.
● Gen 3:17a . .To Adam He said: Because you did as your wife said, and ate of the tree about which I commanded you; "You shall not eat of it"
A portion of God's gripe with Adam was that he put a subordinate creature's wishes over and above the wishes of the creature's superior; thus forcing God to compete for Adam's loyalty; i.e. a rival. Unfortunately, when it comes to choosing between pleasing women or pleasing God; men all too often sell their souls to the women. (cf. Luke 14:26)
● Gen 3:17b . . Cursed be the ground because of you
That was unexpected; it isn't specifically listed in Gen 2:17 as a consequence for tasting the forbidden fruit.
Not only would Man himself be effected by a curse upon the ground, but every living thing that depends upon the ground for its survival would be effected too; from lowly nematodes and earthworms right on up to the top of the food chain. The whole animal world, and all the seed-bearing plant life too, would suffer collateral damages for Adam's mistake.
God somehow manipulated the soil's fertility so that it now no longer produces as well as it did in the beginning. The abundant swarms of life that God created in the beginning would, at that point, begin to thin out as the competition for available natural food stuffs would begin to intensify.
● Gen 3:17c . . By toil shall you eat of it all the days of your life
Adam was no stranger to work because God already had him tending the garden. But matters worsened with a new ingredient. The word for "toil" is from 'itstsabown (its-tsaw-bone') and means the very same thing as it did in Gen 3:16.
The element of 'itstsabown took some of the pleasure out of Adam's existence. Where before his daily routine was relatively care-free, now he'd begin to worry and fret over things that are especially pertinent to farmers e.g. weather, insects, and plant diseases; which, among farmers, are common causes of anxiety and feelings of insecurity.
● Gen 3:18a . . thorns and thistles shall it sprout for you.
God finished the entire cosmos in six days; and no more creating took place after that because He's been on sabbatical ever since day 7, so thorns and thistles already existed prior to the events of chapter 3.
But in the beginning, noxious plants doubtless weren't so dominant. Today they're a nuisance because if ground is left fallow, it will soon be covered with dock, mustard, dandelion, chaparral, wild flowers, brambles, reed canary grass, and stuff like that. Those kinds of plants may be okay for wildlife, but humanity needs something quite a bit more nutritious.
● Gen 3:18b . . and your food shall be the grasses of the field;
Apparently Adam was a fruitarian at first, and then his diet later expanded to include other kinds of vegetation. However, I don't think Man is supposed to graze on pasture like buffalo or deer and elk. Many of the grasses God intended for him to eat fall into the food group we call cereals; which are raised primarily for their grain; e.g. corn, wheat, oats, and rice; et al. In their natural form-- whole grain --cereals are a rich source of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, oils, and protein. After refinement grains are pretty much good for nothing but carbs.
● Gen 3:19a . . By the sweat of your brow shall you get bread to eat,
Adam was given a farm complete with orchards already in place and producing before he came along; all he had to do was take care of it. But now, if he wanted a farm, he was going to have to make one of his own, on his own; from scratch. Plus he'll be faced with stubborn soil that needs plowing, sowing, and weeding. Very few natural grains exist abundantly in nature. These days; if he wants them in any sizable amount, Man has to farm..
Those of us who live in 9 to 5 leisure-intensive America really don't appreciate just how laborious and time consuming the work is to grow your own food. Early humanity's days were hard. They're still hard in many developing countries. Adam had to get out there with a hoe and a plow to provide for his family. Today, only about 2% in the USA work the ground for a living.
● Gen 3:19b . . until you return to the ground-- for from it you were taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.
Did God have to smite Adam in order for him to stop living? No; it was only necessary to deny Adam access to the tree of life and let nature and hard work take their toll. In other words: since he was no longer immortal, it would be only a matter of time before Adam simply gave out and passed away from wear and tear and old age.
But what happened to Adam when his body returned to dust? Did he return to dust too? No; and that's because Adam wasn't entirely organic. His body came from the soil; but according to Gen 2:7, his consciousness came from God. The afterlife disposition of human consciousness is one of life's greatest mysteries. Heck, even the origin of human consciousness is mystery enough for some, let alone where it goes when people pass away.
● Gen 3:20 . .The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.
Though Eve became the mother of all the living she isn't the source of life for all the living: Adam is.
There's an important parallel to this in the New Testament where Christ is depicted as the source of eternal life for all the living in him; just as Adam is the source of human life for all the living in him. (Rom 5:12-21)
There is one "living" that Eve did not produce and that's her own self. She was constructed from a human tissue sample taken from Adam's body; ergo: Eve got her human life from Adam; hence any and all human life traceable to Eve is traceable to Adam.
NOTE: Most everybody on both sides of the aisle agrees that Gen 3:15's prediction refers to Christ; so we are on safe ground to believe that he obtained his human life from Adam too just the same as Eve and all the rest of us. (Luke 3:23-38)
The word for "mother" is from 'em (ame) which can mean a mother in an immediate family, or the matriarch of a blood line, or the mother (as the rootstock) of an entire nation.
The word for "Eve" is from Chavvah (khav-vaw') and means: life-giver.
Genesis says Adam named his wife Eve because she was the life-giver of all the living, not just a portion of the living. Some people have a problem with that. They just can't believe she's everybody's mother.
According to the Bible, humanity wasn't created in groups nor in swarms like the other nephesh. The human race was created in its entirety a singular, solo, male specimen. Every human being since, including the first woman, came from the constitutional elements of that one lone male.
"He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth." (Acts 17:26-28)
NOTE: The Phylogenetic Tree Of Life is an interesting scientific diagram that traces all forms of life back to a singular genetic heritage regardless of species. In other words; if you started with a raccoon, and followed it's branch down the tree far enough, you'd eventually intersect with another branch that you could then trace to mushrooms. The tree is sort of the equivalent of a Big Bang of living things.
The branch on that tree that interests me the most is the one that traces human life. According to the diagram; any two people you might select-- no matter what their age, race, or gender --if traced back far enough, can eventually be linked to a common ancestor; which of course is no surprise to Bible students.
_
● Gen 3:17a . .To Adam He said: Because you did as your wife said, and ate of the tree about which I commanded you; "You shall not eat of it"
A portion of God's gripe with Adam was that he put a subordinate creature's wishes over and above the wishes of the creature's superior; thus forcing God to compete for Adam's loyalty; i.e. a rival. Unfortunately, when it comes to choosing between pleasing women or pleasing God; men all too often sell their souls to the women. (cf. Luke 14:26)
● Gen 3:17b . . Cursed be the ground because of you
That was unexpected; it isn't specifically listed in Gen 2:17 as a consequence for tasting the forbidden fruit.
Not only would Man himself be effected by a curse upon the ground, but every living thing that depends upon the ground for its survival would be effected too; from lowly nematodes and earthworms right on up to the top of the food chain. The whole animal world, and all the seed-bearing plant life too, would suffer collateral damages for Adam's mistake.
God somehow manipulated the soil's fertility so that it now no longer produces as well as it did in the beginning. The abundant swarms of life that God created in the beginning would, at that point, begin to thin out as the competition for available natural food stuffs would begin to intensify.
● Gen 3:17c . . By toil shall you eat of it all the days of your life
Adam was no stranger to work because God already had him tending the garden. But matters worsened with a new ingredient. The word for "toil" is from 'itstsabown (its-tsaw-bone') and means the very same thing as it did in Gen 3:16.
The element of 'itstsabown took some of the pleasure out of Adam's existence. Where before his daily routine was relatively care-free, now he'd begin to worry and fret over things that are especially pertinent to farmers e.g. weather, insects, and plant diseases; which, among farmers, are common causes of anxiety and feelings of insecurity.
● Gen 3:18a . . thorns and thistles shall it sprout for you.
God finished the entire cosmos in six days; and no more creating took place after that because He's been on sabbatical ever since day 7, so thorns and thistles already existed prior to the events of chapter 3.
But in the beginning, noxious plants doubtless weren't so dominant. Today they're a nuisance because if ground is left fallow, it will soon be covered with dock, mustard, dandelion, chaparral, wild flowers, brambles, reed canary grass, and stuff like that. Those kinds of plants may be okay for wildlife, but humanity needs something quite a bit more nutritious.
● Gen 3:18b . . and your food shall be the grasses of the field;
Apparently Adam was a fruitarian at first, and then his diet later expanded to include other kinds of vegetation. However, I don't think Man is supposed to graze on pasture like buffalo or deer and elk. Many of the grasses God intended for him to eat fall into the food group we call cereals; which are raised primarily for their grain; e.g. corn, wheat, oats, and rice; et al. In their natural form-- whole grain --cereals are a rich source of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, oils, and protein. After refinement grains are pretty much good for nothing but carbs.
● Gen 3:19a . . By the sweat of your brow shall you get bread to eat,
Adam was given a farm complete with orchards already in place and producing before he came along; all he had to do was take care of it. But now, if he wanted a farm, he was going to have to make one of his own, on his own; from scratch. Plus he'll be faced with stubborn soil that needs plowing, sowing, and weeding. Very few natural grains exist abundantly in nature. These days; if he wants them in any sizable amount, Man has to farm..
Those of us who live in 9 to 5 leisure-intensive America really don't appreciate just how laborious and time consuming the work is to grow your own food. Early humanity's days were hard. They're still hard in many developing countries. Adam had to get out there with a hoe and a plow to provide for his family. Today, only about 2% in the USA work the ground for a living.
● Gen 3:19b . . until you return to the ground-- for from it you were taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.
Did God have to smite Adam in order for him to stop living? No; it was only necessary to deny Adam access to the tree of life and let nature and hard work take their toll. In other words: since he was no longer immortal, it would be only a matter of time before Adam simply gave out and passed away from wear and tear and old age.
But what happened to Adam when his body returned to dust? Did he return to dust too? No; and that's because Adam wasn't entirely organic. His body came from the soil; but according to Gen 2:7, his consciousness came from God. The afterlife disposition of human consciousness is one of life's greatest mysteries. Heck, even the origin of human consciousness is mystery enough for some, let alone where it goes when people pass away.
● Gen 3:20 . .The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.
Though Eve became the mother of all the living she isn't the source of life for all the living: Adam is.
There's an important parallel to this in the New Testament where Christ is depicted as the source of eternal life for all the living in him; just as Adam is the source of human life for all the living in him. (Rom 5:12-21)
There is one "living" that Eve did not produce and that's her own self. She was constructed from a human tissue sample taken from Adam's body; ergo: Eve got her human life from Adam; hence any and all human life traceable to Eve is traceable to Adam.
NOTE: Most everybody on both sides of the aisle agrees that Gen 3:15's prediction refers to Christ; so we are on safe ground to believe that he obtained his human life from Adam too just the same as Eve and all the rest of us. (Luke 3:23-38)
The word for "mother" is from 'em (ame) which can mean a mother in an immediate family, or the matriarch of a blood line, or the mother (as the rootstock) of an entire nation.
The word for "Eve" is from Chavvah (khav-vaw') and means: life-giver.
Genesis says Adam named his wife Eve because she was the life-giver of all the living, not just a portion of the living. Some people have a problem with that. They just can't believe she's everybody's mother.
According to the Bible, humanity wasn't created in groups nor in swarms like the other nephesh. The human race was created in its entirety a singular, solo, male specimen. Every human being since, including the first woman, came from the constitutional elements of that one lone male.
"He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth." (Acts 17:26-28)
NOTE: The Phylogenetic Tree Of Life is an interesting scientific diagram that traces all forms of life back to a singular genetic heritage regardless of species. In other words; if you started with a raccoon, and followed it's branch down the tree far enough, you'd eventually intersect with another branch that you could then trace to mushrooms. The tree is sort of the equivalent of a Big Bang of living things.
The branch on that tree that interests me the most is the one that traces human life. According to the diagram; any two people you might select-- no matter what their age, race, or gender --if traced back far enough, can eventually be linked to a common ancestor; which of course is no surprise to Bible students.
_
