earth as a result of the disobedience of the woman and the man were characterized as permanent ones until the end of the ages; then the consequences of the Fall permanently effected all snakes.
Furthermore, since it would be a curse for the serpent to travel on his belly and hence eat dust, then it must be concluded that the serpent was first created to travel more uprightly so that it did not have to eat dust.
[Henry Morris states, op cit, p. 118-119]:
"The serpent, as an animal, was cursed 'above all cattle, and above every beast of the field,' not because of direct culpability on its part, but rather as a perpetual reminder to man of the instrument of his fall and of the final destruction of Satan himself. Whatever may have been its beauty and posture before, it would henceforth glide on its belly and be an object of dread and loathing by all.
It would not 'eat dust' in a literal sense, of course, except in the sense that its prey would have to be consumed directly off the ground in front of it. The expression is... a graphic figure of speech indicating [the serpent's / Satan's] humiliating judgment and fall.
Lest anyone complain at Jehovah Elohim's injustice, since the serpent as an animal was not to blame for Satan's corrupt possession of its body, he should remember that the 'potter hath power over the clay.' Each animal had been made for a specific mode of life and with specific structures appropriate to such a mode. There were many other 'creeping things,' and Jehovah Elohim now made the serpent to join this group, for reason of the symbolism involved; but snakes, as animals, are no more capable of resentment at this lot than are moles and worms.
It should be noted also that all other animals were brought under the curse at this time, though none of them had 'sinned.' The serpent was merely cursed 'above all' the rest, but 'every beast' henceforth had the 'sentence of death' in its members. Each was a part of man's dominion and it was by man's sin that death came into the world, infecting everything in that dominion."
[Morris, op. cit., p. 464-465]:
"...The serpent was possessed of four legs like other 'beasts of the field.' But the fact that Satan had used this creature as an instrument for deceiving Eve brought the curse of God upon the instrument as well as upon the deceiver himself...
[Note that Satan is required to pay for his sins, which includes his evil efforts to cause Adam and Eve to sin, and over the ages to disrupt Jehovah Elohim's plan to provide for payment for the sins of all mankind through the Seed of the woman in order to reconcile mankind to Himself.]
[Morris, cont.]:
"In Genesis 1:31 it may well be that it is said of the whole work of creation and not of the creation of the earth alone that God saw what He had made, and, behold, it was very good. If so, the rebellion and the disobedience of the angels must have taken place after the sixth day of creation."
[Herman Bavinck, Our Reasonable Faith (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1956), p. 221]:
"From the earliest times it has been recognized as a psychologically valid principle of pedogogy that sub-human creatures which have been used as instruments of sin be included in the punishment of the offender. Biblical examples of this are found in Genesis 6:7, 7:21.
But the important thing to notice, so far as our discussion is concerned, is not why the serpent was punished as the instrument of Satan but how it was punished. Observe carefully the wording here: 'cursed art thou above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life' (3:14). Surely to be deprived of limbs involved far greater structural transformations in this creature than would have been involved in changing herbivores into carnivores, and the serpent's transformation took place after the Creation Week.
C. F. Keil concludes:
'If these words are not to be robbed of their entire meaning, they cannot be understood in any other way than as denoting that the form and movements of the serpent were altered, and that its present repulsive shape is the effect of the curse pronounced upon it, though we cannot form any accurate idea of its original appearance.' "............................(Gen 3:14).
(Gen 3:15 YLT) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel.' " =
(Gen 3:15 YLT) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel.' " =
The words
rendered "you" and "your" in Gen 3:15 refer back to
the Hebrew word "hannAhAs" rendered serpent in Gen 3:14; but
Satan is largely in view in the sense that he was the instigator of the
serpent's actions who would receive the brunt of the Judgment of Jehovah
Elohim ..
The Hebrew word
transliterated "we'êbâ" rendered "enmity"
means hostility or hatred. In Gen 3:15, it declares that Jehovah Elohim
decreed an adversarial relationship of enmity and hatred - a battle - a
war - between the agent behind the particular serpent in the garden:
Satan, (as previously established
), and his seed; and the woman - the first woman of mankind - and her Seed
- a particular and supernatural Descendant of the woman, i.e., of mankind.
So this war is evidently between a demonic angelic creature and his seed -
those who in some manner are related to him - allied in purpose and
allegiance - and a Human Being - the Seed - a supernatural Descendant of
the woman. The word rendered "seed" in the phrase "your
seed," is singular, but it is a collective noun referring to the
spiritual descendants of Satan, i.e., those whose behavior is influenced
by Satan to do evil, which includes every fallen angelic being, every
human being who is not a believer, and believers who have reverted to the
control of ones sin nature, hence under Satan's control. The word rendered
"seed" in the phrase "her Seed," is singular and
refers to a single Descendant of the woman, since it is referred to in the
last part of Gen 3:15 as "He," and "Him" - one Who is
evidently supernaturally procreated and Who will have such power as a
Human to defeat Satan and his seed.
This war is about restoring mankind and the earth to its original, righteous condition; and it is about who is in control of mankind and the earth. The earth was originally created to have mankind, representing the Creator, Jehovah Elohim, take dominion over all the earth and all of its creatures, and rule it in a righteous manner, honoring Jehovah Elohim, (Gen 1:26-28).
So the key
issue to be fought over is mankind's alienation with Jehovah due to Adam
and the woman's act of rebellion and consequent change in their natures
and their future descendants from perfect, innocent and eternal to sinful,
rebellious and mortal - suffering spiritual and physical death
..
This left mankind's control over the domain of the earth and its creatures
in shambles, vulnerable to manipulation by Satan and his seed toward evil
and in rebellion against Jehovah Elohim. In effect, Satan was and still
remains the ruler of this world, (cf. Eph 2:2).
Since mankind is mortal, it is subject to spiritual and physical death. It survives only through sufficient procreation which exceeds the death rate by the grace of Jehovah Elohim.
Furthermore, since Jehovah Elohim created, decreed and established mankind through Adam and the woman and their descendants to be His representatives to take dominion over the earth and all its creatures - giving mankind free will to choose to do this, (Gen 1:26-28; cf. 2:17);
and since Jehovah Elohim declared all of His creation to be very good, evidently in the presence of the angelic host when He had completed His creation work, (Gen 1:31);
then He can neither rescind what He has decreed, nor destroy Satan, nor all of humanity, nor the earth, nor let this catastropic situation continue with His creation, nor override mankind's free will, nor fail in His purpose in any way, without impugning His own integrity and sovereignty before the angelic host and all creation.
So the issue is to restore mankind to its original condition, position and purpose - to righteous perfection, so that mankind can and will freely and faithfully choose - one individual at a time - to take dominion over the earth and all its creatures and rule righteously as faithful representatives of Jehovah Elohim and fulfill His decrees and uphold His integrity - His glory.
Otherwise mankind in its sinful, mortal state, if left in control would continue to be manipulated by Satan imposing himself upon the will of individual humans, will destroy itself and the earth, thus impugning the integrity of Jehovah Elohim - justifying the evil imposed upon creation by Satan with a permanent victory over Almighty God, Jehovah Elohim.
So victory over sin via a perfect atoning sacrifice for all the sins of mankind throughout history by a perfect Human Who is not contaminated with sin Himself, is required to provide for reconciliation between Jehovah Elohim and all mankind to "all the ends of the earth." This involves physical and spiritual death on behalf of all mankind. Those of mankind who choose to accept only by a moment alone of faith alone in this perfect atoning sacrifice for their sins will be declared by Jehovah Elohim to have the righteousness of Jehovah Elohim credited to them - hence in their position they are reconciled to him; but in their mortal lives with their sin natures still intact, they will be sinful as Adam and the woman were after their fall, and hence subject to the influence of Satan - not able to conduct themselves as representatives of Jehovah Elohim in perfect righteousness.
So Jehovah
Elohim must and will also provide for all who have trusted in His
atonement for them with new natures - perfect and eternal - after their
mortal lives have ended, by resurrecting them unto eternal life with
perfect righteous natures, able to serve Jehovah Elohim as His righteous
representatives on earth, to take dominion over the earth and all its
creatures. This is implied in order for the Eternal Kingdom of Jehovah
Elohim and His representatives - mankind - to rule over that everlasting
Kingdom in a manner befitting the Righteousness of Jehovah Elohim, (ref.
Isa 65:17-25 ).
The Seed of the woman, Whom Scripture indicates and this study has
determined from Scripture is Jesus Christ
,
will receive His eternal inheritance of rulership of the Eternal Kingdom
of God, as King of kings, and LORD of Lords, (ref. Isa 9:6-7; cf 1 Tim
6:15).
The rest of mankind - those who have refused to accept via a moment of faith Jehovah Elohim's atoning sacrifice for them - will suffer eternal judgment along with Satan.
(Gen 3:15 YLT) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel.' " =
It is part of the decrees and plans of Jehovah Elohim that mankind would be tested to see if every individual will choose righteousness of his own free will; and that Satan would be permitted to choose to disrupt the creation and plans of Jehovah Elohim to restore mankind to its original righteous rule over the earth and all its creatures. And Satan would attempt to disrupt Jehovah Elohim's plan for the Seed of the woman to be an atoning sacrifice for the sins of mankind many times. But Jehovah Elohim could not be thwarted by Satan's unrelenting evil. His unwaivering determination and absolute power thwarted each of Satan's attacks. Jehovah Elohim's mission to reconcile humanity back to Himself, to mankind's righteous rule over mankind and the dominion of the earth would be successful. It now only awaits its complete fulfillment in history.
In the final analysis, Jehovah Elohim would be wholly justified in punishing Satan for rebelling and for trying to undo Creation as Jehovah Elohim had created it, and for trying to disrupt Jehovah Elohim's plans to restore it. And mankind - innocent, untried with free will, failed in its test of being given dominion over the earth and its creatures to rule in righteousness. So humanity would be restored to perfect righteousness and with free will; but such that every decision could only be righteous.
Conclusion: Jehovah Elohim's sovereignty alone must prevail in the universe. Hence those who choose of their own free will to be reconciled to Jehovah Elohim will only be able to choose to be righteous as Jehovah Elohim is Righteous.
Finally, those of mankind who choose of their own free will not to accept Jehovah Elohim's reconciliation of them to Himself will be punished along with Satan and the other demonic angels.
(Gen 3:15 YLT) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel.' " =
The Hebrew words transliterated, "zar'akA" and "zar'â" rendered "[your] seed" and "her Seed" respectively in the YLT in Gen 3:15 refer to as follows:
¤"zar'akA" = "your [Satan's] seed" = Those individuals - angelic and human - who are the seed of Satan, the agent behind the serpent who was the one who committed the first evil act in creation.
A spiritual relationship is in view: Since Satan is a spiritual being, not a physical being, hence without physical descendants, the word "seed" rendered "zar'akA" then must have a spiritual connotation with a spiritual relationship in view, not a physical one - one in which individuals align themselves spiritually and act accordingly.
Satan's seed therefore encompasses:
¤
the other angelic beings -
fallen, demonic angels - who followed Lucifer / Satan, in his rebellion
against Jehovah Elohim, having all been transformed into inherently evil
beings, ;
¤ those of mankind who have not believed in, hence have rejected, God's sovereign plan of salvation / reconciliation with Jehovah Elohim for mankind, i.e., unbelievers, who have remained enslaved to their own sin natures, enabling Satan to manipulate them to become like him - opposing Jehovah Elohim and His Righteousness;
(Jn 8:41 NKJV) '''[Jesus said] "You do the deeds of your father." Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father - God."
(Jn 8:42 NKJV) Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father ["your" referring to scribes, Pharisees and other unbelieving Jews, vv. 2-3; 13; 31; 42 - and unbelievers in general], you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.
(Jn 8:43 NKJV) Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.
(Jn 8:44 NKJV) You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.' "
The epitome of the seed of Satan would come to be the soon-coming "son of perdition," the antichrist, to whom the Dragon, Satan gives his power and throne and authority, (ref. Rev 13:2).
¤ and unfaithful believers - those believers who have chosen to renslave themselves to sin, who thus end up being manipulated by Satan to oppose Jehovah Elohim as well.
(Ro 6:12 NKJV) "Therefore [believers in view, (ref. Ro 5:1):] do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.
(Ro 6:13 NKJV) And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
(Ro 6:14 NKJV) For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
(Ro 6:15 NKJV) What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!
(Ro 6:16 NKJV) Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?" '''
All of Satan's seed by nature oppose Jehovah Elohim, the Seed of the woman and faithful believers.
It is evident that Satan has continued and will continue to deceive, tempt and destroy others of mankind throughout the ages in order to get them to follow him into rebelliousness against Jehovah Elohim - or take them out of effectively defending and contending for the faith - even unto physical death. There will be many who will be martyred for their faith throughout the ages:
(1 Pet 5:8 NKJV) "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."
(Rev 12:17 NKJV) "And the dragon was enraged with the woman,
[The woman introduced in v. 1 symbolized Israel, as indicated by Genesis 37:9-11]
and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ," i.e., all believers in Jesus Christ throughout the ages will be at war with Satan and his seed.
e) [Compare Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7]:
(Job 1:6 NKJV) '''Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.
(Job 1:7 NKJV) And the LORD said to Satan, "From where do you come?" So Satan answered the LORD and said, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it."
(Job 1:8 NKJV) Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?"
(Job 1:9 NKJV) So Satan answered the LORD and said, "Does Job fear God for nothing?
(Job 1:10 NKJV) Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
(Job 1:11 NKJV) But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
(Job 1:12 NKJV) And the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person." So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.'''
(Job 2:1 NKJV) '''Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
(Job 2:2 NKJV) And the LORD said to Satan, "From where do you come?" So Satan answered the LORD and said, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it."
(Job 2:3 NKJV) Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause."
(Job 2:4 NKJV) So Satan answered the LORD and said, "Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.
(Job 2:5 NKJV) But stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
(Job 2:6 NKJV) And the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, he is in your hand, but spare his life."
(Job 2:7 NKJV) So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD, and struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.'''
THE SEED OF THE WOMAN WILL CRUSH THE SERPENT'S / SATAN'S HEAD - A MORTAL BLOW SIGNALING A VICTORY OVER SIN AND SATAN'S CONTROL OVER MANKIND. SATAN, IN DEFEAT, WILL BRUISE HIM ON THE HEEL, SIGNIFYING A NON-MORTAL BLOW TO THE SEED OF THE WOMAN SUFFERING PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL DEATH FOR MANKIND'S SINS BUT FOLLOWED BY A VICTORIOUS RESURRECTION UNTO ETERNAL LIFE, (cont.)
(Gen 3:15 YLT cont.) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,' " (cont.) =
3 cont.) The Phrase Rendered "Your Seed" Refers To Satan's Seed: Spiritually Related Fallen Angels, Human Unbelievers - Enslaved To Sin By Definition, And Human Believers Who Choose To Fall Back Into Sin - All Of Whom Oppose Elohim. The Phrase Rendered "Her Seed" Refers To The Seed Of The Woman - A Supernaturally Born Male Physical Descendant Human Being Who Is Absolutely Righteous, Without Sin With The Power To Defeat Satan To Reconcile Mankind Back To Jehovah Elohim Through Paying The Penalty For The Iniquities Of All Mankind Whom Scripture Identifies As Jesus Christ, (cont.) =
(Gen 3:15 YLT) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel.' " =
So all of the seed of Satan were declared by God to be at enmity with the woman and her Seed, Hebrew "zar'â":
¤ "zar'â" = "her Seed," i.e., the Seed of the woman. The next part of Gen 3:15 which is in italics below, " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,'" has a single male individual in view - a Representative of all mankind Who will battle against Satan and his seed for the reconciliation of mankind to Jehovah Elohim through an atoning sacrifice for the sins of mankind:
The Seed of the woman - the One through Whom would be the promise of an atoning sacrifice for the sins of all mankind is stipulated as the Seed of Abraham relative to this same promise that Jehovah Elohim made to Adam and the woman - Whom Scripture identifies as Jesus Christ:
f) [Compare Gal 3:16, 26, 29]:
(Gal 3:16 NKJV) "Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of One, "And to your Seed," Who is Christ.
(Gal 3:26 NKJV) For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
(Gal 3:29 NKJV) And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."
(Ro 3:21 NKJV) "But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,
(Ro 3:22 NKJV) even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;
(Ro 3:23 NKJV) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(Ro 3:24 NKJV) being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
(Ro 3:25 NKJV) whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,
(Ro 3:26 NKJV) to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus."
So in Gen 3:15
the word transliterated "zar'â" which is feminine singular
- because it is her seed - is best rendered "her Seed" with a
capital "S." It portrays a single physical, supernaturally born
male Descendant of the woman, because her Seed is referred to in the
masculine, singular in the phrases rendered, "He
shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel."
Since the word rendered "seed" refers to a seed - hence a
descendant - which biologically comes from the male - not the woman; then
in the case of Gen 3:15, the phrase "her Seed," refers to a
supernatural provision by Jehovah Elohim of the male Seed within the womb
of the particular woman Jehovah Elohim has chosen to give birth to the
Seed - to give supernatural birth to a single, individual male human being..
. He will evidently be of a perfect, absolutely Righteous supernatural
Male - Who is without sin, Who, according to Gen 3:15 must have
supernatural power sufficient to defeat the most powerful angelic
creature, Satan and his seed, via what is figuratively described as
delivering a crushing blow to Satan's head.
Note that this implies that the sin nature evidently is inherited through the male seed, hence Jehovah Elohim would provide a perfect Seed within the womb of the particular chosen woman.
Although Eve
considered that she would personally give birth to the Seed herself, (cf.
Gen 4:1, 25 ), the woman who
would give birth to Him would be a descendant of hers many generations
later.
Note that the phrase rendered, "the Seed of the woman," does not refer to those who are members of the church, the body of Christ, nor does the word rendered "woman," symbollically mean the church either, as some contend. For this would imply that it would be the church - comprised of many mortal individuals - who would defeat Satan - in effect overcoming sin - and rule over the Eternal Kingdom of God themselves. But this cannot be possible because:
¤ Neither the word rendered "woman," in Gen 3:15 nor the context of the passage the verse is located in has the church in view; nor is the church referred to prior to Gen 3:15 allowing for such a reference to it here. The word rendered "woman," continues to be referring to Adam's wife. There is no distinction made with the word rendered "woman" in verse 15 to make this woman any different from the woman referred to from Gen 2:23 through Gen 3:12.
¤ The Seed of the woman is referred to with the Hebrew masculine, singular personal pronouns "He," and "His" in Gen 3:15c & d, (cf. Isa 53:10 - "Seed," masculine, singular).
¤
Those of the
church - those who are believers in Jesus Christ - who are mortal cannot
be in view in Gen 3:15, for they have a sin nature until they die and are
resurrected unto eternal life. While they are mortal, they are neither
able to overcome their own sin, (2 Chr 6:36; Jn 9:41; Ro 7:14-24; 1 Jn
1:8, 10), nor defeat Satan. So since they cannot conduct a righteous rule
over the earth and all its creatures as Jehovah Elohim had decreed mankind
to do; then the only means by which mankind can once again be in a
position to defeat Satan and rule with the righteousness of Jehovah Elohim
is to trust in the atonement for sins provided for them by the Seed of the
woman, Jesus Christ, to receive forgiveness of their sins - which
believers by definition have already done, and then wait to when they are
resurrected unto righteousness and eternal life to rule with Jesus Christ
in the Eternal Kingdom of Jehovah Elohim, .
THE SEED OF THE WOMAN WILL CRUSH THE SERPENT'S / SATAN'S HEAD - A MORTAL BLOW SIGNALING A VICTORY OVER SIN AND SATAN'S CONTROL OVER MANKIND. SATAN, IN DEFEAT, WILL BRUISE HIM ON THE HEEL, SIGNIFYING A NON-MORTAL BLOW TO THE SEED OF THE WOMAN SUFFERING PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL DEATH FOR MANKIND'S SINS BUT FOLLOWED BY A VICTORIOUS RESURRECTION UNTO ETERNAL LIFE, (cont.)
(Gen 3:15 YLT cont.) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,' " (cont.) =
4)
The Seed Of The Woman, Previously Established As Jesus Christ
,
Will Deliver A Crushing Blow - A Triumphant Defeat - To The Serpent /
Satan And Satan's Seed: The Atonement For The Sins Of All Mankind As A
Provision For The Reconciliation Of Mankind With Jehovah Elohim In Order
To Restore The Righteous Sovereignty Of Jehovah Elohim Over Mankind And
Mankind's Dominion Over The Earth
(Gen 3:15 YLT cont.) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,' " (cont.) =
The
Seed of the woman Whom Scripture indicates is Jesus Christ will deliver a
crushing blow - a triumphant defeat - to the Serpent / Satan and Satan's
seed: The atonement for the sins of all mankind as a provision for the
reconciliation of mankind with Jehovah Elohim in order to restore the
Righteous Sovereignty of Jehovah Elohim over mankind and mankind's
dominion over the earth .
The Hebrew verb
"shûph" appears twice in Gen. 3:15 in the context of
Jehovah Elohim's curse upon the snake. It is used to describe the triumph
of the Seed of the woman over the particular snake in the Garden of Eden
who deceived the woman, i.e., over the ruler of which has been established
as Satan...
The seed of the woman would...crush
[Hebrew: "yesûpekA"] the head of the snake, i.e., Satan;
while the snake would..bruise
[Hebrew: "tesûpennû" - same verb] the heel of the
Seed of the woman. Translating the two occurrences with different verbs in
English was necessary because the object of one verb is a foot, while the
other is a head. The result of a contest between a head and a foot is
apparent. The contrast between head and foot is a status metaphor,
expressed a number of other ways in the Hebrew Bible, (Job 9:17; Ps
139:11). Thus, the acts are not similar in efficacy or power. Wounds to
the head would be more damaging than wounds to the foot. Thus, the same
act would cause more damage and destruction to the serpent - mortal damage
ending in complete loss of power and eternal destruction.
Since Scripture does not portray a literal striking of our LORD's heel, nor a specific head wound to Satan who is a spirit being - a fallen angel - who does not possess a human like head which could be given a fatal blow by a human being in combat; then the description of the battle in Gen 3:15 is a figurative description of the combat between Satan and the Seed with a literal meaning behind it.
Since Satan was the one responsible for the serpent's behavior, the "shûph" - the blow would be to Satan's "head" and be a mortal blow with the implication of the defeat and the temporal and eternal destruction of Satan. Furthermore, the fallen, i.e., demonic angels and those humans who never trusted in their lifetimes in the sacrificial work of the Seed of the woman for them - the seed of Satan - would be defeated and punished as well.
Note that
although unfaithful believers will have been under the temporal punishment
/ discipline of Jehovah Elohim for reenslaving themselves to sin, hence
placing themselves under the influence of Satan; they are nevertheless not
condemned to suffer the fate of Satan, demonic angels and unbelievers -
for they are nevertheless born again and promised eternal life the moment
they believed in the eternal promise of the Seed of the woman
,
albeit with fewer if any eternal rewards ..and
perhaps a shortened mortal life, ending in Divine punishment.
The Person of the Seed of the woman is in view in Isa 52:13-53:12 as the "Arm of the LORD" as He delivers His crushing blow to Satan by atoning for the sins of all mankind:
a) [Compare Isa 52:10, 13-15-53:12]:
(Isa 52:10 NKJV) "The LORD has made bare His holy arm In the eyes of all the nations; And all the ends of the earth shall see The salvation of our God.
[The Holy Arm of the LORD will bring the Salvation of our God to Israel and all mankind. And as this passage continues through chapter 53, the Holy Arm of the LORD is stipulated as the Servant of the LORD, (Isa 52:13), Who will bring that salvation through His atonement for the sins of all mankind, (Isa 53:4-12)]
(Isa 52:13 YLT) [Behold], My servant [acts] wisely, He is [exalted], and [has] been lifted up], And [has] been [greatly exalted].
[The LORD's Servant, portrayed as the LORD'S Holy Arm of Salvation in Isa 52:10 & 13, is described as One Who will act wisely. God's Servant - His Holy Arm of Salvation - will have the wisdom to accomplish successfully what God has sent Him to do - to bring Salvation to all mankind, (Isa 52:10). This evidently will result in His supreme exaltation. For there is an emphatic repetition regarding Him in this regard: He will be lifted up and greatly exalted. So the Servant of the LORD will be exalted as only God would be exalted - seated at the Right Hand of God]
(Isa 52:14 HCSB) Just as many [have been astonished] at You - His appearance was so disfigured that He did not look like a man, and His form did not resemble a human being -
[In the first part of Isa 52:14, it states "Just as many have been astonished at You." The "many," evidently refers to all mankind, since verse 15, which follows, continues this context, having in view many in the sense of all peoples of many, i.e., all nations and all the kings of history in view. Since not all mankind throughout history could have been present at the time and in the place when and where the Servant of the LORD would perform His mission on earth, then the afterlife of all of mankind must be in view - a time of their judgment before God. Most of mankind, therefore, will indeed be astonished in the sense that they have will have been shown in the afterlife Who He is; and since they had not believed in Who He was when they were still alive; then having discovered Who He was at judgment would be astonishing to them. And appalling would be the consequences to them since they had not believed in Him during their mortal lifetimes.
Among the peoples and kings of the world, He was not to be well remembered because He would have neither worldwide worldly fame nor worldly glory. His life would be a humble one - His mission was a spiritual one which required His physical execution in order to physically and spiritually die for the sins of all mankind throughout the world. At the time of the completion of His mission, His physical appearance as a result of fulfilling His mission was described as so disfigured as to be beyond that of any man, His form marred beyond human likeness, pointing to being so mistreated as to cause such an extreme appearance. Most who were witnesses of Him, considering His appearance, would not believe in Who He claimed to be, nor what He claimed to be doing.
Note that His devastating appearance reveals the severity of the beating which He would receive prior to His work of redemption for the sins of mankind, i.e., His crucifixion (cf. Matt. 27:27-31; Mark 15:15-20; John 19:1f).]
(Isa 52:15 YLT) So [does] he sprinkle many nations. Concerning him kings shut their mouth, For that which was not recounted to them they have seen, And that which they had not heard they have understood!
[Isa 52:15 continues the context of the peoples and kings of the world at judgment. The word rendered "sprinkle" in the phrase "So shall He sprinkle many nations" refers to the cleansing of sins, (Lev 4:6; 8:11: 14:7, Ez 36:25-30) of "many nations," (Isa 52:15) i.e., all the nations of the world - not just Israel, as some contend. So most of the peoples of the world - kings included - will be silenced because of what had not been recounted to them evidently in their mortal lives, for now they see Him - Who He is - for themselves - in the afterlife at judgment. And now what they had not heard about Him, they now understand. For He was considered by the world as of no import. But now - too late - they consider the truth of the matter that He had cleansed all the peoples of the world of their sins. which they had not accepted for themselves in their mortal lives.
So the kings and the peoples of the world throughout history when they see Him exalted at the right hand of God evidently in the afterlife at judgment will have their mouths collectively shut - so astonished they would be at their miscalculation of Who the Arm of the LORD is and what He had done for them - too late, evidently in the afterlife. This is not to say that any individual who might have chosen in his mortal lifetime to believe in Servant to provide salvation would not have been told Who He was during his mortal lifeime so that he would know and believe. But the vast majority of people throughout history would be irretrievably entrenched in their own religious systems and would not be so disposed to believe in God's plan of salvation through His Servant whether told or not]
(Isa 53:1 NKJV) Who has believed our report? And to whom has the Arm of the LORD been revealed?
[Notice that the question, "Who has believed our report [- our message]" implies that few individuals, Jew or Gentile would believe in it - the one essential response to benefit from the Servant's atonement of mankind's sins; and few would believe in it. The word rendered "our" evidently refers to the few Jews who were given this message to spread to the world; for it originated with the Patriarchs, Moses and the prophets as evidenced by the content and time of their accounts in Scripture.
It was emphasized in Isa 52:14-15 that there would be nothing about the servant's appearance or what He does that will attract the attention of the people of the world to believe in Him. And the message of Isaiah chapter 52 continues in chapter 53 relative to the Servant of God making provision for the cleansing of the sins of all mankind and of being raised up and exalted by the LORD. Each individual who chooses to "consider," (Isa 52:13-15), in the sense of to believe in the Servant of the LORD for a personal atonement for ones sins will receive forgiveness of all ones sins unto eternal life in the Eternal Kingdom of God.
As the passage continues, it is clear that it is especially to His own people, Israel, to whom the Arm of the LORD will be revealed. In consideration of the question, "Who has believed our message," author Isaiah asks another question: "And to whom has the Arm of the LORD been revealed?" which repeats the point that only a few will receive this revelation and believe in it. The rest of humanity will not be disposed to consider the message of salvation through the Servant of the LORD]
(Isa 53:2 NASB) For He [grows] up before Him [the LORD], like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
[Isa 52:14 previously stipulated that the appearance of the "Arm of the LORD" would be disfigured beyond any man, that His form would be marred beyond human likeness, implying some kind of physical violence done to Him - evidently as part of His suffering for the iniquities of all mankind, (ref. Isa 53:5-6).
Isa 53:2 stipulates that He would grow up before Him [the LORD] as a tender plant, i.e., coming from the line of David, (cf. Isa 11:1, 10); and as a root out of dry ground, implying one who would not amount to much in the world relative to worldly power and wealth; that is until He completes His mission of providing atonement for the sins of all mankind - the Salvation of God. Then there will be exaltation and glory for Him, (Ref. Isa 52:12-13). It further describes Him as having no form, nor comeliness, i.e., He would not have the stereotype of a royal person or majesty, nor beauty that one should desire Him - again having in view one who would not be especially sought after, or viewed as amounting to much in a worldly sense.
There was nothing in His appearance, nor mighty worldly deeds, such as military feats, nor rulership of great kingdoms / empires nor accumulation of great wealth that would attract great numbers of people of the world to believe in and follow him.
(Isa 53:3 NASB) He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like One from Whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
[And Isa 53:3 declares that He would be "despised and rejected by men. A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief." People who were there as onlookers would not look upon Him as if they were hiding their faces from Him - especially those who had rejected Him with great animosity. He was despised, people did not esteem Him - in the sense that Who He was was vehemently rejected and despised by those of His time - mostly Jews. His actual physical suffering for their iniquities is evidently in view, described as "sorrows," and "pains", or "sickness," (ref. Isa 53:5-6) - when people would virtually turn to face the other way rather than to gaze upon Him as He suffered so.
(Isa 53:4 NIV) Surely He [has taken up] our pain and bore our suffering, yet we [have] considered him punished by God, stricken by Him, and afflicted.
[Isa 53:4 concludes "Surely he [has taken up] our pain and [has borne] our suffering, yet we [have] considered him punished by God, stricken by Him, and afflicted" in the sense that people mistakenly had considered that He was not taking up their sins but being punished for His own transgressions. The writer concludes that His suffering was not for any sins of His own, but for "our," i.e., mankind's sins, (ref Isa 52:13-15), described here as taking up "our" pain and bearing "our suffering." This evidently referred to the eternal pain and suffering individuals who have trusted in Him would have been subjected to had the Servant not taken it upon Himself to suffer that eternal pain for all mankind]
(Isa 53:5 NASB) But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The [chastisement] for our [peace = "absence of conflict and strife."] [falls] upon Him, And by His scourging [stripes] we are healed.
[But instead of paying for His own sins, Isa 53:5 further explains that the Servant paid the price not for His own sins, (of which He had none, (ref. Isa 53:9b), "But He was pierced through for our transgressions [evidently a literal / physical reference to being nailed to the cross, (Jn 19:18), and pierced with a Roman spear, (Jn 19:34)] He was crushed [in the sense of physically and spiritually destroyed unto death - for our iniquities] The [chastisement] for our peace [= "absence of conflict and strife."] [falls] upon Him, And by His scourging [i.e., stripes] we are healed"
The phrase rendered "The [chastisement] for our [peace = "absence of conflict and strife."] [falls] upon Him," implies that the Servant of the LORD took it upon Himself the chastisement - the punishment - for mankind's sins which sins caused the conflict mankind had with God - so that mankind might no longer be in conflict with God, but at peace with Him, (those relatively few of mankind who would choose to trust alone in the atonement work of the Servant alone, (ref. Isa 53:1).
The phrase rendered, "And by His scourging, [i.e., stripes] we are healed," indicates that He would be severely whipped - scourged - as part of the punishment He would suffer for the sins of mankind, (1 Pet 2:24).
The phrase rendered "we are healed" has in view being healed of ones iniquities, i.e., ones sins; i.e., of being spiritually healed; and not healed physically as some contend. For physical healing has not been a part of the context of this passage; and believers even faithful ones still suffer physically while in their mortal bodies.
Notice a singular, masculine individual human being is in view Who was pierced and crushed not only for the "people" of Israel but for "many nations," i.e., all mankind, (ref. Isa 52:15). Hence all of mankind's transgressions are in view]
(Isa 53:6 NKJV) All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity [the sum of a collection of sins, i.e., all kinds of and the sum total of the sins of all mankind] of us all.
[All mankind is contaminated with sin - born in sin with sin natures who commit acts of sin all the time. And like sheep we all follow one another into sin. Furthermore, verses 5 & 6 stipulate that the Servant was crushed for all of mankind's iniquities, i.e., for all sins committed both conscious and unaware, past, present and future for all time]
(Isa 53:7 NASB) He [has been] oppressed and He is afflicted, Yet He [does not] open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He [does not] open His mouth.
[He was oppressed - persecuted in the sense of one who is innocent yet presistently attacked as if guilty. And He was afflicted - tortured. And through this, the Arm = the Strength and Representative of God submitted to the sacrifice of Himself willingly as a sheep led to the slaughter - in silence, without complaint. He was sacrificed for the sins of the whole world so as to bring to mankind - Jew and Gentile alike - the availability of eternal and temporal peace and spiritual healing = eternal forgiveness of their sins - all through believing in this availability through His sacrifice, (v. 1)]
(Isa 53:8 ASV) By oppression and judgment he [has been] taken away; and as for his generation, who among them considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of My people to whom the [blow] was due?
The Servant would be unjustifiably oppressed - unlawfully arrested, bound and taken away as a prisoner. He would be judged and sentenced to die, not because of any sins of His own, (for He was without sin, (ref. Isa 53:9, 11); but for the sins of His generation, and for all mankind, (cf. Isa 52:15), to whom such a punishment He received, was due.
The phrase rendered "And as for His generation who among them considered that He was cut of out of the land of the living for the transgressions of My people to whom the [blow] was due?" implies an answer of only a few if any at all of those who would be living at the time would consider the Servant's death significant toward providing payment for the sins of all mankind]
(Isa 53:9 ASV) And they [have] made his grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in his death; although he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
[The Arm of God
was evidently an individual Man; a Descendant of Israel, (cf. Isa 9:6-7
);
without violence, lies or sin: "He had done no violence, neither was
any deceit in His mouth." (Isa 53:9d; cf. Isa 53:11: "The
Righteous One"). He was oppressed, taken prisoner, illegally tried,
judged nevertheless and declared guilty although innocent, and executed as
if wicked. He was to be buried in a mass grave assigned for the "wicked"
- for those who are guilty of a capital offense. But He would be buried
instead in a grave which was assigned to someone who was rich, (Mt
27:57-61)]
(Isa 53:10 NKJV) Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, [referring to being raised from the dead] And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.
[It pleased God to "bruise" Him and cause Him to suffer physical and spiritual death in the sense of accomplishing His purpose through Him of restoring mankind to Himself via an atoning sacrifice for the sins of all mankind. This "offering for sin," where the word for "guilt or sin offering" is AsAm, is used in Lev 5:15; 6:5; 19:21 and elsewhere as an offering to atone for sin. Thereafter God "shall see His Seed, He shall prolong His days," referring to His being raised from the dead to everlasting life. And the LORD shall take pleasure in prospering Him - in exalting Him forever, (ref. Isa 52:13) - all this by His Almighty power]
(Isa 53:11 NASB) As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; by [(the) knowledge of Him] the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities.
[The Hebrew phrase transliterated "beda'attô" = literally means, "with His knowledge,"or "by [the] knowledge of Him;" for the pronimial suffix of the Hebrew noun rendered "knowledge," may be rendered subjectively "by His knowledge," or objectively "by knowledge of Him," (ref. Young, "Book of Isaiah," in loc.). According to the Masoretic markings, the phrase links to the words which follow it and is best rendered "by [the] knowledge of Him" as opposed to "by His knowledge," because this alternative rendering best suits the context:
Since the context of this passage, (Isa 52:10-53:12) has One Who would provide Himself as a subsitutionary atonment, i.e., a sacrifice for the sins of all mankind by bearing all their iniquities, as the last phrase in the verse stipulates, (Isa 53:11c); so that a Savior, not a Teacher, would justify those of mankind who have a knowledge of Him doing this for them, in the sense of those who believe in Him for it, (cf. Isa 52:15 and 53:1);
and since the context of this passage does not have an individual in view Who by His knowledge - solely by means of what He knows would on that basis alone justify the many - without any participation on the part of mankind such as requiring their expression of acceptance of His atonement for them, i.e., via a moment of faith -
and since this second rendering of providing justification without the consent of the individual would violate the perfect justice of God;
then the correct rendering for the phrase in question would be that one is justified by the knowledge of Him, i.e., by a moment of faith alone in Who He is and what He did - that He bore ones iniquities.
Note that the Servant of God was stipulated as "the Righteous One" implying sinlessness - an absolutely necessary personal attribute in order to qualify to be an atoning sacrifice for the sins of mankind.
Notice again that a singular, masculine individual human being is in view Who was wounded not only for the "people" of Israel but for "many nations," i.e., all mankind, (ref. Isa 52:15). Hence all of mankind's transgressions are in view. Furthermore, verses 5 & 6 and 10 & 11 stipulate that He was pierced for all of mankind's iniquities, i.e., for all sins committed both conscious and unaware, past, present and future for all time]. Consider v. 11, the core of the gospel upon which all of the gospel passages in the bible are based: By the knowledge of Him, i.e., by the faith in the righteous Servant of God bearing their iniquities, an individual will be justified, i.e., declared to have the eternal righteousness of God unto [for] eternal life.
So here in Isaiah 52:13-53:12 is contained the gospel of eternal life. Israelites especially would know the content of Isaiah 53. If any individual understood and accepted the gospel as presented in Isaiah chapter 53 as true they would be justified unto an eternal righteouness of God unto [for] eternal life]
(Isa 53:12 NKJV) Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He [has] poured out His soul unto death, And He [has been] numbered with the transgressors, And He [has borne] the sin of many, And [has] made intercession for the transgressors."
[Isa 53:12
begins with "Therefore" signifying that when the servant has
willingly followed and completed His plan to provide an atoning sacrifice
for the sins of all mankind as stipulated in the second half of this
verse, as follows: "Because He [has] poured out His soul unto death,
And He [has been] numbered with the transgressors, And He [has borne] the
sin of many, And [has] made intercession for the transgressors, Therefore
I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil
with the strong." So the Servant of the LORD will receive an
inheritance of the dominion of the earth which will evidently be restored
to humanity with the Servant of the LORD as Sovereign Ruler, (ref. Isa
9:6-7 ).
Notice that
there is no restriction as to the number or kind of sins borne by the Arm
of the LORD, as some contend. All the sins of all of mankind are in view -
past, present and future, (Ref Isa 52:15). Because of the victory of the
Seed of the woman over sin, every individual human being would have the
opportunity to be eternally reconciled with God via a moment of faith
alone in the sacrificial work of the Seed relative to sin.
..
4 cont.)
The Seed Of The Woman, Previously Established As Jesus Christ
,
Will Deliver A Crushing Blow - A Triumphant Defeat - To The Serpent /
Satan And Satan's Seed: The Atonement For The Sins Of All Mankind As A
Provision For The Reconciliation Of Mankind With Jehovah Elohim In Order
To Restore The Righteous Sovereignty Of Jehovah Elohim Over Mankind And
Mankind's Dominion Over The Earth
(Gen 3:15 YLT cont.) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,' " (cont.) =
So as a Representative of all mankind, the Seed of the woman - the Arm of the LORD - will provide reconciliation with Jehovah Elohim for those of mankind who trust in His atonement for their sins. This is the crushing blow to Satan - Jehovah Elohim's victory over sin and the power of Satan - the reconciliation of mankind to Jehovah Elohim resulting in the restoration of mankind and the earth to perfect righteousness where the sovereignty of Jehovah Elohim especially through His representatives on the earth, i.e., mankind would be restored to reflect His Perfect Righteousness. So those who become believers in the Seed of the woman, Jesus Christ, will become His seed in a spiritual sense as Scripture indicates in order to corule the dominion of the earth with Him:
Just
as Scripture refers to the spiritual offspring of Abraham as their father,
i.e., the father of believers of all ages; hence heirs of Abraham through
the righteousness of faith - in the sense that a moment of faith alone in
Christ alone - in the seed of Abraham - results in one being justified,
i.e., being declared to have the Righteousness of Jesus Christ, (ref Ro
3:21-26 earlier examined); so all of those who are of the seed, i.e.,
spiritual descendants of the Seed of the woman, Who is Jesus Christ, in a
spiritual sense relate all the way back in human history to Eve - to the
mother of the human race - who was also born again spiritually, (ref. Gen
3:20-21 ),
- as Abraham was - solely on the basis of a moment of faith alone in the
promised Seed - Jesus Christ alone - as Savior - the promised Descendant /
Seed of Abraham for salvation unto eternal life:
b) [Compare Ro 4:9, 11, 13, 16]:
(Ro 4:9 NKJV) "Does this blessedness then come upon the circumcised only, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness.
(Ro 4:11 NKJV) And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also,
(Ro 4:13 NKJV) For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his Seed [singular, male] through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
(Ro 4:16 NKJV) Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all."
(Ro 5:10 NKJV) "For if when we [believers in Jesus Christ, (ref. Ro 5:1)] were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
(Ro 5:11 NKJV) And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation."
THE SEED OF THE WOMAN WILL CRUSH THE SERPENT'S / SATAN'S HEAD - A MORTAL BLOW SIGNALING A VICTORY OVER SIN AND SATAN'S CONTROL OVER MANKIND. SATAN, IN DEFEAT, WILL BRUISE HIM ON THE HEEL, SIGNIFYING A NON-MORTAL BLOW TO THE SEED OF THE WOMAN SUFFERING PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL DEATH FOR MANKIND'S SINS BUT FOLLOWED BY A VICTORIOUS RESURRECTION UNTO ETERNAL LIFE, (cont.)
(Gen 3:15 YLT cont.) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,' " (cont.) =
5)
The Serpent / Satan Will "Bruise" The Seed Of The Woman
Previously Established As Jesus Christ
On The "Heel" In The Figurative Sense Of A Non-Mortal Blow That
Would Not Be Successful In Defeating Him
(Gen 3:15 YLT cont.) " 'And enmity I [Jehovah Elohim] put between [you] and the woman, and between [your] seed and her Seed; He [crushes you] [on] the head, and [you] bruise Him [on] the heel,' " (cont.) =
In this battle He [Jesus Christ] would be "bruised on the heel," i.e., wounded but not defeated. Although this entailed His physical and spiritual death, He would succeed in regaining the lost sovereignty of the human race which was usurped by Satan in the garden, through paying the penalty for the sins of all mankind, and then be victoriously resurrected unto eternal life.
This would
result in making reconciliation with Jehovah Elohim available for all who
would trust alone in Him for that - for their sins, through the Seed of
the Woman. Once an individual did trust in Him for reconciliation, they
would live out their mortal lives and then be resurrected unto eternal
life in a perfect, sinless body to rule over the dominion of the earth and
all its creatures with the righteousness of and as the representatives of
Jehovah Elohim with the Seed of the woman as Sovereign Ruler
.
a)
[Compare Isa 52:10, 13-15-53:12
]:
Notice from Gen 3:1 on, it was not Satan's intent to cause humanity to be hostile to him, but to gain sovereignty over them and the world against Jehovah Elohim. Recall that the hostility was decreed by Jehovah Elohim in order to regain what had been usurped from Him. For Satan successfully deceived and hence manipulated the woman and Adam so as to usurp their position and the authority given to them by God over the earth. The two had joined Satan and left God. But as Gen 3:15 and the rest of chapter 3 reads on, Jehovah Elohim would restore Adam and the woman, separating them from Satan by providing an opportunity for each member of the human race who would be born in sin to be restored to Jehovah Elohim through a simple moment of faith in His provision of atonement through the Seed of the woman, beginning with Adam and the woman.
http://www.answersingenesis.org/docs2/4262apol_v2-1994.asp
"Many have interpreted the seed in this verse as the Messiah, including the Jewish Targums, hence the Talmudic expression ‘heels of the Messiah’. This verse hints at the Virginal Conception, as the Messiah is called the seed of the woman, contrary to the normal Biblical practice of naming the father rather than the mother of a child (cf. Gen. ch’s 5 and 11, 1 Chr. ch’s 1–9). The pronoun hû’ (he will crush your head (NIV), it shall bruise thy head (KJV)) can be translated ‘he’, ‘it’ or ‘they’. A feminine pronoun (‘she’) would have the consonants hî’. The Septuagint (LXX) translated the pronoun hû’ as autós, although the antecedent spérmatos is grammatically neuter. This suggests that the LXX translators had a messianic understanding of the passage. The Latin Vulgate mistranslates hû’ as ipsa (‘she’), which is followed by the Roman Catholic Douay-Rheims English translation of the Bible. Some Roman Catholics use this to teach that Mary would crush the serpent’s head. Their main justification is that some Hebrew manuscripts pointed the consonants of hû’ to pronounce the word in the feminine way. However, basing dogma on rare vowel-pointing (which is uninspired anyway) is unwise," (Gen 3:15).
(Gen 3:16 YLT) "[To] the woman He [Jehovah Elohim] said, 'I am greatly multiplying, [(lit., multiplying I multiply)] [your] sorrow and [your] conception [i.e., pregnancy], in [pain] [do you] bear children, and [to your] husband is [your] desire, and he [rules] over [you].' (Gen 3:17 NKJV) Then to Adam He [had] said, 'Because you have [listened to] the voice of your wife, and [eat] from the tree of which I [have] commanded you, saying, 'You [do] not eat of it': Cursed is the ground [on account of you]; In [hardship] you shall eat of it All the days of your life. (Gen 3:18 YLT) and thorn and bramble it [does produce for you] and [you will have] eaten the herb of the field; (Gen 3:19 YLT) by the sweat of [your] face [you do] eat bread till [your returning to] the ground, for out of it [have you] been taken, for dust [you are] and unto dust [you return]' " =
Jehovah Elohim declared the consequences of the disobedient actions of the woman in Gen 3:16: "[To] the woman He [Jehovah Elohim] said, 'I am greatly multiplying, [(lit., 'multiplying I multiply)] [your] sorrow and [your] conception [i.e., pregnancy], in [pain] [do you] bear children, and [to your] husband is [your] desire, and he [rules] over [you].' "
So the woman was told by Jehovah Elohim that:
¤ She would have greatly multiplied sorrow in her life - evidently as opposed to a life without sorrow had she been faithful and obedient to Jehovah Elohim.
¤ and she will have pain in the bearing of children evidently as opposed to no pain had she remained faithful and obedient to Jehovah Elohim.
When the man and woman were created, Jehovah Elohim said, [Gen 1:26-28] ''' "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth," ''' (Gen 1:26-28). So the bearing of many children was key.
But now after the man and the woman had disobeyed Jehovah Elohim - after the Fall - child birth would evidently still be key; but it would be painful for the woman along with the greatly multiplied sorrows in her life, some of which might well involve her children as each child has the opportunity to choose or not to choose to trust in the Seed of the woman for salvation and to serve Jehovah Elohim. Nevertheless, it is implied that mankind would in the future secure dominion over the earth as Jehovah Elohim had promised; and that in part would still be accomplished through child birth, albeit a painful reminder of the sinful condition of mankind wherein children would continue to be born in sin, with painful birth pangs for the mother, and with the capacity to choose to be reconciled to Jehovah Elohim through a moment of faith alone in the victory of the Seed of the woman over Satan - or not.
¤ The woman's desire would be for her husband - in the sense of longing to rule over him, i.e., to manipulate him; as Eve had done in the Garden of Eden. And Jehovah Elohim declared that her husband would now rule over her, implying that the husband would nevertheless be compelled to rule over her.
The Hebrew word transliterated "tesûqAtEk" and translated "desire" in Gen 3:16 appears one more time in Genesis in Gen 4:7. The word comes from an Arabic root that means 'to compel, to impel, to urge, to seek control.' In Genesis 4:7, God is speaking to Cain: "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it." In other words, sin will desire to control or to master Cain. It is the same word that appears in Genesis 3:16, in the identical form, in the same grammatical structure. So whatever it means in 4:7 it would also mean back in 3:16, because it is in the same context. So the word in Genesis 3:16 implies as follows: "To the woman He said... Your desire shall be to control your husband, but he shall rule over you."
Since Jehovah Elohim declaration that the husband shall rule over his wife was to be a judgment, then it was not what was originally intended in His creation. For the woman was to have been the man's counterpart - his partner / co-ruler over the dominion of the earth. Hence the woman and her husband were to have enjoyed the blessings of children and the harmonious partnership of marriage without conflict, sorrow or pain, (cf. 2:18, 21-25). All of this was because the woman permitted herself to be deceived by the serpent / Satan and had ruled over her husband by compelling him to choose to eat of the forbidden fruit instead of consulting with him about it and all that transpired between her and the serpent / Satan. Now the husband would rule over his wife.
Throughout history there would be ongoing, ungodly conflict between men and women as their sin natures clash in attempting to rule over one another until the end of the Kingdom Age, (Ref Rev 20:7-10). And history has so far shown this to be the case.
[Henry Morris states, op. cit., pp. 122-124, cont.]:
"...The long sad record of human history has confirmed the accuracy of this prophetic judgment. Woman's lot has been one of pain, pain in many forms - physical, mental, spiritual, and especially in her experience of conception and birth (the emphasis is warranted in the original language). Generally speaking, man has subjugated woman with little regard for her own personal feelings and needs. In non-Christian cultures and religions, such subjugation and humiliation have been almost universal, until very recent times her husband often having even the power of life and death over her. Such harsh 'rule,' of course, went far beyond God's intention. Though the husband was to be the head of the house, he was to love and cherish his wife, considering her to be 'one flesh' with himself, 'clinging to his wife' (Genesis 2:23, 24). Those involved in the modern 'women's liberation' and other feminist movements are well justified in fighting against the injustices and cruelties long associated with male-dominated governments and customs; but they should avoid carrying such movements to anti-Biblical extremes, demanding absolute equality in all legal, political, cultural, and personal relationships.
It is surely true that, in the Israelite economy outlined in the Mosaic code, and even more in the Christian relationships enjoined in the New Testament, the role of the woman is eminently conducive to her highest happiness and fulfillment, as multitudes of Christian women have testified. In nominally Christian countries, of course, and even in many Christian homes and churches, the proper roles of husband and wife have often been distorted in one direction or another. This can best be corrected by simple obedience to God's revealed Word on such subjects (see Ephesians 5:22-33; Colossians 3:18-21; I Peter 3:1-7; I Corinthians 7:1-40; I Timothy 2:8-15; 3:11-12; 5:14; Titus 2:4-5; Hebrews 13:4; Matthew 19:3-12; etc.).
The special curse on woman associated with child-bearing can, in fact, be turned to a blessing for a woman yielded to the will of God. Jesus said: 'A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world' (John 16:21). Somehow, in spite of the suffering, the joy of motherhood has for most normal women been their greatest happiness... ...Each experience of birth, therefore, can be a beautiful picture and reminder of God's promise of 'deliverance' from the awful curse on man and all his dominion. The entire world, in fact, is 'groaning and travailing in pain,' awaiting the great delivery and birth of a new world, heir to all God's glorious purposes and promises to the first world, in 'earnest expectation... of the manifestation of the sons of God,' at which great day 'the creature [creation] itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of decay into the glorious liberty of the children of God' (Romans 8:19, 21, 22).
Each 'birth' day is a picture and promise of such a day. For the instructed and trusting woman, the experience of childbirth, therefore, can be - and always should be - a time of blessing, of closeness to God (and to her husband). The suffering is submerged in the rejoicing, and this in itself goes far toward mitigating the physical pain. No wonder the apostle Paul says: 'Notwithstanding, she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and love and holiness with sobriety' (I Timothy 2:15).
[THE GENESIS FLOOD, P & R Publishing, Phillipsburg, N.J., 1994, John C. Whitcomb and Henry M. Morris, "Morris," p. 466]:
"(Gen 3:16). In the light of this verse, it would be precarious indeed to argue that the Edenic curse was confined to purely moral and spiritual realms: for we are clearly told here that an important change took place in Eve's body. Whereas she would have borne children without pain before the Fall in accordance with the Edenic command to 'be fruitful and multiply' (Gen 1:28), the very structure of her body was now altered by God in such a way that childbirth would be accomplished henceforth by severe pain. While it is true that this case does not prove a similarly drastic change in the animal kingdom at the time of the Fall, it serves as an important illustration of how God could have introduced significant changes in the physical make-up of His creatures without at the same time eradicating their identity and producing thereby newly created 'kinds.' "
After this Jehovah Elohim will create a new heavens and a new earth:
(Isa 65:17 NKJV) ''' "For behold, I [Yahweh our Father, (Isa 64:8)] create new heavens and a new earth; And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.
(Isa 65:18 NKJV) But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, And her people a joy.
(Isa 65:19 NKJV) I will rejoice in Jerusalem, And joy in My people; The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, Nor the voice of crying.
(Isa 65:20 NKJV) "No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; For the child shall die one hundred years old, But the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.
(Isa 65:21 NKJV) They shall build houses and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
(Isa 65:22 NKJV) They shall not build and another inhabit; They shall not plant and another eat; For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
(Isa 65:23 NKJV) They shall not labor in vain, Nor bring forth children for trouble; For they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the LORD, And their offspring with them.
(Isa 65:24 NKJV) "It shall come to pass That before they call, I will answer; And while they are still speaking, I will hear.
(Isa 65:25 NKJV) The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain," Says the LORD.'''
[This has in
view the Eternal Kingdom of God - as Isa 65:17 declares, "For behold,
I [the LORD God - Adhônai Yahweh] create new heavens and a new
earth," in the first phase of it - the millennial Kingdom Rule on
earth
which will encompass new conditions in the heavens and the earth with the
LORD present and ruling the world, and when mortal men with sin natures
will live out their mortal lives and die albeit with much greater
longevity that the immediately preceeding time, (Ref Isa 65:20, 22; cf Ps
72:1-19 ).
Thereafter, however, Jehovah Elohim will destroy the heavens and the
earths of old and create entirely new ones with inhabitants who will all
be immortal and righteous, (2 Pet 3:5-13)
......................................................................................................................................
(Gen 3:16)
D cont.) (Gen 3:16-19 cont.) TO THE WOMAN - HENCE TO ALL WOMEN - JEHOVAH ELOHIM SAID, "I AM GREATLY MULTIPLYING YOUR SORROW, AND IN PAIN DO YOU BEAR CHILDREN, AND TO YOUR HUSBAND YOUR DESIRE [TO RULE OVER HIM], AND HE RULES OVER YOU." THEN TO ADAM - AND ALL MANKIND - HE SAID, "BECAUSE YOU HAVE LISTENED TO THE VOICE OF YOUR WIFE, AND EAT FROM THE TREE OF WHICH I HAVE COMMANDED YOU, SAYING, 'YOU DO NOT EAT OF IT': CURSED THE GROUND ON ACCOUNT OF YOU; IN HARDSHIP YOU - HENCE ALL MANKIND - SHALL EAT OF IT ALL THE DAYS OF YOUR LIFE. AND THORN AND BRAMBLE IT DOES PRODUCE FOR YOU AND YOU WILL HAVE EATEN THE HERB OF THE FIELD; BY THE SWEAT OF YOUR FACE YOU DO EAT BREAD TILL YOUR RETURNING TO THE GROUND [IN PHYSICAL DEATH], FOR OUT OF IT HAVE YOU BEEN TAKEN, FOR DUST YOU ARE [IN THE SENSE OF THE COMPOSITION OF ADAM'S AND ALL MANKIND'S PHYSICAL BODY] AND UNTO DUST YOU RETURN" - IN THE SENSE OF PHYSICAL DEATH, (cont.)
(Gen 3:16 YLT) "[To] the woman He [Jehovah Elohim] said, 'I am greatly multiplying, [(lit., multiplying I multiply)] [your] sorrow and [your] conception [i.e., pregnancy], in [pain] [do you] bear children, and [to your] husband is [your] desire, and he [rules] over [you].' (Gen 3:17 NKJV) Then to Adam He [had] said, 'Because you have [listened to] the voice of your wife, and [eat] from the tree of which I [have] commanded you, saying, 'You [do] not eat of it': Cursed is the ground [on account of you]; In [hardship] you shall eat of it All the days of your life. (Gen 3:18 YLT) and thorn and bramble it [does produce for you] and [you will have] eaten the herb of the field; (Gen 3:19 YLT) by the sweat of [your] face [you do] eat bread till [your returning to] the ground, for out of it [have you] been taken, for dust [you are] and unto dust [you return]' " (cont.) =
"Then to Adam He [Jehovah Elohim] [had] said, 'Because you have [listened to] the voice of your wife, and [eat] from the tree of which I [have] commanded you, saying, 'You [do] not eat of it': Cursed is the ground [on account of you]; In [hardship] you shall eat of it All the days of your life. And thorn and bramble it [does produce for you] and [you will have] eaten the herb of the field; by the sweat of [your] face [you do] eat bread till [your returning to] the ground, for out of it [have you] been taken, for dust [you are] and unto dust [you return]' "
Notice that Adam was declared by Jehovah Elohim to have listened to the voice of his wife. Adam permitted his wife to rule over him against the stated command and will of Jehovah Elohim to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil! He deliberately, with the knowledge of Jehovah Elohim's command aforethought, ate of the forbidden fruit in order to conform to the wishes of his wife over those of Jehovah Elohim.
So Jehovah Elohim declared His judgment upon all the earth for Adam's disobedience: cursed would now be the ground. And it was specifically and clearly stipulated by Jehovah Elohim that this judgment was on account of Adam
As a result of this curse, Adam and his wife and their descendants thereafter would experience "be'issAbôn" rendered "hardship" in getting food, in the sense of painful hardship - the same Hebrew word rendered "in pain" in Gen 3:16 describing great pain in childbirth for the woman. So growing food in the ground will now be a hardship, i.e., painful toil, as opposed to what Elohim had said earlier, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food," implying an abundant and ready availability of nutritious food, (ref. Gen 1:29); and Jehovah God [was causing] to sprout from the ground every tree desirable for appearance, and good for food, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat... and of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, [you do] not eat of it, for in the day of [your] eating of it - dying [you do] die, (Gen 2:9; 2:17).
So before the
Fall, mankind would have had available throughout the earth abundant herbs
and fruits .....And
so much the more, in the Garden of Eden there was minimal maintenance,
with maximum nutrition and enjoyment .
Now there would be thorns and brambles to choke off the crops and make it painfully hard to produce a productive harvest sufficient to consistently sustain mankind with food, as history has shown. This disastrous state of the land is the result of man's rebellion - which will continue throughout the ages until the commencement of the Kingdom of God on the Earth - the millennial rule.
The vast majority of people believe that the earth has always been as it is today. They maintain that in order to determine what happened in the past, one must presume that the earth always functioned basically as it does in the present - with conflict and death, vastly different climates, radical changes in the weather, catastrophic natural disasters, survival of the fittest, etc.
The Bible, however refutes this false presupposition. When God completed His 6 day creation process, He declared that it all was "very good", (Gen 1:31). But then when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, mankind and the earth were decreed by God to reflect mankind's fallen condition. Genesis 3:17-19 is one of the key passages in Scripture which teaches that God decreed such a fallen condition to mankind and earth alike.
D cont.) (Gen 3:16-19 cont.) TO THE WOMAN - HENCE TO ALL WOMEN - JEHOVAH ELOHIM SAID, "I AM GREATLY MULTIPLYING YOUR SORROW, AND IN PAIN DO YOU BEAR CHILDREN, AND TO YOUR HUSBAND YOUR DESIRE [TO RULE OVER HIM], AND HE RULES OVER YOU." THEN TO ADAM - AND ALL MANKIND - HE SAID, "BECAUSE YOU HAVE LISTENED TO THE VOICE OF YOUR WIFE, AND EAT FROM THE TREE OF WHICH I HAVE COMMANDED YOU, SAYING, 'YOU DO NOT EAT OF IT': CURSED THE GROUND ON ACCOUNT OF YOU; IN HARDSHIP YOU - HENCE ALL MANKIND - SHALL EAT OF IT ALL THE DAYS OF YOUR LIFE. AND THORN AND BRAMBLE IT DOES PRODUCE FOR YOU AND YOU WILL HAVE EATEN THE HERB OF THE FIELD; BY THE SWEAT OF YOUR FACE YOU DO EAT BREAD TILL YOUR RETURNING TO THE GROUND [IN PHYSICAL DEATH], FOR OUT OF IT HAVE YOU BEEN TAKEN, FOR DUST YOU ARE [IN THE SENSE OF THE COMPOSITION OF ADAM'S AND ALL MANKIND'S PHYSICAL BODY] AND UNTO DUST YOU RETURN" - IN THE SENSE OF PHYSICAL DEATH, (cont.)
(Gen 3:16 YLT) "[To] the woman He [Jehovah Elohim] said, 'I am greatly multiplying, [(lit., multiplying I multiply)] [your] sorrow and [your] conception [i.e., pregnancy], in [pain] [do you] bear children, and [to your] husband is [your] desire, and he [rules] over [you].' (Gen 3:17 NKJV) Then to Adam He [had] said, 'Because you have [listened to] the voice of your wife, and [eat] from the tree of which I [have] commanded you, saying, 'You [do] not eat of it': Cursed is the ground [on account of you]; In [hardship] you shall eat of it All the days of your life. (Gen 3:18 YLT) and thorn and bramble it [does produce for you] and [you will have] eaten the herb of the field; (Gen 3:19 YLT) by the sweat of [your] face [you do] eat bread till [your returning to] the ground, for out of it [have you] been taken, for dust [you are] and unto dust [you return]' " (cont.) =
Then Jehovah Elohim specifically stipulated [to Adam], "And you will have eaten the herb of the field; by the sweat of your face you do eat bread." Note that the crop must now be harvested, the grain and chaff sifted together to secure the grain - all with great difficulty. Then the grain must be ground and baked into bread - tasks which are a lot harder than freely eating the abundance of herbs and fruits throughout the earth before the Fall; or plucking beautiful, nutritious fruit from the tree in the garden and immediately eating it.
****** EXCERPT FROM GEN 3V19 ******
(v. 19) "The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed [cp 1 Jn 3:2]
(v. 20) For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope
(v. 21) that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
(v. 22) We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time."
[Henry Morris states, (op cit, p. 125-128)]:
"The full force of the curse fell on Adam, but this of course included all men and women 'in Adam' (even Eve, who was 'of him', as well as his entire dominion, and indeed the 'whole creation' (evidently the sidereal realms [heavenly bodies] were also involved in God's judgment...).."
PLANT LIFE WAS EFFECTED BY THE FALL
[THE GENESIS FLOOD, P & R Publishing, Phillipsburg, N.J., 1994, John C. Whitcomb and Henry M. Morris, "Morris," pp. 125-128)]:
...'Cursed is the ground [same word, actually, as earth, and meaning the basic material of the physical creation] for thy sake.' The elements themselves, the 'dust of the earth,' out of which all things had been made, were brought under the bondage of decay and disintegration.
The earth which had previously cooperated readily as the man 'tilled' and 'dressed it' (Genesis 2:5, 15), now became reluctant to yield his food. Instead it began to yield thorns and noxious weeds, requiring toil and sweat and tears before man could 'eat of it.' And finally, in spite of all his struggle, death would triumph and man's body would return to the dust form which it was taken.
It seems unlikely that God actually either created or 'made' thorns and thistles at this time. He did not 'create' death in the direct sense, but rather withdrew that extension of His power which had maintained a 'steady state' of life and order, thus allowing all things gradually to disintegrate towards disorder and death. In like manner, though there is necessarily a good deal of uncertainty on such matters, it seems more in character that God merely 'allowed' certain plant structures which previously were beneficent to deteriorate into malevolent characteristics. It may be assumed (as characteristic of most 'decay' processes observed today) that deterioration at first was rapid, later gradually tapering off into a much more gradual process.
In terms of modern genetic knowledge, such changes probably were in the form of mutations, or random changes in the molecular structure of the genetic systems of the different kinds of organisms."
["Morris," op. cit., pp. 466-468]
"Turning our attention now from the animal kingdom to the plant kingdom, we read of further important effects of the Edenic curse:
'Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat of the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground...' (Gen. 3:17-19).
Once again, it becomes evident that uniformitarianism can find no place in its scheme of things for such a transformation of nature at the time of the Fall; and, therefore, its advocates have been compelled to eliminate this curse from the text of Scripture by various stratagems of exegesis and logic. A recent example of such an effort may be found in the following statement by Bernard Ramm:
'Part of man's judgment was that he was turned out of that park and into the conditions prevalent in the rest of the creation... Ideal conditions existed only in the Garden... Outside of the Garden of Eden were death, disease, weeds, thistles, thorns, carnivores, deadly serpents, and intemperate weather. To think otherwise is to run counter to an immense avalanche of fact. Part of the blessedness of man was that he was spared all of these things in Paradise, and part of the judgment of man was that he had to forsake such a Paradise and enter the world as it was outside of the Garden, where thistles grew and weeds were abundant and where wild animals roamed and where life was only possible by the sweat of man's brow.'."
[Ramm, op. cit., pp. 334 f., cf. p. 209]
The principal objection to this approach to the problem is that it lacks a single shred of Scriptural support in its favor and runs counter to an immense avalanche of revelation. Let it be carefully noted that the text in question reads: 'Cursed is the ground for thy sake... thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee.' This is certainly an opposite concept from that advocated by Dr. Ramm and others of like persuasion, who presumably could wish that the author of Genesis had written the verse in the following manner: 'Cursed art thou from the Garden; from henceforth shalt thou be removed to the thorns and thistles.' But the Bible states that the earth outside of the Garden had to be cursed by God before it could bring forth thorns and thistles for Adam's sake. Uniformitarians insist that the earth has experienced such conditions for hundreds of millions of years and thus did not need to be cursed by God subsequent to the appearance of man in order to become overrun with thorns and thistles.
But in opposition to this view, we not only have the testimony of Romans 8:19-22 but also an important statement by Lamech, the father of Noah. Speaking many centuries after the Edenic curse, Lamech looked upon his new-born son with a hope implanted in his heart by the Lord Himself that Noah would somehow be instrumental in bringing to men a measure of release from the awful drudgery and toil of life:
'This same [Noah] shall comfort us in our work and in the toil of our hands, which cometh because of the ground which Jehovah hath cursed.' (Gen 5:29).
Now if this statement be not robbed of all its meaning, it indicates rather conclusively that the earth outside of the Garden of Eden had experienced a stupendous transformation as a result of the Fall. As a matter of fact, it implies quite clearly that the Flood was to bring a measure of relief from the bitter effects of the Edenic curse. For these reasons, among others, Christian have been entirely justified in thinking of the whole earth before the Fall in terms of Edenic conditions."
ANIMAL LIFE WAS EFFECTED BY THE FALL
["Morris," op. cit., p. 125-128]:
"If deteriorative mutational changes occurred in plants, it seems reasonable and even probable that they also would occur in animals. As smoothly rounded structures deteriorated to thorns in plants, so perhaps teeth and nails designed for a herbivorous diet mutated to fangs and claws which, in combination with a progressively increasing dietary deficiency of proteins and other essentials, gradually generated carnivorous appetites in certain animals.
Similarly, bacteria and other microorganisms, designed originally to serve essential functions in soil maintenance, purification processes, and so forth, underwent mutational changes which, in many cases, proved harmful and even lethal to other organisms into which they were ingested. Parasites and viral systems may also have developed in some such way."
[Henry M. Morris states, (Impact periodical, Sept. 1994 issue, in article entitled, 'The Wolf And The Lamb')]:
"There is a beautiful picture given in the Bible of the divinely intended relationships in God's animal kingdom:
'The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea." (Isaiah 11:6-9; see also Isaiah 65:25; Ezekiel 34:25; Hosea 2:18; etc.).....
...this passage describes conditions in the earth in the coming kingdom age after Christ returns to Earth... [this]...must...[also]...describe the ideal conditions intended by God for His animal creation. Therefore, this must have been the way it was in the beginning, after God had completed His creation work, and surveyed it with deep satisfaction. "God say every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very good' (Genesis 1:31). Therefore, 'God ended His work which He had made; and ... rested from all His work which God created and made' (Genesis 2:2, 3).
God cared for the animals, placing them under man's stewardship, even authorizing Adam to examine and name them (Genesis 2:19,20). Furthermore, there was an abundance of food for all of them (Genesis 1:30), and definitely no 'struggle for existence.' The 19th century depiction of a 'nature red in tooth and claw') (Tennyson) was diametrically opposite to the true picture of the primeval creation as revealed in God's word. At that time, all the animals were herbivorous and at peace with one another and with man. [Thus refuting evolution in yet another way]
[Henry M. Morris, Impact periodical, Sept. 1994 issue, cont]:
That is not the way it is now, of course, for 'sin entered into the world, and death by sin,' so that 'the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now' (Romans 5:12; 8:22). God had to tell Adam: 'Cursed is the ground [same as earth] for thy sake' (Genesis 3:17), and Adam's whole 'dominion' (Genesis 1:28) came down with him.
Evolutionists, however, have long regarded this groaning and struggling in nature as the basic means of evolutionary progress. The very conclusion of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species even seems to glory in this state of suffering and death:
'Thus, from the war of nature, from famine and death, the most exalted object which we are capable of conceiving, namely, the production of the higher animals, directly follows. There is grandeur in this view of life,...' (Last paragraph of Origin of Species, 1859).
Now, strange and sad to say, a number of leading evangelicals - those espousing either theistic evolution or progressive creation - in their wistful attempt to hang on to the vast geological 'ages' of the evolutionists, evolutionists, seem to agree in general with 'this view of life.' That is, they explain suffering and death in the animal kingdom not as a result of God's curse on the creation because of sin, but as a necessary component of the balance of nature. For For example, physicist Don Stoner says:
'There is scientific evidence that many creatures, from before the time of men, ate other animals. The evidence says there was animal death before Adam. (A New Look at an Old Earth, Shroeder Publishing, 1985, p. 47).
Of the many modern progressive creationists who hold similar views, one of the most influential is Hugh Ross. In his most recent book (which is mainly a polemic against 'young-earth creationists,' especially us at I.C.R.), Dr. Ross says:
'An organism's place in the food chain determines its capacity for efficient work... Considering how creatures convert chemical energy into kinetic energy, we can say that carnivorous activity results from the laws of thermodynamics, not from sin... we cannot realistically compare the suffering and death of animals to the suffering and death of humans' (Creation and Time, Navpress, 1994, pp. 62, 63).
Thus, progressive creationists see no theological or Biblical problems with having animal death prior to human sin, nor in the idea of billions of animals suffering and dying long before God got around to placing them under man's dominion (whatever that could mean, after the animals had already been around for a billion years).
We literal creationists do see problems in this idea, however. The concept of an omnipotent, omniscient, loving, caring God devising such a scheme somehow seems to stick in our mental throats whenever they ask us to swallow it.
Knowledgeable evolutionists have difficulty with it, too. For example, Dr. Holmes Rolston III, distinguished professor of philosophy at Colorado State University, has addressed this question in a recent article in a journal devoted to the interface between science and religion.
'The real problem is with the Fall, when a once-paradisiacal nature becomes recalcitrant as a punishment for human sin. That does not fit into the biological paradigm at all... There was struggle for long epochs before the human arrival.... nature is also where the fittest survive, 'red in tooth and claw, fierce and indifferent, a scene of humger, disease, death. And nature is what it is regardless of human moral failings, indeed regardless of humans at all' ('Does Nature Need to be Redeemed?' Zygon,
June 1994, pp. 205, 206).
Rolston finds it completely impossible to harmonize the Biblical record with the standard concept of biological history.
So does Stephen Jay Gould, probably the nation's most influential evolutionist. He stresses not only the cruelty of natural history, but also its randomness, with no indication of direction or purpose.
'Moreover, natural selection, expressed in appropriate human terms, is a remarkably inefficient, even cruel process. Selection carves adaptation by eliminating masses of the less fit - imposing hecatombs of death as preconditions for limited increments of change. Natural selection is a theory of 'trial and error externalism' - organisms propose via their storehouse of information, and environments dispose of nearly all - not an efficient and human 'goal-directed internalism' (which would be fast and lovely, but nature does not know the way). ('The Power of this View of Life,' Natural History, June 1994, p. 6).
Dr. Hugh Ross tries to mitigate the harshness of the process by saying that some kind of 'mini-creation' process is activated every time a new species appears, maintaining that these millions of mini-creations, which he postulates make him a creationist.
It is obvious, however, that such a system is merely theistic evolution under another name. In any case, it does not do away with the utter cruelty and randomness of the whole monstrous system. How can we dare blame God for such a thing? Gould's atheism is much more logical than so-called 'progressive creationsim'! As Dr. David Hull, professor of philosophy at Northwestern University says:
'Whatever the God implied by evolutionary theory and the data of natural history man be like, He is certainly not the sort of God to whom anyone would be inclined to pray (Nature, August 8, 1992, p. 486).
Or as Dr. Gould said, in an earlier article:
'You can hardly blame the divine Paley for not even imagining such a devilish mechanism ('Darwin and Paley Meet the Invisible Hand,' Natural History, November 1990, p. 14).
The God of the Bible is neither capricious nor cruel, and it is a mistake to think He would use the 'devilish mechanism' of billions of years of trial-and-error variation, struggle, suffering, and death in the animal world as prologue to His great plan for creating and redeeming men and women.
His creative purpose, instead, was that 'they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain.' Anything other than that can only be rightly understood as a later intrusion into God's 'very good' creation."
["Morris," op. cit., pp. 454-455]
"Uniformitarian paleontology, of course, dates the formation of the major fossiliferous strata many scores and hundreds of millions of years before the appearance of human beings on the earth. It assumes that uncounted billions of animals had experienced natural or violent deaths before the Fall of Adam; that many important kinds of animals had long since become extinct by the time God created Adam to have dominion over every living creature; and that long ages before the Edenic curse giant flesh-eating monsters like Tyrannosaurus Rex roamed the earth, slashing their victims with ferocious dagger-like teeth and claws.
But how can such an interpretation of the history of the animal kingdom be reconciled with the early chapters of Genesis? Does the Book of Genesis, honestly studied in the light of the New Testament, allow for a reign of tooth and claw and death and destruction before the Fall of Adam? If not, we have further compelling reasons for questioning the uniformitarian scheme of reading the rocks at the same time strong encouragement for finding in the great Genesis Flood the true explanation for fossil formations in the crust of our planet.
In the face of such clear-cut passages as Romans 5:12-21 and I Corinthians 15:21-22, few who accept the Bible as the word of God will deny that Adam's sin and fall introduced spiritual and physical death into the human race. In the Romans passage we learn that 'through one man' sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all sinned.. by the trespass of the one many died... the judgment came of one unto condemnation ... by the trespass of the one, death reigned through the one ... through one trespass the judgment came unto all men to condemnation.. through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners...' And if such Biblical testimony were regarded as insufficient to settle the matter, we are told also in the Corinthians passage that 'by man came death' and 'in Adam all die.'
The Bible further teaches that all human beings have descended from one human pair (Gen. 3:20, 'Eve...was the mother of all living'; Acts 17:26, 'he made of one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth' ) and that these first human beings were created directly by God wholly apart from any evolutionary development of man's body from animal forms...
["Morris," op. cit., pp. 459]
"It was at the time of the Edenic curse of Gen. 3:17-19 that 'the creation was subjected to vanity' by God. This 'vanity' (of which the Book of Ecclesiastes speaks so eloquently) is further described as 'the bondage of corruption,' which is the explanation for the fact that 'the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.' This passage teaches very clearly that some tremendous transformations took place in the realm of nature at the time of the Edenic curse; and therefore any scientific theory which purports to explain the history of life on this planet without taking into full account the effects of the Fall upon the realm of nature must be rejected...
...But there are other passages besides Romans 8:19-22 which indicate rather clearly that the Edenic curse had far-reaching effects upon nature, including the animal kingdom. In Genesis 1:28, for example, we are told that God gave to Adam 'dominion' over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth' This is the dominion of which we read in Psalm 8:6-9.
'Thou makest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.'
It was on the basis of such God-constituted dominion that Adam 'gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the heavens, and to every beast of the field' (Gen. 2:20)...
...Daily experience teaches us that dominion of this kind is no longer being exercised by the human race over the animal kingdom. Something drastic has taken place in man's relationship to the animal kingdom since the days of the Garden of Eden. The subservience and instant obedience of all classes of animals to the will of man has been transformed into a fear and dread of man that often brings with it violence and destruction.
As a matter of fact, the New Testament interprets the eighth psalm as referring to a relationship that is not now in force. After quoting Psalm 8:4-6, the author of Hebrews comments:
'For in that he subjected all things unto him, he left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we see not yet all things subjected to him. But we behold him who has been made a little lower than the angels, even Jesus..' (Heb. 2:8-9).
Since Psalm 8 refers primarily to man as originally constituted by God, and not to Christ, the author of Hebrews seems to be saying that even though we do not see man at the present time exercising his constituted dominion over the animal kingdom and the rest of nature, we do at least see one member of the human race, 'even Jesus,' Who even now exercises such dominion and that through Him redeemed men shall at last regain all that they lost in Adam, and much more besides, thus bringing into final fulfillment the statements of the eighth psalm.
The fact that the animal kingdom is not at the present subject to man's dominion is further confirmed by the terms of God's covenant with Noah after the Flood. Notice the contrast between this covenant and the statement of Genesis 1:28, which we have already examined. In Genesis 9:2,5, God said to Noah and his family:
'The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the heavens; with all wherewith the ground teemeth, and all the fishes of the sea, into your hand are they delivered... and surely your blood, the blood of your lives, will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it...'
Let it be noted that 'the fear of you and the dread of you' cannot be understood as the equivalent of 'dominion' in Genesis 1:28, because here we are specifically told that beasts will be capable of shedding 'the blood of your lives.' An illustration of how the shedding of human blood would be required 'at the hand of every beast' is found in Exodus 21:28: 'And if an ox gore a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be surely stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten.' Such a possibility, of course, cannot be imagined in the case of the first Adam before the Fall or the Last Adam during His earthly ministry! No animal could have harmed them, because God put all things under their feet...
"To every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life., I have given every green herb for food, and it was so."]
One of the clearest texts in the Old Testament of the transformation of animal characteristics after the Fall is that which describes the diet which God ordained for animals before the Fall. Before the Edenic curse, this was God's provision of the food of animals: 'to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life., I have given every green herb for food, and it was so' (Gen 1:30). Under such conditions, there could have been no carnivorous beasts on earth before the Fall; for the animals to which God gave 'every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein is life.'
In discussing the important question of death in the animal kingdom in relation to the Fall, Dr. Edsin Y. Monsma, Professor and Head of the Department of Biology at Calvin College, makes the following observations:
'The eating of herbs, seeds and fruits implies the death of these plant parts from a biologist's point of view because they all contain living protoplasm. But there is no indication here of destructive and natural death of whole living organisms nor of the carnivorous habit upon which so many animals are dependent at present. Indeed, nowhere in the Scriptures is there any indication of natural or accidental death before the fall of man. Even immediately after the fall the natural processes which culminate in death seemed to work much more slowly than they do now, as is evident from the great age of men during the antediluvian period...
[Edwin Y. Monsma, If Not evolution, What Then? (Published by the author, 1955) p. 32]
'Also wild beasts were not originally created as carnivores. That is substantiated by the fact that they came to Adam without devouring him. Their carnivorous condition can be explained out of the curse alone. At present we distinguish between vermin, predators, and domestic animals, but that difference is not derived from creation. Then the green herb was the food of all animals.'
[Abraham Kuyper, Dictaten Dogmatiek (Kok, Kampen), II, 91-92. Quoted by Monsma, op. cit., p. 33]
'In brief, this verse [Gen 1:30] is an indication of the perfect harmony prevailing in the animal world. No beast preyed upon the other. Rapacious and ferocious wild beasts did not yet exist. This verse, then, indicates very briefly for this chapter what is unfolded at length in chapter two, that a paradise-like state prevailed at creation.'
[E. C. Leupold: Exposition of Genesis (Columbus: Wartburg Press, 1942), pp. 98-99]
Now it cannot be objected that this is a mere argument from silence and that animals may very well have been constituted by God in such a way that they could eat each other as well as 'every green herb for food'; for in Isaiah 11:6-9 we are given God's picture of ideal conditions in the animal kingdom, not only with respect to relationships between animals and men, but also between the various kinds of animals:
(v. 6) "And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the kid, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little boy will lead them.
(v. 7) Also the cow and the bear will graze; Their young will lie down together; And the lion will eat straw like the ox.
(v. 8) And the nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den.
(v. 9) They will not hurt of destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea."]
...Now if this is God's ideal plan for the animal kingdom, it is quite impossible to assume that the Bible allows for the existence of carnivorous beasts, violence, and death before the Fall; for the creation account ends with the statement that God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good.'
'That originally the food of man and of the animals was, and under ideal conditions will be, vegetarian is clearly taught here and suggested by Isaiah 11:9, 65:25. Many of the so-called carnivora are largely or wholly vegetarians. It was after the Fall and the Flood that the eating of flesh was permitted to man.'
[Oswald T. Allis, God Spake By Moses, p. 13]
Some have objected that vast structural changes would have been involved in making an herbivore into a carnivore and that such a transformation would have been tantamount to a creation of new Genesis 'kinds' after the termination of the Creation Week...
But this is surely an exaggeration of the facts. Isaiah says that lions (not some totally new kind of animal) will eat straw like oxen; wolves will dwell with lambs; leopards will lie down with kids; bears will feed with cows; and deadly serpents will be pets for children."
["Morris," op. cit., pp. 125-128]:
Even the earth itself, though groaning under the curse, continually gives testimony, by His grace, of the promised deliverance. Each day that passes, the world descends into darkness, and seems, as it were, to lose its light of life; yet the sun rises and the dawn always comes, providing a continual reminder that soon 'shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings' (Malachi 4:2). Every year the earth sees the plants die and the cold winter come; but soon, once again, when we 'behold the fig tree, and all the trees, when they now shoot forth,' we know that 'summer is now nigh at hand.' In a similar manner, this encourages us to know also that 'the kingdom of God is nigh at hand' (Luke 21:29-31)" [THE GENESIS FLOOD, P & R Publishing, Phillipsburg, N.J., 1994, John C. Whitcomb and Henry M. Morris, "Morris," pp. 468-469]
'''One argument that has frequently been advanced against the concept of an herbivorous animal kingdom before the Fall is that such an arrangement would have thrown the cycles of nature out of balance. It is claimed that no other balance of nature than the one with which we are familiar can be imagined, for it is necessary that certain types of creatures be devoured by others to prevent the earth from being overpopulated. Albertus Pieters expresses the argument as follows:
'So far as we can see now, the existence of carnivorous beasts (including insect-eating birds) is necessary to preserve the 'balance of nature.' Without insectivorous birds, insect life would soon destroy vegetation, and even apparently harmless little animals like rabbits may become a scourge if there are no foxes and other carnivora to keep their numbers in check, as was abundantly illustrated in Australia some years ago. This 'balance of nature' is essential to the perfection of God's creation and we are not to reckon it a blemish or an afterthought."
But who are we to say that God is limited to the 'balance of nature' which now prevails in the earth? Even if Edenic conditions had persisted for centuries, could not God have prevented thee overpopulation of the earth with insects, fish, and other animals through a different means than by mutual extermination? Such reasoning reminds us of the pessimistic and fatalistic views of Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834), who 'proved' that a certain number of people simple had to starve to death or be killed in wars each year to prevent the earth from being overpopulated. [100+ years later his reasoning of a maximum world population is now totally discredited]
After all, God can take care of His creatures, and mutual extermination does not happen to exhaust the possible methods at His disposal.
The human mind has a wonderful capacity (in its fallen state) for interpreting God's ways in its own finite terms and limiting the Supreme Being to its own little world of experience. Notice, for example, in the quotation cited above how the author leaps from his own present experience of things to the formulation of a law by which God must presumably operate in every age:
"So far as we can see now, the existence of carnivorous birds and beasts (including insect-eating birds) is necessary to preserve the 'balance of nature' ...This 'balance of nature' is essential to the perfection of God's creation."
Edward Hitchcock, one of the outstanding uniformitarian apologists of the last century, committed the same logical fallacy when he wrote"
"It would require an entirely different system in nature from the present, in order to exclude death from the world. To the existing system it is as essential as gravitation, and apparently just as much a law of nature... The conclusions from all these facts and reasonings are, that death is an essential feature of the present system of organized nature; that it must have entered into the plan of creation in the divine mind originally, and consequently must have existed in the world before the apostasy of man."
Actually, however, there is a very dangerous principle involved in this type of reasoning. By denying that the Fall and the Edenic curse had anything to do with the 'bondage of corruption' under which the whole creation now travails in pain, these scholars are driven logically to the position of ascribing the conditions of evil which we see around us, so far as the realm of nature is concerned, to the hand of the Creator.'''
[THE GENESIS FLOOD, P & R Publishing, Phillipsburg, N.J., 1994, John C. Whitcomb and Henry M. Morris, "Morris," pp. 473]
"In conclusion, we find ourselves faced with an important alternative. We must accept either the current theories of paleontology, with an inconceivably vast time-scale for fossils before the appearance of man on the earth, or we must accept the order of events as set forth so clearly in the Word of God. Both views cannot be true at the same time, any more than can a Biblical anthropology and an evolutionary anthropology be true at the same time. But if the 'bondage of corruption,' with all that such a term implies for the animal kingdom, had its source in the Edenic curse, then the fossil strata, which are filled with evidences of violent death, must have been laid down since Adam. And if this be true, then the uniformitarian time-table of modern paleontology must be rejected as totally erroneous; and a Biblical catastrophism (centering in the year-long, universal Deluge) must be substituted for it as the only possible solution to the enigma of the fossil strata."
["Morris," op. cit., p. 125-128]:
Not all of this was bad, however, especially in view of the changed moral climate following the fall of man. As a matter of fact, God told Adam that the curse on the ground was 'for thy sake.' It was better that suffering and death accompany sin than that rebellion be permitted to thrive unchecked in the deathless steady-state economy as originally created. With no death, men would proliferate in number and wickedness without limit. The same presumably would be true of animals and plants, as far as their numbers were concerned, and the uses to which they might be devoted by the wicked angels and men who would henceforth control them.
And so God placed the curse on man and on his whole environment, thus forcing him to recognize the seriousness of his sin, as well as his helplessness to save himself and his dominion from eventual destruction. The necessity of laboring merely to keep alive would go far toward inhibiting still further rebellion and would force him to recognize that Satan's tempting promises had been nothing but lies. Such a condition would encourage him to a state of repentance toward God, and a desire for God to provide deliverance from the evil state upon which he had fallen.
In the animal and plant kingdoms likewise, limitless proliferation would be checked by these new factors of disease, predation, parasitism, and so on. Had the Fall never taken place, animal life would no doubt have remained constant at an optimum population by divinely directed constraints on the reproductive process. Now, however, God's personal presence is to be withdrawn for a time, and it is more salutary to maintain order by means of these indirect constraints associated with the curse, adding still further to the testimony that the world was travailing in pain, awaiting its coming Redeemer.
Thus, the entire 'creation was made subject to vanity.' The earth began to 'wax old, as doth a garment' and ultimately 'shall perish' (Hebrews 1:10-12). Since all flesh is made of the earth's physical elements, it also is subject to the law of decay and death and as 'grass, withereth... and falleth away' (I Peter 1:24). It is universal experience that all things, living or nonliving, eventually wear out, run down, grow old, decay, and pass into the dust.
This condition is so universal that it was formalized about a hundred years ago (by Carnot, Clausius, Kelvin, and other scientists) into a fundamental scientific law, now called the Second Law of Thermodynamics. This law states that all systems, if left to themselves, tend to become degraded or disordered. It has also been called the 'law of morpholysis' (from a Greek word meaning 'loosing of structure'). Physical systems, whether watches or suns, eventually wear out. Organisms grow old and die. Hereditary changes in species are caused by gene mutations (sudden random disruptions in their highly ordered genetic systems) which in many cases have resulted in deterioration or extinction of the species itself. Even apart from mutations, the deterioration of the environment has often led to species extinction.
Instead of all things being made - that is, organized into complex systems - as they were in Creation Week, they are now being 'unmade,' becoming disorganized and simple. Instead of life and growth, there comes decay and death; instead of evolution, there is degeneration.
This, then, is the true origin of the strange law of disorder and decay, the universally applicable, all-important Second Law of Thermodynamics. Herein is the secret of all that's wrong with the world. Man is a sinner and has brought God's curse on the earth.
The curse on man himself was fourfold:
(1) sorrow, resulting from continual disappointment and futility;
(2) pain and suffering, signified by the 'thorns' which intermittently hinder man in his efforts to provide a living for his family'
(3) sweat, or tears, the 'strong crying' of intense struggle against a hostile environment; and finally
(4) physical death, which would eventually triumph over all man's efforts, with the structure of his body returning to the simple elements of the earth.
But Christ, as Son of Man and second Adam, has been made the curse for us (Galatians 3:13). He was the 'man of sorrows' (Isaiah 53:3); acquainted more with grief than any other man, He was wounded, bruised, and chastised for us (Isaiah 53:5), and indeed wore the very thorns of the curse as His crown (Mark 15:17); in the agony of His labor, He sweat as it were drops of blood (Luke 22:44), and 'offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears' (Hebrews 5:7). And, finally, God brought Him into the 'dust of death' (Psalm 22:15).
Therefore, because He bore all the curse Himself for us, once again the dwelling of God shall someday be with men and 'there shall be no more death neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" (Revelation 21:4). 'And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it: and his servants shall serve him' (Revelation 22:3).
Although the complete removal of the curse awaits the return of Christ to purge and renovate the earth (II Peter 3:10; Revelation 20:11; 21:1), He has already paid the price for its redemption (I Peter 1:18-20), not with 'corruptible things' (which could never redeem anything under the 'bondage of corruption') but with His 'precious blood,' by the 'incorruptible word' (I Peter 1:23). In token, therefore, we can already appropriate the results of this deliverance by faith. We can be in sorrow, 'yet always rejoicing' (II Corintians 6:10); we can endure the 'thorn in the flesh' with His sufficient grace and perfecting strength (II Corinthians 12:7-9). Though our labor ceases not 'night and day with tears' yet there is rest in Him (Acts 20:31; Matthew 11:28); and though 'made conformable unto his death,' we know the 'power of his resurrection' (Philippians 3:10).
["Morris," op. cit., pp. 125-128]:
Though the whole creation travails in pain and sorrow, and we can never forget the curse on the earth and our necessary toil before it will yield its bread, 'nevertheless He left not himself without witness, in that He did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness' (Acts 14:17). Though pain and death may accompany birth, yet new life is ever born and hope springs eternal."
The context in Gen 3:14-18 is therefore established as God's remedy of Adam and Eve's condition so that they could once more have eternal life and have fellowship with Him. It focuses on how the "seed of the woman", i.e., a descendant of Adam and Eve but One miraculously born only of the seed of the woman and NOT the seed of the man would defeat the serpent. The serpent, this passage implies, is Satan who the passage also implies has usurped control over Adam and Eve by causing them to sin. Satan and his demonic angels would then manipulate the resultant sin natures of Adam and Eve and all their offspring, (just as he did to Eve in the garden), such that he would virtually become their ruler unless they became born again. The eternal destiny of Adam and Eve to heaven or hell hangs in the balance of whether God will bring back this control by defeating Satan as a Man. This God promises to do in His statement to Adam and Eve in this passage. He states that the "seed of the woman", (Who we find out later in Scripture in one sense is Jesus Christ), will battle Satan and that the "seed" will be wounded, but not fatally: "And you [the serpent - Satan] shall bruise [i.e., "strike"] Him on the heel.". Satan, on the other hand, will be mortally wounded, his defeat thereby enabling Adam and Eve and all men to have a way back to eternal life and fellowship with God when they trust in God's plan of the Seed Jesus Christ's sacrificial provision of salvation for them:
(v. 17) "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''
Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil ["sorrow"] you shall eat of it All the days of your life."
(v. 18) Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you shall eat the plants of the field'
(v. 19) By the sweat of your face You shall eat bread, Till you return to the ground,[cp Ps 90:3] Because from it you were taken; [cp Gen 2:7] For you are dust, And to dust you shall return."
"And I [God] will put enmity between you [the serpent, i.e., Satan] and the woman, And between your offspring [lit., "seed" = unbelievers] and hers [lit., "her seed" = Jesus Christ & believers, (Gal 3:16)], He [Jesus Christ] will crush ["shup"] your head, And you [Satan] strike ["shup"] his heel."
Genesis 3:14-19 is a passage in which God speaks to Adam and Eve about their condition of sin - of being separated from Him. Adam and Eve were spiritually dead and now would die physically as a result of their disobedience in the Garden of Eden and be separated from God for all eternity. But God has provided a remedy for the situation as indicated in verse 15 so that they could once more have eternal life and have fellowship with Him. It focuses on how the "seed of the woman", i.e., a descendant of Adam and Eve but one miraculously born only of the seed of the woman and NOT the seed of the man would defeat the serpent. The serpent, this passage implies, is Satan who the passage also implies has usurped control over Adam and Eve by causing them to sin. The eternal destiny of Adam and Eve to heaven or hell hangs in the balance of whether God will bring back this control by defeating Satan as a Man. This God promises to do in His statement to Adam and Eve in this passage. He states that the "seed of the woman" will battle Satan somehow and though the "seed" will be wounded. Satan will be mortally wounded thus defeating him and in the process enabling Adam and Eve and any of their descendants to have a way back to eternal life and fellowship with God - if they trust in God's plan of a coming Savior to do it all for them: the Seed of the woman Who would be the Seed of Abraham:
"Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his Seed. He does not say, 'AND TO SEEDS,' as referring to many, but rather to One, 'AND TO YOUR SEED,' that is, Christ."
****** END OF EXCERPT FROM GEN V19 ******
So everything was changed, mankind, all living things and the whole earth itself.
[Henry Morris states, ("The Genesis Record", Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1976, pp. 109-110, 113)]:
"The fact that great physiological changes took place in both the plant and animal kingdoms at the time of the curse, as well as in man himself, is obvious from Genesis 3:14-19, and it is obvious also that changes of such degree are quite within the capabilities of God to produce...
... It is at least possible (as well as the most natural reading) that the higher animals could originally communicate directly with man, who was their master. These were possibly the same as the animals to whom Adam gave names, and over whom man was to exercise friendly dominion.
It is further possible that all these animals (other than the birds) were quadrupeds, except the serpent, who had the remarkable ability, with a strong vertebral skeleton supported by small limbs, to rear and hold himself erect when talking with Adam or Eve. After the temptation and fall, God altered the vocal equipment of the animals, including the structure of the speech centers in their brains, He did this in order to place a still greater barrier between men and animals and to prevent further use of their bodies by demonic spirits to deceive men again in this fashion. The body of the serpent, in addition, was altered even further by eliminating his ability to stand erect, eye-to-eye with man as it were.
Again it should be emphasized that the above interpretation is not intended dogmatically. The Bible is not explicit on these matters and such explanations no doubt are hard to accept by the 'modern mind.' Nevertheless, they are not impossible or unreasonable in the context of the original creation and, indeed, appear to follow directly from the most natural and literal reading of the passage."
Finally,
Jehovah Elohim concluded with Adam - the last part of Gen 3:19: "By
the sweat of [your] face [you do] eat bread till [your returning
to] the ground, for out of it [have you] been taken, for dust [you are]
and unto dust [you return]" - in the sense of the make-up of
his physical body is from the dust of the ground, (cf. Gen 2:7
),
This is the last judgment that Jehovah Elohim pronounced upon Adam and
hence all mankind at this time. It was the pronouncement of physical death
upon all men. So Adam and Eve and all of their descendants would now be
mortal. They were evidently originally created to be immortal - to live on
with Jehovah Elohim forever.
Their initial immortality is corrobrated by Gen 3:22, examined in the next section. But this does not rule out the possiblity for individual men and women once more having an eternal relationship with Jehovah Elohim - the significance of Gen 3:21, also examined in the next section.
So man would
not be permitted to live forever in a sinful, chaotic state leading to all
kinds of evil, destroying everything around him. Children would still be
born to carry on the human race, albeit in sin, through pain in child
birth - so as to fulfill the promises to them of Jehovah Elohim of
reconciliation through the Seed of the woman. Those who trusted in the
Seed of the woman - in His victory over sin and Satan, will receive
eternal life and be resurrected and transformed into perfect, sinless
beings to have eternal life and fellowship with Jehovah Elohim, (cf Isa
52:13-53:11 .
Those that do not will remain separated from God in eternal punishment.
Note that a number of the punishments of the serpent / Satan, the woman and Adam were evidently engendered to be memorable ones that paralleled the offences and would serve to remind the offenders and their descendants throughout history of their sinful, rebellious actions as a resultof mankind's ongoing sinful condition:
(1) Adam and the woman sinned by eating - they would suffer painful toil in order to produce food to eat.
(2) The woman manipulated her husband - she will now be ruled by her husband.
(3) The serpent / Satan destroyed the human race - he would be destroyed, (Gen 3:17-19).
But Jehovah Elohim will restore mankind and the earth in the future:
(Ps 72:1 NKJV) "A Psalm of Solomon.
Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the king's Son.
(Ps 72:2 NKJV) He will judge Your people with righteousness, And Your poor with justice.
(Ps 72:3 NKJV) The mountains will bring peace to the people, And the little hills, by righteousness.
(Ps 72:4 NKJV) He will bring justice to the poor of the people; He will save the children of the needy, And will break in pieces the oppressor.
(Ps 72:5 NKJV) They shall fear You As long as the sun and moon endure, Throughout all generations.
(Ps 72:6 NKJV) He shall come down like rain upon the grass before mowing, Like showers that water the earth.
(Ps 72:7 NKJV) In His days the righteous shall flourish, And abundance of peace, Until the moon is no more.
(Ps 72:8 NKJV) He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth.
(Ps 72:9 NKJV) Those who dwell in the wilderness will bow before Him, And His enemies will lick the dust.
(Ps 72:10 NKJV) The kings of Tarshish and of the isles Will bring presents; The kings of Sheba and Seba Will offer gifts.
(Ps 72:11 NKJV) Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; All nations shall serve Him.
(Ps 72:12 NKJV) For He will deliver the needy when he cries, The poor also, and him who has no helper.
(Ps 72:13 NKJV) He will spare the poor and needy, And will save the souls of the needy.
(Ps 72:14 NKJV) He will redeem their life from oppression and violence; And precious shall be their blood in His sight.
(Ps 72:15 NKJV) And He shall live; And the gold of Sheba will be given to Him; Prayer also will be made for Him continually, And daily He shall be praised.
(Ps 72:16 NKJV) There will be an abundance of grain in the earth, On the top of the mountains; Its fruit shall wave like Lebanon; And those of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
(Ps 72:17 NKJV) His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun. And men shall be blessed in Him; All nations shall call Him blessed.
(Ps 72:18 NKJV) Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, Who only does wondrous things!
(Ps 72:19 NKJV) And blessed be His glorious name forever! And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen."
(Gen 3:20 YLT) And the man [calls] his wife's name Eve: for she [will have been] mother of all [the] living. (Gen 3:21 YLT) And Jehovah [Elohim] [makes for] the man and his wife coats of skin, and [He clothes] them. (Gen 3:22 NKJV) Then the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [says], 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he [reaches] out his hand and [has taken] also of the Tree of Life, and [has eaten] [and will have lived] forever' [in such a depraved rebellious condition as he is now in]' - (Gen 3:23 NKJV) therefore the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [puts] him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he [has been] taken. (Gen 3:24 NASB) So He [drives] the man out; and at the east of the Garden of Eden He [positions] the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the Tree of Life." =
In Gen 3:20 Adam calls his wife by the name of "hawwâ" rendered "Eve" in the YLT, which is derived from the Hebrew verb "chAyAh" which means "to be alive," "to have life." Previously Adam had called his wife " 'issâ," rendered "woman" because it is stipulated she was taken from "îs" rendered man, (ref. Gen 2:23). This second change of name to "hawwâ" rendered "Eve" indicates a change such as in the nature, character or relationship of an individual. Since she already had the capacity to give birth to children, hence she was potentially already the mother of all the living of her descendants; and since the only death they had known to this point was their estrangement from Jehovah Elohim, i.e., spiritual death; then the phrase rendered "mother of all the living," must mean "mother of all those who are spiritually alive," which implies that both Adam, (implied because he recognized her being born again spiritually) and his wife had become spiritually alive - the evidence further being that they had fellowship restored with Jehovah Elohim - but not as it was before they sinned. This restoration - a result of placing ones faith in Jehovah Elohim's promise of salvation through the Seed of the woman as stipulated in Gen 3:15 - is demonstrated by the garments of skins which Jehovah Elohim made for Adam and Eve, (ref. Gen 3:21).
Later in Gen 4:1, the woman, Eve, would bear her firstborn who was named Cain. Eve said, "I have acquired a man from Jehovah," indicating that she had trusted in Jehovah Elohim's promise of being returned to fellowship with Jehovah Elohim through her seed, thinking it might be her firstborn son, Cain. And then in Gen 4:25, which says, "And Adam had relations with his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for, she said, 'God has appointed another offspring [lit., "seed"] in place of Abel; for Cain killed Him,' " implies through Eve's statement that her understanding was that it would be through her seed that a Savior would come - Seth now being the son through whom our Lord would be born. Eve said, "God has appointed me another seed in place of Abel." In other words, Eve then understood Abel to be the seed through whom her salvation would come, but who was slain. So Eve stated that Seth was God's appointed replacement for Abel, not just another son. Although Eve was not correct about Seth, she nevertheless was a believer in Jehovah Elohim's promise of salvation through the Seed of a woman who would be descendant from Eve, (Gen 3:20).
At this point, Jehovah Elohim makes for the man and wife coats of animal skin to clothe them, evidently to cover up their nakedness - evidence of their having sinned. This sacrificial act of an animal by Jehovah Elohim indicates His acceptance of Adam and the woman - a sign of their return to fellowship with Him through their acceptance of His promise of an atoning sacrifice for sins through the Seed of the woman. Their fellowship, however, as previous and later verses indicate, was not the same as when they were first created in the garden, wherein they were driven out of the garden, (ref. Gen 3:7, 10; 21-24).
Note that Jehovah Elohim evidently sacrificed a number of animals in order to make provision for clothing for the man and his wife; replacing the fig leaves which were insufficient - indicating that doing human works such as covering up the evidence of ones own sins is not the way to restore ones relationship with Jehovah Elohim. This requires one to accept a sacrifice for one by Jehovah Elohim Himself - through the Seed of the woman. This covering signified that Jehovah Elohim would provide for them, especially relative to reconciling them back to Him by covering their sins through their having trusted in His promise of an atoning sacrifice for sins - the victory of the Seed of the woman over Satan / sin to provide for their reconciliation with Him. Hence all of the animal sacrifices that were required by Jehovah Elohim beginning with Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel were representative symbols looking forward to the once for all sacrifice for the sins of all mankind by the Seed of the woman, Jesus Christ, (ref Ro 3:21-26).
(Gal 3:16 NKJV) '''Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ.'''
Note that the sovereignty and honor of Jehovah Elohim demands that the first two of mankind be spiritually alive and reconciled to Him in order to fulfill His plan to reconcile mankind to Himself. It would hardly do for two unbelievers - agents of Satan - to be the progenitors of the birth of the Son of God to save humanity as His arch enemy, Satan, looked on.
So until the end of the Kingdom of God upon the earth, man will be born in sin, live out his mortal life and physically die, leaving descendants to carry on the human race. Every individual descendant of Adam and Eve must now persevere through the judgments of Jehovah Elohim upon the earth and mankind as stipulated in Gen 3:15-19. But as each individual chooses to trust in Jehovah Elohim's provision for eternal life through the Seed of the woman, he will be resurrected unto eternal life - transformed into a perfect and sinless being; if not he will be resurrected unto eternal separation from Jehovah Elohim and eternal punishment.
(Dan 12:1 NKJV) "At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book.
(Dan 12:2 NKJV) And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt.
(Dan 12:3 NKJV) Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever."
In the final analysis, Jehovah Elohim will rule and His promise of paradise on earth - the hope of Adam and Eve and all mankind - of a new heavens and a new earth transformed to reflect the righteousness of Jehovah Elohim will be realized for all those who have trusted in the victory of the Seed of the woman over Satan and sin.
(Isa 65:16 NKJV) "So that he who blesses himself in the earth Shall bless himself in the God of truth; And he who swears in the earth Shall swear by the God of truth; Because the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My eyes.
(Isa 65:17 NKJV) 'For behold, I [God] create new heavens and a new earth; And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.' "
(Ro 8:22 NKJV) "For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.
(Ro 8:23 NKJV) Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body."
(Rev 21:1 NKJV) "Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.".................................(Gen 3:21).
The last three verses of Genesis chapter 3 cover Jehovah Elohim's expulsion of mankind from the Garden of Eden. The plurality of God is in view in the first phrase, "Then the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [says], 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil." This is evidently not a conversation between Jehovah Elohim and angelic beings, as some contend. For angelic beings are created beings with finite capacity, and would not know good and evil as Jehovah Elohim would know them. For Jehovah Elohim is uncreated with infinite capacity and knowledge.
****** EXCERPT FROM GENESIS CHAPTER ONE ******
(Gen 1:26 NKJV) "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.'
(Gen 1:27 NKJV) So God created [Heb. verb, "bArA"] man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."
"Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our Likeness...' " = "God" = "ElOhîm" = PLURAL
"said" = singular verb in the Hebrew
"Us" = PLURAL
"make" = singular verb in the Hebrew verb "AsAh," = to make
"our" = PLURAL
"in our image according to our likeness" =
"our image" = The construction here of plural subject followed by a singular verb indicates one God with more than one Personality, i.e., the Trinity.
In order to avoid attributing God with more than one Personality, objectors to the Trinity state that the phrase, "in our image" in Gen 1:26 refers to God and the angels who are deciding together to create man in their image. This would then infer that angels have the image of God on a equal basis with the Almighty eternal God and thus contributed in creation, ("Let us make"), with Him as Creators. However, the image that the passage is referring to is a unique one to God and God alone as implied by the word "our." If "us" is to include angels then a plural verb form of "make" instead of singular would have been inspired by God to be used. God's image is an eternal image which angels and man are made into only in a finite way. If equality were meant instead of similarity, then the verse should have been worded 'Let us make man equal with us' and not "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our Likeness...' "
****** END OF EXCERPT FROM GENESIS CHAPTER ONE ******
(Gen 3:22 NKJV) "Then the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [says], 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he [reaches] out his hand and [has taken] also of the Tree of Life, and [has eaten] [and will have lived] forever' [in such a depraved rebellious condition as he is now in]' - (Gen 3:23 NKJV) therefore the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [puts] him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he [has been] taken. (Gen 3:24 NASB) So He [drives] the man out; and at the east of the Garden of Eden He [positions] the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the Tree of Life," (cont.) =
Adam's (and Eve's) knowledge of good and evil was obtained by rebelling against Jehovah Elohim - through performing an evil act - by eating of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Because of this Jehovah Elohim stated, "And now, lest he [Adam] reaches out his hand and has taken also of the Tree of Life [i.e., eternal life], and has eaten [of it] and will have lived forever, therefore the LORD God [Jehovah Elohim] [puts] him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he [has been] taken." Adam and Eve's attaining of the knowledge of good and evil through committing acts of sin so contaminated them that they both received and all of their descendants, i.e., all mankind, would inherit from them, sinful natures to populate the earth with evil natured beings. And given access to the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, mankind would thereby continue to be forever and totally incompatible with a Righteous Jehovah Elohim.
Since Jehovah Elohim cannot destroy humanity without reneging on His promise to rescue mankind via the Seed of the woman; and since He cannot destroy humanity and the earth without impugning His own integrity and sovereignty by permitting Satan's work of destruction to continue to exist and contaminate Jehovah Elohim's creation; and since Jehovah Elohim cannot let Adam and his descendants continue to have immortality while in a sinful condition; then He must see to it that the human race survives in order to fulfill His promise to save humanity through the Seed of the woman - through those who would choose the salvation provided for them through the Seed's atoning sacrifice for their sins.
So author Moses goes on to write, "Therefore, Jehovah Elohim puts [Adam, (and Eve)] out of the garden to till the ground from which he had been taken. So he drives the man out; and at the east of the garden He positions the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the Tree of Life." Note that it is evident that Adam and Eve would not leave the garden freely / willingly. They had to be driven out. And then the garden had to be guarded so that no humankind could come back there. Thus until the new heavens and the new earth, humanity will be mortal with sinful natures. They carry on through their descendants so that the promised One would be born of the Seed of a woman; defeat sin and Satan through His sacrificial work; and thereby reconcile humanity with Jehovah Elohim, as each individual who chooses to trust in the promise of Jehovah Elohim to defeat Satan, will be reconciled to Jehovah Elohim through his (her) resurrection to perfect humanity unto eternal life - without impugning the Perfect, Righteous Integrity of Jehovah Elohim.
So the solution was to forcefully evict Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden so that they did not have access to the Tree of Life. They not have immortal descendants with evil natures to further contaminate the world with sin forever. All mankind will now physically die, leaving mortal descendants - albeit born in sin - to carry on the human race until the end of the millennial kingdom of God. Only in the New Jerusalem will the fruit of the Tree of Life again be available, (Rev 22:2; 14). There it will be freely and continually accessible to the redeemed of the ages.
Even though man's quest to "be like God" (vv. 5-7) was obtained, the goal itself proved to be undesirable. Man, who had been created "like God" in the beginning (1:26), found himself after the Fall curiously "like God"- but no longer "with God" in the garden to enjoy His fellowship and blessings there, (v.22). In this subtle verbal interchange, the author has shown that man's happiness (Hebrew "tob" = "good") does not consist of his being "like God" so much as it does his being "with God," enjoying the blessings of God through serving, obeying and being in His presence:
(Ps 16:1 NKJV) A Michtam of David.
Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust.
(Ps 16:2 NKJV) O my soul, you have said to the LORD, "You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You."
(Ps 16:3 NKJV) As for the saints who are on the earth, "They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight."
(Ps 16:4 NKJV) Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god; Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, Nor take up their names on my lips.
(Ps 16:5 NKJV) O LORD, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot.
(Ps 16:6 NKJV) The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance.
(Ps 16:7 NKJV) I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
(Ps 16:8 NKJV) I have set the LORD always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
(Ps 16:9 NKJV) Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope.
(Ps 16:10 NKJV) For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
(Ps 16:11 NKJV) You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore,"
Should Satan have disrupted the plans, promises and sovereignty of Jehovah Elohim, then Satan could have maintained that Jehovah Elohim had no integrity, because He had failed to uphold His promises. His sovereignty would be in question. Hence he would be prompted to confront Jehovah Elohim with the question of why should he [Satan] and his rebellious angelic beings suffer punishment for rebelling against Him. But Jehovah Elohim did fulfill all of his promises, despite many attempts to thwart them. His integrity and sovereignty remains intact; His punishment of Satan and his rebellious angelic beings and all who never trusted in His mercy and forgiveness, justified, (Gen 3:22-24).