good for food. See 1 John 2:16 , "Lust of the flesh". Compare Matthew 4:3 . pleasant to the eyes. See 1 John 2:16 , "Lust of the eyes". Compare Matthew 4:5 . make one wise. See 1 John 2:16 , "Boastful of life". Compare Matthew 4:8 . gave. See 1 Timothy 2:14 . with her. Therefore Adam present. Compare "Ye", verses: Genesis 3:4 , Genesis 3:5 . read more
"And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he did eat."Davis mistakenly believed that, "Sin, here, is not a breaking of a law."[14] However, there was the breaking of a law, God's law that they should not eat of that certain tree; thus, the action here lies clearly within the perimeter of the N.T.... read more
Genesis 3:6. Saw that the tree was good for food, &c.— It is not easy to determine how the woman could discover this, unless by supposing, as we have done in a note above, that she saw the serpent eat of it, and that without prejudice, nay, with great advantage to him, raised, as he seemed, by means of this good food, from the animal to the rational nature: well might she therefore conclude, that by the same means she should be raised from the rational to the divine nature. Thus pride, as... read more
6. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food—Her imagination and feelings were completely won; and the fall of Eve was soon followed by that of Adam. The history of every temptation, and of every sin, is the same; the outward object of attraction, the inward commotion of mind, the increase and triumph of passionate desire; ending in the degradation, slavery, and ruin of the soul (James 1:15; 1 John 2:16). read more
1. The Garden of Eden 2:4-3:24This story has seven scenes that a change in actors, situations or activities identifies. [Note: For a different narrative analysis, see Waltke, Genesis, pp. 80-81.] Moses constructed this section of Genesis in a chiastic (palistrophic, crossing) structure to focus attention on the central scene: the Fall. The preceding scenes lead up to the Fall, and the following scenes describe its consequences. [Note: Wenham, p. 50.] A Scene 1 (narrative): God is the sole... read more
Having succumbed to temptation Eve disobeyed God’s will. Whereas the serpent initiated the first two steps, he let Eve’s natural desires (her flesh) carry her into his trap.All three avenues of fleshly temptation are present in Genesis 3:6.1. She saw that the tree was "good for food" (the lust of the flesh: the desire to do something contrary to God’s will, i.e., eat the tasty fruit).2. It was a "delight to the eyes" (the lust of the eyes: the desire to have something apart from God’s will,... read more
The Fall 3:6-8In this section the relationship that God had established with man, which is the focus of the creation story, is broken. We can gain great insight into human nature from this story. Adam and Eve’s behavior as recorded here has been repeated by every one of their descendants."It is hardly too much to say that this chapter is the pivot of the Bible . . . . With the exception of the fact of Creation, we have here the record of the most important and far-reaching event in the world’s... read more
The Temptation and the Fall of ManThis chapter describes how ’by one man sin entered into the world and death by sin’ (Romans 5:12). Although there is here no ambitious attempt to search out the origin of evil in the universe, the biblical account of the Fall pierces the depth of the human heart, and brings out the genesis of sin in man. The description, as already said, is true to life and experience.There is no certain Babylonian counterpart to the biblical narrative of the Fall.1. The... read more
Paradise and the FallIn this famous passage we possess a wealth of moral and spiritual teaching regarding God and man. The intention of the writer is evidently to give an answer to the question: How did sin and misery find their way into the world? As is natural among Orientals he put his reply into narrative form; and though it is generally accepted that the details are to be interpreted symbolically rather than literally, yet they are in marvellous agreement with the real facts of human... read more
Get Bible verse every day in your inbox
Read on Mobile
Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Genesis 3:1-24
Human disobedience (3:1-24)Since human beings were made in God’s image, and since God was unlimited, the first human couple soon showed that they too wanted to be unlimited. They had to remember, however, that they were not God; they were only creatures made in the image of God. Just as the image of the moon on the water could not exist independently of the moon, so they could not exist independently of God. Their relationship with God contained an element of dependence, or limitation, and... read more