The Fall of Mankind

Genesis 3 is a literary gem, a narrative masterpiece. The author was a very perceptive writer, in particular, of easily suggestible women. In general, women are more sensitive than men. They make full uses of their senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch etc. to explore the world. Colours, music, fragrance, candies, velvet etc appeal to them. The Creation story began well in the Garden of Eden, a paradise on earth. Then, why are there so many evils and sufferings? Where did they come from? Why did God allow such things to happen? The author attempted to explain them all.
Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the LORD God had made (Genesis 3:1a). True, snakes are stealthy and subtle. They are appropriate candidates for a story with a Midlle East background. We Chinese do not share such sentiment. But there may be other reasons. The Egyptians were fond of snakes and there were many idols in snake form. Making the serpent the arch culprit of all evils and sufferings was a natural choice.
He said to the woman, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden'?" (Genesis 3:1b)
A talking serpent. Immediately, the author signalled the readers that he was writing a fable, something not to be taken literally. This personified Evil began its entry from hearing because the target was a woman who likes hearing gossips. When God called Moses, He chose a visual entry, a burning bush. A spectacular sight is more appealing to man. What a stroke of genius!
The talking serpent made an obvious blunder to entice the woman. It deliberately made a mistake to engage the woman to refute it so as to ensnare her further.
And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden;
but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" (Genesis 3:2-3)
Let's compare the original saying from God.
And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden;
but 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 die." (Genesis 2:16-17)
Did the man not faithfully pass on this command to the woman, leaving out the crucially messages of "freely", "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil"? Had the woman exaggerated when she said "neither shall you touch it" and "in the day that you eat of it"? We cannot tell. Most likely, the woman had exaggerated as most women tend to do.
Here came the true art of deception --- half truth and smear campaign!
But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die.
For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:4-5)
It was a sugar-coated poison, clothing a lie with a layer of truth. It is true that after eating the fruit, Adam and Eve did not die immediately the day they ate it. It is true that after eating the fruit, the eyes of Adam and Eve were opened, knowing good and evil. But eventually, they died. We all die. God did not kill them the day they ate it. God's heart was soft because of His love. Yet, man's heart had already been poisoned with the seed of mistrust the Evil had planted. Man questions God's intention. God was jealous. He did not want us to be like God, knowing good and evil.
Some scholars with depth-psychology background would speculate that the Serpent was actually internal. It was part of the human psychological make-up. It was the personification and projection of our own desires. The woman was put into a dialogue with her own desires. In the end, the Serpent was to blame, not the woman who was playing a "Not Me" game. This interpretation has its merits and like all other interpretations, none would be able to claim a total victory.
Nowadays, men still question why the all-knowing God had put the forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden in the first place, knowing all too well that leaving on his own, man would succumb to the temptation of the Serpent. Why did God create the Serpent, or the strong desires within us? I have no satisfactory defence.
she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate (Genesis 3:6b).
Did she give some to her husband out of love to share the knowledge? Or was a knowledgeable wife unhappy and uncomfortable with a dumb and stupid husband? Or did she want her man to shoulder the blame together if they were caught in the future? Who can read the mind of a woman living thousands of years ago? Any interpretation reflects only the interpreter's leaning. No more. No less.

My Lord, I thank You for leaving us this beautiful story to reflect upon our current state. Let us make good use of this knowledge of good and evil brought about by our First Parents. May it guide us along the right path. Amen.