Lesson 3: Adam and Eve Turned Away from God

Before you do this lesson, read these verses from the Taurat:

Genesis 3: l-24 -- Now the serpent was more crafty than any animal of the field which the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Yes, has God said, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?'"

²The woman said to the serpent, "Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat, ³but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'"

⁴The serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die, ⁵for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

⁶When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and ate; and she gave some to her husband with her, and he ate. ⁷Both of their eyes were opened, and they knew that they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves coverings. ⁸They heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

⁹The Lord God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?"

¹⁰The man said, "I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself."

¹¹God said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"

¹²The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate."

¹³The Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?"

The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

¹⁴The Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, you are cursed above all cattle, and above every animal of the field. On your belly shall you go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. ¹⁵I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel."

¹⁶To the woman he said, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you will bring forth children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."

¹⁷To Adam he said, "Because you have listened to your wife's voice, and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground for your sake. In toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. ¹⁸Thorns also and thistles will it bring forth to you; and you will eat the herb of the field. ¹⁹By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

²⁰The man called his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living. ²¹The Lord God made coats of animal skins for Adam and for his wife, and clothed them.

²²The Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. Now, lest he put forth his hand, and also take of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever..." ²³Therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden, to till the ground from where he was taken. ²⁴So he drove out the man; and he placed Karubin at the east of the garden of Eden, and the flame of a sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.

Now read the lesson and do the test at the end. The lesson explains what you have read in the Taurat.

Did you hear the radio today? Did you listen to the news? Perhaps the radio told about fighting. Maybe you heard about hunger or floods or accidents. Perhaps you heard about trouble in London, Nairobi, Cairo, or New York. Was most of the news good news, or news about trouble? Probably most of the news was about trouble.

When God made the world, he said that it was very good. But now much that we hear and see in the world is not good. What has gone wrong? Why is there trouble in the world? Why is there hunger? What is the cause of all this trouble?

The prophets have written that trouble comes when people turn away from God. Sin is turning away from God.

The Taurat shows that sin began when Adam and Eve refused to obey God. They said "no" to God. Trouble began with the sin of Adam and Eve.

Adam and Eve Refused to Obey God

Remember that God put Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They could eat every fruit except the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:15-17).

One day Satan came to Eve in the form of a snake. He told her that the tree was good. He said it would open her eyes and she would be wise like God (Genesis 3:4-5).

Eve liked that idea. She wanted to be wise like God. She looked at the tree. It looked nice. She took one piece of fruit and ate it. She gave another piece to Adam (Genesis 3:6).

Adam and Eve had accepted the advice of Satan. The first parents of mankind had refused to obey God. This was the beginning of sin in the world.

Everyone Has Sinned

All people are the children of Adam and Eve. And like Adam and Eve, we have all refused to obey God. God's word says: "Everyone has sinned and is far away from God's saving presence" (Romans 3:23).

Is that hard to believe? Think for a minute. Ask yourself: Do I always obey God? Of course not! You often fail to obey God.

Perhaps you have stolen a shilling from a friend. Perhaps you became angry too quickly. Perhaps you do not always tell the truth. These kinds of actions show that we are sinful.

Even though we want to obey God, we all fail to live according to the perfect will of God. We fail because we are sinful. We are selfish and proud.

Sin is more than making mistakes. Sin is refusing to obey God. Sin is not only the wrong deeds that we often do. Our hearts are sinful. All of us have sinned.

Our Sin Makes Us Ashamed

Before Adam and Eve sinned, they were never ashamed. In fact, they didn't even wear clothes.

But after Adam and Eve sinned, they became ashamed. Now they wanted to cover themselves with clothes as quickly as possible. They ran to the bushes and tied leaves around their bodies (Genesis 3:7).

We know exactly how Adam and Eve felt. We try to cover our sin in many different ways. Sometimes we smile to cover our hate. We are afraid of other people. We hide our true selves from each other, because of our sin.

Our Sin Makes Us Afraid of God

Before Adam and Eve sinned, they talked with God freely. They were not afraid of God, because they were good people.

But after they sinned, they were afraid of God. They hid among the trees (Genesis 3:8). They tried to escape from God. They knew that they were not good people any more. They knew that God cannot accept sin. That is why they were afraid.

We also often try to hide from God like Adam and Eve did. We often want God to leave us alone. We want to forget God. Our sin is a very sad thing. Sin spoils our lives. When we sin, we cut ourselves off from God.

Who is to Blame?

God appeared to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. But they were hiding among the trees (Genesis 3:8-13). God asked them why they were hiding. Adam answered, "I was afraid." God knew why they were afraid. They could not hide their sin from God. God said, "Did you eat the fruit from the tree?" Adam answered, "God, you gave me a wife. The wife you gave me made me eat the fruit." Eve said, "The snake tricked me and I ate the fruit."

Do you ever act like that? You know you did wrong, but you try to blame other people. Perhaps you even blame God. That is wrong.

If someone tells you to jump off a tall tree, and you obey him and hurt yourself, whose fault is it? Everyone would say that you were very foolish. They would say it was your own fault.

Sin is like that. People or Satan can help you sin, but they cannot force you to sin. When you sin, it is your own fault. However, that is hard to accept. It is easier to do like our father Adam. We would rather blame others.

God's Plan to Save Us

God put Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden because they had sinned. They and all the earth suffered because of their sin. But God is merciful. He wanted to save Adam and Eve and their children from sin, evil, and the power of Satan.

Already at this time God began to show his plan to save mankind from sin. He did two things which showed that he had a plan:

1.   He promised that a son born to a woman would crush the head of Satan (Genesis 3:15). This is the first promise from God about Jesus Christ.
2.   He clothed Adam and Eve with skins to cover their shame and sin (Genesis 3:21).

Later on the prophets explain what this means. But for now it is important to remember this: As  soon as Adam and Eve sinned, God began to show his plan to save mankind from sin.

Learn this verse. Romans 3:23: "Everyone has sinned and is far away from God's saving presence."

Test 3: The Beginning of People

Here is the test for Lesson 3. Write the letter of the correct answer on the line provided.
1.            Satan came to Eve in the form
            a)            of a snake.
            b)            of an angel.
            c)            of a man.                                                                                                  ___
2.            Satan told Eve
            a)            that the fruit would make her beautiful.
            b)            that the fruit would make her wise like God.
            c)            that the fruit would help her grow.                                                            ___
3.            After Adam and Eve sinned
            a)            God began to show his plan to save mankind from sin.
            b)            God was very pleased.
            c)            God didn't do anything to Adam and Eve.                                                ___
4.            Sin
            a)            is only making mistakes.
            b)            is refusing to obey God.
            c)            is good for us.                                                                                                ___
5.            When we sin
            a)            it is our own fault.
            b)            it is Satan's fault.
            c)            it is God's fault.                                                                                               ___
Write "True" or "False" after each of the following sentences.
6.            Satan can force us to sin.   ______
7.            Adam and Eve were ashamed of their sin.   ______
8.            God clothed Adam and Eve with leaves.    ______
9.            After they sinned, Adam and Eve still lived in the Garden of Eden.     ______
10.            All people sin.   ______