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Originally Posted by hoosier52
I don't believe the temptation of man was a test. God created man with a freedom of choice, His desire was that man would chose to follow Him willfully and not be disobedient. However, God is not ignorant. He knew before he created Adam and Eve what the results would be. And if not Adam and Eve, then it would have been someone else sooner or later, and probably sooner. As for this story indicating females are weaker and somehow inferior to males, I don't believe that was the intent. Afterall, God didn't choose Eve, the serpent (Satan) did. Why her instead of Adam? Perhaps it was merely the character Eve had that made her the easiest to tempt and had nothing to do with being male or female. Besides, the Bible doesn't indicate Adam putting up much resistance to the idea. ...I'm sure there's a husband/wife joke here somewhere. :-)
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I'll agree with this and add in some quotes to show why.
Read Gen ch1.
You'll see that it goes about describing the creation of the Earth and all on it.
In vv26-29 it says that he created man, both male and female.
Of particular note is that he tells them here to
be fruitful, multiply and replenish the earth.
V 31 ends the chapter by stating that these were the event of the 6th day (day being 24hours, god's time, period x, whatever you wish to hold to)
Ok, now onto the next chapter.
It starts out that he's happy with what he's done, (excuse the non traditional use of He as I'm too lazy) he says that it's all finished and that everything is created (v1) and calls it the 7th day in which he rests.
Then it describes that there isn't any man to till the earth yet. WTF? didn't it just say that Man AND Woman had already been created on the 6th day?
Ok. Let's read on. Maybe there's something that will let us know that he's speaking in past tense.
Hmmm, v7 says then that he forms man out of the ground. (Genetic manipulation of primordial soup any one?)
Then he makes the Garden of Eden in the Eastern part of Eden and takes Adam to it and causes stuff to grow, including 2 important trees. The Tree of knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. They get hung with a big 'keep off' sign.
He brings all the animals in for Adam to catalogue and name them. (v19)
So this is all done and then it's noted that he still doesn't have a mate, so one is made from his rib. (Genetic cloning?)
Right. Everyone's happy. Or are they? What happened to the command for them to be fruitful? Why no kids? Are they disobeying a command or can they just not have them? And why has it just told us a conflicting account in which things were created?
Note that it looks like God is supposed to have made everything BEFORE it goes on the earth. (Ch2 v5) Does this indicate that the 6 days spoken of are more of a planning period in which everything is given it's proper place?
Is the command to multiply given BEFORE they are physically created?
This way, they can be given the command and not be contravening it.
after this, the only other command given is to not eat of the 2 special trees.
What's interesting to those that believe that it was a test is the use of the following verse:
Ch3v6
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
The woman (and I call her that for a reason. Later.) saw that it was to be desired to make them wise.
She wasn't fooled, although she says later that the serpent beguiled her, letting her believe that she would be like a god.
She takes it to Adam, who listens to her and eats it too.
Note that when God asks him, he doesn't say he was fooled, merely that the woman gave it to him and he ate. God's punishment to him in v17 also indicates this. (Guys, no more bitching and saying that sin started with women, knowledge of good and evil started with women.)
What is of importance to me are 2 more verses.
v16 Describes the woman's punishment and concerns childbirth, in particular that it will be painful.
v20 is the very first instance that the woman is called Eve, and this name means the mother of all living.
Why do the verses only refer to child birth now, even after the very first commandment given to them? Wouldn't they have been guilty of not following that one by now?
The verse about her naming also backs this up, as she is referred to by a name that means mother, only at this point.
These are all interesting to me and if creation is to be believed on some level even if it's not literally, indicate some stage of planning in which men and women (as spirits?) indicated their approval of the plan and assumed the task to multiply. Then they have a paradox. They must multiply, yet cannot until they are made mortal.
What can they do?
When the serpent (guess who?) tells the woman to try the fruit, she sees it's the only way to progress. It's the desire for knowledge and to become like God that drives her to do it, not riches or power.
It is from this point on, the original sin of disobeying a direct command, that mortality is present and we have the world in which we now live.
If that's not a test, then I'm a a monkey's uncle.
oh. wait...