Bible Commentaries

Now the serpent was more ^a subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he ^b said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

(a) As Satan can change himself into an angel of light, so did he abuse the wisdom of the serpent to deceive man.

(b) God allowed Satan to make the serpent his instrument and to speak through him.

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, ^c lest ye die.

(c) In doubting God's warnings she yielded to Satan.

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely ^d die:

(d) This is Satan's chiefest subtilty, to cause us not to fear God's warnings.

For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, ^e knowing good and evil.

(e) As though he said, God forbids you to eat of the fruit, only because he knows that if you eat of it, you will be like him.

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 ^f did eat.

(f) Not so much to please his wife, as moved by ambition at her persuasion.

And the eyes of them both were opened, and they ^g knew that they [were] naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

(g) They began to feel their misery, but they did not seek God for a remedy.

And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife ^h hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

(h) The sinful conscience flees God's presence.

And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I [was] ⁱ naked; and I hid myself.

(i) His hypocrisy appears in that he hid the cause of his nakedness, which was the transgression of God's commandment.

And the man said, The woman whom thou ^k gavest [to be] with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

(k) His wickedness and lack of true repentance appears in this that he blamed God because he had given him a wife.

And the LORD God said unto the woman, What [is] this [that] thou hast done? And the woman said, ^l The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

(l) Instead of confessing her sin, she increases it by accusing the serpent.

And the LORD God said unto the serpent, ^m 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 ⁿ dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:

(m) He asked the reason from Adam and his wife, because he would bring them to repentance, but he does not ask the serpent, because he would show him no mercy.

(n) As a vile and contemptible beast, (Isaiah 65:25).

And I will put enmity between ^o thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy ^p head, and thou shalt ^q bruise his heel.

(o) He chiefly means Satan, by whose action and deceit the serpent deceived the woman.

(p) That is, the power of sin and death.

(q) Satan shall sting Christ and his members, but not overcome them.

Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy ^r 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.

(r) The Lord comforts Adam by the promise of the blessed seed, and also punishes the body for the sin which the soul should have been punished for; that the spirit having conceived hope of forgiveness might live by faith. (1 Corinthians 14:34).

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: ^s cursed [is] the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat [of] it all the days of thy life;

(s) The transgression of God's commandment was the reason that both mankind and all other creatures were subject to the curse.

^t Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

(t) These are not the natural fruit of the earth, but proceed from the corruption of sin.

Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God ^u make coats of skins, and clothed them.

(u) Or, gave them knowledge to make themselves coats.

And the LORD God said, ^x Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and ^y take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

(x) By this derision by reproaches Adam's misery, into which he was fallen by ambition.

(y) Adam deprived of life, lost also the sign of it.