Paul Kretzmann Commentary - Genesis 3:7 - 3:13

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Paul Kretzmann Commentary - Genesis 3:7 - 3:13


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The Investigation of God

v. 7. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
With their transgression, the eyes of the man and woman were indeed opened, but not in the way that they had supposed. The ignorance of primeval innocence was gone. Whereas they had not been aware of their nakedness before, they now felt shame before each other. Sin had corrupted and defiled their entire nature, like the poison of a serpent which penetrates into every part of the body with the circulation of the blood. In their painful embarrassment they sewed together the large leaves of the paradise fig tree for aprons to gird about their loins. Modesty or bashfulness naturally centers in this part of the body, requiring that the organs through which the impurities of the body are expelled, and which are now defiled for the service of indecency, be covered.

v. 8. And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day; and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.
This is related to fit the human understanding, Jehovah God being represented as walking in the garden, at the time when the refreshing wind of evening arose. As soon as they heard His voice calling them in eager search, Adam and his wife hid before the face of God in the midst of the thicket. The sinner has a bad conscience and dreads exposure. But God wanted to visit the sinners that had yielded to disobedience, and perform the work of a true father and educator for them, by making them realize their sin and revealing to them, the way of mercy.

The manner in which God dealt with the transgressors of His commandment is now shown.

v. 9. And the Lord God called unto Adam and said unto him, Where art thou?
It was the call of anxious love as well as of stern justice. God summoned the sinners before His court. Sin is easily done, but not so easily undone, for it weighs down upon conscience as guilt before God, in spite of all attempts at excuse.

v. 10. And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.
Fear, the consciousness of nakedness, shame: they all cried out aloud the guilt of Adam. Though Eve had been the first to sin, the Lord called Adam, because he, as the stronger vessel, was more guilty than his wife; upon him rested the greater responsibility. It was evident that Adam felt the consequences of sin more than its guilt. This state of affairs the Lord proceeds to remedy.

v. 11. And He said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
Adam would have remained in the state of blissful innocence if he had not eaten of the forbidden fruit; he would not have known his nakedness. The fact that he was aware of his nakedness was a definite proof of his having transgressed the command of the Lord; for this consciousness came from within and was a mark of his guilt.

v. 12. And the man said, The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
This excuse reveals the depravity of Adam's heart, even at this early stage. For he not only tries to place the blame upon the woman, but there is even a charge against God in the words: The woman whom Thou didst place at my side. He forgets that he had hailed her coming with delight, and herself as a gift of the Lord. He indicates that the entire matter might not have taken this turn if God had not made the woman as his helpmeet. Incidentally, the loss of love which followed the transgression is shown by the fact that Adam does not call her Eva, or wife, but only that woman by his side.

v. 13. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done?
It is a call full of reproach: Wherefore hast thou done this? What a terrible thing to do! How couldst thou be so forgetful of the command! And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. There is indeed a confession of the fact, but not of the sin, just as in the case of the man. She placed the blame on the serpent as having deceived and seduced her. What was lacking was the smiting upon the breast and the humble prayer: God, be merciful to me, a sinner! We see here the unspeakable baseness of sin, also in its invention of lies and excuses, in order to place the blame on some one else. A proper realization of its power will enable us to understand all the better the glory of God's mercy in Christ Jesus.