In The Beginning

Bereshith
"In the beginning."

God Almighty didn't force his purpose on mankind. The choice for man to accept God's will and purpose for his life, has always been and always will be his choice. It has been like that since the beginning of creation.


Eve was the first woman in the Holy Bible associated with Adam. The story of Adam and Eve is very unique. The story tells us how man and woman was created, how they related to each other, and about their relationship with God Almighty. We also learn about (The Garden of Eden) their environment.


God Almighty wanted Adam and Eve to lead a happy life, without affliction, care, and vexation of spirit. His desire was to provide Adam and Eve divine care and guardianship. God Almighty wanted all things, which contribute to their enjoyment and pleasure, to grow up by His providence, of their own accord, without their labor and painstaking. Labor would lead to their old age. Death would not be at any remote distance.

The Garden of Eden Environment

Eden "delight", is the first residence of mankind. History about this garden is found in the first three Chapters of the Book of Genesis. Eden was a place of extreme fertility, as mentioned in other Old Testament books. (Isaiah 51:3; Ezekiel 28:13, 31:9; Joel 2:3).


God created the first residence of humankind. He planted a paradise in the east, flourishing with all sorts of trees, including the "tree of life", and "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil". It was the first created man and woman's duty to take care of the plants. The garden was watered by one river, which ran round the whole earth, and was parted into four parts. Phison, which denotes a multitude, running into India, makes its exit into the sea, and is by the Greeks called Ganges. Euphrates and Tigris goes down into the Red Sea. The name Euphrates (or Phrath), denotes either a dispersion, or a flower; Tigris (or Diglath) signifies what is swift, with narrowness; and Geon runs through Egypt, and denotes what arises from the east, which the Greeks call Nile.


God Almighty walked in the garden in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8). Imagine sharing an afternoon walk with God, as the two of you stroll through paradise!


There is reason to believe that the Garden of Eden existed in the Middle East. God consistently used this area to work out His plan of salvation. Today two of the rivers which once flowed through Eden retain their names: Tigris (Hiddekel), and Euphrates, flowing from eastern Asia Minor to the Persian Gulf!

Eve's Relationship with God

Eve is created from Adam's rib ("This is now bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh" Genesis 2:23), and is given to Adam by God, to be his wife. Eve was created by the hand of God from living tissue in a man. God declared, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him" (Genesis 2:18).


God loved Eve, and He gave her the capacity to love and share in return. Our first mother Eve had a loving relationship with God, just as other women throughout bilical history. God wants to have a loving relationship with women today.


Eve's Relationship with Her Children

In the beginning, Eve had two sons with Adam. The oldest was Cain, which name signifies possession. Cain tilled the ground. The younger son, Abel was a lover of righteousness, and believed that God was present at all his actions. Abel's name signifies sorrow. Abel excelled in virtue and was a shepherd. Later, Eve bore another son and called him Seth, "For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed" (Genesis 4:25). Eve had other sons and daughters with Adam.


Cain (Genesis 4:1-16) is the oldest son and brother of Abel. Cain cultivated the land (fruits forced from labor) and offered the first fruits of his harvest. God rejected his offering and Cain became jealous of his brother Abel.

INTRODUCTION OF SIBLING RIVALRY

Cain slew Abel becoming the first murderer. (Genesis 4:2-16). Abel's sacrificial offering was accepted by God Almighty. Cain was cursed and condemned to a life of wandering. A divine mark was placed upon him lest anyone meeting him should slay him. Anyone who disregarded the mark and killed Cain would be visited with sevenfold vengeance. Cain is mentioned in the New Testament (1 John 3:12; Jude 11) for his wicked deed. Cain settled in Nod east of Eden. (Genesis 4:16).


Abel (Genesis 4:2-16) is the second son, and brother of Cain. Abel was a shepherd who offered the firstborn of his flock as a sacrificial offering which was acceptable to God Almighty.


Seth is the third son (no theological thought about Seth was found by this author). God has given us an account about Eve's third son. Adam was 130 years old when Seth was born. Seth was the "spitting" image of his father Adam. Adam lived another 800 years and had other sons and daughters (Genesis 5:3,4). Seth lived 105 years and had a son name Enosh (Genesis 5:6).


This famous story about fratricide cause many theologians to (think) this story illustrates early nomadic tribal beliefs that filtered down through time into religious thought. Animal herding, the principal occupation of many nomads, was considered more pleasing to their gods than agriculture; because, Abel's sacrifice was accepted, and Cain's was not (Hebrew 11:4, 12:24).

The story is explained by historians and biblical scholars as a symbolic account of an ancient nomadic tribe named Cain. It's distinguishing tatto mark; and of its reputation for ferocious vengeance against other tribes who slew members of the tribe of Cain. The name Cain has become synonymous with murderer; the mark that was affixed to Cain has become known as the mark or brand of Cain and used figuratively to denote a murderer.

Eve's Relationship with Others
Outside of Marriage and Family

The serpent came to Eden (And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode... Jude 6), and planted "the seed of doubt" in Eve's heart. "You will not surely die, for God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:4-5).


The serpent "bamboozled" Eve into eating the fruit from that other tree. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Satan reversed God's instruction to man, and made a wrong choice appear to be the right choice. Satan is using that exact same strategy today on mankind. He is sometimes very successful. Satan's master plan is to destroy our relationship with God Almighty, our families, friends, and others outside of marriage and family. See vision: http://www.jonahsister.blogspot.com/


Temptation

The serpent deceives Eve in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:4, 13).

Notice how Eve was first deceived through her sense of beauty and next by her possible willingness to learn about the unknown. Like little babies, we are facinated in the beauty of an object and curious enough to explore its every aspect.

Satan, the Devil (serpent symbolization in Eden) talked to Eve (women are known to be the weaker sex). Satan deceived her into eating the forbidden fruit by appealing to her senses {sight, smell, tough, taste, hearing}. Eve listened to the serpent and saw the forbidden fruit was good for food, pleasant to the eyes, able to make one wise.

The serpent told Eve that eating the fruit would give her wisdom. Who else was present to dispute the serpent's claim? Proper guidance and obedience from a father or mother protects us from being harmed. Who was supervising Eve when she fell into harms way? Instruction from a parent and being obedient to that instruction will keep us safe from that which could possible hurt us or destroy our lives.

God commanded that Adam and his wife should eat from all the rest of the plants, except the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil". God warned them that if they touched it, it would cause their destruction. The serpent overcame Eve, and persuaded her to despise the command of God. When Eve tasted the "fruit" and was pleased by it, she persuaded Adam to taste it also. Adam ate the fruit knowing better. He simply followed the lead of his wife Eve.

Adam's single act of disobedience cut him and all his progeny (offspring, descendants) off from God's Holy Spirit! Adam's action revealed that he didn't want to go God's way of eternal life (symbolized by the "tree of life").


Man

Adam determined for himself what was right and what was wrong apart from God Almighty. Man has followed in Adam's footsteps ever since.

Penalty: Adam and Eve was removed from the garden and put in another place. Eve was given the sharp pains of bringing forth children because she persuaded Adam to be disobedient by repeating the same story to him that the serpent used on her. Also, the ground would not yield its fruit of its own accord, except through hard labor.


Deliverance: Instruction from God Almighty, and being obedient to His instruction will keep us out of the wiles of serpents. All of mankind's problems are due to not believing God's goodness and to disobeying His Word!


The Tree of Life, freely offered to Adam and Eve, symbolized availability of God's Holy Spirit. What do you think would have happen, if Adam and Eve had first eaten fruit from this tree?


Spiritually Kidnapped!!!

Satan spiritually kidnapped Adam and Eve. God Almighty would have given them His Holy Spirit and eternal life. Adam and Eve chose a course of false education that produced sin and death by choosing the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. "...the eyes of them were opened" Genesis 3:7-11.

Very few people realize the great power, now turned to cunning deception, possessed by Satan. Satan got to Adam through his wife Eve. Satan appeared as a subtile serpent. He cleverly deceived Eve by putting doubts in her mind about God's truth. Satan tricked Eve into believing God had been unfair and selfish. All these things (cunning, deception, doubting, unfair, selfish, etc.) are the characters of Satan!

Satan - (powers of) Gog and Magog, in the Bible, great hostile powers controlled by Satan that will appear just before the end of the world (Revelation 20:8). Magog is also identified as a land - the home of Gog (Ezekiel 38:2). Later accounts show Gog and Magog (modern day Russia) as conventional symbols for any force opposed to authenic religion or its adherents.

Lucifer - (Latin for "light-bearer"), name for the planet Venus when it appears as the morning star; Vulgate translation of the Hebrew expression for "bright one". Isaiah used the term in satirical allusion to the king of Babylon, describing the frustrated ambition of the morning star to rise higher than all the other stars: "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning" (Isaiah 14:12). In the New Testament, star imagery is associated to the figure of Christ (2 Peter 1:19) He is called "day star"; in (Revelation 22:16) He is called "morning star".


Serpent - God deprived the serpent of speech, out of its indignation at its envious disposition towards Adam and Eve living happily, and in obedience to the commands of God. The serpent was made an enemy to man. Here is thought that the serpent, along with other living creatures, had one language and could speak. The notion is that the present state of such living creatures is not their original state; and their capacities have been once much greater than we now see them, and are capable of being restored their former condition. Both man, and the other subordinate creatures are to be delivered from the curse brought upon them, and (at last be delivered from that bondage of corruption- Romans 8:19-22).

Author's Comments:
"Do you have a special understanding relationship with your pet animal?"
Look directly into the eyes of your pet, and ask your pet, "Who's being trained, you or me?" The response you received from your pet's reaction may surprise you!

~ Jonahs Sister ~

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Historical Sources: Encyclopedia, Microsoft Encarta 98; Every Woman: In The Bible, Sue and Larry Richards; Josephus: The Complete Works, translated by William Whiston, A.M.