Genesis 3:1-6
1Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
That the serpent is Satan is without dispute, but it is intriguing that the whole text never identifies him as Satan. Verse 1 just says the serpent was more crafty than the other beasts that God had made. Revelation 12:9 calls Satan “the great dragon…that ancient serpent who is called the devil and Satan…” This is no doubt a reference to the serpent in the garden. But why does the original account not identify the serpent as Satan? We are not told. Perhaps because it is so abundantly obvious. The account as written simply describes what was obvious to the senses. A snake spoke to Eve and a conversation ensued. It is Satan in the snake.
Human beings have not progressed in spiritual character since our first parents fell. In fact, since the fall, we are exactly like them. Satan convinces Adam and Eve that God is too restrictive, that God lied to them, that the prohibition restricts their freedom and is not for their good. The prohibition was for their good as is every commandment of God ever since.
God has nothing but our good at His heart and we balk at His ways to our damage and possibly to our everlasting ruin. God knows best and He gives us no command of restriction or license that is not ultimately for His glory and our good. Obedience is always good for us, no matter what the temporal consequences may be. But we think we know better.
People still believe the lie that God has lied to us and that since something looks good, tastes good and attracts us then God is being unfair, or is afraid of us or doesn’t understand our situation. Once we start reasoning like this it is inevitable that we are going to sin.
Today, be alert to the fact that the attractiveness of sin is always a lie. To believe it is to be a dupe of a liar, a loser, and the supreme hater of your soul. He is the supreme scam artist. Don’t be a fool by buying into the lie.
More on this incredibly instructive and important chapter in the days ahead.
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