Let us now continue from the moment in the Bible where our couple, still inhabiting paradise, are about to ingest the notorious fruit offered by the serpent. This will cover Genesis chapter 3 verses 6 to 13. Three major points will be analyzed and studied to understand the meaning of what happened here. The first is a probable reason behind the eating of the forbidden fruit and the ensuing result for the couple. The second, is to explain the image behind the fig leaves. Finally, to examine their reaction and response when the Lord God sought them out. Let us now begin.
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.
There are three hidden clues within this sentence, the first being the use of the words ‘good for food’, for bodily sustenance in the garden was not a problem. What Eve saw and accepted with this particular fruit was actually a different teaching from the one conferred by the Lord God to Adam, being offered by the serpent. A distorted doctrine coming from the one tree that had been banned from them by God. Remember that they were free to eat (exchange spiritual ideas) with any other tree (person) [i] in the garden (community) with the exception of that tree. This would mean that the Lord God knew that Satan was nearby, waiting for his chance to interfere with their assignment. Hence, because of their freedom of will, which the Lord had endowed them with, He warned them of the horrendous danger to their salvation that was nearby. Thus, the commandment about accepting food from this tree[ii] would ultimately cause their spiritual death with the Creator and lead them to their downfall and ruin.
The second hidden clue is in the word ‘saw’. This word would indicate that for Eve, it was also a material/physical experience with this male priest, who possessed and exhibited the characteristics of a serpent, as well as a spiritual encounter. Remember the words were, it was pleasing to the eye. How could she find any words of teaching, which is made up of air, offered to her supposedly by a repulsive, forked-tongued reptile, pleasing to the eye, unless in reality he was a good-looking male priest with a serpent between his legs?
One also has to wonder what was in his teaching (fruit/words) that had been so good, so wonderful. Remember that accepting the serpent/priest’s instructions, instilled in her the knowledge of good and evil. Why did he think she needed to know what evil was about, especially since God is goodness and that was who she was supposed to be working for. We also know that after she accepted this adulterated teaching (fruit), the first offspring that she produced was a murderer, not a divine one. Therefore, it has to be understood that only the evil of adultery, and unfaithfulness, both spiritual and physical, could have resulted in Cain. Whereas, true fidelity to God’s teaching, as well as fidelity within her marriage bond, would have produced divine children in His image. Unfortunately, the result of this reptilian liaison with Eve was the birth of a murderer and the end of paradise.
The third clue to analyze is what wisdom she hopes to gain. Is the answer in the fact, within the lure that the serpent/priest offered her within the saying that her eyes would be opened and she would be like God?[iii] One has to wonder which god he was talking about. The true one or the false one, who inherited the earth after the fall. Was she, like Lucifer, trying to gain a higher status than the one she had at that point? Instead of becoming a co-creator of divine children with God, for which she had been designed, did she somehow think that she could be the Lord’s equal? Perhaps she was coveting a more visible position within the garden/community, a position that was higher than that of Adam’s, the representative that God had selected.
Then, after she took some and ate it,
she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
This would suggest that Eve held a lot of sway over Adam and that she also needed his endorsement for the proliferation and propagation of this new teaching within the garden. It also demonstrated, how easily he accepted this fruit (teaching) of the serpent. Adam, whom the Lord had explicitly warned about the tree before Eve had even come into the picture, proved once more that he had failed to understand his position as God’s representative. This would imply once again, as mentioned in previous articles, the lackadaisical attitude that Adam had towards his duties, as well as demonstrating his weakness of character for the verse says.
“she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it”
This indicates that he knew what she was doing and clearly accepted to go along with her newly established enthrallment with the serpent/priest. It should also be stated and documented that the moment he ate the fruit, he also lost his position as the Lord God’s duly appointed servant. For now, he was working for the other team which is indicated in the very next thing that happened which was,
Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they realized they were naked:
Remember, that to comprehend the language of God, one must search for the spiritual images behind the words. In this instant, the nakedness was not the concern over the lack of clothing but their realization that they were naked in works (oeuvres) for the Lord and that they had betrayed Him and His divine teaching. Remember, they were supposed to be fruitful and increase in number in His image, to fill the earth and subdue it with divine children, not people with characters of murderous beasts or reptiles. The Creator didn’t give them the breath of life (divine inspirations) for them to fill it with descendants educated with the evil teaching of the serpent/priest.
Unfortunately, it is exactly at that point, by accepting, ingesting, and absorbing this devilish teaching, symbolized by the fruit, and making it part of their spiritual, mental, and physical constitution, that they were now working for the dark side. They had given up their allegiance with God and that was why they were naked. Naked, because everything they would now accomplish would be for their new deity, Satan.
So what did they do next?
They sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
This sentence provides evidence that they were both trying to hide the fact that they were naked from everyone, for if they had been alone in the garden, this nudity wouldn’t have mattered. Unfortunately, they were not alone, and the trees were a symbolic image for people. People, that Adam had the responsibility to educate about what God wanted from this world. Thus, the couple had to somehow cover up the fact that they had both stopped executing their duties to create a better world when they accepted this evil teaching. There is a reason why they used fig leaves to cover themselves (to conceal their actions) and not some other kind of plant that would have been easier to stitch or weave together. These leaves, worn around their genitals, represent the symbolic image that they knew they were covering up the fact that they were no longer carrying out their original task of creating children for the Lord. Hence, they understood that they were naked. All this work, in order to hide the truth from the garden/community of their new spiritual and physical affiliation with the Devil.
Here is the explanation for why they used fig leaves and not some other plant. There is a passage in both Matthew and Mark[iv] where Jesus, in search of food, came across a fig tree that had plenty of leaves on it but no fruits. Seeing this, he cursed it that it may never bear fruits again and within a few days it withered away. The symbolic image or lesson in cursing the fig tree’s lack of fruits was that Jesus was hungry not just for food but for siblings resembling himself. The identical duty that the Edenic couple were supposed to be working towards and for which they were also cursed. In this instance, the fig tree is a symbol of the mother and her extremely important role as the procreator of humanity. For this tree, unlike other fruit trees, carries its fruit within itself, like a woman does. In other words, the flower (fruit) is not produced on the outside of the tree but within it, a symbolic image of maternity, of procreation. That is why Jesus cursed the fig tree, to illustrate that women have produced no fruits for him or rather had produced no divine siblings, like himself. That tree, with its beautiful foliage of leaves but no fruits, was simply a symbol for all those women who prefer to be seen only as material, physical beauties. Jesus was thus exposing the fact that she had not realized her true and most important status as a co-creator with the Divine. Instead, she was copying Lucifer’s vainglorious mindset of be seen, of attracting and receiving admiring gazes for himself instead of glorifying God.
Hence, that was the reason, the hidden image for the sewing together of fig leaves. It was to feign the lie to everyone around them that they were still being fruitful and working towards the goal of subduing the world with divine children as commanded by the Lord. They also wanted to be seen, to keep their high position within the community. Bear in mind, that they were both guilty of accepting the fruit of the enemy and they both sewed and wore the fig leaves as a cover up for their mutual culpability. Lastly, they resorted to hiding these deeds from everyone.
Finally, we must study their reaction when they heard the Lord God walking in the garden and why they hid from Him. It would seem, that after the couple changed sides, they hid from God amongst the trees (people) in the garden, hoping not to be discovered and be exposed for not doing their job. As they now were working for Satan, having accepted his evil teaching, it should be assumed that they were also corrupting the other inhabitants of Eden by subjecting them with this erroneous teaching. Remember, up to that point, Adam still had his titled position as care giver (representative) within the garden. Also, when one adopts a new belief, one usually goes out of his way to prove that it is the right one. Therefore, it is only natural to assume that while they were hiding amongst the trees (crowd) and that they were no longer working for the Lord, they were corrupting the community with this Satanical teaching that they had recently embraced. It was, as mentioned earlier, a covert and hidden work. How easy it was to subvert everyone while they still maintained their high position within the group, one given to them originally by the Lord. For let us not forget that Adam was still seen as the spiritual leader (care giver) of this place, and up to that point, he had not yet been physically driven out of paradise.
Now, it is written that the Lord God in the cool of the day called out to the man for He could not see him because he was hiding. This could not be, because everyone knows that God is omniscient, that He knows everything, so why call out in order to find your creation. I can only think that this was a symbolic way to tell us that the connection between man and God had been severed with the acceptance and internalization of the devil’s teaching. They were no longer on the same team.
Adam, who had been chosen to spread the Lord God’s spiritual teaching to the inhabitants of this world, the rebellious fallen souls, who up to that point were not connected with the true Creator and His one law to be born divine. He, the Lord God, had given the world this illuminating knowledge in order to change these human/beasts into divine children like Jesus. Instead, Adam and Eve decided to reject His teaching and their duties of leading the planet towards salvation. They were now intent on propagating Satan’s doctrine amongst the Edenic community, symbolized by the hiding of their new devilish nature amongst the trees.
When asked where he was, (why he wasn’t at his post in the open), Adam responded that he was afraid. Why? For the reason that he knew deep down that he had not accomplished the duty of what the true God wanted of them. Adam knew that he had been derelict in his responsibilities by replying that he recognized that he was naked. The Lord then asked him: how did he know that he was naked. At this point we perceive Adam’s true character, that of being a coward and a traitor, when he blamed his wife for presenting the fruit to him. He never took responsibility for his actions. If he had been a true servant of the Lord, understanding his duties, he would have simply refused the fruit and corrected or put aside his wife. Instead, he knew that he had neglected and abandoned his obligations as the Lord’s servant and as a protective husband by allowing her to fall under the serpent’s sway.
In conclusion, there was very little that the Lord God could do. By their actions, they had chosen Satan and allowed him to win a temporary victory, that of control over this planet. He, Satan, would be master for the same amount of time that the planet had been under God’s protection, that is to say six days. That time is coming to an end and the final battle, the Armageddon is looming overhead. Unfortunately, because the couple, representing humanity, had turned its back on God, He spelled out what the consequences of this rebellious act would cost them. This can be seen in what the Bible refers to as the curses, which we will study in the next article.
Noble
[i] Bible: Mark 8:24
[ii] Ibid; Genesis 2:16-17
[iii] Ibid; Genesis 3:5
[iv] Ibid; Matthew 21:18-19, Mark 11:12-14
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