July 12th 2026 Genesis Ch 3 v 10 - 24
V 12. The woman . .. gave me of the tree, and I ate. God's questions were direct and unusually specific.
Instead of making full confession and pleading for mercy, Adam and Eve began to offer excuses and pass the responsibility on to another. The man somewhat recklessly threw a part of the blame back on God ¬whom thou gavest ... me.
V 13. The woman, refusing to take responsibility, cast it all on the serpent. The serpent had no way of passing it on.
Beguile This conveys the idea of deception (cf. Paul's use of this concept in 2 Cor 11v 3; 1 Tim 2 v 14).
V 14. Cursed art thou. The Lord singled out the originator and instigator of the temptation for special condemnation and ruin. From that moment he must crawl in the dust and even feed on it.
He would slither his way along in disgrace, and hatred would be directed against him from all directions.
Man would always regard him as a symbol of the deprivation of the one who had slandered God ( Isa 65 v 25). He was to represent not merely the serpent race, but the power of the evil kingdom.
As long as life continued, men would hate him and seek to destroy him.
V 15. I will put enmity. This denotes the blood-feud that runs deepest in the heart of man (Num 35 v 19,20; Ezk 25 v 15-17; 35 v 5,6).
Thou shalt bruise A prophecy of a continuing struggle between the descendants of woman and of the serpent to destroy each other.
When translated crush, it seems appropriate to the reference concerning the head of the serpent, but not quite so accurate in describing the attack of the serpent on man's heel.
It is also rendered lie in wait for, aim at, or (LXX) watch for.
So we have in this famous passage, called the “protoevangelium”, "first gospel," the announcement of a prolonged struggle, perpetual hatred, wounds on both sides.
And eventual victory for the seed of woman.
God's promise that the head of the serpent was to be crushed pointed forward to the coming of Messiah and guaranteed victory.
This assurance fell upon the ear of God's earliest creatures as a blessed hope of redemption.
V 16 .. Unto the woman he said. For the woman, God predicted subjection to the man, and suffering.
Pregnancy and childbirth would be attended by pain.
The word 'asvon pictures both mental and physical pain. Eve would realize her womanly longings and desires but not without agony. In other words, as wife and mother, she was to be subject to the discipline of Jehovah. Woman's love and man’s lordship are both presented in the vivid description.
We cannot fully understand the nature of such judgments of the Lord.
V 17. Unto Adam he said. Physical hardship, painful toil, disappointing annoyances, and hard struggle were appointed as the lot of the man, who was definitely pronounced a guilty sinner. Formerly the earth had yielded its produce easily and freely to man, in great abundance. Adam had only to "dress" the garden (2 v 15) in order to enjoy its luscious fruits. But now God pronounced a special curse on the ground. From now on it would yield its grains and fruits reluctantly.
Man would have to work hard cultivating the soil to make it produce life's necessities. And he would have to wrestle with troublesome thorns and weeds not previously in evidence. Drudgery, difficulties and weariness would be his daily lot.' For Adam, as well as for Eve, sin exacted a heavy toll.
V 20. Eve All life originated with the first woman. She was the mother of each person and, therefore, the mother of each clan and people. In accordance with the divine purpose, life must go on even though the pronouncement of death had been spoken – unto the dust thou shalt return (v. 19).
V 22-24a. So He drove out the man. A necessary and merciful act. The Lord could not allow rebellious man access to the tree of life. With loving care He kept Adam and Eve away from the fruit that would make them immortal and so continue the terrible condition into which sin had brought them.
From the lovely garden he drove them out into an unfriendly wilderness.
V 24b. Cherubims, and a flaming sword. The Hebrew interpreter, Rashi, claimed that these instruments were "angels of destruction,"designed to destroy one who sought entrance.
Hebrew (kerubim) indicates divinely formed figures that serve as bearers of the deity or as special guardians of sacred things.
In one instance they are shown upholding the throne on which God sits. In another, they are used to describe the dread un-approachability of Jehovah. In general, their function seems to be to guard the sacred habitation of God from encroachment or defilement.
The tree of life was perfectly safe with the cherubim standing guard at the gate.
And sinful man was safe from the harm that could have come to him had he not had the majestic protector.
V 24e. The flame of a whirling sword (mithhapeket). The way back into Eden was guarded not only by the cherubim but also by a revolving sword like flame. This gave further assurance that man would not make his way to the tree of life. Though man's paradise was closed to him because he had become a sinner, Jehovah did not forget His creatures. He had already made provision for their triumphant return.
Before the ban from the garden the promise of a Saviour was made
News from the Church
New dates
12th July……Gift Day
15th July …. Knit and natter is a time to finish old projects or learn new skills
if you just want to talk well that’s OK too
5th August..…..Friendship Group, (this covers all ages and the lonely people)
ANSWERS TO 5TH July QUESTIONS
1) People who deceived Joshua 2) Joshua prayed for it 3) Achsah 4) Ephraim and Manasseh 5) No
6) The Ark of the Lord was there for a few years 7) 110 yrs old 8) Samuel 9) It is the account of history by people called Judges 10) 350 yrs 11) The king of Bezek who had both thumbs and both big toes cut off 12) 13 in the book plus Eli and Samuel 13) Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Barak, Gideon, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson, Eli, Samuel. 14) He killed Eglon king of Moab 15) He slew 600 Philistines with an Ox goad 16) A captain of theCanaanites killed by Jael with a tent peg
Bible Quiz this week’s Quiz is about Judges
1 Who was Deborah?
2 Who was Barak?
3 What is Gideon best know for?
4 How many sons did Gideon have?
5 Who was Abimelech?
6 What kings skull was fractured by a stone thrown by a woman?
7 What was Jephthah’s vow?
8 Who was the first to meet him?
9 What was the password for the Gileadites?
10 Who was Samson’s father?
11 What was Samson’s riddle?
12 What was the answer to Samson’s riddle?
13 Was Delilah Samson’s wife?
14 What was special about Samson?
15 Was Samson always strong?
16 What did the Philistines do to Samson?
God Bless