Genesis 3: The Fall
Part 5: "The devil made me do it!"
Previous essays on Genesis 3:
He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me some of the fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
The blame game. Or better, the lame game:
“The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me some of the fruit of the tree, and I ate.”
Nice. A twofer. Blame your wife (of course). And blame God for giving her to you.
It’s not my fault for eating the fruit. Yeah, if You hadn’t taken one of my ribs to create her. If You hadn’t given her to me so I wouldn’t be alone. As a helper, companion, lover, mother to my children yet to be. And You know how she is, always tempting me with fruit I shouldn’t be eating. Women! Can’t trust ‘em as far as you can throw ‘em.
Geez, God, I knew you hated me!
Not a word of repentance. No regret. No “forgive me”, for deliberately violating His command.
Not one word of accountability.
Sound familiar? Sound just a little like the last time you deliberately chose your way vs. God’s will? Maybe not the rib part, of course — unless those barbecue ribs aren’t on your diet. Like when you blamed the person you hurt because they “deserved it?” Cheated on your taxes because Trump, or liberals, or DEI, or corrupt politicians, or whatever. When you’re angry with God because He won’t give you what you want, or you’re having a lot of pain you yourself caused, or He hasn’t answered your selfish prayers immediately.
Right. That Adam, what a loser. And look at all the problems he caused us!
Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Aahh, but the ladies! They always know better, the voice of reason, compassion wisdom. Men! Just like them to screw up, never follow my advice (Oops…). Adam even told me we couldn’t afford that new piece of furniture! Isn’t it beautiful?
And of course, she had an excuse:
The Devil made me do it!
Isn’t that sin in a nutshell? Choosing what we want, telling God what we have to have, praying for what we demand or lust after, and being pissed off when we don’t get it? Ignoring His loving guidance, then justifying our disobedience? Even blaming Satan when we believe his lies? Acting, you know, like little gods?
Some things never change.
Yet God gives us the grace, the power to resist sin and temptation, the willingness to trust Him, to be grateful for His unspeakable goodness and blessings for us.
And most of all, He gave us His Son.
To bear the consequences of our sin. To heal the ruptured relationship. To restore the friendship we destroyed.
In Him is the power to live in obedience, in righteousness, in humility, in His love. In Him is forgiveness for our sin, as we seek, stumbling and failing, to follow Him. In Him is His infinite love for us, beyond our feeble understanding. All available, if we just admit our sinfulness, and ask for reconciliation.
We can, of course, reject His offer of love and forgiveness. We can continue our lives as little gods, making our own rules, living as if there’s no consequences to our decisions, thoughts, and behavior. We can justify ourselves because “there is no God.”
It’s our choice. There’s always another apple out there to consume. We have free will.
We need only use it wisely.
Next: Curses & consequences
“The devil deceived me and I ate” is a confession. A description of what happened.
“The woman who YOU gave me” = complete lack of accountability. Immediate blame game from someone that just described this same woman as “bone of my bone.”