After Adam & Eve disobeyed God by eating of the Fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, Adam implicitly blames both God and Eve when recounts actions, as recorded in Genesis 3:12 (ESV) when ‘The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” ‘
Adam’s Wife Eve recognizes her Husbands omission and Blames The Serpent while similarly avoiding embracing Self-Accountability when recounts actions as recorded in the second part of Genesis 3:13 (ESV) when ‘The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”’
Both Adam and Eve truthfully recounted that they did eat The Fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which testified to a residual amount of honesty still residing in them, even as they started to process the implications of their decisions via attempts to skirt accountability via blame.
God’s questioning gently encouraged Adam & Eve to be forthcoming about what happened while giving them some space, even though God already knew what Adam & Eve did and where Adam and Eve were located. God’s questioning also provided the option for Adam & Eve to lie as well when in Genesis 3:11 (ESV) ‘He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” ‘ Pleasantly, Adam & Eve each correctly recounted their actions with “and I ate.”
God’s pronouncement of punishment to Adam & Eve and to The Serpent communicate accountability & consequences that result from choices made.
God’s actions to keep Adam & Eve away from the Tree of Life indicates a desire to keep Adam & Eve from potentially harming themselves and the human race while in their fallen state, as God peered into future reprocussions.
Historical accounts show no signs that The Serpent repented as The Serpent still continued to pursue harm to humankind.
The historical account in the Bible does not share many details as to what transpired in the many days, months, and years after Adam & Eve disobeyed God and plunged humankind into a sin-infected future, related to the personal relationship between Adam & Even and their Creator.
- Unknown whether Adam & Eve later in life apologized to God for their disobedience
- Unknown whether Adam later apologized to Eve for not intervening in Eve’s disobedience
- Unknown whether Eve later apologized to Adam for offering Adam disobedience
- Unknown what boundaries/guardrails or other strategies Adam & Eve later explored/embraced to minimize future disobedience
- Unknown whether Adam & Eve ever discussed with God how they could have made a better decision
- Unknown what efforts Adam & Eve made to further strengthen their relationship & trust in God
The net result is that it is unclear the full level of self-accountability that Adam & Eve embraced or failed to embrace after their rebellion against God’s Good Guidance.
It is also unclear the full level of estrangement or reconciliation that permeated Adam & Eve’s future relationship with their Creator after this incident.
This account acts as a reminder to all to follow the Good Guidance God Gracefully Gives, knowing God is looking out for the best interests of those who follow him. Even when God forgives repentant followers, self-inflicted consequences from sinful choices often exist & persist. When God’s followers face temptations to sin, learning from both successful & unsuccessful encounters is important to improve our character growth.
References:
Bible Genesis Chapter 3 (ESV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis+3&version=ESV
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