“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. - Genesis 3:4-6
James Boyd
The subtlety of temptation
In order to understand the subtlety of temptation, let us first examine the tempter in the Garden of Eden. In the Bible, serpents are depicted as a paradoxical combination of wisdom and evil-beautiful yet repulsive. They have a fluid grace if viewed from a safe distance, but they are to be feared because they strike from hiding places and strike without warning. God’s curse on serpents covers what they symbolize to Man, which we can see when the verse is correctly translated. “More than” in Genesis 3:14 has the sense of “apart from,” meaning that God sets the serpent apart from cattle or beasts to represent the Devil, the basic cause and originator of sin.
Space in this article will not allow room for a long discussion on the “why” of the Garden episode that led to Man’s fall from God’s grace and eviction from the Garden. Suffice it to say that Man succumbed to the wiles of the Devil (serpent) and thus became estranged from his Maker.
Isaiah 14 gives us a look at the origin of evil on earth. 1 Peter 5:8 warns us of the work on earth of the fallen angel. “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the Devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
Systematically let us examine the method of the serpent in the Garden. Genesis 3:1 (NIV) says that he was “crafty”. I like to think of him as a designing diplomat. Certainly, to woo Eve, he used a very diplomatic approach. In contemporary terminology, he was the ultimate apple polisher.
He began by raising questions in Eve’s mind. “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the Garden?’” The Devil raised questions in Eve’s mind about the moral instructions that God had given her. Perhaps she had already given some thought to the beautiful but forbidden tree in the midst of the Garden. She was ripe for the Devil’s crafty advance.
Eve related God’s instructions concerning the forbidden tree. The serpent counters, ever so tactfully, with “You will not surely die for God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” This was cunningly crafted to launch Eve on an ego trip.
This charm to lure people into forbidden territory began in the Garden. “...You will be like God, knowing good and evil.” In other words, you will have knowledge, power and influence over people. You will be “in”. You will be a member of the “club”.
The serpent’s diplomacy hit home. She looked at that beautiful tree and considered its attributes. It was good for food, pleasing to look upon and desirable for gaining wisdom. With all this “good life” available, she took some “fruit” and ate it and gave some to her husband and he ate it. Remember, our sin always brings others down with us.
The Devil’s exploitation of worldliness as “the good life” is still his major scheme of temptation today. Everyone at some point questions the moral order. “Maybe the Bible doesn’t really mean what it says,” they reason. “After all look at all the good things taking place out there in the world. Why can’t I just “sample” it and see how it feels to be “in the groove?”
And so, the subtlety of temptation is in “our” garden. The drug addict experimented with his first “fix”. The alcoholic took his first drink. The prostitute did her first “job”, ad infinitum. Moreover, God’s moral law was violated; consequently, virtue was lost forever and someone was separated from God.
The Devil is alive and well on planet earth. Evil is a very present reality that one has only to look at the trouble in the world and all the shattered lives to verify. And it all began with the best of intentions and “meaning no harm”.
Dear Lord, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil for Yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Space in this article will not allow room for a long discussion on the “why” of the Garden episode that led to Man’s fall from God’s grace and eviction from the Garden. Suffice it to say that Man succumbed to the wiles of the Devil (serpent) and thus became estranged from his Maker.
Isaiah 14 gives us a look at the origin of evil on earth. 1 Peter 5:8 warns us of the work on earth of the fallen angel. “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the Devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
Systematically let us examine the method of the serpent in the Garden. Genesis 3:1 (NIV) says that he was “crafty”. I like to think of him as a designing diplomat. Certainly, to woo Eve, he used a very diplomatic approach. In contemporary terminology, he was the ultimate apple polisher.
He began by raising questions in Eve’s mind. “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the Garden?’” The Devil raised questions in Eve’s mind about the moral instructions that God had given her. Perhaps she had already given some thought to the beautiful but forbidden tree in the midst of the Garden. She was ripe for the Devil’s crafty advance.
Eve related God’s instructions concerning the forbidden tree. The serpent counters, ever so tactfully, with “You will not surely die for God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” This was cunningly crafted to launch Eve on an ego trip.
This charm to lure people into forbidden territory began in the Garden. “...You will be like God, knowing good and evil.” In other words, you will have knowledge, power and influence over people. You will be “in”. You will be a member of the “club”.
The serpent’s diplomacy hit home. She looked at that beautiful tree and considered its attributes. It was good for food, pleasing to look upon and desirable for gaining wisdom. With all this “good life” available, she took some “fruit” and ate it and gave some to her husband and he ate it. Remember, our sin always brings others down with us.
The Devil’s exploitation of worldliness as “the good life” is still his major scheme of temptation today. Everyone at some point questions the moral order. “Maybe the Bible doesn’t really mean what it says,” they reason. “After all look at all the good things taking place out there in the world. Why can’t I just “sample” it and see how it feels to be “in the groove?”
And so, the subtlety of temptation is in “our” garden. The drug addict experimented with his first “fix”. The alcoholic took his first drink. The prostitute did her first “job”, ad infinitum. Moreover, God’s moral law was violated; consequently, virtue was lost forever and someone was separated from God.
The Devil is alive and well on planet earth. Evil is a very present reality that one has only to look at the trouble in the world and all the shattered lives to verify. And it all began with the best of intentions and “meaning no harm”.
Dear Lord, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil for Yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
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