Man and woman disobey God's command

Man and woman disobey God’s command

After God had created the heavens and the earth, the light and the darkness, the birds and the fishes, he created a man. Then he planted a garden in the east, in a place called Eden, which would be the home for the man. There were many trees in the garden, but in the center were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

God said to the man, “You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. From that tree you shall not eat; when you eat from it you shall die.”

As the Lord considered the man he said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suited to him.” The Lord brought wild animals and birds to the man, and the man gave them names, but none of these creatures were the helpers the Lord wanted for the man.

He put the man into a very deep sleep, took out one of his ribs and healed the wound. Then, from the rib of the man, the Lord created a woman and presented her to the man. The man said, “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; This one shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of man this one has been taken.”

Also in the garden was another creature, one that was lying and dishonest: the snake. The snake said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden?’”

The woman answered, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; it is only about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘You shall not eat it or even touch it, or else you will die.’” The snake said, “God knows well that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, who know good and evil.” The woman saw that the tree was beautiful, so she ate the fruit and then she gave some of it to the man.

When the man and the woman heard the Lord walking in the garden, they hid from him. But the Lord found them and was angry when they told him they had eaten the fruit of the tree.

READ MORE ABOUT IT:
Genesis 2 & 3

Q&A
1. What tree did God say the man and woman could not eat from?
2. What did the snake say to the woman?

Bible Accent: Eden

The name Eden has its origin in two words, the Hebrew word for luxury and pleasure, and also the Sumerian word for plain or steppe, which are geographical features. The Book of Genesis says that four rivers flow into this garden to water it and keep it fertile. The Book of Ezekiel, Chapter 28, speaks of this same place, calling it “the garden of God.” Biblical scholars disagree on the exact location of the garden, but most agree that it would have included land that is now part of Iran, and that two of the rivers mentioned in the Bible are today’s Euphrates and Tigris rivers, just as they were called in Old Testament times. The prophet Joel also mentions the garden of Eden in one of his prophecies.

Saint for Today: St. Oengus

Oengus (d. 824) was known by several terms, most of which are unfamiliar to us today. He was a hagiographer, a person who writes or collects biographies of saints; “the Culdee,” which was a sect of Christian monks from the British Isles; and “God’s vassal (servant).” He entered the monastic life when he was a young boy, and over the time of his studies he earned a reputation for being a very holy and educated man. He spent much of his day praying and reciting religious texts. Because his devotion was beginning to attract more attention to himself than he wanted, Oengus later entered another monastery, without revealing his true identity and asked for a position as a servant, which he was granted. We honor him on March 11.