NEW TO THIS STUDY? START HERE.
Hello again, my friend. I can’t wait to share what the Spirit showed me this week!
Last Week’s Work
WRITING TYPES
In addition to narrative, I observed:
- Instruction. Specifically, God’s command not to eat from the tree in v3. Also, from my adult learning work, I recognized experiential training (aka, “learning the hard way”) in vv6-7, and God’s “debrief” in vv9-13. Finally, punishment (vv14-19 and 22-24) is also a learning technique.
- Law. I consider the command (v3) as law, too. I thought it was interesting the serpent didn’t argue against it. Instead, it convinced Eve the punishment wouldn’t be so bad (v4). The Spirit reminded me I’ve also succumbed to the same reasoning—I’m not supposed to do this, but the consequences won’t be that bad. Like Eve, I’ve learned to recognize that deception the hard way.
- Prophecy. I found this in the punishments: they’re all predictions of what will befall the actors, and at least some also apply beyond them. For example, he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel is widely recognized as a promise of the coming Redeemer.
Based on these writing types, I understand your eyes will be opened, in v5 to mean more than eyesight: that they’d soon have plenty of insight into the consequences of evil, beginning with feelings of shame and vulnerability (nakedness), fear of authority, and the need to pass/spread the blame. They learned what deception was, and would also discover pain, strife, inequality, toil, frustration, and mortality. But I also noticed God acting to protect them, too (v21, and possibly v24).
LITERAL CONTEXT
Reading chapters 1-2, I noticed Genesis 1:3-27 describes the six days of creation, with the beasts of the earth (v25) and mankind (v27) created on the sixth day. So, this incident with the serpent must have happened on or after Day 6. Also, I read that God saw what he’d made, and it was all very good (1:31). If that’s the case, how could the serpent do what it did?
And, in 1:28, God issued the first commandment, be fruitful and multiply… and have dominion over… every living thing that moves on the earth. That surely included the serpent; yet through trickery, it got the upper hand.
In chapter 2 I found God’s actual command: of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die (2:17). I also noted from 2:25, the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. How things changed! In chapter 4, the Spirit highlighted God’s warning to Cain, which to me echoed Eve’s punishment: [Sin’s] desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it (4:7). And, in Cain’s punishment, I saw you are cursed from the ground… When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength (4:11-12), which reminded me of Adam’s punishment.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Tradition holds that Moses was the author of Genesis, and he wrote for the Israelites who fled Egypt. According to the ESV Global Study Bible Introduction timeline, that would have been sometime after 1446 BC. From the summary, Genesis is the story of God’s people from creation until Joseph’s death in Egypt. I can see why Moses wanted to preserve this history: by the time the Israelites left Egypt, the ancestors who’d remember those stories would have all died out.
INTERLINEAR RESEARCH
Verse 5: eyes will be opened. From Hebrew H5869 eyin H6491 paqach. In my research I discovered these words are used to refer to both eyesight and insight. Another instance is Psalm 146:8 (the LORD opens the eyes of the blind), which led me to an interesting discovery: nearly all the miracles Jesus performed were also performed by other Biblical characters, except restoring sight: only Jesus healed the blind. Even in the account of Saul’s recovery from blindness, Ananias says, “the Lord Jesus … has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 9:17).
Verse 7: knew they were naked. The word for knew (H3045 yada) is the same word often used for deep relational, experiential, even intimate knowledge of someone or something. And the word for naked (H5903 erom) differed from the one used in Genesis 2:25 (H6174 arom) where Moses notes the couple was naked but unashamed. The first indicates exposure, shame, disgrace, while the second one does not.
Verse 8: hid themselves. This word (H2244 chaba) denotes physical hiding (e.g., oneself) or metaphorical concealment, like emotions, intentions, truths. Verse 10: was afraid. H3372 (yare’) means fear, terror, dread, or reverence/awe. This is the first time afraid appears in God’s Word.
Dig-In Challenges
This week, let’s wrap up the second half of the Refine step by examining cross-references and other translations.
- Don’t forget to begin with your prayer from Step 1.
- REFINE: Then consult a concordance or online cross-reference study tool (I’ll be starting at this blb.org page) to find and read through the available cross-references for the verses you’re most interested in and log what the Spirit shows you.
NOTE: if you’re interested in other verses, follow the above link, then point to the TOOLS button to the left of the verse you want to study, and choose Cross-Refs from the menu. - REFINE: Finally, compare at least a few other translations’ version of the same verses and write about what you find in your study journal. I’ll be comparing ESV, AMP, NIV, and GNT using this biblehub.com page. You can compare your own verses from that link by entering them in the Enter Reference or Keyword box at the top of the page and clicking the spyglass icon there.
I’m looking forward to sharing what I discover with you next week. I hope you join me then!