Genesis 3:1-19
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,a hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 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.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
5 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.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasantb 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.
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.c
8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the coold of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
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.
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.
17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
God would have been very pleased if he had never needed a remedy for sin. However, man chose the path of sin. Satan's grand lie caused him to transgress God's will. Jesus called Satan "a murderer from the beginning" and the father of lying (John 8:44).
Satan's Lie
Satan denied the reality of the curse of death and God's veracity (Genesis 3:4). God told Adam in the day he ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil he would surely die (2:17). It should be noted this lie involved the addition of only one word to what God had actually said. Man was seduced into believing he would not be punished for sin (Compare Ecclesiastes 8:11). Today, there are those who are evidently deceived into believing they will never die. They live as if they will not die (Luke 12:16-21; Hebrews 9:27). We need to live so as to be prepared for death (Isaiah 38:1; Matthew 25:13).
It should also be observed that Satan used one of God's creatures to bring about the fall of man (Genesis 3:1). Even now, he works through men to persuade us to follow some false teaching, thereby joining his side (Matthew 16:21-23; 2 Corinthians 11:14-15; 1 Timothy 4:1). Sometimes God's truthfulness is denied by saying God does not mean "whosoever" in Matthew 19:9. His truthfulness is also denied by those who say a Christian cannot so act as to be lost eternally. Compare this with 1 Corinthians 9:27 and 2 Peter 2:20-22.
Denied God's Loving Kindness
Satan denied God's loving kindness by saying he kept back something good for man (Genesis 3:5). We know God is good, and loving, and will not hold back anything good for man (Psalms 135:1; John 3:16; Romans 8:31-32). Jesus told his disciples to ask, seek and knock to receive find and have it opened to them. "Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (Matthew 7:7-11).
Modern day feminists have said God is unfair because he denies them roles of spiritual authority (2 Corinthians 11:3). Ironically, the very reason for such denial is from the account of the fall. Paul tells us Eve was deceived and sinned (1 Timothy 2:13-14). Because God said Adam had listened to his wife, we know he sinned in yielding to her instead of to God (Genesis 3:17).
Said Nothing of the Positive
Satan said nothing of the positive side of God's commands. Adam and Eve could eat of all other trees in the garden. Satan emphasized the negative side of God's command and distorted the truth. He said God did not want them to eat because 1) their eyes would be opened and 2) they would be as God, knowing good and evil (3:5). These two assertions were actually partially true (3:7, 22). Man's eyes were opened to their nakedness. They did become like God in the sense that they knew the difference between good and evil.
Three Basic Areas
Satan tempted Eve in the three basic areas to which man is susceptible (1 John 2:15-17). The lust of the flesh is any uncontrolled appetite of the body. Eve "saw that the tree was good for food." Her desire for it was uncontrolled in that it caused her to ignore the danger to her relationship with God. The lust of the eyes is anything excited by sight. Eve saw "that it was pleasant to the eyes." The pride, or vainglory, of life is the seeking of worldly rewards and praise of men above that of God. Eve saw that it was "to be desired to make one wise."
Eyes Opened
Having sinned, Adam and Eve's eyes were now opened and they were ashamed (3:7-10). The simple innocence of the garden had now been shattered (2:25). They tried to hide from God but discovered such was impossible (Psalms 139:1-24; Jeremiah 23:24; Hebrews 4:12-13). In response to God's questions, both Adam and Eve tried to pass the blame on to someone else (3:12, 13). The consequences of sin, however, remain with the one who has committed the sin (Ezekiel 18:4; Ezekiel 18:20; Galatians 6:7-8). The serpent, Satan, Eve and Adam all faced punishment because of their wrongs (3:14-19).
The special fellowship of the garden was brought to an end by man's sin (3:22-24). From that point forward, God set in motion his plan for man's salvation. Sin had now entered into the world. All men, unconditionally, received the sentence of physical death (Romans 5:12). What man lost unconditionally in Adam, he regained unconditionally in Christ (1 Corinthians 15:20-22). All will overcome the grave. The place in which they will spend eternity depends upon their own actions (John 5:28-29). Only in Christ can the special relationship of the garden be restored.
Conclusion
God chose to bring the Savior into the world by woman, thus taking the stigma of sin away from her (3:15; 1 Timothy 2:15). Since men usually trace their lineage through the male parent, it is plain "the seed of woman" refers to Christ. Mary was the only woman to bear a child without a man being involved (Matthew 1:18-25; Isaiah 7:14). The seed of the serpent would be all those who follow after Satan (Matthew 23:33; John 8:44; 1 John 3:10). Enmity between the followers of Christ and the world is natural because good lives and teachings expose the bad (John 15:18-19).