The cunning serpent deceived Eve into eating the forbidden fruit, leading to Adam and Eve's newfound awareness of their nakedness, God's subsequent punishment for their disobedience, and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden.
Genesis 3 is seen as part of the primeval history found in the early chapters of Genesis. Scholars generally agree that the text is composed of various sources, with the Yahwist (J) source being the primary contributor to this chapter. The story of the Fall, featuring the Garden of Eden, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and the serpent, has been analyzed for its potential connections to ancient Near Eastern myths, such as the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Enûma Eliš.
The narrative has been interpreted as an etiological story, seeking to explain the origin of human suffering, moral consciousness, and the hardships of life, such as labor and death. The portrayal of the serpent, which is not explicitly identified as Satan in the text, has been a subject of debate, with some scholars suggesting connections to ancient serpent symbols of wisdom or fertility. The story's historical accuracy and literal interpretation are often questioned by critical scholars, who emphasize its theological and symbolic significance over its historicity.
Scroll to see various Christian perspectives on Genesis 3.
1 The serpent was more cunning than any of the other creatures that the Lord God had made. The serpent asked the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" 2 The woman replied, "We may eat from the trees in the garden, 3 but as for the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, 'You must not eat from it, nor touch it, or you will die.'" 4 The serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. 5 God knows that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
6 The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eye, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Later, when they heard the Lord God walking in the garden during the cool of the day, the man and his wife hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 The Lord God called out to the man, "Where are you?" 10 He replied, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid." 11 The Lord God asked, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree I commanded you not to eat from?"
12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." 13 The Lord God then asked the woman, "What have you done?" The woman replied, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." 14 The Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, you are cursed above all livestock and all wild animals. You will crawl on your belly, and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
16 To the woman, He said, "I will greatly increase your pain in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." 17 To the man, He said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat from it,' cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."
20 The man named his wife Eve because she would become the mother of all the living. 21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22 And the Lord God said, "Now that the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil, he must not be allowed to reach out his hand and also take from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." 23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After He drove the man out, He placed cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.
Interpretations
See how various Christian traditions may approach this text.
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There are approximately 1.3 billion Catholic Christians globally.
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There are approximately 280 million Pentecostal Christians globally.
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There are approximately 260 million Eastern Orthodox Christians globally.
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There are approximately 110 million Anglican Christians globally.
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There are approximately 100 million Baptist Christians globally.
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There are approximately 80-100 million Nondenominational Christians globally.
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There are approximately 70-90 million Lutheran Christians globally.
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There are approximately 60-80 million Methodist Christians globally.
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There are approximately 60-80 million Reformed Christians globally.
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AIV
The AIV (Artificial Intelligence Version) is a new translation at times derived directly from the original languages and at times derived from previous English renderings. The goal of the translation is to more closely connect ancient and modern readers. It aims to use the most up-to-date scholarship regarding biblical translation, and to avoid losing technicalities for the sake of simplicity.
Read other translations here.