Word of the Day: Marriage
The legal union of a man and a woman as husband and wife; close union.
We begin the story on the sixth day with the Lord forming (potter's shaping clay) a man out of the dust from the ground, and that man became a living soul, and his name was Adam. The word soul refers to a whole person and not something materialistic.
Genesis 2:7
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
The Lord had planted a garden eastward in Eden, which Eden means "delight or enjoyment" as a symbol of great fertility. That was an indication of an unbroken relationship with the Lord. In the garden, there was the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Adam was to be the garden's caretaker, meaning he would be the guardian and the gardener. We also see that the word labor existed before Adam and Eve's expulsion from the garden. God commanded Adam to eat freely from every tree except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. In this scene, God was already implementing the 10 percent tithing. All this is to say that Adam could eat from any tree simply but one; just like us today, we are to keep ninety percent of our earnings, not a hundred percent. God created a man with morals with the right to choose between right and wrong; Adam was never designed to be a puppet.
Genesis 2:9
And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
Genesis 2:15
And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
Genesis 2:16-17
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
The Lord thought it was not good for man to be alone, and this is when He decided to create Eve to be Adam's helper. God took a rib from Adam and made a woman, which happened when Adam was asleep. We must remember that there was no sin, so Adam did not know what pain was like. Because Eve was taken out of Adam, Adam decided to call her Woman (Ishshah in Hebrew). This act demonstrates that he had authority over her given by God. The Bible does not talk about her appearance, but Adam was impressed as soon as he saw Eve; she must have been so beautiful. He recited this: "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." Eve became the first woman to be born without sin and was created for Adam to live a life of purity.
Genesis 2:18
And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Genesis 2:21-22
21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
22 And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
The first wedding vows God's plan for marriage for one man and one woman for a lifetime. The word "therefore" means (conclusion) to be more specific, you can't turn back on it. The term "cleave" means to (join) to be faithful. If he/she does not leave (family), he/she cannot cleave, nor can they become one flesh.
Genesis 2:24
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
And they were both naked, not ashamed; once again, they lived a life of purity that glorified the Lord. A life without guilt or fear that was a sign of integrity, a life in paradise. But Satan wanted to attack their integrity; the snake was an animal created by God but used by Satan. The snake was subtle in putting doubt on God's words.
Genesis 3:1
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
Eve replies to the snake by saying that God had said there was a tree they should not touch or eat. The only limitation was for them not to eat from this tree. Adam and Eve were never told not to touch it. Here, we see that Eve was adding to God's commandment. The serpent said to Eve that she could eat from it and not die. She believes the snake ate from the forbidden fruit, and when she notices that it is good and pleases her eyes, she shares it with her husband. The sin of disobedience is a portrait of what we see, covet, and take. Eve could have said NO to the serpent, but she was weak in her relationship with the Lord, to the point that she doubted Him. On the other hand, Adam believed her instead of trusting what the Lord had said.
Genesis 3:2-3
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
Genesis 3:4-5
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
Genesis 3:6
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
They immediately became embarrassed of their nakedness and made themselves aprons because they knew they had to face God. They did not realize that tremendous consequences would come from disobedience. The serpent was cursed, and God promised redemption through the seed of a woman. A prophecy given by God that He would send us a Savior, Jesus Christ.
Genesis 3:7
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
Genesis 3:14–15
14 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed 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:
15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Unto Eve, God told her that she would greatly multiply with sorrow (pain), a Hebrew word for tree. The source of pain also reminds us and gives us hope on the day of the Crucifixion, which also happened on a tree (Cross). God's love is more significant than anyone else's love. If we fall, He will always be there to help us reconnect with him.
Genesis 3:16
Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
Up to this point, Eve was not Eve yet. Adams decides to give her that name which means mother of all living. He was looking towards the future with faith in the promises of God. God also made coats of animal skin, perhaps to imply that one day there would be a blood sacrifice.
Genesis 3:20–21
20 And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
Adam KNEW Eve. The word "knew" refers to a sexual relationship, and she conceived Cain and then Abel. Later, Eve had a third son called Seth.
Genesis 4:1-2
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord.
2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
Genesis 4:25
And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.
Adam & Eve and Their Sons' Characteristics
Cain: tiller of the ground, easy to be angry, the murderer of his brother Abel, a liar, a fugitive, dwelled in the land of Nod (wandering)
Abel: keeper of sheep, offered the first sacrificial animal,
Seth: substitute, his legacy was called the sons of God
Conclusion: We learn in this story that although God forgives us for our sins, we also have to understand that consequences will come to our lives when we disobey. God's story does not end with Adam and Eve; He left us with an entire book (the Bible) full of love, knowledge, and promises. God is good!!!
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