Genesis 3:15: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.”
All kinds of woods grew in Eden—Lovely trees that bloomed all year long and carried a beautiful scent as well as trees that produced delicious fruit. However, in the middle of the Garden stood a tree that was different from any other tree known to Paradise; God named it the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil” and warned Adam [Genesis 2:17]:
“You must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
Adam related this piece of information to his new bride as he showed her around in the Garden. He gave her the name “Eve” because she is the mother of the living. Adam still couldn’t believe his eyes when he watched her. “What a beautiful human being she is!” he thought to himself. She moved gracefully and her long silky hair glittered in the sunlight. Adam and Eve had the time of their lives. Rediscovering Paradise through Eve’s eyes made this place all the more special to Adam. He was her tour guide and introduced her to every single animal he had named and showed her his favorite spots where he liked to hang out. Eve took in all the scenic wonders and said to Adam: “This is truly incredible! God has built a wonderful world.”
Unfortunately peace, beauty and innocence would be taken from the primal couple on account of a lie.
There was a Serpent in the Garden Eve was intrigued with. They often talked and one day the conversation was steered to the tree in the middle of the Garden. “Ever thought about eating from that tree?” the Serpent whispered as they were both looking at it. “Nope! Never,” Eve retorted. “Come on!” the Serpent scoffed, “You can’t be serious!” – “I won’t even touch it,” Eve said. “God told us not to eat from this tree or we will die.” The Serpent walked to the forbidden tree, leaned against it and said, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’” Eve was confused. She had found the Serpent to be quite intelligent, but this was a rather stupid question. Something about this conversation began to unsettle her, but she kept going and made sure she corrected the Serpent: “No, that’s not what God said at all. We can eat from any fruit tree, just not from this one. Its fruit is deadly.” The Serpent remained standing under the forbidden tree so that Eve would take a closer look at it and said [Genesis 3:4]:
“You will not certainly die, for God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
Eve looked at the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and began to see things in a different light. Something within her shifted. Her childlike innocence was gone as doubts began to worm its way into her heart. Suddenly the fruit dangling from the forbidden tree looked extremely delicious. Following an impulse she took a bite. And so she fell for the Serpent’s lies. Later, Adam would follow her into the trap when he too ate from that tree. Thus the Serpent cunningly drove a wedge between God and mankind.
Every day towards sunset – in the golden hour – God would have a little walk with Adam and Eve. Together they talked things over. There was an openness and innocence in these conversations that was both precious and delightful. But now the first man and his wife were frozen in terror as they heard the sound of the Lord entering the Garden of Eden.
God was deeply saddened because He already knew what was going on. With pain in His voice He called out, “Adam! Eve! Where are you?” No answer. The primal couple hid behind the trees of the Garden. After a while, Adam stepped forward and said: “When I heard You coming I was afraid and hid behind the bushes because I am naked.” – “Who told you that you were naked?” said the Lord, “did you eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil? Didn’t I tell you to leave this tree alone?” In response to God’s questions, Adam and Eve spoke evasively. “This is not my fault,” Adam said and pointed to the woman. “She talked me into it.” Eve in turn blamed the Serpent. “This creature of Yours tricked me,” she said.
Even so, the Lord held each party accountable. “Going forward,” He said, “women shall be ruled by men and they shall bear children in pain. Additionally, people will have to work for a living until they return to the ground from which they were taken.” Adam and Eve stared at each other as they were trying to grasp the meaning of it all. They were terrified. God, who had been their best friend, suddenly seemed remote and very intimidating.
After a heavy silence the Lord continued: “The Serpent was feeding you lies – this is why from now on it must eat dust all the days of its life while crawling on its belly.
Turning to the Serpent the Lord God said: “As much as you have sown dissension between mankind and Me, I will put enmity between the woman’s offspring and yours.” And prophesying over Eve the Lord announced: “The woman’s Seed is destined to fatally strike the Serpent’s head.”
According to this mysterious prophecy, one of Eve’s descendants would give birth to the Messiah. His mission: to reverse the curse of the forbidden tree.