Daily Genesis

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†. Gen 3:6d . . she took of its fruit and ate.

You can just see Eve's eyes brighten from the sugar rush as she realized the Serpent was right after all: she didn't die. So the woman brought home a sample and convinced her husband to try it too.

†. Gen 3:6e . . She also gave some to her husband, and he ate.

Did Adam die the instant he ate the fruit as predicted in Gen 2:17? No. He continued to live another 800 years after the birth of his son Seth— a son born after Adam and his wife Eve were evicted from the garden.

The Hebrew word for day in Gen 2:17 is yowm (yome) which is an ambiguous word with more than one application. It can indicate any amount of time ranging from a single 24-hour civil day to an entire era of many thousands of years. Bible students have to be very careful not to narrow yowm to a strict definition and thus force it to mean the same thing every time regardless of the context.

The "day" spoken of in Gen 2:17 is an era of death that began with Adam's transgression and has continued for many years on down through the centuries. Did Adam finally die? Yes; he did; and so will you, and anyone else reading this post will die too because death's day is not over yet.

†. 1Cor 15:22 . . In Adam all die

†. Heb 9:26 . . It is appointed unto men to die once

†. 1Cor 15:26 . .The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

Common Question: Had Adam not disobeyed; do you think he would still be alive today?

Maybe and maybe not. Adam could've easily lost his life in any number of ways in the garden. He was an air-breathing, flesh and blood creature whose life was in its blood just like every other air-breathing creature. Adam wasn't a superman; he was just an ordinary man, and as Arnold Schwarzenegger once said in the movie Predator: "If it bleeds; we can kill it"

The key to Adam's survival was the tree of life in the midst of the garden. According to Rev 22:2, the foliage of the tree is therapeutic. I take it from Genesis and Revelation, that as long as Adam had access to that tree, he would die from neither old age nor from disease. In point of fact; all God had to do to insure Adam's death (and ours too) was block access to the tree and let nature take its course.

I take a medication called levoxyl every day because my thyroid went south on me about thirteen years ago. As long as I take the medication each day, I will continue to live. However, that's way different than immortality. An immortal body doesn't need medication to stay alive, nor does it require the therapeutic leaves of a special tree. An immortal body cannot be terminated in any way at all because an immortal body is indestructible.

Did Eve first deftly dice the fruit and camouflage it in a tasty parfait so her husband wouldn't know what he was eating? No. Adam knew exactly what he was doing. He went into it with both eyes wide open.

†. 1Tim 2:14a . . And Adam was not the one deceived;

It's well known among sales managers that consumers are more likely to buy from a friend or a relative, especially from a spouse, than from a stranger. No doubt Eve ate some of the fruit right then and there in front of her husband to demonstrate that it was tasty, nourishing, and perfectly safe— as anyone could plainly see.

†. Gen 3:7a . .Then the eyes of both of them were opened

The woman ate the fruit first; but her eyes weren't opened until sometime later after her husband ate his own share. (Thus was spawned the saying: It takes two to tango.)

Although Eve was tricked, she wasn't innocent; she was just as guilty as her husband. The Bible doesn't accept ignorance as an excuse.

†. 1Tim 2:14b . . the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression.

You have to wonder why the husband went along with his wife and did something he knew full well to be breaking God's commandment and putting himself at risk of death.

Genesis doesn't reveal why Adam chose to eat the fruit. I suppose he had his reasons, but apparently God didn't think they were sufficient to mitigate the man's error. But when your wife is sitting right beside you happily munching away on something that you were led to believe was deadly poisonous, and she's still healthy, lucid, and exhibiting no ill side effects; how are you supposed to react to that? I think Adam was cautious at first, and kept a wary eye on Eve for some time waiting to see if she would get sick; and when she didn't, he surely had to wonder if maybe God was wrong. (The Serpent was pretty smart. It somehow knew that Eve was immune to the fruit by herself, and that nothing would happen to either of them until Adam ate his share.)

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:7b . . and they perceived that they were naked;

The word for perceived is from yada` (yaw-dah') which means: to know or ascertain by seeing. The corresponding word in the New Testament is ginosko (ghin-oce'-ko).

Those two words imply much more than the kind of knowledge you get from a book or a lecture— which are merely informational kinds of knowledge. Perceptual knowledge is an intuitive kind of knowledge; things that you can sense without being told about them or having them explained to you.

There is more to the statement "they perceived that they were naked" than meets the eye. For them to realize they were naked without ever even once being instructed about nudity, can only mean one thing: they became self conscious for the very first time. Websters' defines self conscious as: uncomfortably aware of one's self as the object of the observation of others.

†. Gen 3:7c . . and they sewed together fig leaves and made themselves loincloths.

I seriously doubt they had a needle and thread. The word for sew is taphar (taw-far') which just simply means to fabricate clothing. If taphar were used to strictly mean needle and thread; then it would appear that Job stitched fabric directly to his own skin (Job 16:15).

Why didn't they cover their whole bodies? Whey just their pelvic regions? Obviously, Adam and his wife were experiencing a guilt complex about their own sexuality; where before, they didn't feel naughty about their sexuality at all.

We might call the inclination to wear clothing a mark of true civilization; but that inclination is actually the result of early man's sin and rebellion against God. I'm not suggesting people go back to nudity; only pointing out why civilized people regard public nudity as indecent exposure practiced by perverts.

Some say there were no agents in the fruit to cause the changes in human nature that occurred in the Adams. But I'm not so sure. It's well known what happens to kids when they move into adolescence. Hormonal chemicals kick in, and their childish innocence vanishes; right out the window. They lose interest in kid's toys and begin to take an interest in things more appropriate for their age; including a very noticeable interest in themselves, and in the opposite sex; and most especially in what others think about them. The sweet little kids that so tugged at our heart strings disappear forever as they rapidly morph into totally different (and sometimes very unpleasant) people.

Those adolescent changes aren't miraculous changes— they're totally natural, hormonally induced, organic changes. So if kids today undergo a natural kind of change because of the chemicals generated by the glands in their own bodies, then there is good reason to believe that fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil actually did contain something to cause Adam and his wife to morph and develop a guilt complex.

At any rate, the pending dialogue, between God and Man in the next few verses, implies that God himself did nothing at all to make those two people change. On the page of Scripture, their new personalities are directly related to the fruit and to nothing else. So instead of tweaking our imaginations to construct a spiritual explanation, I think it would be better to stick with the biological one and let it go at that.

The fruit not only messed up their personalities, but it also messed up their DNA in such a way that now everybody who descends from the Adams, at some point in their life, exhibits a guilt complex over sex and the human body. Since sexual self consciousness is universal, it demonstrates that everybody shares the consequence of that one sin. And since everybody shares the consequence, it's logical everybody must also share in the act— and no amount of baptism nor religious rites and rituals have been proven effective to remove either the consequence or the complicity.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:8a . .They heard the sound of Yhvh God moving about in the garden at the breezy time of day;

Targum authors saw that a little differently. They interpreted that verse to mean: And they heard the voice of the word of the Lord God. (Targum Jonathan)

In their estimation, it was not Yhvh God himself in person moving about in the garden— it was His word, which, according to ancient Jewish thought, can appear as a visible being; and is The True God's way of interacting with Man without actually being here Himself on the earth in person.

What time of day is the breezy time? Well, around 6:00 pm yesterday here in the Portland Oregon area there was a pleasant breeze moving through my neighborhood. Whether or not that was the time of day when the Word of Yhvh God strolled through the garden is impossible to know for certain.

The garden existed in a pre-Flood era; prior to Man's obtaining food by the sweat of his brow. Whether the Eden breeze was for cooling purposes is impossible to know; but I would guess it was for moving the mists around to irrigate the vegetation, and may have been a routine event in the garden's daily schedule; which the Adams appropriated for a sort of pre-British tea time.

The sound they heard must have been a very distinctive one. Maybe the Word of Yhvh God was whistling a pleasant melody or maybe even some familiar bird calls as he strolled through the garden enjoying its beauty. After all, it was His garden; since it was God who created the earth— Adam didn't own it outright. Man's status is actually that of a share-cropper.

†. John 1:1-3 . . In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

I think the Word of Yhvh God conducted school for the Adams every day at just about this time; so His arrival was likely routine and expected. It was an opportunity for the Adams to share their experiences and ask questions about things in nature that they didn't fully understand. And maybe they even talked about life on other planets, and how to make hot cocoa and pop corn.

Can you imagine the incredible advantage of being in a classroom with the Word of Yhvh God? He's the undisputed expert on everything. You would never need a second opinion, nor go away wondering if your speaker really knew what He was talking about.

†. John 1:4 . . In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

†. John 1:9 . .There was the true light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.

I used to wonder how the light of God could possibly enlighten every man when not every man is instructed in the Bible; but I was coming at this from the wrong angle.

Webster's defines existentialism as: a chiefly 20th century philosophical movement embracing diverse doctrines but centering on analysis of individual existence in an unfathomable universe and the plight of the individual who must assume ultimate responsibility for his acts of free will without any certain knowledge of what is right or wrong or good or bad

I seriously doubt that the animal kingdom loses any sleep pondering the concepts of right and wrong and the possibility of a hereafter. But existentialism, in one form or another, is a commonality among human beings regardless of race or gender. When the animal kingdom looks at the world of nature around itself, all it sees is habitat. But Man doesn't just roam the earth like a two-footed beast; no, Man ponders the earth; not as habitat, but as a wonder— as an object of study —and it's origin baffles him.

Without even being aware of it, the light of God is at work in every man's mind, and it doesn't matter whether the individual man is a Neanderthal, a modern sophisticate, or a seminary graduate: all men are eventually driven by that Light to ponder the purpose of their existence; whereas the animal kingdom merely survives without giving the slightest thought to its purpose. Without the light of God at work in men's minds, their consciousness would be little more elevated than that of human wildlife.

†. Ecc 3:18 . . Then I realized that God allows people to continue in their sinful ways so He can prove them. That way, they can see for themselves that they are no better than beasts.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:8b . . and the man and his wife hid from Yhvh God among the trees of the garden.

Well, that's understandable. They usually met with God in the buff but now, the Adams were no longer comfortable with frontal nudity and the Word of the Lord God would surely notice their unease.

You know; what they did was so human. When people call on the phone, or come to the door, it isn't unusual for their friends to pretend they're not home so they don't have to talk to them. And even out shopping or somewhere in public, people are prone to look down, or the other way and pretend they don't see their friends. It's odd to think humans started that behavior pattern so far back in the history of Man.

†. Gen 3:9a . .Yhvh God called out to the man

The word for man in that verse is from 'adam (aw-dawm') which just means a human being; as a specie. That word can apply to either a man or a woman; but in this case it was the male.

Why did God call out to the male first? Well, it would appear that the husband is supposed to be God's first point of contact in the family and there exists an intrinsic condition of headship in marriage. In the grand family of Man, the male was created first; and he therefore inherited some responsibilities that go along with primogeniture— like for instance: he's the default priest in the home; and also the adult held most accountable for the family unit's welfare.

†. 1Cor 11:3-9 . . Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head— it is just as though her head were shaved.

. . If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head. A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.

†. 1Tim 3:1-5 . . Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task. Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?)

Adam didn't do so good as the spiritual leader in his own home; and their son Abel will become the very first recorded holy man in the Bible (Luke 11:50-51).

†. Gen 3:9b . . and said to him: Where are you?

Isn't God supposed to be omniscient? Then why ask where the man was? Although God is on a much higher intellectual plain than Man, He doesn't seem to mind condescending to Man's level. That is very helpful because how would you know how to act around God unless He was willing to accommodate the inherent limitations of the 3 pound lump of flabby organic tissue in your head sufficing for Man's mortal little mind. But the thing to notice in this episode, is that God took the initiative and sought Man, not the other way around.

†. Rom 3:10-12 . . As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.

†. Gen 3:10 . . He replied: I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.

This is the very first time on record that a human being was afraid of anything, much less the presence of God. Man's fear of the Bible's God is directly related to a guilty conscience.

But exactly of what was Adam afraid? Because he disobeyed and ate the fruit? No, oddly enough, he wasn't. Adam simply didn't want God to see him in the nude. His newly awakened conscious felt that nudity was not only inappropriate; but also punishable even though God has never even one time, in the entire Bible, banned nudity.

Two possible "references" to a ban on nudity are Ex 20:26 and Ex 28:42. However, the restrictions in those passages pertain specifically to Levitical priests, and only during the performance of their duties; not to rank and file pew warmers. I have yet to either find, or be shown, a single passage in either the Old Testament or the New that specifically forbids nudity per se. The human conscience only thinks it's forbidden because of its intrinsic guilt complex over sex and the human body; which is a direct result of eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Events preceding Jesus' return are going to terrify a good many of the world's wicked people in the future.

†. Rev 6:12-17 . . I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.

. .Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, saying: Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?

Man has a natural fear of the Bible's God because he instinctively feels that his behavior deserves retribution. The Adams had been very close friends with the Word of the Lord God up to this point; yet practically overnight they began avoiding personal contact with their maker.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:11 . .Then He asked: Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat of the tree from which I had forbidden you to eat?

The first part of that question could be paraphrased as: Who said anything about nudity?

Are the creatures in the animal world naked? No, they aren't. They're dressed exactly as God created them. And in the beginning; Man was dressed exactly as God created him too. So when Man was created; he wasn't naked even though from our point of view he was. So then, nudity is natural and wearing clothing is unnatural. But if the Adams were nude, they why were they not nude? Because there is no such a thing as nudity in nature. Clothing is an artificial skin; it's not a natural skin. If God intended Man to wear artificial skin, he would have made clothing for him right at the gun.

You see, "nudity" is a man-made point of view. That point of view didn't come from God. No; the Adams coined it for themselves to describe their natural condition. Therefore, nudity isn't intrinsically sinful. What's intrinsically sinful is the felt shame of nudity (c.f. Rev 3:18, Rev 16:15). In conclusion: a mind that perceives nudity as naughty, is a fallen mind because that kind of a mind is the direct result of the Adams eating the forbidden fruit.

So why didn't Adam just meet God in the buff that day and try to act as if nothing was amiss? Because he just couldn't do it. The Adams now felt naughty in the buff and they didn't want God to think they were exposing themselves like a couple of sick perverts.

Like a kid playing with his dad's gun while he's at work and puts a bullet through the bedroom wall; they had done something taboo and there was just no way to cover it up. But instead of coming clean about it, they're going to make excuses.

†. 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? 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 the perfect companion?"

Instead of gratitude to God for His goodness and generosity in providing him a much needed companion, Adam actually blamed God's blessing for his troubles! Boy does that ever sound familiar. Every day, all the time, people blame God for the bad luck in their lives instead of putting the blame right squarely where it really belongs— upon themselves, and upon the foibles of the human race.

Adam is 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 Adamic reaction?

†. Prv 17:3 . .The refining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold: but Yhvh trieth the hearts.

It's easy to be sweet, kind, agreeable, and courteous during a fair wind and a fast passage; but not so easy when something brings on a storm of adversity. That's when the dross in your personality will come to the surface. You have a choice: Do I skim off the dross so that I become a better person, or do I leave the dross and blame the adversity for "making" me that way?

I often hear it said about someone that they "bring out the worst in people". Well, what's that worst doing inside people in the first place? No matter how much a furnace attempts to refine pure silver and/or pure gold, it will fail because there are no impurities in pure metals. So then, if it's possible to bring out the worst in people, it's only because they are unrefined to begin with.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. 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.

That's true, but not the whole truth. She left out her personal motivations.

Actually, God didn't ask the woman to answer for eating the fruit. No, He asked her to explain why she gave the fruit to her husband. Where's the answer to that? It's not there because she doesn't want to talk about it. I think Eve was very chagrined about the whole thing. The poor kid fell for the Serpent's scam; hook, line, and sinker. She must have felt like a total fool.

But suppose Eve had failed to persuade her husband to eat a share of the fruit. What then? You know, it's really hard to tell. The male and the female together are considered to be Man (Gen 5:2). If neither developed a guilt complex about sex and the human body until after the male ate his share, then maybe neither would have undergone Death until after both ate some. The Bible does, after all, lay the blame for Man's debilitation upon the male's shoulders rather than the female's (Rom 5:12-21).

There is more to Death than meets the eye. It's not stated in Genesis precisely what that might be. But it's certain that the fruit contained something in it that was fatal not so much to Man's body, but to Man's inner self, his psyche. Man's body dies only because he no longer has access to the tree of life to keep himself alive. But the tree of good and bad changed human nature in a very marked way; and Man became a sinful being.

God told Adam he would die the very day he ate the fruit (Gen 2:16-17). However, death, as we normally understand it, didn't occur for Adam until hundreds of years later (Gen 5:5). So there is another kind of Death in Man that isn't so obvious nor is it easily understood. Immediate symptoms of Adam's inner demise were: 1) he became a sensual being with a guilt complex about sex and the human body, 2) he developed a humanistic sense of right and wrong, 3) he became uneasy in his creator's presence, and 4) he started blaming others for his own faults.

Jesus testified that a time for resurrection is not only coming later on, but that a time for it is right now too.

†. John 5:25 . . I tell you the truth, a time is coming, and has now come, when the Dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.

So it is possible for people to be dead in two different aspects— physical and mental: body and soul. If that's true, then Jesus' testimony didn't refer only to the corpses in graves, but also to people walking around among us who haven't passed on yet. Yes; they are dead even while they live.

When people hear the Gospel and trust it's message, at that very moment, by a miracle of God, they move from Death to Life.

†. John 5:24 . . I assure you, those who heed my message, and trust the God who sent me, have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from Death into Life.

That passage from Death to Life is an invisible resurrection that precedes the future resurrection of the body.

†. John 3:6-8 . . Flesh gives birth to flesh, but The Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying: You must be born again. The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of The Spirit.

In his letter to the believers at Ephesus, Paul reminded them of their past; and the condition they were in before accepting the Gospel. They were dead.

†. Eph 2:1-3 . . As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

Paul included himself as one of the dead— an object of wrath —by using the words "All of us." So then, human nature itself is in a condition of Death; and has been ever since the forbidden fruit incident.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:14a . .Then Yhvh God said to the serpent,

The Bible doesn't specifically report that all three perpetrators appeared before God together; but they very well may have because as soon as God finishes interrogating the humans, He will pass sentence upon all three without a pause. According to a Targum, ancient Jews believed that's exactly how it went down.

T~ And the Lord God brought the three unto judgment; and He said to the serpent, etc etc etc. (Targum Jonathan)

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 trial stage was bypassed and proceedings went straight to the sentencing stage. 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.

†. Job 1:6-12 . . One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. Yhvh said to Satan: Where have you come from? Satan answered the Lord: From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it. Then Yhvh said to Satan: Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.

. . Does Job fear God for nothing? Satan replied. Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face. Yhvh said to Satan: Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger. Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

A similar dialogue took place later in Job 2:1-6 when Satan was given liberty to ruin Job's health.

Whey ever would a righteous, loving God give a powerful dark being that kind of permission and stand by and do nothing while it caused the murder and kidnapping of Job's servants and the theft of his livestock? How could God permit it to kill Job's children by a tornado which was subsequently blamed as an act of God; and then later to ruin Job's health?

Why did God stand by and do nothing while the Serpent beguiled Eve? Could it be possible the Serpent had prior approval to do it? That's disturbing, isn't it? To think that in the unseen spirit world, Man is a mere pawn between God and His ancient opponent; the Serpent. At any moment, any one of us could be handed over to the dark world's whims just like Eve was and just like Job was: to have our lives, our families, our health; and our fortunes and our futures ruined in no time at all. When those times come— and there is no guarantee they won't —it's not a time to cave in to pressure and forsake God. It's a time to follow Job's example and cling to God with an even more tenacious trust than ever.

†. Job 1:20-22 . . At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. Yhvh gave and Yhvh has taken away; may the name of Yhvh be praised. In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

†. Job 2:9-10 . . His wife said to him: Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die! He replied: You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble? In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

†. Hab 3:17-18 . .Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in Yhvh, I will be joyful in God my rescuer.

†. Rom 8:35-39 . .Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It might seem curious that God allowed the Serpent to tempt the first couple, and drag them and their posterity down to a ruin that God surely foreknew in advance would happen. But it was right; and it couldn't be helped because Man is made in God's image. God has the volition to choose between good and evil and therefore Man has to be free to exercise those options too. People can't always assume God will be there to shield them from temptation. As creatures made in God's image; we have got to take some responsibility for ourselves, and stand up against temptation.

†. 1Cor 10:12-13 . .Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.

†. 1Pet 1:5-7 . .Who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith— of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire— may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

†. Jas 1:2-4 . . Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

†. Jas 1:12-15 . . Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

One thing for sure about the Serpent; it is an utterly condemned individual. Repentance is out of the question and definitely NOT an option. 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 his co-workers with a shotgun.

The Serpent's strategy is actually quite straightforward. If it cannot defeat God (a foregone conclusion), then it will make every effort to at least frustrate His purposes. It is truly a bitter vendetta; and with frail little Man caught right in the middle of it.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:14b . . Because you did this, more cursed shall you be than all cattle and all the wild beasts:

Why measure the Serpent's curse as "more than" the cattle and the beasts? Does this indicate that the animal world was cursed when Man fell? Yes, apparently it does.

†. Rom 8:19-21 . . For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

The New Testament Greek word for corruption is phthora (fthor-ah'); which means decay, and everything in the cosmos is subject to it; even stalwart fixtures like the Alps: they too are steadily crumbling and dissolving into piles of rubble as decay takes its toll on the mighty solid rocks pushed up to heights like the Eiger (13,025 ft) the Matterhorn (14,692 ft) and Mont Blanc (15,781 ft). Yes, rocks do decay: they all decay; especially iron-bearing rocks. As the iron rusts out, the rocks steadily turn into frangible material and fall apart.

According to a documentary I saw on the History Channel, the Alps in the past were once quite a bit higher than they are now— in some places miles higher —and it's a geological certainty that it's only a matter of time before the forces of nature reduce the Alps to the elevation of rolling hills like the Appalachians in the southern USA.

The Greek word for futility is mataiotes (mat-ah-yot'-ace) which means: inutility. Webster's defines inutility as: useless, worthless, and good for nothing. Isn't that something? When God finished creating on the sixth day, He evaluated His product and graded it "very good" (Gen 1:31). But no longer. Now, the current cosmos has no permanent value; and is slated to be completely destroyed in order to make way for a totally new one (Isa 34:1-4, Isa 51:6, Isa 65:17, Rev 21:1) where we'll be right back to a Gen 1:1 all over again.

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. It seems God was expressing His deepest contempt for the Serpent and saying it was lower than an animal for what it did.

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 the lowest thing on the face of the earth.

The Serpent was, at one time a very glorious, high ranking, angel; before it went bad.

†. Ezek 28:11-15 . .The word of Yhvh came to me: O mortal, intone a dirge over the king of Tyre and say to him: Thus said Yhvh God: you were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and flawless in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your adornment: carnelian, chrysolite, and amethyst; beryl, lapis lazuli, and jasper; sapphire, turquoise, and emerald; and gold beautifully wrought for you, mined for you, prepared the day you were created. I created you as a cherub with outstretched shielding wings; and you resided on God’s holy mountain; you walked among stones of fire. You were blameless in your ways, from the day you were created until wrongdoing was found in you.

Ezekiel's dirge against Tyre, which continues for five more verses, was doubtless spoken to its human leadership, but the wording is a double entendre and obviously targets an unseen being of whom it is said: "You were in Eden . . I created you as a cherub with outstretched wings."

Cherubs are usually portrayed in religious art as winged children; but it's not likely Ezekiel's cherub was one of those but rather a high ranking order of angel privileged to actually be in the presence of The True God. According to Webster's, the only other type of angel that outranks cherubs are the seraphim.

The ark of Yhvh, once situated in the most holy place of the tabernacle, had golden cherubs whose wings stretched far enough towards each other to touch and make an unbroken protective canopy over the ark's lid. The ark was representative of God's throne, and of the presence of Israel's God; and according to Ex 25:22, that's where He would meet with them.

According to Heb 8:5, the holy items in the tabernacle were representative of actualities in Heaven. So the phrase; "I created you as a cherub with outstretched shielding wings" refers to an angel of very high responsibility and privilege. It was from that honored position that the Serpent fell.

Although the Serpent is now a cursed creature, it would be wrong for Man to ill treat it. The Serpent still ranks higher than humans (who themselves are cursed as well) and deserves all the respect due to a divine being. Jude pointed out that it is not a good thing for human beings to speak evil of any angel; neither the good ones nor the bad ones.

†. Jude 1:4-10 . . For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you . . these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings. But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the Devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do understand by instinct, like unreasoning animals— these are the very things that destroy them.

According to Jude, Christians who abuse and insult the Serpent rank little more than human wildlife. It's true the Serpent certainly deserves shame and contempt; as did President Clinton over his scandal with Monica Lewinski. But Mr.Clinton was still President and has a legitimate right to all the honor and respect the office deserves; whether he himself merits it or not.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:14c . . On your belly shall you crawl and dirt shall you eat all the days of your life.

According to ancient Jewish teaching, 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)

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.

The expression "crawl and eat dirt" has an application other than the literal. A person who crawls and eats dirt is typically someone held in very low regard— a worm. And "all the days of your life" is saying that God's low opinion of the Serpent will never be upgraded.

Serpents will eat dirt in Messiah's future kingdom; 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 scripture 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 Messiah's kingdom.

†. 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.

†. Gen 3:15a . . I will put enmity between you and the woman,

The word for enmity is from 'eybah (ay-baw') and means: hostility. Webster's defines hostility as animosity, antagonism, antipathy, conflict, and rancor.

You can rest assured Eve never trusted the Serpent again after that day. The enmity was for Eve's own good. If she got all sappy and forgave the Serpent, and kissed and made up, it just might pull another stunt on her; as ruinous as the first. The Serpent was, after all, the father of all con men; and more cunning than any beast of the field. Animals have a way of charming us with their seeming cuteness and innocence.

Eve's friend was a beautiful pixie, an angel: and who is immune to the magic of angels? Angels are so endearing, so disarming, even more so than guinea pigs, ponies, and bunnies, and they have a way with us: in our art, in our poems, and in our greeting cards. You can bet the Serpent would always seek to take full advantage of Eve from that angle.

†. Gen 3:15b . . And between your offspring and her offspring.

Only a fool would ever willingly follow the Serpent now, after seeing what it's capable of. On the whole, the human race doesn't trust the Devil, and would cheerfully crucify the thing if they could get their hands on it. No wonder it never appears in public anymore.

The word for offspring is from zera` (zeh'-rah) and means: seed; figuratively, fruit, plant, sowing-time, and posterity. Zera` is one of those words that can be either singular or plural, depending upon the context. Other words like that are deer, sheep, Man, and head (as in head of livestock). Every kid in a family can be called the parents' zera` whether there's eight kids or a lone child.

†. Gen 3:15c . . He will pound your head, and you will bite his heel.

The word for pound is the very same word for bite. Both are from shuwph (shoof) and means: to gape, i.e. snap at; figuratively, to overwhelm.

Gen 3:15c has a long-range application in Christian theology; ultimately applying to Christ. In the garden, the Serpent won a skirmish and gained the humans' cooperation in its conflict with the Creator. But its victory was only temporary. In the end the woman; via her seed, will destroy the Serpent and its seed. Who are the Serpent's seed? Liars and Murderers; for starters (John 8:44). Additional Serpentary seed are people who exist solely to satisfy their passions and desires (Eph 2:1-3). And people given to rivalry and strife (Jas 3:14-15).

Unfortunately, the Serpent no longer allows itself to be seen in the open like it did that time in the garden with Eve. So it can easily manipulate the minds of its seed covertly, out of sight, and completely undetected. Since people cannot see it, nor hear it, the Serpent's seed are powerless to tell when they're being victimized by one their master's schemes. All the damned are Serpentary seed, and all are under the thumb of its control.

†. Eph 2:1-2 . . And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.

†. 2Cor 4:3-4 . . And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

The Serpent managed to incite its seed to execute the woman's seed (Abel and Jesus)— thus injuring his heel. But it was merely an injury, and didn't come anywhere near to finishing her seed off nor in preventing the purposes of God from being accomplished in him. Abel was replaced by Seth, and Christ rose from the dead; he is even now this very moment seated in glory at the right hand of God; destined to eventually take David's throne and rule not only just his native country Israel, but the whole world. The Serpent and its seed are doomed, and will ultimately be totally ruined in Hell.

†. Rev 20:10 . . And the Devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

C.L.I.F.F.
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The woman is now at the threshold of bringing into the world all of its future populations, who will be destined, by default, to become participants in the Serpent's agenda to dethrone and vanquish God; their maker. She had already demonstrated her power over the male, who had eaten the fruit when she urged him to even knowing it was against his better judgment. The Bible says Adam knew very well what he was doing; unlike the female, who was tricked into it.

With the potentialities of human reproduction now under its control, the Serpent was in a position to build up a very large following— Serpentary offspring, so to speak —children of the Devil: people spawned and cultivated for the specific purpose of forwarding the Serpent's evil agenda. They would of course all be born with the very same inherent human frailties that made it possible to lead the first couple to ruin. Piece of cake. It had been only too easy to pull the first couple's trust away from their maker. Their posterity would be even easier now that all would be born with a mutated nature that is quite naturally inclined towards evil rather than towards good.

The apostle Paul recognized that his own weakness for evil was a natural thing. He committed sins because, inwardly, woven into the very fabric of his soul, he was just simply a sinful being.

†. Rom 7:14-23 . .We know that The Law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that The Law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do— this I keep on doing.

. . Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's Law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.

Everyone who has ever attempted to live a pious life knows for themselves exactly what Paul was talking about. We have a human nature that's inclined to shun what's right. It is quite naturally inclined to do just the opposite; and although we may control our actions, none us has the power to control either our thoughts, our impulses, or our feelings.

†. Gen 3:16a . . And to the woman He said: I will make most severe your pangs in childbearing;

The word for childbearing is herown (hay-rone'); and/or herayown (hay-raw-yone'); which means conception or pregnancy. For many women, the pregnancy stage of motherhood is often characterized by bloating, illness, nausea, depression, anxiety, insecurity, and irritability. For them, pregnancy is more like a curse than the intended blessing of Gen 1:28.

†. Gen 3:16b . . in pain shall you bear children.

It's difficult to imagine childbirth without pain because that's the way it's always been right from the beginning, even with Eve's very first child. Apparently before Man's fall, having a baby would have been no more painful than a bowel movement— and just as lacking in danger to mom and baby.

†. Gen 3:16c . .Yet your urge shall be for your husband,

What you have there is the earliest of all mandates impacting adultery and promiscuity, and it wasn't given to men; no, it was given to women. Although they suffer in pregnancy and childbirth, women are still capable of enjoying a man's affections.

Eve's feminine mystique can lead to trouble; especially for women who have problems with men. There are women who can't stand men; but they can't stop wanting them either. And that inevitably leads to some serious inner conflicts; and unbearable tensions between the sexes. In spite of their hatred for them, many women find that men still rule their passions. Some hold out for a while, fighting against nature, but it's only a matter of time before most bite the dust and give in just to save their sanity. Women often have to sift through a lot of bums before landing a good one. But with the right guy, family life can be very satisfying; and anyway, it is truly the only sensible arrangement for most of us.

I caught a really cute illustration of Gen 3:16c one morning back in the early 1990's when I was home from work watching Good Morning America with my wife. They often have musical groups performing outside in the street and on that particular day it was Enrique Iglesia.

While Enrique was singing, security hoisted a young girl up on the stage and he began singing his song directly to her. She began choking up and fighting back tears, and then he got down on both knees right in front of her; all the while crooning a very emotional Latin love song and looking right up into her eyes.

And then something happened that was just overwhelming. The girl was wearing a tank top that went down only about mid ways leaving her tummy exposed so you could see her belly button. Enrique gently pressed the palm of his hand on her bare tummy while he was kneeling there singing and looking right up into her eyes. She really lost it then and just about died. Do you think that girl would have hesitated to bear Enrique's children? I tell you she would have gladly endured quints for that man right then and there.

Men have a power over women's passions because God saw to it. But in no way should women ever be humiliated or made to feel ashamed about their feelings for men because if the ladies were unresponsive, then the vast majority of unattached guys in the world would end their days eating dinner out of a can and living a very lonely life; that's for sure.

†. Gen 3:16d . . and he shall rule over you.

Many see subjugation of women in that passage; and that's exactly what it is: but they're only to subordinate themselves to the men in their marriages and their churches; not to every man at large. (1Cor 11:3-10, Eph 5:22, Col 3:18, 1Tim 2:11-15, 1Pet 3:1-6).

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. 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"

God's biggest gripe here is that Adam put his wife's wishes over and above the wishes of his creator; thus making women one of God's competitors for a man's loyalties (e.g. Catholicism's veneration of Jesus' mom over and above its veneration of Christianity's Christ).

But you know; Adam probably balanced things out and figured that, all things considered, it was better to disappoint God than to disappoint his wife because, after all, Adam had to live with Eve; he didn't have to live with God. So he put her first, and made her happy rather than make God happy. Lots of married guys can easily identify with Adam's predicament; and I'm sure the majority of us would have made the very same choice.

There is nothing really inherently wrong with the influence that women have over their men. After all, that's the way the guys were made from the get-go. It's not like Adam became inclined to make his wife happy sometime later after he became a sinner. No, he was inclined to make his woman happy right out of the box. So it's okay if woman influence their men; but it's the way women use their influence that makes all the difference. Most guys love to please their best girl; and a wise one will take advantage of that love sensibly so that everything comes out all right, and no one gets hurt.

†. Gen 3:17b . .Cursed be the ground because of you

It's important to note that God didn't withdraw any part of the blessing He gave to Man back in 1:28-29, which was:

God blessed them and God said to them: Be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and all the living things that creep on earth. God said: See, I give you every seed-bearing plant that is upon all the earth, and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit; they shall be yours for food.

None of that changed. Man retained his right to have a family, and he retained the right to dominate the planet and all living things. He also retained his right to eat all manner of seed-bearing plant life too.

Not only would Man himself be effected by a curse upon the ground, but every living thing that depends upon the Earth's soil 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 pay for the Adams' mistake.

God somehow chemically altered the soil 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 this point, begin to thin out as the competition for available natural food-stuffs intensified.

Someone's sure to ask: Why did the whole planet have to suffer for Adam's mistake?

Answer: because Adam was a king. The whole planet was his domain; his jurisdiction, his kingdom. It's a biblical axiom that when government goes bad, everybody in the jurisdiction of that government is effected. When President William Jefferson Clinton cheated on his wife with Monica Lewinski back in the mid 90's, it cost American citizens something. I don't know precisely what; but it did.

†. 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: worrisomeness. Webster's defines worrisomeness as: causing distress or worry or inclined to worry or fret; viz; Man became anxious, insecure, and perhaps somewhat melancholy. `Itstsabown is the very same word used in verse 16 to describe the physical and emotional discomfort women now have to endure during pregnancy.

Insecurity can lead people into all sorts of trouble. Businessmen become unscrupulous, employees embezzle, students cheat, girls become exotic dancers, boys become male prostitutes, lawyers become predatory, and politicians lie through their teeth.

†. Job 2:4 . .The Adversary answered the Lord: Skin for skin— all that a man has he will give up for his life.

Oh yes, indeedy dee. The Serpent knows just exactly what people are really like when push comes to shove and their survival is at stake. So what happened to cause Man to become such a worry wart? Easy. God's spirit moved out. One of the fruits of His spirit is peace (Gal 5:22). And absolute peace of mind is now a spiritual gift rather than an inherent psychological state (Phil 4:6-7).

Since Man demonstrated that he figured to get by without God, he got what he wanted and was left totally dependant upon the strength of the human spirit; and forced to fend for himself. In the garden, the Word of The Lord God was Man's daily mentor, and a constant source of reassurance. No longer does that go on because Man made a choice. But it is possible to regain at least a measure of some of that early peace of mind and make life just a little easier to bear.

†. Phil 4:6-7 . . Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

There is nothing wrong with telling God that you're scared or insecure; nor in telling Him you are worried about something— loneliness, depression, aging, health, job, spouse, friendships, your bank account, your complexion —anything at all. Don't keep stuff like that bottled up. Share it with your Creator. It's a good thing to do.

In the Old Testament's era, people could lose both the Spirit, and the Spirit's help if they weren't careful.

†. Ps 51:11-14 . . Hide Your face from my sins; blot out all my iniquities. Fashion a pure heart for me, O God; create in me a steadfast spirit. Do not cast me out of Your presence, or take Your holy spirit away from me. Let me again rejoice in Your help; let a vigorous spirit sustain me.

In the New Testament's era, once they get it, believers can never lose God's spirit no matter how wicked they let themselves become because The Spirit itself is the seal of their redemption.

†. Eph 1:13 . . In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,

But beware. Though believers are sealed, God is often moved to indignation when His people make a habit of taking Him for granted just a little too often; and they will not "rejoice in Your help" nor can they pray that God will "let a vigorous spirit sustain me." Even though recipients are now sealed with God's spirit, and can never lose it, they can, and often do, stifle the Spirit to such an extent that He powers-down.

†. Eph 4:30 . . And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

†. 1Thes 5:19 . . Do not quench the Spirit

The Greek word for quench is sbennumi (sben'-noo-mee) which means: to extinguish.

When we "put out the lights" today, we turn them off with a mechanical device like a switch or a circuit breaker because they're electric. But in those days, all illumination was produced by fire, e.g. oil, pitch, wood, and/or candles. I think it goes without saying that a believer that's managed to extinguish the Spirit is walking in the dark; which results in temporary estrangement from God.

†. 1John 1:6 . . If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. 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: so thorns and thistles already existed prior to the events of chapter 3. But in the beginning, noxious plants were doubtless in the minority. 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 Man needs something a little more substantial. Apparently in the beginning, nourishing kinds of plants were the predominant foliage. But it's not like that now.

†. Gen 3:18b . . But your food shall be the grasses of the field;

I don't think Man is supposed to graze on pasture like a cow or a deer. No doubt the grasses God intended for him to eat fall into the food group we call cereals; which are raised primarily for their seeds.

Grains were important food in prehistoric times. They were originally eaten un-ground and un-cooked; and the eater's teeth sure looked it too. Teeth became worn down over time from munching on a hard, gravelly diet.

The earliest reference to grinding grains dates from ancient Egyptian times; which is really not all that long ago in the grand time-table of Earth's geological existence. In the earliest milling process, grain was broken into coarse fragments by hand using a mortar and pestle or in a shallow depression on the surface of a rock.

Early devices for producing flour consisted of two roughened grinding surfaces, called millstones, between which grain was crushed and reduced to a powder. The final product no doubt included a substantial quantity of rock dust as well until somebody invented the wheel and began rolling the edge of one mill stone over the flat surface of a second. In this manner, heavier stones could be used, thus gaining the labor-saving advantages of mechanical, gravity-assisted rolling force to replace the forces previously applied by hand. I've actually seen Crows apply the very same principle by putting walnuts out in the street so cars can run over them and thus save themselves the trouble of using their own beaks to peck the nuts open.

In the early 1990s, the annual U.S. per capita consumption of wheat flour was 138 pounds. That's roughly the combined weight of three kindergarten kids.

The most extensively cultivated grains are wheat, barley, rye, buckwheat, oats, rice, corn or maize, varieties of millet, and the grain sorghums known as durra or Guinea corn. These have all been cultivated since ancient times. Today, rice constitutes the principal "grass food" of almost half the people on Earth.

Just think of all the foods we enjoy that are made from grass— cookies, pasta, sandwiches, toast, biscuits, sushi, dumplings, pancakes, waffles, pizza, stuffing, cup cakes, corn bread, birthday cakes, wedding cakes, donuts, tortillas, hamburger and hot dog buns, breakfast cereals, noodles, bagels, crackers, and pop corn; to name just a few.

Prior to his new grain diet, Man was a fruitarian living on whatever the trees produced in the garden. His diet will be modified yet again, after the Flood, to include flesh.

†. Gen 3:19a . . By the sweat of your brow shall you get bread to eat,

Those of us who live in leisure-intensive America really don't appreciate just how laborious and time consuming the work is to grow your own food. Early Man's days were hard. They're still hard in many third-world countries. Adam had to get out there with a hoe and a plow to provide for his family. Today, relatively few people in America work the ground. Most people make their living in shops, factories, and offices. But somebody somewhere is still out there grappling with nature to feed us because we would all go hungry very quickly if there weren't some farmers and ranchers around the world providing grocery stores and super markets with the nourishment people need to survive.

There isn't a day goes by in my area of Oregon when I don't mourn the loss of perfectly good farmland and topsoil that is getting dug up and removed for housing, industrial parks, and shopping centers; and the acreage paved over like graves with concrete and asphalt. One day, America will pay for that. We grow our domestic food on less and less arable land; meanwhile the population multiplies. Where will we grow the food necessary to nourish future populations if we keep scraping away our best soils to satisfy commercial interests?

Whereas the Adams before had a beautiful productive orchard that required minimal maintenance, Man is now faced with stubborn soil that needs plowing and sowing, and weeding and treatments like fertilizer and lime. Very few natural grains exist abundantly in nature. If he wants them in any sizable amount, Man has to farm.

†. 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.

Were the Adams immortal before they fell? No, they weren't. As long as they fortified their diet with fruit from the tree of life the Adams would never grow old, but could still be killed. They were air-breathing creatures and needed oxygen-rich air to stay alive just like every other nephesh God created. Smother them, and they would die. However, prior to Gen 3:19, Man's death wasn't inevitable; but now it is.

†. Rom 5:12 . .Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men,

People here in cushy America have the opportunity to kick back and retire on Social Security, private investments, and company sponsored retirement plans; but the Adams had no such options. In those days, people without children were in a bad way. When their age became advanced; who would provide for them when they could no longer get out there and plow, reap, and ranch on their own? Those kinds of concerns no doubt aggravated early Man's anxieties quite a bit.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:20 . .The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.

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. Some people have a problem with Eve. They just can't believe she's the mother of the entire human race; which would include Jesus too. But Genesis says Adam named his wife Eve because she was the life giver of all the living, not just a portion of the living. According to the Bible, Man wasn't created in groups nor in swarms like the other nephesh. The human race was created in its entirety a singular, solo, male individual. Every human being since, including the first woman, came from that one male.

†. Acts 17:26 . . And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings,

The idea was, that if the whole human race were to begin from one solo individual, and thus all be blood kin, then hopefully each generation would pass Adam's knowledge of the true God down to the next. It would have worked, had not Man decided to go off on his own.

Adam's origin was the dust of the earth, not a pre-human hominid. As dust, Adam wouldn't have been blood kin to other people alleged to be living elsewhere outside the garden. It's necessary to be in somebody's family tree by birth in order to qualify as blood kin. Adam's wife qualified as his blood kin because she was manufactured from his own organic tissues. If indeed there were other humans created besides Adam, then the author of Acts would have said God made every nation of men from many bloods; not just the one.

You know; some things in life offer us no choice. Eve didn't choose to be the female, nor choose to be the incubator of Man's offspring. It was her lot. Same for the rest of us. Maybe some of us would rather be the opposite sex, or maybe rather even be a butterfly or a pony. Nobody gets to choose either their genus or their gender; nor their parents. Those kinds of circumstances are imposed upon us and no one has any say in them at all. Man has many freedoms of choice; but the choice of his origin isn't one of them.

†. Gen 3:21 . . And Yhvh God made garments of skins for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.

The exact cut and design of their garments isn't specified, and the words kethoneth (keth-o'-neth) and/or kuttoneth (koot-to'-neth) just means a shirt, or covering; as hanging from the shoulder. Modern shirts aren't long enough to provide an adequate covering of Man's body. Theirs were probably more like a knee or calf-length dress. A shirt implies that Eve's topless days were over; although that wouldn't necessarily rule out the possibility that Eve may have become the Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel of her day and created some interesting necklines.

Frontal nudity isn't forbidden in the Bible, nor does God himself feel particularly offended by it. Exposure is forbidden during religious services like in Ex 20:26 and Ex 28:42; but that's not really for God's sake but rather for the worshippers. After all, God created Man totally disrobed; and that's the way Man lived for an unspecified time in the garden until he fell and became sensual and developed a guilt complex over sex and the human body. But clothing serves a practical purpose unrelated to self consciousness. Man's fallen skin now needs protection from its environment.

No doubt early Man's skin was thicker, tougher, more resistant to UV sunlight, and provided a much better cushion between himself and his environment than now. He could endure scrapes and bumps and nicks and scratches and cuts, and hours in the sun a whole lot better. But Adam was soon to lose access to the tree of life and therefore doomed to the aging process, and that process reduces the thickness and the moisture of Man's skin in a marked way. Just compare the hands of a child to those of an elderly person. The older person's skin is paper thin and fragile, like an onion's: blue veins stand out, and you can practically see through it.

It's interesting that though Man is a sinful creature, God still cares for him and hasn't left him entirely to himself to make his way through a hostile world. That day, Man learned something about the advantages of leather goods. Most leather is produced from cattle hides: calfskin, goatskin, kidskin, sheepskin, and lambskin. Other hides and skins used include those of the horse, pig, kangaroo, deer, crocodile, alligator, seal, walrus, and of late; Python. Human beings have used animal skins for a variety of practical purposes since ancient times, and to this good day leather is still a useful material all around the world. Precisely what animal God killed in order to make Man his first suit of leathers is unknown.

Fig leaves aren't very durable; they're merely a quick fix. God showed them a much better way— and actually, one they would never have thought of all by themselves because nobody had ever killed an animal before and who would have guessed their skins could be used for clothing until God showed them how?

There is a parallel to that in the plan of salvation. Human beings are very good at developing their own pious side in an effort to earn a better place in the next life. But God has other ideas. He won't accept man-made righteousness because, like the Adams' fig leaves, man-made righteousness is frail and inadequate. God has revealed a superior righteousness of His own design; one that will without fail satisfy justice, and guarantee its recipients a better life in the world to come.

†. Rom 1:16-17 . . I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith.

†. Rom 3:21-24 . . But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

The clothing God made for the Adams didn't cost them one red cent nor did they have to contribute even the slightest bit of labor in its design and manufacture. God slaughtered the animals, treated their hides, and made their clothes Himself; and gave the clothing to them for free, out of kindness, as a gratuity; free of charge. The righteousness of God is a gratuity too. However, it didn't come cheap. Like the Adams' leathers, a living soul had to be slain in order to provide it.

†. 1Pet 1:18-21 . . For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 3:22a . . And Yhvh God said: Now that the man has become like one of us,

It's difficult to know for certain who else along with God is referred to by the pronoun "us." Ancient Jews believed it was the holy angels.

T~ And the Lord God said to the angels who ministered before Him, Behold, Adam is sole on the earth, as I am sole in the heavens above; and it will be that they will arise from him who will know to discern between good and evil. (Targum Jonathan)

Man was created less than divine.

†. Ps 8:5-6 . .What is man that You have been mindful of him: mortal man that You have taken note of him. You have made him little less than divine, and adorned him with glory and majesty;

The word for divine in that passage is 'elohiym (el-o-heem') which is the plural of 'elowahh (el-o'-ah) and means: gods, Gods, magistrates, and/or deities.

It's possible for 'elohiym to refer to not only God, but also to gods and also to angels. The writer of the book of Hebrews understood the 'elohiym of Ps 8:5-6 to mean just that.

†. Heb 2:6-7 . . But there is a place where someone has testified: What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the angels; you crowned him with glory and honor

So taking into consideration Ps 8:5-6, and Heb 2:6-7, it's quite reasonable to believe that the pronoun "us" of Gen 3:22 refers to God and to His cabinet of angelic courtiers.

But did Man really become one of the us? No, he only became "like" one of us; viz: Man took it upon himself to make himself divine, but didn't succeed. He isn't divine; no, not in any sense of the word. Man is a presumptuous pigmy; an earthly mortal. His puny little body is vulnerable to death and decay: it can grow old, and it can die; and just to prove it; God will expel this impudent little being from the garden so that by losing access to the tree of life; Man's body will wither; and perish like spoiled fruit.

†. Gen 22b . . knowing good and bad,

The "good and bad" that human beings perceive by intuition isn't from God. No, it's from the mind of a fallen being whose natural sense of right and wrong is very out of harmony with Man's maker (Rom 8:5-8).

What is so bad about Man having his own sense of right and wrong? Well, for one thing, too much diversity.

†. Isa 53:6 . .We all went astray like sheep, each going his own way; and the Lord visited upon him the guilt of all of us.

It seems that everyone has their own opinions about what is right and what is wrong. Man became his own God in that he is inclined to pontificate his own standards of right and wrong rather than looking to his maker for all that. Man actually competes with The True God in that respect; and the two ideologies, like those of foreign nations, often clash in bitter disagreement. Well, this universe isn't big enough for more than one God. Somebody is going to have to abdicate and it sure won't be the cosmos' creator.

†. Gen 3:22c . . what if he should stretch out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever!

Man deteriorates and dies of old age because his diet is missing essential nutrients found only in the tree of life— the true fountain of youth. Scientists will never find a remedy for the aging process without it.

†. Gen 3:23-24 . . So Yhvh God banished him from the garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he was taken. He drove the man out, and stationed east of the garden of Eden the cherubim and the fiery ever-turning sword, to guard the way to the tree of life.

The tree of life still exists, though not on earth; and according to the book of Revelation, mortal men will one day be allowed access to it again. Not only does its fruit keep mortal men youthful, but its leaves are medicinal, good for remedying every known disease. For now, mortal men are banned from the tree, and it's guarded by mysterious beings. The sword itself almost seems to be a sentient form of life, turning in every direction, threatening and warning all who dared approach. At night its eerie glow lit the sky, and in the daytime, passersby observed its immortal flame burning perpetually like the bush Moses saw in the desert. Brrrr. What a creepy sight that must have been.

†. Rev 2:7 . . He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

†. Rev 22:1-2 . .Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

†. Rev 22:11-15 . . Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.

Why would a tree of life be necessary in Heaven? It isn't. However, Christ is going to rule on the current earth for a millennium prior to the establishment of the eternal phase of his kingdom on a new earth located in an entirely new cosmos. Though people in the millennium will enjoy longer lives; they won't be immortal, which is why they'll need the tree of life for sustenance.

†. Isa 65:20 . . No longer will there be in Jerusalem an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his days; for the youth will die at the age of one-hundred, and those who don't reach the age of one-hundred shall be thought accursed.

C.L.I.F.F.
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From this point on in the Bible, we'll never again see another normal human being. Every one of them (except Jesus Christ) is going to be a twisted, sinful creature and we are going to see just how wicked that a twisted creature of sin can really be when it puts its mind to it.

†. Gen 4:1a . . Now the man knew his wife Eve,

There is more to knowledge than just facts and data. Some kinds of knowledge can't be learned from a book or a lecture; they can only be learned by personal experience. Carnal knowledge is one of those kinds of knowing. It's one thing for a young man to feel passions while looking at pictures of girls in Hustler, Maxim, and Playboy; but it's quite another experience to actually cuddle with a girl and sleep with her skin to skin.

There is no record of any human intimacies in the garden prior to Man's fall; but that doesn't mean none occurred; it just means there aren't any mentioned. But people today are different. They're infected with a mentality about sex and the human body that was foreign to Adam and Eve prior to their experience with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Most creatures in the animal world are not obsessed with carnal knowledge like Man is. Many creatures mate only during specific times of the year, and most do not mate unless the female is first ripe for conceiving young.

Man is now, in many areas of life, actually lower than an animal— he's far from divine; he's vile.

†. Gen 4:1b . . and she conceived and bore Cain, saying: I have gained a male child with the help of the Lord.

The author of Genesis can be so frustrating at times. How could they pass over Eve's very first pregnancy like that without telling us how she felt about it?

No human being had ever been expecting before. Eve had no relatives: no mom, no aunts, no sisters, no grammy; nor any girlfriends to share her experiences with. Surely she had questions. What was happening to her? Why did her period stop? Why did she feel nauseous some mornings? Why was her belly swelling, and her bosom getting so large? Was she going to die? Was her condition permanent? Was her figure gone forever? Why did she have to go to the ladies' room all the time? Why were her emotions reacting so strongly to trivial things that normally have very little effect upon her feelings? She was becoming sensitive, defensive, depressed, and easily upset.

Although they were evicted from the garden, and didn't associate with God as freely as they once did; the Word of The Lord God didn't abandon them. He was still in touch and didn't leave them all alone to struggle. If anyone was first with the practice of prayer, I think it was a woman— a new mom who had some questions and I would not be a bit surprised if Yhvh was the world's very first Lamaze teacher so Eve would know what to do when her baby came.

There was no one else. It fell upon the Word of The Lord to teach them about prenatal care, contractions, how to cut the umbilical cord, postpartum, tar stools, and how to care for a newborn. And Adam was very likely drafted for nursing duty— to clean all the goop off the baby, massage his wife's tummy to make her uterus relax, and dispose of the afterbirth and give Eve a sponge bath. What an incredible, wonderful, terrifying experience for them both.

Eve had no idea what a baby was supposed to look like because no one had ever made one before. She must have been very surprised at the appearance of a baby human fresh out of the oven. It was bow-legged, it's head was too big, it squirmed a lot, howled on occasion, and slobbered all over everything. Imagine Eve's surprise to discover that her new baby had a natural built in nursing reflex. All she had to do was let his little cheek touch her breast and he went right to work on his own with no coaching at all.

Sometimes new dads aren't prepared for their wife's change in direction and resent a child's interference. Where once Adam was Eve's total center of attention, now he would have to share her devotion with another. Normal moms are just naturally bonded to their offspring and there is nothing dads can do about it except adjust. There are women of course to whom their offspring mean nothing but a nuisance.

†. 2Tim 3:1-3 . .This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection,

The word for without natural affection is from astorgos (as'-tor-gos) which means: hard-hearted towards kindred.

My wife is a kindergarten teacher. On an occasion when she conducted parent-teacher conferences, a "career" mom showed up but immediately delegated the meeting to her husband while she took a cell phone business call. She couldn't tell her caller to phone back later. No. That mom marginalized her little girl's life while she took care of business interests. That woman was callous, insensitive, and uncaring about her little girl's progress and development. On at least two occasions, that same little kindergirl arrived for class weeping because her mom was too busy in the morning to brush her hair before school.

Young dads may feel left out and insignificant at first, and that's perfectly normal; but it shouldn't be fatal to the marriage. If they're informed ahead of time what babies do to a normal mom's heart, then guys will be better prepared to deal with it. It's not that their wives think less of them. It's just that infants require a lot of attention and a whole lot of loving. And moms are typically very protective of their babies too, even if it means risking their husband's alienation. Poor Adam; he was a brand new dad and went through what every normal dad goes through for the very first time.

But Adam himself was changed too. He became a father. Where once he was only Eve's pal and lover, now he was also a parent; and that changes many men like nothing else.

I really have to laugh when Hollywood portrays new dads as thrilled and proud and happy when their wives tell them a baby is on the way. In most cases, that's just not reality. They aren't happy at all. They're frightened. Men start out in marriage as carefree Romeos; then they suddenly become serious guardians and providers when the babies arrive. When my wife informed me we were to have a baby, I got very quiet and began to run the budget through my mind, calculating how we would manage while she was off from work. Some guys get really scared; and some take flight, leaving their wives in the clutches of single motherhood.

Prospective spouses have got to talk about these things before they get married to prevent that kind of tragedy from occurring. If you are a young person contemplating marriage and family; and know of a church, or synagogue that offers pre-marital counseling, it would be a good idea to attend with your fiancé. We did; and it forced us to discuss many issues that we were otherwise far too inclined to avoid so as to prevent putting a damper on the romance.

I've heard it said by family counselors that there are three major crises in a man's life: when he is born, when his first child arrives, and when he dies. So you can see that parenthood can be a really big deal for a man.

There is a very good sign to watch for that indicates a daddy is comfortable with his new role. If he comes home one day with a huge Tonka truck, or a baseball glove, or a fishing rod while his little boy is yet just a helpless infant, then you know his heart is really into it. I bought my own infant son a .22 rifle. One of the men at work bought his little boy, believe it or not, a full size 9mm Smith &Wesson automatic pistol. Haw-Haw-Haw-Haw. Imagine a little tyke shooting that great big ol' gun. Of course my friend's excuse was that if he waited till later, the gun would be more expensive. (chuckle)

Daddies get just as goofy over their daughters. Don't be surprised if your husband begins cruising bling shops, or the Barbie aisle, or looking at Mary Engelbreit stuff when he finds out a baby girl is on the way. And all of a sudden he might become very literary too, especially concerning children's books filled with stories about fairies, secret gardens, princesses, and magic.

C.L.I.F.F.
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God finished creating on the seventh day (Gen 2:2) and rested after that. Not because He was tired, but because He was all done. At that time, the human race was all done too. Every human being was created from the dust on the very same day as Adam. Everyone since then has just been an Adamic derivative.

†. Ps 139:13-16 . . It was You who created my consciousness; You fashioned me in my mother’s womb. I praise You, for I am awesomely, wondrously made; Your work is wonderful; I know it very well. My frame was not concealed from You when I was shaped in a hidden place, knit together in the recesses of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed limbs; they were all recorded in Your book; in due time they were formed, to the very last one of them.

The writer of that Psalm, believed that God saw him way before he was ever conceived in his mother's womb. In fact; saw his substance (already existing) in the recesses of the earth before his mom even conceived. No one but Adam was created on the day of their birth; not even Eve. She was created on the same day as Adam even though she wasn't formed and viable until later. We all, every one of us, pre-existed in Adam. It was just a matter of time before the right combination of genes brought us out.

†. Ecc 11:5 . . Just as you do not know how the spirit of life passes into the limbs within the womb of the pregnant woman, so you cannot foresee the actions of God, who causes all things to happen.

Babies aren't something new and unique— they're merely reproductions. Adam received human life from God on the sixth day of creation. He passed his own human life on to his wife, then they passed it on to their kids; and those in turn passed human life on to their kids. It's been that way ever since the beginning. Human life— like bird life, fish life, bug life, reptile life, and beast life— is a transferable kind of life; passing from one generation on to the next.

According to ancient Judaism, Eve believed Cain was a very special boy.

T~ Gen 4:1 …And Adam knew Hava his wife, who had desired the Angel; and she conceived, and bare Kain; and she said, I have acquired a man, the Angel of The Lord. (Targum Jonathan)

Apparently Eve expected her firstborn son to be the one who was supposed to fulfill the promise of Gen 3:15 and crush the Serpent's head. But alas, Cain was just an ordinary kid. He wasn't the Angel of The Lord, nor destined to be "the one" to remedy Man's fatal Serpent bite.

†. Gen 4:2a . . She then bore his brother Abel.

Abel's name is from hebel (heh'bel) and means: emptiness or vanity; figuratively, something transitory and unsatisfactory. Poor Eve; she's only had two kids and already motherhood has lost its appeal. Cain was her very first pregnancy. It was a new, exciting adventure. Well, Abel's birth was no big deal. He was redundant; just another bun in the oven. The first one is the best. After that, they're all Same-O, Same-O.

Cain and Abel are very interesting and share a lot in common. In fact, they share so much in common that their individual personalities must be an enigma to behavioral scientists. Neither boy came from a large gene pool because there were no grandparents. Their genealogy stopped abruptly right in their own home with mom and dad and went back no farther. They both had the same parents, lived in the same home in the same neighborhood, grew up with the same customs, ate the same food, associated with the same people, breathed the same air, survived in the same environment, went to the same church, and worshipped the same God. Yet those boys were noticeably very different from each other. Abel was a prophet (Luke 11:50-51) and Cain was violent (1John 3:11-12).

†. Gen 4:2b . . Abel became a keeper of sheep, and Cain became a tiller of the soil.

Both men worked at honorable professions and their skills were essential to the Adams' survival. Man at this time was a vegetarian so Cain farmed and raised the family's food; while Abel kept them clothed and shod by raising sheep for leather and fleece. This could be a clue as to the kind of animals God slew for the Adams' first suit of clothes. If their first garments were lambskin, it seems only natural that they would begin raising sheep for that purpose.

Incidentally: these are the first mentions of animal husbandry and farming in the Bible— at a time in Earth's long geological saga when the human race was less than 130 years old (Gen 5:3).

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 4:3-4a . . In the course of time, Cain brought an offering to The Lord from the fruit of the soil; and Abel, for his part, brought the choicest of the firstlings of his flock.

The Hebrew word for offering is from minchah (min-khaw') and means: to apportion, i.e. bestow; a donation; euphemistically, tribute; specifically a sacrificial offering (usually bloodless and voluntary)

There's no indication in this scene suggesting their oblations were some sort of sin offering. Cain's and Abel's gifts were tokens of good will; like buying a buddy a beer, or flowers for mom on Mother's Day, or a house-warming gift. Their offerings were very much in the same vein as the gifts that learned men brought Jesus when he was but a little kid.

†. Mtt 2:11 . . On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.

Those gifts were voluntary tributes to the one whom the magi believed to be Israel's King.

†. Mtt 2:1-2 . . After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."

The Greek word for worship in that verse, proskuneo (pros-koo-neh'-o), isn't restricted to the kind of worship one might offer to a religious deity. It also applies to obeisance and respect rendered to royalty. In the context of Mtt 2:1-2, it's obvious the Magi didn't worship Jesus as a god, but bowed to him as the final and greatest of all the kings of the house of David; which they knew (no doubt gleaned from Daniel's journal compiled during his tour in the east) to be the one king destined to rule the entire globe some day.

†. Dan 7:13-14 . . As I looked on, in the night vision, one like a human being came with the clouds of heaven; he reached the Ancient of Days and was presented to Him. Dominion, glory, and kingship were given to him; all peoples and nations of every language must serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and his kingdom, the one that shall not be destroyed.

If somebody wants to offer God a gift, it is solely an individual decision and not an obligation. After all; gifts should be from the heart, not at the point of a gun (2Cor 9:7).

The ancient Jews believed the offerings of Cain and Abel to be a "first fruits" kind of oblation.

T~ And it was at the end of days, on the fourteenth of Nisan, that Kain brought of the produce of the earth, the seed of cotton (or line), an oblation of first things before The Lord; (Targum Jonathan)

Ever since Ex 12:1-20, the fourteenth of Nisan at evening has been the beginning of Passover week. But Passover didn't exist in Abel's day and wouldn't exist as a religious holiday until many years after the Flood.

A "first fruit" offering is a great honor to receive; giving credit where credit is due; recognizing your God-given prosperity. It's sort of like dedicating the first paycheck of a new job you prayed for as an expression of gratitude and thankfulness for God's kind-hearted providence. In Moses' Law, the offering of first fruits is a mandatory oblation. In Abel's day, it was voluntary.

I think it's safe to assume the brothers were no longer boys, but rather, responsible men in this particular scene because God is going to treat them that way. This incident is not said to be the very first time they brought gifts to God. The brothers (and very likely their parents too), probably had been bringing gifts for many years; ever since they were kids. And up to this point, apparently both men were doing everything right and God was just as much pleased with Cain as He was with Abel. But where did they get this religion of theirs? Very possibly from the Word of The Lord through Abel because the New Testament's Jesus said Abel was a prophet.

†. Luke 11:50-51a . . Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary.

It's evident then, that what the brothers did was no impulsive ritual in some sort of heathen, or pagan man-made religion . No. Their offerings were clearly a legitimate part of a God-given, biblically acceptable religion, rather than a whim or an invention produced by a fertile imagination.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 4:4b-5a . .The Lord paid heed to Abel and his offering, but to Cain and his offering He paid no heed.

†. Heb 11:4 . . By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings.

All things being equal, why was Abel's offering "better" than Cain's?

Whether produce or livestock is the proper offering is not the issue here. In making a determination regarding the gifts, God evaluated the men themselves first. The Lord respected Abel, therefore He respected Abel's gift too. But although God very likely had been satisfied with Cain in the past, this time there was something wrong.

Cain was of a good family. He wasn't the product of poverty or an inner city barrio or dilapidated public housing. He wasn't in a gang, didn't carry a gun, smoke, drink, take dope, gamble or chase women. He was very religious and worshipped the exact same god that his kid brother Abel worshipped, and the rituals he observed were correct and timely. Cain worked for a living in an honest profession. He wasn't a crook, wasn't lazy, nor did he associate with a Godless crowd. The man did everything a model citizen is supposed to do; yet both he, and his gift, were soundly rejected on this occasion.

Did Cain do something wrong? It's not that Cain "did" wrong, it's that he was doing wrong; which was nursing an on-going grudge against his brother.

†. Mtt 5:22-25 . . When presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.

Cain's problem was sibling rivalry.

†. 1John 3:12 . . And for what reason did Cain slay Abel? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother's were righteous.

Cain was like many pious pew warmers who make a point of going to church and synagogue every week-end; praying the prayers, and singing the hymns of praise with gusto right along with everyone else. When the collection is taken, they always pitch in. They never miss festivals nor holy days of obligation; but then they do as they please the remainder of the year. They actually think that showing up on important worship days, praying, and singing and giving, are supposed to make up for their self-centered lifestyle. NOT!

God was very displeased in the past with His people for that very thing. Many faithfully attended Temple services, they prayed regularly, and were careful to observe all the festivals and the holy days, and brought the correct oblations in abundance. They were in fact practicing the one true God-given religion. But their personal lives and business practices disgusted The Lord and insulted His religious ideals; therefore he rejected every one of their gifts, their prayers, and their church attendance.

†. Isa 1:11-20 . .What need have I of all your sacrifices? says the Lord. I am sated with burnt offerings of rams, and suet of fatlings, and blood of bulls; and I have no delight in lambs and he-goats. That you come to appear before Me— who asked that of you? Trample My courts no more; bringing oblations is futile, incense is offensive to Me. New moon and sabbath, proclaiming of solemnities, assemblies with iniquity, I cannot abide. Your new moons and fixed seasons fill Me with loathing; they are become a burden to Me, I cannot endure them.

. . And when you lift up your hands, I will turn My eyes away from you; though you pray at length, I will not listen. Your hands are stained with crime— wash yourselves clean; put your evil doings away from My sight. Cease to do evil; learn to do good. Devote yourselves to justice; aid the wronged. Uphold the rights of the orphan; defend the cause of the widow.

. . Come, let us reach an understanding,— says the Lord. Be your sins like crimson, they can turn snow-white; be they red as dyed wool, they can become like fleece. If, then, you agree and give heed, you will eat the good things of the earth; but if you refuse and disobey, you will be devoured [by] the sword.— For it was the Lord who spoke.

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Isaiah wasn't the only prophet who tongue-lashed his fellow Jews for their two-faced hypocrisy.

†. Hos 6:6 . . For I desire goodness, not sacrifice; obedience to God, rather than burnt offerings.

†. Hos 14:2-3 . . Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have fallen because of your sin. Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him: “Forgive all guilt and accept what is good; instead of [offering] bulls we will pay the vows of our lips."

†. Ecc 5:3-4 . .When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. For He has no pleasure in fools; what you vow, fulfill. It is better not to vow at all than to vow and not fulfill. Don't let your mouth bring you into disfavor, and don't plead before the messenger that it was an error, but fear God; else God may be angered by your talk and destroy your possessions.

David too; recognized the hypocrisy of gifts offered by wicked hands.

†. Ps 51:18-21. .You do not want me to bring sacrifices; You do not desire burnt offerings; true sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit; God, You will not despise a contrite and crushed heart. May it please You to make Zion prosper; rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Then You will want sacrifices offered in righteousness, burnt and whole offerings; then bulls will be offered on Your altar.

A hypocrite's tithes and offerings are, de facto, oblations of sin.

†. Pro 15:8-9 . .The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright pleases Him. The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but He loves him who pursues righteousness.

†. Pro 21:27 . .The sacrifice of the wicked man is an abomination, the more so as he offers it in depravity.

The Lord urged Cain to rectify the problem; but no; he got all huffy about it instead.

†. Gen 4:5b . . Cain was much distressed and his face fell.

He was a whole lot worse than distressed. Cain was blazing mad. The word for distressed is from charah (khaw-raw') and means: to glow or grow warm; figuratively (usually) to blaze up, of anger, zeal, jealousy. Cain is actually in a passionate rage over this and certainly in no mood for a lecture.

†. Gen 4:6 . . And The Lord said to Cain: Why are you distressed, and why is your face fallen?

It's almost beyond belief how some people react to God. This man is actually mad at his maker. That can't be a good thing; but is so typical of people who regard God as a tyrant, a rival, an opponent; and a thoughtless bully. When His enemies finally appear before Him in judgment; I seriously doubt they'll be inclined to kneel or bow and talk to Him in soft respectful tones. No. They will be indignant, insulted, and furious; and they will argue vehemently, pointing out where it is actually He who is the one in the wrong. At that time they will no doubt insist, as they do even now, that the Bible's God is a heartless monster who has no clue about the meanings of fair play, love, and compassion.

†. Gen 4:7a . . If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?

In Cain's (un)humble opinion, he always did what was right— at least in his own mind. But God is the final authority on right and wrong. If the Word of The Lord says something is right, or if He says something is wrong, then that's what it is. Those who accept The Word's point of view are the ones who live by faith and are reckoned the woman's seed. Those who object are reckoned the Serpent's seed; and the Serpent's seed typically react to God just like a Serpent because they think like a Serpent, and they have a Serpent's attitude.

†. Gen 4:7b . . But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.

Ancient Judaism had a very outstanding interpretation of that passage.

T~ And the Lord said to Kain, Why hast thou anger, and why are the features of thy face downcast? If thou doest thy work well, will not thy guilt be forgiven thee? But if thou doest not thy work well in this world, thy sin is retained unto the day of the great judgment, and at the doors of thy heart lieth thy sin. And into thy hand have I delivered the power over evil passion, and unto thee shall be the inclination thereof, that thou mayest have authority over it to become righteous, or to sin. (Targum Jonathan)

Gen 4:7b is the very first instance of the word sin. It's from chatta'ah (khat-taw-aw') and/or chatta'th (khat-tawth') and means: an offence (sometimes habitual sinfulness), and its penalty, occasion, sacrifice, or expiation; also (concretely) an offender. So sin is an inclusive word. Not only is the offender's offense accounted as sin, but his propensity to offend is accounted as sin too.

Cain was very close to crossing over a line. His problem was correctable at this point. However, Cain was going to have to exercise some initiative and some self control. But if Cain chose to persist in anger and stubborn resistance, then he risked moving into a zone of incurable evil. That would be tragic. From there, it is just one more step to perdition.

Temperance and self control weren't two of Cain's more notable life-skills. I don't think they even entered his mind at all. He was Cain, and everybody was just going to have to get used to it, including his maker. He had what might be labeled today a borderline personality; viz: in Cain's mind, it's not him who's the problem; no, you are.

God warned Cain that if he persisted in having things his own way it would be just a matter of time before he became incorrigible and got into serious trouble. (Especially with that temper of his) And sure enough, God was right. Cain finally killed somebody.

C.L.I.F.F.
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†. Gen 4:8a . . Now Cain talked with Abel his brother;

Cain probably complained to his brother that Yhvh was unfair. But the poor man couldn't have picked a worse sounding board because Abel was a prophet (Luke 11:50-51). In Cain's dispute with The Lord, Abel no doubt took Yhvh's side in it. That was too much. There's no way a man like Cain was going to take a lecture from his own kid brother. Abel's popularity with God was bad enough, but preaching only made it worse and added insult to injury. Here, from ancient Judaism's perspective, is what very likely transpired that day.

T~ Habel answered and said to Kain, In goodness was the world created, and according to the fruit of good works is it governed; and there is no respect of persons in judgment; but because the fruits of my works were better than thine, my oblation, before thine, hath been accepted with good will. Kain answered and said to Habel, There is neither judgment nor Judge, nor another world; nor will good reward be given to the righteous, nor vengeance be taken of the wicked.

. . And Habel answered and said to Kain, There is a judgment, and there is a Judge; and there is another world, and a good reward given to the righteous, and vengeance taken of the wicked. And because of these words they had contention upon the face of the field; and Kain arose against Habel his brother, and drave a stone into his forehead, and killed him. (Targum Jonathan)

Sibling rivalry is perhaps one of the most destructive forces there is in human relationships. It's roots fathom the human heart's deepest conceits; and stems from a powerful desire to be treated as an equal among peers; and an attitude of superiority over those we consider below ourselves. Think back how many times you became infuriated because someone insulted your intelligence, treated you like a moron, took away your dignity, or regarded themselves as better than you. What you felt at that moment were the powers of rivalry; one of the most sinful human passions there is.

†. Gen 4:8b . . and when they were in the field, Cain set upon his brother Abel and killed him.

Whether or not Cain actually premeditated his brother's death that day is difficult to tell. The word for killed is from harag (haw-rag') and just means: to smite with deadly intent. Harag is not the same Hebrew word for murder which is ratsach (e.g. Ex 20:13). So the attack on Abel, whether premeditated or not, was definitely meant to end his life rather than to just rough him up and teach him a lesson.

How Cain planned to explain Abel's death to his parents is not stated. All wild animals at this time were vegetarians and friendly with Man, so Cain couldn't suggest a beast killed Abel and dragged him off. He would perhaps first hide the body, Abel would be reported missing, and then Cain would act innocent about it and perhaps even volunteer to organize a search party to help find his brother.

The full realization of what he had done must have come as a shock to Cain— to see a human being not breathing, not moving, not speaking; with slackened face and vacant eyes; and its body growing colder by the minute; culminating in a rigor mortis that eventually rendered Abel as stiff as a road-killed opossum— not to mention the hideous bloating that would follow later. It was a sight no one had ever seen before and I can well imagine the cold fear that must have gripped his heart when Cain realized just how serious his act really was. Murdering Abel surely wrought a permanent change in Cain so that he would never be the same man ever again.

Murdering an outsider is one thing. But murdering your own kid brother is quite another. Cain would have to live with that on his conscience, not only for the rest of his life, but in the hereafter too. No amount of drink, drugs, or therapy, can make things like that go away.

They say that only good people can really enjoy their memories. I believe that's true. Many of us suffer with our pasts continually. Our pasts are a crystalline frozen sea that mold us into the kind of people that we are, and have a tremendous influence upon the way we interact with others. People with a bad past generally resent those who don't. It's human nature at it's worst; and just one more weakness the Serpent can exploit to advantage in its long conflict with the woman's seed.

My own brother and I were paired similar to Cain and Abel. Both of us were religious, as those two brothers were, and mine was even an altar boy for a while. One evening at church, the priest asked everyone to stand and give their word that they would always honor and obey God. My brother stood along with the rest of us, but he would not give his word because, he said, there were things he wanted to do. My brother really changed after that. In time he began treating me with an unusual amount of hostility and disrespect; taking every available opportunity to ridicule and taunt me.

It was so odd because I honestly never gave him any justification to act that way. Of the two of us, he was the best looking, the most athletic, the most popular, had all the luck with girls, went to all the dances, owned lots of cars, always had good jobs, and knew all the right people in school. Yet he hated me.

Do you know what made my brother hate me? It was because he sensed that I approved of neither his character nor of his core values. I've since discovered it's an earmark of Cainish people that unless they are admired and approved by others, they become hateful.

†. 1John 3:12-13 . . Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous. Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.

In Gen 3:15, God predicted hostility would exist between the seed of the Serpent and the seed of the woman. Therefore, in the religious sphere, those who are aligned with the woman's seed are commonly persecuted by those who are aligned with the Serpent's. That is a very fascinating thing to observe in real life. And it helps explain the unusually hostile behavior of some of the people who come along and pick on Christians for no apparent reason. The Serpent has no problem at all taking advantage of the inherent evil nature resident in the hearts of his own to provoke them against the righteous; and the worst offenders are oftentimes religious, actually professing a belief in God.

No doubt Cain was very jealous of his kid brother's on-going popularity with God. Poor Abel lost his life just because he was a pious man.

One of the boys involved in the April 20, 1999 Columbine High School shooting incident killed a girl in the cafeteria just because she believed in God. Isn't that amazing? That boy was nothing in the world but a twentieth century Cain with a gun.

There's lots more of the Serpent's seed out there. They may not carry guns, but they're in business, in the stock market, in the police department, in the fire department, at the grocery store, at the mall, at the movies, on the freeways, and at your place of work. They are everywhere: they are everybody, somebody, and nobody— sometimes they are obvious, sometimes they are subtle. Way too many people in America hate God; and they bitterly despise all who are in any way loyal to Him at all; especially loyal to the Bible. This condition exists even in the best of churches (cf. Acts 20:29-30, Jude 1:3-4).

C.L.I.F.F.
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