The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it, you will certainly die” (Genesis 2:15-17 NIV).
Now the serpent was more crafty (subtle, skilled in deceit) than any living creature of the field which the LORD God had made. And the serpent (satan) said to the woman, “Can it really be that God has said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden?”
And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees of the garden, except the fruit from the tree which is in the middle of the garden. God said, ‘You shall not eat from it nor touch it, otherwise you will die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You certainly will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened [that is, you will be like God, knowing [the difference between] good and evil” (Genesis 3:1-5 NIV).
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wise and insightful, she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate. Then the eyes of the two of them were opened [that is, their awareness increased], and they knew that they were naked; and they fastened fig leaves together and made themselves coverings (v.v. 6-7).
They heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool day; and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam and said unto him. Where art thou? (v.v 8-9).
Now we know that the LORD God is Omnipotent, Omniscient, and Omnipresent. This means He knows all things including the location of everyone on Earth, below the Earth, and those who reside in Heaven. No one is missing from his sight.
I’m Not Nai(Eve)
NAÏVE – a lack of experience, wisdom, or judgment.
Adam and Eve were the first man and woman of the entire human race. They were made perfect and sinless, and God provided everything required for them to survive and thrive. Eve’s name means “life-giving”. Adam’s name means “red, ground.” The Garden of Eden represented God’s ideal environment for man. Adam and Eve lived together in innocence and happiness, without guilt or sin (Gen. 2:25).
However, the serpent tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. She knew partaking from the trees planted in the center of the garden was forbidden. However, she did not realize the voice she heard was satan speaking; he appeared in the form of a snake. In fact, Revelation 12:9 and 20:2 identify satan as the dragon, that old serpent, the devil.
Let’s read on…
The LORD God said to the serpent, because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel (Genesis 3:1-9; 14-15 NIV).
Even though Adam and Eve were in the Garden without sin, evil had already come through the angel lucifer (see Isaiah 14:12-15). After his fall, he became known as satan, a.k.a. the devil. Evil and sin came into the world through lucifer’s rebellion. He deceived Eve, and the consequences of their disobedience broke our fellowship with God. Sin breaks fellowship with God.
The Consequences of Their Actions
Whether good or bad, we know that there are consequences for every action. Here are the consequences of Adam and Eve’s actions:
1 – The loss of innocence (Gen. 3:7).
2 – Enmity between the seed of the woman [Christ] (Gen. 3:15, Gal. 3:16).
3 – The ground was cursed (Gen. 3:17).
4 – Hard labor for mankind; toil. To include hard labor pain in childbearing (Gen. 3:16-17).
5 – Separation from God (Gen. 3:23-24; 2 Thess. 19).
(*For the full details of their consequences, read Genesis Chapter 3:14-19.)
The Final Decision
And the Lord God said, Behold the man has become like one of Us [the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit], to know how to distinguish between] good and evil and blessing and calamity; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever. Therefore, the Lord God sent him forth from the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So [God] drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the Garden of Eden the cherubim and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep and guard the way to the tree of life (Genesis 3:22-24 Amp. Bible).
My Rebuttal
Why did the LORD God put the trees of knowledge of good and evil in the middle of the garden?
Answer: To test their obedience and faith. He gave them the right to make choices, they could either obey him or disobey him. They were given free will. They chose to partake of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. They were created to be free beings, able to make decisions and to choose between good and evil. In order for them to be truly free they had to make choices. However, their sin opened their eyes to evil. For the first time, they knew what evil was, they felt shame for being naked, and disobedience brought corruption.
God knew ahead of time what they would do, so why did God allow this to happen? He knew the effects it would have on the entire world that He created. He knew that this would lead to his only begotten sons’ death on a cross.
He did this so that through faith in Christ, we can be free from sin’s consequences and ultimately free from sin itself.
IN CONCLUSION
The Tree of Life is a life-giving tree created to enhance and perpetually sustain the physical life of humanity. This is the reason that God placed the cherubim with the flaming sword at the east of the Garden to keep and guard the way to the Tree of Life. Adam and Eve already experienced knowledge, so if they were to partake of the Tree of Life, they would live life eternally, being like God.
“OBEY GOD AND LEAVE THE CONSEQUENCES TO HIM!” – Dr. Charles Stanley
Resources: Holy Bible; Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary; Gotquestions.org.
Note: None of the Photos belong to Jeanie Martin Ministries.
Jeanie Martin Ministries 
Amen & Amen Again! This is a very familiar story…but it’s one that we should be reminded of every now and then. Thanks for sharing this! I am just grateful that God already had devised a plan to turn things around after Adam & Eve’s disobedience through Jesus Christ! Amen! 🙏🏾 Thanks for sharing. 👍🏾😃
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Hi Dee,
Thank you for taking the time to comment. I love that you feel it’s a much need refresher. I felt the same. It also reminder of how powerful sin is if we don’t overcome it. Sin causes doubt and confusion and in these days we don’t need to deal with anything that tempt us and separates us from God. Thanks for sharing and caring. Shalom Shalom!
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Thank you Jeanie. This was so good! I gained a lot of insightful inspiration from this reading. Even to the details of the “figleaf for coverings.” God certainly did provide all that we would have need of, right down to the very last detail of what we should eat, drink and how we should live.
The Tree of Life of Good and Evil was a key instrument. It was a construct that was designed and strategically placed as a marker for impending trust and obedience, but was apparently hidden in plain sight, because they were given the free will to make their own choices and decisions.
When Eve compromised her free will and exchanged it for a piece of fruit from that ol’ talking serpent her spiritual eyes had not been opened. Therefore she lacked wisdom, discernment and the Supernatural power of the Holy Spirit…which was not yet made available to them. She was tricked and beguiled into thinking that this sneaky snake would do for them something only God had the power to do.
Sin truly does does break fellowship with God!
The serpent sold Eve a dream and she bought it. Her eyes were opened but not as the serpent had promised. She was not like God and she learned that this lesson would cost her and everything and e everyone attached to her their destiny. Though Abba God strategically put in place rules to obey and follow, even with all that was done by Adam and Eve, God is still a righteous, just and a forgiving Father and He loves us so much that what the devil meant for evil He is yet turning it for our good. The eyes of His people are being opened to once again obey and surrender our will for His so that we might live the fruitful life that He always intended.
Such a tremendously profound statement that I have always said is that “We are one with Nature.” Since man was formed from the Earth and came forth from her fertile womb it’s no wonder why we were given every seed bearing herb and green leaf for food and nuturance of our bodies. The same substance that flows through nature flows through us! And is also used to heal us of any disease and sickness. But once the ground was cursed, so did we become the same. I looked up the benefits of fig leaf tea that Adam and Eve used as a covering. You should find it quite interesting!
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Hello Brenda,
Thank you for taking the time to read and respond with details expressed so vividly. I love that you shared the fact that we are one with the earth and came forth from her fertile womb and we were given every seed bearing herb and green leaf for food. These are definitely the things that make our bodies healthy and strong to overcome sickness and disease. There are great lessons in your comment. Thanks again! Shalom Shalom.
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Well done, Rev. Jeanie! I agree, it was essential the tree and the free will be a part of the Garden. That’s love – forever kind of love! No one can force love. It must be freely given. It required a lot of love from God to give His creation an opportunity to reject Him. And even greater love for Him to offer the creation an opportunity to find their way back to Him – at the price of the blood of His only Son!!!!
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Amen. We have Adam and Eve’s life as an example to us about obeying God instead of our flesh. And also our precious Jesus making a way for us to have fellowship and eternal life. Love this Rev. Jeanie 💕
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Hello Elsa. Thank you for your comment. You are expressing the whole truth. Also, God judges every heart by our love. If we love him, we will obey him without questions and without doubt. Jesus is the way, the only way to the Father. All glory to God! Amen.
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