.
†. Gen 3:12 . .The man said: The woman You put at my side-- she
gave me of the tree, and I ate.
It appears that Adam didn't want to go down alone on this. And why specify
Eve as the woman You put at my side? Was there any other woman in the
area? No; at the time, Eve was it. Did Adam actually insinuate that God set
him up to take a fall? Like: "This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't
imposed that female upon me. Did I ask for a wife? NO! And what kind of
person is this woman you gave me anyway? She has managed to ruin my
life in very short order. Is this your idea of a suitable aid?
Adam's response is very typical. I hear it all the time from atheists in the
form of this question:
"If God created man with a weakness for temptation, then how can He
rightly condemn man for only doing what comes natural? In other words:
since God made us this way; then it's His own fault when we stray; not
ours."
Adam was already beginning to manifest a very common aspect of human
nature of which all of us are so familiar-- blaming others for the way we act.
I once worked in a boatyard with a very hot tempered man. Previous to his
employment with us, we had another with just about the same temperament
who quit right before the second one signed on. Some time later, the new
guy got irate about something or other and said: Now I know why that other
guy was difficult. You made him that way. (chuckle) Wasn't that a perfectly
natural Adam-reaction?
†. Gen 3:13 . . And Yhvh God said to the woman: What is this you
have done? The woman replied: The serpent duped me, and I ate.
Eve's response was essentially a non-answer. God didn't ask her to explain
why she took the fruit. No, He asked her to explain why, after tasting the
fruit, she took it home to her husband. Where's the answer to that? It's not
there because she doesn't want to talk about it. That there is our
introduction to the tactic of digression which Webster's defines as going
aside. Also to the tactic of evasion which Webster's defines as equivocation;
in other words: a dodge.
Boy, you have to admit, these two would fit right into our modern world;
and nobody had to teach them either-- blaming others for the way we act,
digression, equivocation, and evasion all came natural to the first couple and
apparently the effects are genetically transferable because their progeny all
display the very same behaviors to this good day.
†. Gen 3:14a . .Then the Lord God said to the serpent:
A marked departure in procedure is very evident here. God demanded the
man and the woman explain themselves; but didn't interrogate the Serpent
at all. On the page of scripture, the Serpent's hearing was skipped and
proceedings went straight to the sentencing stage just like Osama Bin
Laden's assassination. It's almost as if the Serpent had already discussed
with God how it planned to turn the humans against Him; like when it later
moved against Job.
One thing for sure about the Serpent; it is an utterly condemned individual.
Repentance is out of the question and definitely NOT an option. Its destiny
was determined long, long ago.
†. Mtt 25:41 . .Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand: Depart
from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the Devil and his
angels
The apostle John saw the Serpent's fate; like a video clip from the future.
†. Rev 20:10 . . And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of
fire and brimstone, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
It is only too obvious that the Serpent crossed over a line somewhere in the
past and now there is no going back. Man is redeemable; but the Serpent is
beyond hope. The scary part is: the Serpent is not only doomed, but busy
making every effort to take as many human beings down with it as possible
- like a disgruntled postal worker coming in one day and cutting loose on
everybody with a shotgun.
†. Gen 3:14b . . Because you did this, more cursed shall you be than
all cattle and all the wild beasts:
The Hebrew word for "curse" is from 'arar (aw-rar') which means: to
execrate. Webster's defines execrate as: to declare to be evil or detestable;
viz: denounce. Synonyms listed for execrate are: hate, abhor, abominate,
detest, and loathe.
But what really caught my attention is that God implied cattle and beasts
would be cursed too. Up ahead we'll see that even the soil would be cursed.
In other words: Adam's progeny would never live on the planet as it was
when their ancient grandparents were created. We today exist as cursed
beings on a cursed planet inhabited by cursed creatures. That's a terrible
thought.
The third chapter began with a statement that the Serpent was more
cunning than any of the beasts of the field: a creature that began with a
level of dignity way over and beyond the land animals; but fell to a position
of esteem far below them because of what it did to the Adams family. In
other words, the Serpent is now lower than the lowest thing on the face of
the earth,
†. Gen 3:14c . . On your belly shall you crawl and dirt shall you eat
all the days of your life.
Ancient Jews thought maybe the Serpent was originally equipped with feet.
T. upon thy belly thou shalt go, and thy feet shall be cut off, and thy skin
thou shalt cast away once in seven years; and the poison of death shall be in
thy mouth, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. (Targum
Jonathan)
It's probably best to interpret Gen 3:14c as poetic language because I have
never seen, nor yet heard of, a species of snake that eats soil for its food.
True, snakes crawl on their bellies; but they probably always did; because
that's the way they're designed. Some snakes live in trees and others live in
water. Those kinds don't spend a whole lot of time on the ground so not all
snakes are alike. I really don't think snakes crawl because they were
condemned to crawl. Nor was every species of snake condemned; just the
one snake in verse 14.
A person who crawls and eats dirt is typically someone held in very low
regard; in other words: a worm. And "all the days of your life" is saying that
God's low opinion of the Serpent will never be rescinded.
Serpents will eat dirt in the kingdom of God; possibly as a perpetual
reminder of Man's first great mistake.
†. Isa 65:25 . .The wolf and the lamb shall graze together, and the lion shall
eat straw like the ox, and the serpent's food shall be earth.
Today, snakes don't eat earth, they eat prey. How serpents will survive on
dirt is unclear, unless their digestive system will be changed to that of a
night crawler. Serpents in the Bible are never portrayed as beneficial to Man.
They are always of the poisonous variety and a serious threat to Man's
health and well being. That will all be different in the kingdom of God.
†. Isa 11:8-10 . . A babe shall play over a viper's hole, and an infant pass
his hand over an adder's den. In all of My sacred mount nothing evil or vile
shall be done; for the land shall be filled with devotion to the Lord as water
covers the sea. In that day, the stock of Jesse that has remained standing
shall become a standard to peoples-- nations shall seek his counsel and his
abode shall be honored.
Cont.
/
†. Gen 3:12 . .The man said: The woman You put at my side-- she
gave me of the tree, and I ate.
It appears that Adam didn't want to go down alone on this. And why specify
Eve as the woman You put at my side? Was there any other woman in the
area? No; at the time, Eve was it. Did Adam actually insinuate that God set
him up to take a fall? Like: "This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't
imposed that female upon me. Did I ask for a wife? NO! And what kind of
person is this woman you gave me anyway? She has managed to ruin my
life in very short order. Is this your idea of a suitable aid?
Adam's response is very typical. I hear it all the time from atheists in the
form of this question:
"If God created man with a weakness for temptation, then how can He
rightly condemn man for only doing what comes natural? In other words:
since God made us this way; then it's His own fault when we stray; not
ours."
Adam was already beginning to manifest a very common aspect of human
nature of which all of us are so familiar-- blaming others for the way we act.
I once worked in a boatyard with a very hot tempered man. Previous to his
employment with us, we had another with just about the same temperament
who quit right before the second one signed on. Some time later, the new
guy got irate about something or other and said: Now I know why that other
guy was difficult. You made him that way. (chuckle) Wasn't that a perfectly
natural Adam-reaction?
†. Gen 3:13 . . And Yhvh God said to the woman: What is this you
have done? The woman replied: The serpent duped me, and I ate.
Eve's response was essentially a non-answer. God didn't ask her to explain
why she took the fruit. No, He asked her to explain why, after tasting the
fruit, she took it home to her husband. Where's the answer to that? It's not
there because she doesn't want to talk about it. That there is our
introduction to the tactic of digression which Webster's defines as going
aside. Also to the tactic of evasion which Webster's defines as equivocation;
in other words: a dodge.
Boy, you have to admit, these two would fit right into our modern world;
and nobody had to teach them either-- blaming others for the way we act,
digression, equivocation, and evasion all came natural to the first couple and
apparently the effects are genetically transferable because their progeny all
display the very same behaviors to this good day.
†. Gen 3:14a . .Then the Lord God said to the serpent:
A marked departure in procedure is very evident here. God demanded the
man and the woman explain themselves; but didn't interrogate the Serpent
at all. On the page of scripture, the Serpent's hearing was skipped and
proceedings went straight to the sentencing stage just like Osama Bin
Laden's assassination. It's almost as if the Serpent had already discussed
with God how it planned to turn the humans against Him; like when it later
moved against Job.
One thing for sure about the Serpent; it is an utterly condemned individual.
Repentance is out of the question and definitely NOT an option. Its destiny
was determined long, long ago.
†. Mtt 25:41 . .Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand: Depart
from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the Devil and his
angels
The apostle John saw the Serpent's fate; like a video clip from the future.
†. Rev 20:10 . . And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of
fire and brimstone, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
It is only too obvious that the Serpent crossed over a line somewhere in the
past and now there is no going back. Man is redeemable; but the Serpent is
beyond hope. The scary part is: the Serpent is not only doomed, but busy
making every effort to take as many human beings down with it as possible
- like a disgruntled postal worker coming in one day and cutting loose on
everybody with a shotgun.
†. Gen 3:14b . . Because you did this, more cursed shall you be than
all cattle and all the wild beasts:
The Hebrew word for "curse" is from 'arar (aw-rar') which means: to
execrate. Webster's defines execrate as: to declare to be evil or detestable;
viz: denounce. Synonyms listed for execrate are: hate, abhor, abominate,
detest, and loathe.
But what really caught my attention is that God implied cattle and beasts
would be cursed too. Up ahead we'll see that even the soil would be cursed.
In other words: Adam's progeny would never live on the planet as it was
when their ancient grandparents were created. We today exist as cursed
beings on a cursed planet inhabited by cursed creatures. That's a terrible
thought.
The third chapter began with a statement that the Serpent was more
cunning than any of the beasts of the field: a creature that began with a
level of dignity way over and beyond the land animals; but fell to a position
of esteem far below them because of what it did to the Adams family. In
other words, the Serpent is now lower than the lowest thing on the face of
the earth,
†. Gen 3:14c . . On your belly shall you crawl and dirt shall you eat
all the days of your life.
Ancient Jews thought maybe the Serpent was originally equipped with feet.
T. upon thy belly thou shalt go, and thy feet shall be cut off, and thy skin
thou shalt cast away once in seven years; and the poison of death shall be in
thy mouth, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. (Targum
Jonathan)
It's probably best to interpret Gen 3:14c as poetic language because I have
never seen, nor yet heard of, a species of snake that eats soil for its food.
True, snakes crawl on their bellies; but they probably always did; because
that's the way they're designed. Some snakes live in trees and others live in
water. Those kinds don't spend a whole lot of time on the ground so not all
snakes are alike. I really don't think snakes crawl because they were
condemned to crawl. Nor was every species of snake condemned; just the
one snake in verse 14.
A person who crawls and eats dirt is typically someone held in very low
regard; in other words: a worm. And "all the days of your life" is saying that
God's low opinion of the Serpent will never be rescinded.
Serpents will eat dirt in the kingdom of God; possibly as a perpetual
reminder of Man's first great mistake.
†. Isa 65:25 . .The wolf and the lamb shall graze together, and the lion shall
eat straw like the ox, and the serpent's food shall be earth.
Today, snakes don't eat earth, they eat prey. How serpents will survive on
dirt is unclear, unless their digestive system will be changed to that of a
night crawler. Serpents in the Bible are never portrayed as beneficial to Man.
They are always of the poisonous variety and a serious threat to Man's
health and well being. That will all be different in the kingdom of God.
†. Isa 11:8-10 . . A babe shall play over a viper's hole, and an infant pass
his hand over an adder's den. In all of My sacred mount nothing evil or vile
shall be done; for the land shall be filled with devotion to the Lord as water
covers the sea. In that day, the stock of Jesse that has remained standing
shall become a standard to peoples-- nations shall seek his counsel and his
abode shall be honored.
Cont.
/
