Home / OT / Genesis / Chapter 3
THE FIRST BOOK OF MOSES CALLED
GENESIS
CHAPTER 3
The Serpent (Lucifer) deceives Eve—She and then Adam partake of the forbidden fruit—Her Seed (Christ) shall bruise the Serpent’s head—Role of woman, and of man—Adam and Eve cast out of the Garden of Eden—Adam presides—Eve becomes the mother of all living.
1 NOW the serpent [ In the Ancient Near East a serpent is a figure of great power. In Mesoamerica as well, the idea of a quetzalcoatl this sort of flying serpent. And then you get it in Moses, he's lifting the Serpent. So the serpent has parity of death but then the Serpent's venom also acts as an antidote for death and gives life. And so almost a god-like power that the Serpent has. It's intriguing that in 2nd Nephi 9:9 it says, "Satan beguiled our first parents who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light." So that may imply that Satan is showing up in a way that it looks like he can be trusted. So the Serpent is tricky. In ancient symbolism, snakes have been used both to represent these positive, very positive, and also very negative characteristics. They’re creatures of the ground they are the opposite of birds who can fly(which are often used symbolically to represent gods or celestial beings or angels, those who have the ability to ascend to the heights) a snake who has no wings. It’s permanently relegated to the dusty floor of the earth. And that is making a point about its lack of ability to ascend. Snakes, they lurk in dark places and hide in rocks. Their motions are subtle, and sly, and stealthy. And a lot of them, their skins match their environment, so they can camouflage kind of who they really are inside. And if you’re not alert or watching all the time, you’re at risk of being stung by their venomous bite. And just the word slither itself kind of gives me the creeps. Their motions are subtle and smooth, but, in an instant, they can strike with unmatched speed and punch their fangs into your skin. And, in my humble opinion, they’re kind of hideous. They’re ugly and scaly. There’s (to me) there’s no natural beauty to them. Snakes are cunning with their motions and their behaviors. Sometimes it’s really difficult to decipher if this is a friendly snake or a deadly snake and their behaviors can deceive us. And their venomous bite can be extremely harmful, even lead to death. Because of that harm, then there’s also this great fear attached to them. This is one of the reasons why they’re using snakes to convey this demonic entity. ] was more subtil [ Deceitful; treacherous or cunning. ] than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he [ The serpent or Satan. ] said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? [ Unfortunately, this translation is ambiguous. Is the serpent saying that God said not to eat from any of the trees of the garden? Modern translations render this as “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’ The premise of this question is absolutely false, and Satan’s motivation in asking it of Eve is to undermine her assurance that God has her best interests at heart. ]
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, [ The serpent is deprived of its arms and legs symbolizing that it will never be able to rise in full power and might again and its vulnerable head is made easy prey for the foot of man. ] We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: [ Eve responds clearly and to the point, the truth is that they have their agency to eat from any tree. She also realizes that in doing so a particular tree may bring with it consequences. For further detail on choice we can alway refer to 2 Nephi 2. ]
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, [ Hebrew "betok" of the garden (Gen 2:9), and this is the precise term for the living presence of God “in the midst” (betok) of his people in the sanctuary (Exod 25:8; Lev 26:12) and refers to the absolute center. “The precise term for the living presence of God “in the midst” or betok of his people in the sanctuary, such that the Tabernacle of Moses, and the Temple of Solomon, the Ark was placed in the exact center on the Holy of Holies. Symbolizing that God is the center of all things. Elder McConkie said, "Well, I don't know if there was actually a fruit. The fruit's probably figurative." Then you think, whoa, what is the fruit? I don't know and maybe there was a fruit but the fruit isn't necessarily the point. What's the message that's there? "They partook of the fruit or at least complied with whatever laws were necessary to bring about a change in their bodies." Note where the tree is planted. It is not planted on the edge of the garden, it is not hidden deep withing the garden, but in the midst of the garden - suggesting in the middle, in plain sight. The Lord had his choice of where to place it certainly. So why place it there? I suppose there is a great deal we can learn about our experience here on earth from a review of it's placement. Lehi taught there there must needs be opposition in all things... 2 Ne. 2:11 So it is that agency, choice is fundamental in our ability to overcome to grow, to become like him. ] God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. [ Adam added the not even touch it - the original command from God was to not eat of it. Adam strengthens the commandment by suggesting that they do not even touch it - if they do not touch then they will for sure not eat of it. Apparently, he was trying to put a fence around the law, thinking that if she did not touch the tree, she would not eat the fruit. Adam must have assumed that if the fruit would be deadly to him, it would have the same effect upon Eve. It must have seemed logical to him to warn her of its danger. Here, biblical scholar Shira Halevi alleges that Adam made two mistakes. First, he had no business adding to what God had told him, and second, he had no business passing this commandment on to Eve. It wasn’t meant for her. She asserts, “It was no sin for her [Eve] to take this fruit for God did not command her not to eat it.” ]
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: [ Satan's only lie; as they were told in Moses 3:17; Gen 3:3; "in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" The Armenian Apocrypha adds an interesting element to this verse. Verse 4 reads, “The serpent spoke with Eve: ‘(That is) not so! God was a man like you. When he ate of the fruit of his tree he became God of all. Because of that God said to you not to eat, lest you become an equal God.’ The serpent has been speaking to Eve, but he uses plural pronouns in addressing her about being “as gods.” In an English translation, this is not apparent. He says “Ye (plural, man and woman) shall be as gods.” I wonder how she thought that would come to pass. Perhaps she pondered the commandment to “multiply and replenish the earth.” Clark asks, “Did she remember that the first commandment to multiply and replenish had been given to them both, but the second had come only directly to Adam? … Did she see that these two commandments were related? Did she begin to discern why the great gift of posterity had so far not been realized in the garden? Did she deduce that as long as they remained there, they could never keep the first great commandment?” ]
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, [ This is true. So what we have then in the first temptation is that Satan is really trying to get Eve to go against the councils of God, to begin to not believe in God, that God does not always tell you the truth, that he cannot be trusted. The serpent insinuates that God is keeping something good from Eve because he does not want to share his glory as a god. Eve certainly has a lot to think about. She has trusted God implicitly, but this new information causes her to ponder on the tree and its merits. ] and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. [ True see Moses 4:28 ]

6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, [ You see women have been fashion conscience since the beginning since she wanted to choose the solution that was good to look at. Ha ha! so the decision appeared to be better than the alternative. On a more serious note - the words which Eve uses to describe the fruit is along the lines of the words that God has used in describing the process of the creation. See Abr. 1:31; 2:9; ] and a tree to be desired to make one wise, [ Or if you want to be wise you need to eat the fruit there of. Wisdom only comes with the ability to make choices and learn from making good ones and making bad one's Eve's desire was to become like God; she wanted wisdom the knowledge that God has and made a choice to do so. ] she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, [ I suppose that one way to look at this is that both had individual roles. Eve was enticed to move on - she had the desire to leave the comforts of the Garden, to become mortal. Adam was not as sure about it, but he did not want to be alone either as he knew how that felt from Moses 3:20 Remember that they were at the time in the presence of God so they would have been taught by him as well. They made this decision with open minds and knowing the consequences John A Widstoe Evidences and Reconciliations pg 193-194 Why was the serpent successful with Eve instead of Adam? Halevi and Dr. Hudson propose that it is because Adam does not have the right to make that choice. Adam calls his wife “Eve,” which is a derivative of the word for “life.” She is the “mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20). She is the one who would bear the pain and most of the responsibility of childrearing. Eve would “bear the most painful and possibly fatal consequences of mortality. … Adam had neither the right to hold back the means by which [Eve] could conceive life—for such action would be cruel to her natural desires—or to force her to bear children, for such action would unjustly subject her to the physical and emotional pain of bearing and rearing children without her consent.” That is the reason why Adam is commanded not to eat the fruit. It is not his decision to make. Halevi asserts, “He [God] did not command the woman not to eat the fruit, for it was her right to eat or abstain. Adam remained silent because it was [Eve] who had the most to lose from eating the fruit that would make her mortal.” Adam makes the conscious choice to leave the Garden of Eden in order to remain with Eve and to fulfill the commandment given by their Father to people the newly created earth. He unquestionably knows what he is doing in leaving paradise to come into the less friendly “world.” Life outside the Garden of Eden will be fraught with challenges and heartache. His actions foreshadow the Savior’s own actions in “leaving his throne to come to rescue mankind.” ] and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. [ Here's Adam and Eve, and now they've been apart for a few moments and they come back together and Eve is being honest with him says, "I've taken this fruit and now I’ve got to leave the garden." And Adam looks at her , he might feel betrayed, but he now has a really big decision to make. He choose Eve and this moves the story forward. As Adam begins the distressing news that Eve is to be cast out. And instead of forsaking her, chooses death and suffering to save and protect her. He, like Christ, decides that loyalty to the one he’s covenanted to is worth more than eternal comfort. He decides to suffer as a mortal man and experience death instead of abandoning the one he promised to protect. Adam’s choice is exactly the same choice that Christ made. They both chose to leave the presence of God and suffer death and pain for their covenant spouse. So Adam must also choose. Adam loves her and is willing to follow her and says, "I'm coming with you. We're doing this together." Interesting that through Eve all living come forth; and Adam who was created by God became also bound to the law of mortality as it was from the hand of Eve that Adam partook of the fruit. Clark argues that Eve “knew that Adam had been placed in a situation in which he could not, without, Eve’s help, achieve his potential, for the command not to eat the fruit had come only to him. It was up to her to take the step that Adam could not take. Only if she ate first would he have to eat in order to obey the first great command to multiply. She must eat so her husband could become what he had been created to be, the father of the human race. Eve must eat for his sake and for hers, for the sake of their marriage and mankind.” And so, Eve “took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband [who was] with her; and he did eat” (KJV Genesis 3:6b). We sometimes conveniently forget about Adam’s presence during Eve’s conversation with the serpent, although the text clearly states that he was “with her.” As soon as Eve eats the fruit, she and Adam “were now drastically separated,” notes Hugh Nibley, “for they were of different natures.” Eve takes action in her role as an ezer, a rescuer of the race of mankind. She takes the first step necessary to bring mankind into mortality. Now she needs to bring Adam along with her. Nibley describes how she accomplishes this: First she asked Adam if he intended to keep all of God’s commandments. Of course he did! All of them? Naturally! And what, pray, was the first and foremost of those commandments? Was it not to multiply and replenish the earth, the universal commandment given to all God’s creatures? And how could they keep that commandment if they were separated? As a matter of fact one might say that it was only when they were separated in the garden that the trouble really started. It had undeniable priority over the commandment not to eat the fruit. So Adam could only admit that she was right and go along … but it was she who made him see it. This is much more than a smart way of winning her point, however. It is the clear declaration that man and woman were put on the earth to stay together and have a family—that is their first obligation and must supersede everything else. ]

7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; [ The word "naked" here is loaded with a lot of very interesting possibilities. We might say that they were uncovered, unprotected. Unprotected from what? Well first thing is that Adam and Eve had no idea of the protection that they would need outside of the garden. In the garden it was a constant 74 degrees with 40% humidity. There was no hot sun beating down on their skin burning it, there was no hot or cold, just a perfect environment. Spiritually they were protected as well. They could not sin or be tempted to sin because they did not know right from wrong, and most likely satan would not have been allowed directly into the celestial garden as we know that God was there. This is why God will say if they yield to temptation we will provide a Savior for them - not sin but temptation. Why do they (we) just know things? ] and they sewed fig leaves [ Did the fig leaves come from the tree of life or from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, or another tree altogether? Perhaps made from fig leaves of the same tree of which they had unlawfully eaten, or at least they are figurative of that tree. It is interesting that Fig leaves in the Hebrew language are considered synonymous to excuses. So to cover yourself with fig leaves you are covering yourself with excuses. ] together, and made themselves aprons. [ Aprons from the fig leaves. At this point they have come to realize that the tree of life represents God. So it would only make sense that Adam and Eve want to clothing themselves with the tree of life. They’re doing the best that they know to now cloth themselves in God’s armor. ]
8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God [ Heavenly Father. Third instance of God himself talking to man(Adam), direct revelation through speaking to Adam. ] walking in the garden< [ If Gods is walking in the garden should that not be a re-confirmation that he in the form of a man. Duh! It also suggests that the garden is a place on earth where he can walk, dwell(such as a temple) a place where his presence was revealed. ("Hithpa'el of halakh") “walking around” in the Garden is a technical term for God’s presence in the sanctuary (Lev 26:12; 2 Sam 7:6-7, Deuteronomy 23:14) was identical. Also in Gen 3:8, the phrase "lipne Yahweh" “before the Lord” is a technical term indicating a temple setting. ] in the cool of the day: [ God is walking in the garden in the cool of the day, he is with them. I love how casual this is put here. It’s is just Heavenly Father is going for his usual evening stroll in the garden. Think of a father does he want to be with his children? Yes most of the time. So does God. HEB at the wind of the day (i.e., at the time of the evening breeze). ] and Adam and his wife hid themselves [ Evidence that they knew that they had done something wrong - hence the trying to hide it. Notice that from the very beginning we hide when we know we have done something wrong. ] from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. [ So they tried to get lost in the garden so that they could not be found. The first game of hide and seek? ]
9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, [ Fourth instance of God himself talking to man(Adam), direct revelation through speaking to Adam. ] Where art thou? [ I have always wondered why the all knowing God asks where Adam is. I found it hard to imagine that God is just wandering around the garden asking Adam, Adam where the heck are you? Even though he is an all seeing, all knowing God he does not know where Adam is hiding. However when I discovered the word from which the phrase was translated it became more clear what was really being asked. We get yet, another clue to the possible rendering from the previous verse. Note Adam and Eve were not hiding from God, they were hiding from the presence of God. They under the direction of Satan had willfully separated themselves from the presence of God. It was not what they had done in partaking of the fruit that separated them from God, but is was the guilt they had from doing so. God didn’t remove Himself from them, they removed themselves from God. In the Hebrew text the word here is "Akeyah", which this is the only place in which this Hebrew word is used in the bible text to my knowledge. While the word does mean "where art thou", it is more about relationship than physical location. The words carries with it sorrow, longing,a cry for loss, the word that a parent would use when their child is missing. God came again to the garden walking gently, grieving, wondering why his children would feel the need to hide from him. In essence it was another way of saying "I miss you Adam, please come home". God knows exactly where Adam is; but he starts the teaching process by making sure that Adam knows that he knows and will be held accountable. ]
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, [ Do you think that Adam was ever afraid in the garden? Is fear something that came about from the fall? What was he afraid of? ] because I was naked; [ The word for naked in Hebrew is ‘aerom from two possible roots: ‘aram which means naked, act wisely, prudently, cautiously or it could be from the root word ‘eyar which means to be in grief, agony as the agony of death or grief over a death. Why is עֲרוּמִּ֔ים (Gen 2:25) translated "naked," and in the very next verse its singular form, עָר֔וּם (Gen 3:1), is translated "crafty/shrewd?" ] and I hid myself. [ Or they tried to hide their craftiness? ]
11 And he said, [ Fifth instance of God himself talking to man(Adam), direct revelation through speaking to Adam. Note God is still speaking to man after he has been disobedient. ] Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? [ God "knoweth all things" So he knows the answer; but is teaching Adam again "personal accountability" - this accountability comes as a product for the law of agency which was given for man. This is a new thing for Adam; the consequences of his agency. ]
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. [ Well this is something that we learn to try very young - hey I am not to blame my older brother made me do it... ]
13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, [ Sixth instance of God himself talking to man(in this case it is Eve), direct revelation through speaking to Eve. This is just my reading of the text. "Now, Eve, you need to listen. You need to understand that you are a part of this. You need to make decisions as a companionship, you cannot just doing your own thing here. We might ask ourselves what would the response have been if they had together as a companionship asked God in prayer what they should do. How might God have responded to them? ] What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled [ To lead by deception, and I might say while she was alone in the garden. ] me, and I did eat. [ See 2 Ne 2: 22-25. ]

14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, [ The serpent Is deprived of its arms and legs symbolizing that it will never be able to rise in full power and might again and its vulnerable head is made easy prey for the foot of man. The Serpent is fitting symbolism for Satan who is deprived of a mortal body. So he will do anything that he can to try to get as close as he can to that experience by influencing those who have one to be subject to his thoughts; desires and lusts - So that in a way he becomes in control of their bodies. ] Because thou [ Satan. ] hast done this, thou art cursed [ Note who is cursed here it is Satan not Adam or Eve. And the cursing will come in the next verse - “‘I will put enmity between thee “‘and the seed of the woman,’. ] above all cattle, and above every beast  [ ḥayyat, or "chyith" literally, living creature. A reference here to all life, even vegetation. Being more cunning than all life is suggesting that all life has intelligence. ] of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: [ The elements of the world he might breathe in; but he will never have a body; he will never know or experience life - only as dust. ]

[ First mention of an atonement. ]

15 And I [ God - Heavenly Father. ] will put [ Create a gulf between. ] enmity [ The attitude or feelings toward an enemy, hostitility - or deep seated dis-like. ] between thee [ Satan. ] and the woman, [ The Church - why Femine tense? "the woman" because Christ is the head of the church and he is masculine tense, because he (Jesus Christ) is our defender, our provider, and our protector. ] and between thy seed [ Satan's disciples - those that uphold him and sustain Satan, his principles and fulfill his wishes. ] and her seed; [ Her is a pronoun - there has only ever been one woman who has walked the earth that has ever had a child without the help of a mortal man, that woman is Mary and her seed was Christ. Here the conflict is narrowed down from many descendants (or collective “seed” posterity, Heb. zera‘) in the first part of the verse to a masculine singular pronoun later to last part of the verse which references a specific “He” as the one who will fight against the serpent. Elsewhere in Scripture whenever the term “seed” is modified by a singular pronoun, it is a single individual that is in view. Thus here God promises victory centered in a person. “He”—the ultimate representative Seed of the woman, later to be revealed as the Messiah, shall bruise your head, Satan, and you shall bruise his heel. ] it [ Or Hebrew: “He”, meaning Christ. ] shall bruise thy head, [ The effects of the fall - death and then that everyone will be resurrected and then everyone will be brought back to the presence of God. In doing so the work for Satan is crushed by the resurrection and the atonement of Christ. Christ was given the power to bruise the head of Satan. If you were given a choice to bruise the head or bruise the heal which would you suppose would be the most lethal? The head is the most important part of the body, if you destroy the head you destroy the body. Christ has won - atonement is in place and Satan has lost. Christ shall crush the head of the serpent (Satan and his kingdom) with the very heel that was bruised in his atoning sacrifice. ] and thou shalt bruise his heel. [ Satan bruised Christ's heel by getting people to kill Him on the cross. It hurts if you have even been kicked in the shin, or bruised your heel. A bruse to the heel can take a long time to heal. The atonement was a dificult process. There was great pain involved, mental, emotional, physical and spiritual. He suffered pain beyond anything that we can comprehend as mortals. While it might cause terrible pain it is not lethal. And in the process of working out the atonement Christ will gain the power to crush the head of the serpent or Satan and his kingdom. ]
16 Unto the woman he said, [ Seventh instance of God himself talking to man(in this case it is Eve), direct revelation through speaking to Eve. He is speaking to her even though she has been disobedient. At this point the Lord God is preparing to kick Adam and Eve out of the garden. They’ve partaken of the fruit so they can’t stay where God dwells. ] I will greatly multiply [ Hebrew (rabah) - to repeat over and over, to become many. Or give you many years in mortality. When God tells Eve that he will “multiply” her labor when bearing a child, he does not mean he will increase her pain, but that she will bear multiple children. Likewise, Eve will have to labor to bring forth children, that is a given. Who ever brought forth a child without going through labor? (Excepting the emergency Caesarean section, of course.) Labor is work. It doesn’t make you “sorrow”-ful, but you do have to work. That’s what God is saying. Earth life takes work. But it will be good for your character. When God tells Eve that he will “multiply” her labor when bearing a child, he does not mean he will increase her pain, but that she will bear multiple children. She will conceive and labor over and over in bringing forth the children of the earth. This is a good thing. She wants to be the mother of all living. Both Adam and Eve will bring forth life with sweat and tears. ] thy sorrow [ Could be rendered as "toil" not the Hebrew word for pain. It is akin to the curse upon the ground that the Lord placed on it, in that it would struggle to produce substance(which was different from the ground in the garden) verse 17. So for Eve the suggestion is that she will have to work hard through her "pregnancies"(not childbirth). So this verse should more correctly read:"I will greatly increase your toil and pregnancies, [along] with travail shall you beget children". So for Adam both of the lands (the ground as well as his wife the garden) who come forth from toil, both would require much labor to bring them forth. The trails and tribulations of mortality see Moses 5:11 hebrew (atsab) - means labor, toil or pain. In otherwords mothering of children would involve inconvienence, suffering, sorrow, and travails over and over as each child is born and as they go thru life - they are the to be the natural consequences, the trial that shall be had to teach. ] and thy conception; [ The process of becoming pregnant, why because she knows that as she becomes pregant that 1) the process will involve 9 months of carring the baby in her womb 2) The time after the baby is born requires so much - as there is little or no sleep - the stress of childbirth. All of this goes into account as a woman decided it is time to conceive. But because of the choice God will allow many sons and daughters to gain physical bodies because of her unselfishiness. Speaks volumes about the difference between man and women. ] in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; [ Sorrow because she will bear the pain and suffering of childbirth; but also sorrow for the mistakes that each child will make as they learn and grow and exercise their own agency; and some partake of the ills that satan places before them. ] and thy desire shall be to thy husband, [ Highest loyality Moses 3:24; D&C 42:22 In English this comes across as the description of a master and his slave. She will have to fulfill her lord and master’s every desire, and he will rule over her with an iron fist. But the Hebrew does not say this. The word translated as “desire” is from the Hebrew word teshuqah, which has the sense of “stretching out after,” or “a longing.” This is how a woman feels about a man who treats her like a queen. Her heart “longs” for him, and she “stretches out after” trying to please. It does not sound like a woman who is treated as chattel by her husband. God is telling Eve that if she is one with her husband, then he will treat her like royalty. ] and he shall rule over thee. [ "preside and serve as the Savior does" - President Kimball Ensign pg 72 March 1976 the Hebrew conveys a very different meaning. It says “he shall rule bak,” which is the preposition b– attached to the feminine pronoun for “you.” When I learned Hebrew, I was taught that there is a scarcity of prepositions in the Hebrew language. L– attached to the beginning of a word meant “to” or “for,” c– meant “like” or “as,” and b– meant “in,” “with,” or “by.” There is another preposition—al—that stands by itself and means a lot of things, but mostly “upon” or “over.” The preposition b– in this phrase should read, “and he shall rule with you.” Other places in the Bible translate b– before rule as “rule over,” but it is clearly talking about a king and his subjects, or one people ruling over another. Eve will rule over this newly-created world with her husband. God has gone out of his way in this chapter and the ones before it to emphasize how the woman is to be an “equal” to the man—a “power” exactly corresponding to him. Together they are to have “dominion” over the earth and populate it. Eve will rule over this newly-created world with her husband. She will be his ezer—his rescuer, his deliverer, his strength. Elder Bruce Hafen of the Seventy concurs with this interpretation, teaching that the King James translation of Genesis 3:16 (“and he shall rule over thee”) is a mistranslation. In Hafen’s words, “over in ‘rule over’ uses the Hebrew bet, which means ruling with, not ruling over.”[xxxi] Elder L. Tom Perry puts the icing on the cake when he tells us, “there is not a president and a vice president in a family. We have co-presidents working together eternally for the good of their family. … They are on equal footing. They plan and organize the affairs of the family jointly and unanimously as they move forward.” ]
17 And unto Adam he said, [ Notice he is talking to Adam now. Eighth instance of God himself talking to man(Adam), direct revelation through speaking to Adam. ] Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, [ Hebrew "Shema" is translated here as hearkened which means "listened to" and "obeyed". Which was a wise thing to do, but He still choose to follow her instead of God. It was Eve who first transgressed the limits of Eden in order to initiate the conditions of mortality. Her act, whatever its nature, was formally a transgression but eternally a glorious necessity to open the doorway toward eternal life. Adam showed his wisdom by doing the same. And thus Eve and “Adam fell that men might be” (2 Ne. 2:25). some Christians condemn Eve for her act, concluding that she and her daughters are somehow flawed by it. Not the Latter-day Saints! ( Elder Dallin H. Oaks Nov. 1993 “The Great Plan of Happiness”) Informed by revelation, we celebrate Eve’s act and honor her wisdom and courage in the great episode called the Fall (see Bruce R. McConkie, “Eve and the Fall,” Woman, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1979, pp. 67–68). Joseph Smith taught that it was not a “sin,” because God had decreed it (see The Words of Joseph Smith, ed. Andrew F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook, Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1980, p. 63). Brigham Young declared, “We should never blame Mother Eve, not the least” (in Journal of Discourses, 13:145). Elder Joseph Fielding Smith said: “I never speak of the part Eve took in this fall as a sin, nor do I accuse Adam of a sin. … This was a transgression of the law, but not a sin … for it was something that Adam and Eve had to do!” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols., Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954–56, 1:114–15). This is why God will say if they yield to temptation we will provide a Savior for them - not sin but temptation. ] and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: [ Unless you want to become mortal and get kicked out of the garden of eden. ] cursed is the ground for thy sake; [ Notice that the curse was placed on the ground not on Adam, this was not as curse for Adam but a blessing for him. (President Marion G Romney 1976 Oct Conference) The Lord curses the ground so that Adam will have to work; that the journey will not be easy; hence he will have trails; learn and grow. If it was all easy Adam would by default become complaicent and lazy; never grow and therefore not be able to become like God. Also the curse was not placed on the Garden of Eden but on the ground outside of the garden. So the area outside of God's temple here is not very hospitable. ] in sorrow [ The trails and tribulations of mortality see Moses 5:11. Could be rendered as "toil" not the Hebrew word for pain. So the curse upon the ground is that it will struggle to produce substance(which was different from the ground in the garden). This word which should most likely be translated as "toil" is the same word that was given to Eve in verse 16 regarding "pregnancies". ] shalt thou eat of it [ The cursing. ] all the days of thy life; [ So Eve has to labor to bring forth children, while her life is to be preserved...on the other hand Adam's labor to quicken the earth so that it will bring forth fruit to eat may not be as severe but it is certainly more protracted...it lasts ALL THE DAYS OF HIS LIFE. ]
18 Thorns also and thistles [ Symbolic of all of the difficulties known to torment and try man in this life. Halevi offers an alternate reading of Genesis 3:18. Masoretic Reading Thorns and thistles will she (the earth) sprout for you and you will eat grain of the plowed field Alternate Reading Awake! Arise! Generation upon generation will she (Eve) spring for you and you will enjoy the yield of her breast.[xxvi] Halevi defends her translation: “This partnership consists of three parts: two readings of 3:18 and 3:20. Verse 20 is the strongest evidence that a double reading of 3:18 is not only feasible, but indispensable. … Without the double reading, 3:20 makes no sense whatsoever. … God informs Adam that he will live a miserable life and then die. Immediately after that grim pronouncement, Adam jumps for joy and calls his wife ‘Life’ because ‘she was Mother to all living.’” Halevi contends that such a reaction on Adam’s part would be impossible to understand without the meaning supplied by this alternate translation. It would be a non sequitur that would make no sense whatsoever. The reader can easily discern the causal link between Adam’s exclamation of praise and the promise made to him that Eve will bear him generations of posterity.[xxvii] This passage has a familiar feel to it. It brings to mind the Abrahamic Covenant, with its “promise of a multitude of seed and the subsequent renaming of Sarah as the mother of nations,” Halevi notes. “Acknowledging the source of a patriarch’s greatness, namely his queenly companion, his life-giver, Havah [Eve] and Adam, like Sarah and Abraham, would achieve greatness together as a couple, through the painful toil of mortality and the life-nurturing task of begetting and rearing children.”[xxviii] If we step back and look at the history of the world, God has always depended on a righteous couple to pass along the covenant. He started with Adam and Eve, then again with Noah and his wife. Abraham would not have been the man he was without his righteous Sarah, and passing on the covenantal power follows with their son Isaac and grandson Jacob, who seek wives who understand the covenant and value it. They know that worthy women are essential to the passing along of the covenant. Sherrie Johnson provides some exciting insights into the naming of Eve. She points out that “Adam called Eve the mother of all living (not just the mother of mankind, but the mother of all living) before she ever had children.” At the time he names her the mother of all living, the only living beings besides the two of them are animals. “By partaking of the forbidden fruit, Eve initiated the change from an immortal Edenic state to the mortal state we now call life. Perhaps the name ‘mother of all living’ has reference to this ‘birth’ process.” Johnson notes that we learn much from what Adam names Eve, but what Adam does not name Eve is also significant. “He does not name her anything to do with himself. He does not name her ‘my help meet’ or ‘my servant’ or ‘the mother of my children.’ The choice of name indicates that Eve was recognized as a separate individual with a mission and talents and their oneness would come about by adding to each other.” ] shall it [ The earth. ] bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb [ Produce. ] of the field;
19  In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, [ Adam, Eve you are going to have to work in the state that you are in now; this state called mortality. Every thing that you needed was just there in the garden, that law is done away with and you will abide the law of the harvest. You will need to sow if you want to reap, it will require extra effort on your part, but that is how it will be going forward. This might seem like a simple thing that God is teaching them here; but is this not what got Cain in trouble? Satan taught Cain that he could murder and get gain, that he could take by force something that was not his, and here God is teaching the exact opposite. Just a thought. See Moses 5:31. This is a principle that we need to remember. This was direct instruction from God to Adam and Eve - it was you need to learn to work for what you receive. You do not get something for nothing. This is principle that when disobeyed will bring destruction to societies and individuals. Here it is in bold letters at the beginning of time. ] till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: [ You were taken from the elements of the earth. ] for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. [ See vs 10; Moses 3:17 This is the lie that Satan told - he said they would not die here the Lord explains that they will return to the dust, to die, to break down and go back to the very elements from which he was created. vs23 "to be taken ‘from the dust’ means to be elevated from obscurity to royal office and to return to dust means to be deprived of that office and returned to obscurity". Furthermore, Brueggemann notes that the imagery of being taken from the dust is heavily reliant on a covenant with a deity in the ancient Near Eastern world. So, when the king is taken from the dust, he is “accepted as a covenant-partner and treated graciously; to return to the dust means to lose that covenantal relation.” In other words, “to be ‘from dust’ is to enter covenant and to return ‘to dust’ is to have the covenant voided.” (Walter Brueggemann, “From Dust to Kingship,” Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 84, no. 1 (1972): 2.) ]
20 And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; [ What has the word Eve to do with being the mother of all living? Our translators often follow the Septuagint; it is a pity they had not done so here, as the Septuagint translation is literal and correct: kai ekalesen adam to onoma thv gunaikov autou zwh, oti mhthr pantwn twn zwntwn "And Adam called his wife's name Life, because she was the mother of all the living." This is a proper and faithful representation of the Hebrew text, for the hwj Chavvah of the original, which we have corrupted into Eve, a word destitute of all meaning, answers exactly to the zwh of the Septuagint, both signifying life; as does also the Hebrew yj chai to the Greek zwntwn, both of which signify the living. ]  because she was the mother of all living. [ Remember that one of Adams first responsibilities was to name all of the animals; (Moses 3:20) here is the reason why he called her Eve. ]
21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, [ So this is where a really loving father steps in. He knows that Adam and Eve are going forward to battle for their very lives(mortal and eternal) so he gives them some armor and a promised if they will wear the armor. The promise is that the devourer will not be able to take their lives until they have finished "THEIR" work on the earth. Additionally the skin is a FAFAR, a covering meaning atonement a way for them to always remember that no matter what may happen God has provided a way for them to be able to return to him again. Now they would not have comprehend all of this in the garden as they did not have the gospel at this point which we will see later when they where taught by the three wise ones. It is such a tender moment to me that God provided for Adam and Eve who don’t have any protection at the time, they don't even have a clue as to what they are in for. Here they will need a special armor if they stand a chance to be victoriously and beat the evil serpent(one who has been working on his craft, one who is so determined to slay them as he said from the beginning when he was a member of the council in heaven and was removed) the one who will tempt them and try them in mortality. In this section of the text, Adam and Eve have already succumbed to the deception of the serpent lurking in the garden and they’ve partaken of the fruit. As soon as they do this, as soon as they partake of the fruit, the text says their eyes were opened and they quote, "knew they were naked." They recognized that they were no longer protected. At this point in the text, we get this really interesting interaction between Adam and Eve and God. No one told them; they knew. Going forward there are some things that God needs to tell them and some things that they just know. Remember that they are still in the garden, they have not been introduced to the pain and suffering of the outside world yet. It is significant that God used an animal skin to clothe Adam and Eve. To acquire the skin, an animal would have had to be slain, and perhaps the animal was slaughtered as part of a sacrificial ceremony. It was in that setting that the Lord taught Adam and Eve about the reality of sacrifice. That in order to properly clothe, provide then with real protection that they would need they would need something more substancial that fig leaves which would quickly breakdown and deteriorate, they needed something durable, something that was lasting, and for that someone or something would need to give it's life to provide that for them. (implied atonement(KAFAR) even though at the time they did not understand it). These coats are of divine origin. They are gifts that God gives Adam and Eve. So in the garden God has given them a gift(Merriam-Webster definition of gift it’s a notable capacity, talent, or endowment). While wearing these coats, Adam and Eve are no longer unprotected. They are no longer naked. All of this is steeped in symbolism. The ancients are teaching us about the nature of spiritual things. These accounts are talking about spiritual warfare, the battle that you and I must face if we’re to make it Is it possible that God himself performed the sacrifice to teach them? And do we know what type of animal was sacrificed? If God did not perform the sacrifice on behalf of Adam and Eve, who did? And if a lamb (or bullock) were not used for the coats of skin, then what type of skins did Adam and Eve wear? Certainly, they would not have used the skin of a camel or swine or other animal considered to be unclean to the later Israelites. Inasmuch as lambs were slaughtered by the thousands as part of the law of Moses, the skin of a lamb was the logical choice. Conceivably, God sacrificed a lamb, typically pointing forward to the moment when the Lamb of God would be slaughtered as an atoning sacrifice on behalf of all mankind. It is also noteworthy that God himself "clothed" Adam and Eve with the garments. Such personal attention by Deity to the matter of the coats of skins underscores the liturgical import of the garments. Since the first animal sacrifice originated in the garden, God appears to be "concerned himself with the materials" of the garments, something "higher and holier" was intended, some spiritual meaning and purpose for the skins. (Robert S. Candlish, Studies in Genesis (Grand Rapids: Kregal, 1979), 82.) Note who made them; God did. The lexicon for coats is kethoneth, it was an inner garment worn next to the skin. An inner garment worn next to the skin that goes down to the knees, rarely to the ankles, also worn by women." They were covered by this before they were cast out of the garden. Also Ahava is the word for skin and it is more or less homonym with the word [Hebrew 00:28:42]. One starts with an [Hebrew 00:28:43], that's skin, and [Hebrew 00:28:47] starts with an aleph is light. And the biblical authors love doing that with the Hebrew, playing with that Hebrew language. And this idea that he's covering them with garments of light. Why did God not just tell them to go get some leaves and make them on their own? Because he wanted to give them to them as a symbol of his love for them - as a protection for them. It is the last thing that he does for them before the have to leave the garden. ] and clothed them. [ Hebrew "labash" which is causative in conjunction with "them" is critical in that it suggests that God put the clothes on them as opposed to them putting them on themselves, “clothed them with ‘garments/tunic/coats’”, which in Hebrew is also ketonet the very terms used to describe the clothing of the priests- Aaron and his sons- by Moses acting on behalf of God. The combination of God’s “clothing” with “tunics or coats” describes a divine conferral of status. The rare occasions where God clothes humans in the Old Testament always concerned the dressing of priests…Adam and Eve were indeed dressed as priests and priestess. The consistent linkage within the Hebrew Bible of this pair of terms “to clothe”, (lavash), and “tunics or coats”, (kotnot), with the clothing of Israel’s priests who were first clothed in the skins of the sacrificial(the skin of the sin offering) animals (instead of fine linen worn later by the priests), suggests the priestly status of which God wanted Adam and Eve to be outside of the Garden. By bestowing on both Adam and Eve the skins of the sin offering, a gift which was strictly reserved to priests, the Genesis story would strongly suggest that God recognizes Eve as a priestess alongside Adam, and that God wanted them to continue their priestly duties after the fall. To be obedient to do what they were asked to do. One might ask is this the point where God gives Adam and Eve the Patriarchal priesthood? REASONS WHY they need the priesthood.
1) God will marry them in the garden,
2) He will teach them to offer blood sacrifice,
3) In ancient times the skin of the sacrificial animals belonged exclusively to the priests in the Mosaic law (Lev 7:8). “By bestowing on Adam and Eve the skin of the sin offering, a gift strictly reserved to priests, the Genesis story implicitly recognizes Eve as priest alongside Adam.”,
4) We know that Cain and Able were offering sacrifices as well(they were instructed in blood sacrifices). However it is important to note that while they do hold the priesthood they do not understand the gospel until several generations after they leave the garden as when they are offerring sacrifice the angel asks them why the are doing it and they simply say we do not know why other than we were commanded. "The Priesthood was first given to Adam; he obtained the First Presidency, and held the keys of it from generation to generation. He obtained it in the Creation, before the world was formed, as in Genesis 1:26, 27, 28." (Teachings Of The Prophet Joseph Smith pg 157). This could also be rendered as "covered them" - [Hebrew 00:29:31] is the verb, to cover, [Hebrew 00:29:35] is the past participle that is often translated as atonement, covering. We could be covered by Christ or we'd be exposed." I think I'm in Alma 34 when I say that, to the demands of the law. And I can see where the idea of being dressed is protected as being covered by Christ, otherwise we're exposed. How does our clothing make us or mark us? What can we learn about ourselves by the clothes that we wear? Well we can often know who our favorite team is by our shirt, we can get an idea of what we thinkg of our self whether we dress up or dress down. The clothing that we put also frames what we do - if we put on sports clothing we are more adapt to play game and be active than if we are dressed in a suit. so how does the clothing that God puts on Adam and Eve effect their lifes? ]
22 ¶ And the LORD God said, [ Nineth instance of God himself talking to man(Adam), direct revelation through speaking to Adam. ] Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: [ Adam was now on the path of becoming like Heavenly Father; he was now on a path to exercise his agency; to learn and grow. Another rendering of the text from the original could read "And the Lord God said, The man who WAS like one of us in purity and wisdom, is now fallen and robbed of his excellence; he has added t[dl ladaath, to the knowledge of the good, by his transgression the knowledge of the evil".  ] and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: [ see Alma 42:2-5]
23 Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, [ Kicked him out. The word Eden means "luxury" and "delight." Thus Eden connotes a situation of abundance. So Adam leaving Eden would have been a traumatic experience for him maybe more than we think to realize. ] to till the ground from whence he was taken.
24 so he drove out the man; [ For his own good for that was how he learned see vs 22 he could not do that 1) in the presence of God 2) he was no longer worthy to remain in the presence of God. From this point forward revelation would come only with much work. Adam will build an altar and will offer sacrifice for many generations before he hears from God again. Adam to this point conversed with God face to face on a frequent basis, now it would be much less frequent and would come in different forms and at different places. ] and he [ God does this for the protection of Adam and Eve. They need time to learn the gospel, be baptized, learn how to repent, and they need to learn to be obedient and to change their character to become like God, they need the rest of the pieces to be put into place so that they can return again to live with God. ] placed [ The cherubim are “placed” (Hebrew shakan), the same specific Hebrew verb for God’s plan to “dwell” (shakan) among His people in the sanctuary (Exod 25:8), and from the same root as mishkan, the Hebrew word for the Mosaic “tabernacle” (Exod 25:9 plus more than ninety other times in the Pentateuch). ] at the east of the garden of Eden [ The Hebrew for east means "faceward or frontward"; thus, driving Adam from before his face is part of the continuing eastward movement (see Alma 42:2). The East end is the main gate to the garden or at least is the only one mentioned. The ancients believe that the beginning was in the spring(spring soltice) at which time the sun would shine directly through the doors of the ancient temples all the way through. The Tabernacle which Moses was commanded to build required that once a year on Yorn Kippur, the Day of Atonement, Adam's eastward expulsion from the Garden was to be reversed when the high priest was to travel west past the consuming fire of the altars of sacrifice and the purifying water of the laver, through the veil woven with images of two cherubim. Thus, the high priest returns to the original point of creation, where he pours out the atoning blood of the sacrifice upon the mercy seat over the ark of the covenant, reestablishing the covenant relationship with God. ] Cherubims, [ (Heb. "kethubim")—the beings associated with God’s throne in the heavenly sanctuary (Rev 4-5; Ezek 1:10; cf. 28:14) ] and a flaming sword [ Biblical references to fiery flames that proceed from the heavenly throne of God in his sanctuary (Dan 7:9), and to the visible presence of God’s glory in His sanctuary which in later Judaism is called the Shekinah (from the same verb "shakan" as mentioned earlier in this verse). ] which turned every way, [ While it was placed on the east side, the side from which they departed, it was set to guard from every angle of entrance. This celestial blockade suggests that there existed an entrance to the garden established at the east end of the garden. If no such entrance existed, then why would a blockade be necessary? Or, if other entrances were found to the garden, then why did God not establish cherubim and swords at other locations around the garden? Once more the eastward orientation of the Garden of Eden parallels the eastward orientation of the Mosaic tabernacle and Jerusalem temples, having entrances at the east. ] to keep the way [ To protect, to guard, and prevent unauthorized return to the garden before the proper time. We might also look at The Tree of Knowledge as a symbol of the protective veil concealing the Tree of Life from Adam and Eve. After their transgression of God’s “first commandments,” God placed cherubim and a flaming sword to prevent their premature entry into His presence, and sent Adam and Eve away “eastward.” However, God also provided a set of “second commandments” that would eventually enable the return of all those who would fully avail themselves of the gift of the Atonement. Why? see Alma 42:2-8. ] of the tree of life.