Genesis 3

Go Deep

(Genesis 3)

How does knowing this story help us understand the gospel?

Read Genesis 3:1-9. What questions come to your mind?

What does the serpent imply about God in verse 5?

Did Eve’s thoughts of God need to change before she could succumb to the temptation? If so, how so? Is something similar true of us?

Read the temptation narrative (Gen. 3:1-6) and then read James 1:13-15. What links between the passages do you see?

What do we learn about temptation from Eve’s experience in the garden?

What do you think: How did God’s presence in the garden (v. 8) make a difference in the life of the humans? What difference would his absence make?

In Genesis 1, God’s plan is to give the humans dominion over the earth. What does this mean? What has happened to human dominion over the earth?

This is a matter of conjecture: What did Eve and Adam think would happen when they ate the fruit? Did they expect an instantaneous change?

The serpent promised Eve that her eyes would be open if she ate the fruit. Were the man’s and woman’s eyes opened? Explain.

People frequently speak of “Adam’s sin” (though the Genesis account does not use that expression). What was his sin? What is sin?

Read 3:13-19. Do you think God’s judgment, including death, could be a mercy? If so, how so?

How would you explain to a non-Christian friend what Christ’s coming has to do with the Garden of Eden?