Today I read Genesis 3 about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The story about this tree is one I have heard many times over the years. Today I considered the long-term consequences to the serpent, the woman, and the man.
The Serpent’s Subtle Lie
The serpent knew what he was doing when he lied to Eve. The lie was a partial lie thus more believable because of the truth within the lie. Yes, Eve and Adam gained knowledge with the eating of the fruit but their days became numbered. Death would eventually come to them. God cursed the serpent above all cattle for his actions. The serpent now must always be faced with eating dust every single day.
The Woman’s Misplaced Trust
The woman listened to an outside source instead of man and took the serpent’s advice to eat the forbidden beautiful fruit. Let’s consider God’s punishment of woman to multiply her sorrow and multiply her conception. Women usually face the possibility of pregnancy every month, while the majority of animals only get pregnant during a specific time of year. If women prior to this only faced possible pregnancy once, twice or three times a year like penguins, dogs, and elephants, this was a significant increase in conception. Also, many mammals can pause their pregnancies for days even up to 11 months, which many women might appreciate being able to do.
The Man Complied
The man took the provided forbidden beautiful fruit and disobeyed God’s instruction. God chose to curse the ground for man’s sake, but did not curse man. Men have had to work harder to plant seeds and to harvest all their days. If before this the earth was always receptive to seed, no thorns grew from the ground, and the earth would just release potatoes, carrots and other produce when it was ripe with a slight tug, life would be so much easier on everyone.
Questions and Thoughts for Today
God punished all three but did not curse man or woman. God did curse the serpent.
Who do you believe received the worse punishment?