Eve: Part One

Perfectly Forgiven

He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. Psalm 103:10

She had a husband who loved her as purely and completely as a man could. She communed with God every day. She enjoyed perfect health, and her beauty had no equal.

Eve lived a life that would make a fairy tale princess envious. It certainly appeals to me—no laundry, no bathrooms to clean, no cooking. Yet hidden beneath that cloak of perfection was a voice that whispered in her soul, “There must be more.”

We do not know how long the voice haunted her. We only know that it eventually took the shape of a breathtaking creature, a serpent, who made the voice visible and irresistible.

For every woman who has berated herself for being stupid, foolish, or naïve, Eve becomes a comfort. After all, she had everything—absolute perfection, unparalleled love, and unrestricted fellowship with God. Yet she risked it and lost it because the serpent suggested she could have more.

What beckoned Eve most persuasively was the promise of knowledge—the ability to figure it all out and therefore control her world. She became, in essence, the first rationalist, the first human to conclude that knowledge produces happiness, success, and fulfillment.

Genesis 3:6 reveals Eve’s logical, but erroneous, thought process: the fruit was good for food, pleasing to the eye, and desirable for gaining wisdom. Three good outcomes. Three wrong motives.

We can all identify with Eve. We have all traveled the “seemed like a good idea at the time” highway. We’ve all made the left turn onto the “what could be wrong with that” exit ramp.

Fortunately for Eve, and for us, God “knows how we are formed, and remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103: 14). He came looking for Adam and Eve. He covered their nakedness. He gave them a second chance. He does the same for us because “his compassions never fail” (Lamentations 3:22).

DIG DEEPER:

Compare the serpent’s tactics in Eden with Paul’s description of Satan’s tactics in 2 Corinthians 11:3, 14-15. What similarities do you see?

What mistakes does Eve make when she converses with the serpent? (Compare Genesis 2:16-17 with 3:1-4). How can we avoid those mistakes?

In Psalm 103, David says, “forget not all [God’s] benefits.” What benefits does he list?

You might also want to read Eve: Part Two.

Denise K. Loock