Where Are You, Adam?
Genesis 3:6-7, “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.”
Rephrased, “Upon seeing how appetizing and attractive the tree was, the woman couldn’t resist taking some fruit from it and immediately eating it. She also offered some to her husband and he obliged. Suddenly, both realized that they were without clothes. Subsequently, in order to hide their bodies, they stitched together leaves from a fig tree to make protective clothing.”
Adam and Eve were both created in a perfect world, where they could talk to God directly. But unfortunately, because of their indulgence in the forbidden fruit, their eyes opened, and an awareness of evil resulted in shame and fear. For the first time they felt embarrassed, ashamed and afraid when they realized they were naked. And even though they no longer felt close to God, He still called out to them asking “Where are you?” Adam replied, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
Genesis 3:8-9, “And they heard a sound, the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
Rephrased, “Later on, they heard a sound it was the Lord God walking in the garden in the afternoon and Adam and Eve were so scared that they hid amongst the trees of the garden to avoid His presence. God’s voice boomed through the garden and asked Adam, “Where might you be?”
Adam and Eve’s disobedience brought spiritual death upon them as well as physical death for all mankind. The serpent who deceived them was cursed by God for his actions. In this story, we can see how our wrong choices can affect us both spiritually and physically even if we are not aware of the consequences at the time.
Adam and Eve were cursed to die after they ate the forbidden fruit, which opened their eyes and made them realize their nakedness. Feeling embarrassed, they suddenly realized that they didn’t know each other, and their questions for God cascaded out – Who are You? What is wrong with us?
This age-old story speaks to the spiritual death that has taken root in humankind since its fall from grace. The Serpent cunningly tempted them with a promise of becoming like gods, and thus pride crept in while shame dispersed.
We as humans still feel ashamed by our sinful past as well as embarrassed by our brokenness that separates us from a loving Creator. Asking God who He is and why He let this happen serves both an attempt at understanding His character and at getting closure on what we brought upon ourselves.
Genesis 3:10-13, “So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” And He said, “who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Rephrased, “Thus, he declared, “I heard You speak in the garden, and I was scared because I was not wearing any clothes; that’s why I hid.” God asked Adam and Eve, “Why do you think you are without clothes?” Did you consume anything from the tree which I explicitly prohibited you from doing?”
The man then declared, “You gave me this woman and she provided me with something from the tree, after which I ate it.” God asked the woman in astonishment, “What have you done?” The woman admitted that she had been tricked by the serpent and consumed the forbidden fruit.
Adam and Eve’s decision to eat the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden changed their lives forever. When God called upon them, they felt naked, ashamed and afraid as a direct result of their actions – they didn’t understand what was wrong with them. They realized that they had sinned and were now spiritually dead, sacred by the serpent’s cursed words.
As they stepped away from their comfort zone and opened their eyes to a new reality, it became clear that being obedient to God was far more rewarding than it had once seemed. It was at this moment when God revealed Himself as the Creator who loved Adam and Eve despite their mistakes. He held out His hand as an act of grace for them to rely on for redemption from mortality sins against Him.
Genesis 3:14-15, “So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust All the days of your life. And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
Rephrased, “In retaliation to the serpent’s actions, the Lord God commanded it to “go on its belly and eat dust” for all its life as punishment. This punishment was more severe than any other creature had ever been given before. The prediction is that a conflict will exist between the serpent and a woman, and that their offspring will be in competition with each other until the arrival of the Messiah. The Savior shall be rejected and killed but will rise from the dead in victory. This fulfilled what was said by the prophets – He would suffer yet remain victorious.”
