EGW WritingsGenesis 3

Christ Triumphant

Temptation Sometimes Disguised as Pleasure, January 15

CTr 21.1

Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? Genesis 3:1.

Darkness Before Dawn

Chapter 3—The First Great Deception

DD 13.2

Had Satan revealed himself in his real character, he would have been repulsed at once, for Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous foe; but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose, that he might more effectually accomplish his object. Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed himself to Eve: “Hath God said, ‘Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” Genesis 3:1. Had Eve refrained from entering into argument with the tempter, she would have been safe; but she ventured to parley with him and fell a victim to his wiles. It is thus that many are still overcome. They doubt and argue concerning the requirements of God; and instead of obeying the divine commands, they accept human theories, which but disguise the devices of Satan.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Lt 3, 1897

12LtMs, Lt 3, 1897, par. 21

How artfully had Satan approached Eve in Eden! “Yea hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” [Genesis 3:1.] Thus far every word that Satan spoke was truth; but his manner of saying them was a disguised contempt for the words of God. There was in his words of truth a covert negative, a denial, a doubt of the divine truthfulness. He sought to instill into her mind the thought that God would not do as He had said; that the withholding of such beautiful fruit was a contradiction of His love and compassion for them.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)

Lt 245a, 1903

18LtMs, Lt 245a, 1903, par. 29

The angels had cautioned Eve to beware of separating herself from her husband while occupied in their daily labor in the garden; with him she should be in less danger from temptation than if she were alone. But absorbed in her pleasing task, she unconsciously wandered from his side. On perceiving that she was alone, she felt an apprehension of danger but dismissed her fears, deciding that she had sufficient wisdom and strength to discern evil and to withstand it. Unmindful of the angels’ caution, she soon found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the forbidden tree. The fruit was very beautiful, and she questioned with herself why God had withheld it from them. Now was the tempter’s opportunity. As if he were able to discern the workings of her mind, he addressed her: “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” [Genesis 3:1.] Eve was surprised and startled as she thus seemed to hear the echo of her thoughts. But the serpent continued, in a musical voice, with subtle praise of her surpassing loveliness; and his words were not displeasing. Instead of fleeing from the spot, she lingered wonderingly to hear a serpent speak. Had she been addressed by a being like the angels, her fears would have been excited; but she had no thought that the fascinating serpent could become the medium of the fallen foe.

18LtMs, Lt 245a, 1903, par. 30

To the tempter’s ensnaring question she replied: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Verses 2-5.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Lt 121, 1897

12LtMs, Lt 121, 1897, par. 3

When Satan tempted our first parents, he said, “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? ... Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day that ye eat thereof, ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:1, 4, 5.] Thus he tried to flatter them into believing that they should be raised above the sphere of humanity.

Selected Messages Book 1

Chapter 26—The Perfect Law

1SM 214.1

There are many beliefs that the mind has no right to entertain. Adam believed the lie of Satan, the wily insinuations against the character of God. “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2:16, 17). When Satan tempted Eve, he said, “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:1-5).

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 8 (1893)

Ms 104, 1893

8LtMs, Ms 104, 1893, par. 11

Instead of the Sabbath ordained of God for his honor, Satan has substituted Sunday, the first day of the week. God’s memorial has been ignored and his sanctified, holy days has been made a common working day. The spurious Sabbath is one of Satan’s own devising and the Christian world have united with those who are openly ungodly in making void the law of Jehovah. The church and the world are in perfect harmony. Many are willfully closing their eyes to light and knowledge claiming that custom must prevail. In Eden God claimed one tree as his own, and man was not to eat its fruit or treat it in any way as his own; but Satan came to Even as an angel of light, and persuaded her that this particular prohibition was of arbitrary authority. “And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, we may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:1-5.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 16, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 16, 1897, par. 23

There are many beliefs that the mind has no right to entertain. Adam believed the lie of Satan, the wily insinuations against the character of God. “And the Lord commanded man saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” [Genesis 2:16, 17.] When Satan tempted Eve, he said, “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it,” (this God did not say) “lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:1-5.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 145, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 145, 1897, par. 2

Satan will use very subtle argument to deceive men and women as he did in Eden to deceive Adam and Eve. A lie will be made to appear a very desirable fact. “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Satan said to Eve. “And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the women, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:1-5.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)

Ms 140, 1903

18LtMs, Ms 140, 1903, par. 9

Now was the tempter’s opportunity. As if he were able to discern the workings of her mind, he addressed her, “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” [Genesis 3:1.] Eve was surprised and startled as she thus seemed to hear the echo of her thoughts. But the serpent continued, in a musical voice, with subtle praise of her surpassing loveliness; and his words were not displeasing. Instead of fleeing from the spot, she lingered wonderingly to hear the serpent speak. Had she been addressed by a being like the angels, her fears would have been excited; but she had no thought that the fascinating serpent could become the medium of the fallen foe.

18LtMs, Ms 140, 1903, par. 10

To the tempter’s ensnaring question she replied, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Verses 2-5.]

18LtMs, Ms 140, 1903, par. 14

The serpent plucked the fruit of the forbidden tree and placed it in the hands of the half-reluctant Eve. Then he reminded her of her own words, that God had forbidden them to touch it, lest they die. She would receive no more harm from eating the fruit, he declared, than from touching it. Perceiving no evil results from what she had done, Eve grew bolder. “When she saw that the tree was good for food, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat.” [Verse 6.] It was grateful to the taste, and as she ate, she seemed to feel a vivifying power and imagined herself entering upon a higher state of existence. Without fear, she plucked and ate. And, having transgressed herself, she became the agent of Satan in working the ruin of her husband.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 56, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 56, 1897, par. 7

Disguising himself as a serpent, Satan came to Eve and said, “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” Genesis 3:1-3.

12LtMs, Ms 56, 1897, par. 8

The first contradiction of the Word of God is given in verses four and five: “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5.

12LtMs, Ms 56, 1897, par. 10

“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.” Genesis 3:6. Here was Adam’s sin. He was not deceived. He was tempted by his wife, and did there transgress the commandments of God.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 21, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 21, 1898, par. 29

By listening to the tempter, our first parents lost their beautiful Eden home. Satan found Eve willing to listen to his temptations, and read a disposition to distrust the Word of God. “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” he asked. And the woman said, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:1-5.]

13LtMs, Ms 21, 1898, par. 31

“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, 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.” [Verse 6.]

13LtMs, Ms 21, 1898, par. 32

“Your eyes shall be opened,” said the tempter. But what an opening it was! “Ye shall know good and evil.” [Verse 5.] That knowledge was obtained, but what a knowledge it was! The curse of sin was the knowledge they gained. Eve coveted the thing God had forbidden, she revealed a distrust of God and of His goodness, and a desire to be independent and do as she thought best. Eve offered the fruit to Adam and became his tempter. She would be a god. She would be a law unto herself. She would acknowledge no restraint. But that apparently smallest sin constituted her a transgressor of the law of God.

Conflict and Courage

Deceived! January 9

CC 15.1

And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? Genesis 3:1.

CC 15.2

To man, the crowning work of creation, God has given power to understand His requirements, to comprehend the justice and beneficence of His law, and its sacred claims upon him; and of man unswerving obedience is required.

CC 15.3

Like the angels, the dwellers in Eden had been placed upon probation; their happy estate could be retained only on condition of fidelity to the Creator’s law. They could obey and live, or disobey and perish....

CC 15.4

The angels had cautioned Eve to beware of separating herself from her husband while occupied in their daily labor in the garden; with him she would be in less danger from temptation than if she were alone. But absorbed in her pleasing task, she unconsciously wandered from his side.... She soon found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the forbidden tree. The fruit was very beautiful, and she questioned with herself why God had withheld it from them. Now was the tempter’s opportunity. As if he were able to discern the workings of her mind, he addressed her: “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” ...

CC 15.5

The tempter intimated that the divine warning was not to be actually fulfilled; it was designed merely to intimidate them....

CC 15.6

Such has been Satan’s work from the days of Adam to the present, and he has pursued it with great success. He tempts men to distrust God’s love and to doubt His wisdom. He is constantly seeking to excite a spirit of irreverent curiosity, a restless, inquisitive desire to penetrate the secrets of divine wisdom and power. In their efforts to search out what God has been pleased to withhold, multitudes overlook the truths which He has revealed, and which are essential to salvation....

CC 15.7

Eve really believed the words of Satan, but her belief did not save her from the penalty of sin. She disbelieved the words of God, and this was what led to her fall. In the judgment men will not be condemned because they conscientiously believed a lie, but because they did not believe the truth, because they neglected the opportunity of learning what is truth.12Ibid., 52-55.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 8 (1893)

Lt 8, 1893

8LtMs, Lt 8, 1893, par. 6

My brother, you know not whither your steps have been tending, certainly not heavenward, but toward perdition. The narcotic tobacco you have used largely, and Satan exults in his success in tempting the appetite, for the tobacco devotee is paralyzing the sensitive nerves of the brain. Satan entices men today as he enticed Eve to partake of the forbidden fruit. “Yea, hath God said, ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” [Genesis 3:1.] Read Genesis 3:2-6. In fastening upon men the terrible habit of tobacco using, it is Satan’s purpose to palsy the brain and confuse the judgment, so that sacred things shall not be discerned. When once an appetite for this narcotic has been formed, it takes firm hold of the mind and the will of man, and he is in bondage under its power. Satan has the control of the will, and eternal realities are eclipsed. Man cannot stand forth in his God-given manhood; he is a slave to perverted appetite.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 20 (1905)

Ms 164, 1905

20LtMs, Ms 164, 1905, par. 14

“And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 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.” [Genesis 3:1-6.]

The Desire of Ages

Chapter 12—The Temptation

DA 115.1

Since the announcement to the serpent in Eden, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed” (Genesis 3:15), Satan had known that he did not hold absolute sway over the world. There was seen in men the working of a power that withstood his dominion. With intense interest he watched the sacrifices offered by Adam and his sons. In these ceremonies he discerned a symbol of communion between earth and heaven. He set himself to intercept this communion. He misrepresented God, and misinterpreted the rites that pointed to the Saviour. Men were led to fear God as one who delighted in their destruction. The sacrifices that should have revealed His love were offered only to appease His wrath. Satan excited the evil passions of men, in order to fasten his rule upon them. When God’s written word was given, Satan studied the prophecies of the Saviour’s advent. From generation to generation he worked to blind the people to these prophecies, that they might reject Christ at His coming.

DA 118.3

Though he appears as an angel of light, these first words betray his character. “If Thou be the Son of God.” Here is the insinuation of distrust. Should Jesus do what Satan suggests, it would be an acceptance of the doubt. The tempter plans to overthrow Christ by the same means that were so successful with the human race in the beginning. How artfully had Satan approached Eve in Eden! “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Genesis 3:1. Thus far the tempter’s words were truth; but in his manner of speaking them there was a disguised contempt for the words of God. There was a covert negative, a doubt of the divine truthfulness. Satan sought to instill into the mind of Eve the thought that God would not do as He had said; that the withholding of such beautiful fruit was a contradiction of His love and compassion for man. So now the tempter seeks to inspire Christ with his own sentiments. “If Thou be the Son of God.” The words rankle with bitterness in his mind. In the tones of his voice is an expression of utter incredulity. Would God treat His own Son thus? Would He leave Him in the desert with wild beasts, without food, without companions, without comfort? He insinuates that God never meant His Son to be in such a state as this. “If Thou be the Son of God,” show Thy power by relieving Thyself of this pressing hunger. Command that this stone be made bread.

The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 4

Chapter 28—The First Great Deception

4SP 351.2

Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed himself to Eve, “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” [Genesis 3:1.] Had Eve refrained from entering into argument with the tempter, she would have been safe; but she ventured to parley with him, and fell a victim to his wiles. It is thus that many are still overcome. They doubt and argue concerning the requirements of God, and instead of obeying the divine commands, they accept human theories, which but disguise the devices of Satan.

4SP 352.1

“The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:2-5.] Eve yielded to temptation, and through her influence Adam also was deceived. They accepted the words of the serpent, that God did not mean what he said; they distrusted their Creator, and imagined that he was restricting their liberty, and that they might obtain great light and freedom by transgressing his law.

4SP 352.2

But what did Adam, after his sin, find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Did he find them to mean, as Satan had led him to believe, that he was to be ushered into a more exalted state of existence? Then indeed there was great good to be gained by transgression, and Satan was proved to be a benefactor of the race. But Adam did not so understand the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground whence he was taken: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” [Genesis 3:19.] The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true only in this sense: After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, their eyes were opened to discern their folly; they did know evil, and they tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.

From Here to Forever

Chapter 33—What Lies Beyond the Grave?

HF 328.2

Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous foe, but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose. Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed Eve: “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Eve ventured to parley with him and fell victim to his wiles: “The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:1-5.

HF 328.4

But what did Adam find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Was he to be ushered into a more exalted existence? Adam did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Genesis 3:19. The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true in this sense only: their eyes were opened to discern their folly. They did know evil and tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.

The Great Hope (Condensed)

Chapter 4—Everlasting Life

GrH_c 14.2

Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous foe, but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose. Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed Eve: “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Eve ventured to parley with him and fell victim to his wiles: “The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:1-5.

GrH_c 14.4

But what did Adam find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Was he to be ushered into a more exalted existence? Adam did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Genesis 3:19. The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true in this sense only: their eyes were opened to discern their folly. They did know evil and tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.

The Great Controversy

Chapter 33—The First Great Deception

GC 531.2

Had Satan revealed himself in his real character, he would have been repulsed at once, for Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous foe; but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose, that he might more effectually accomplish his object. Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed himself to Eve: “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Genesis 3:1. Had Eve refrained from entering into argument with the tempter, she would have been safe; but she ventured to parley with him and fell a victim to his wiles. It is thus that many are still overcome. They doubt and argue concerning the requirements of God; and instead of obeying the divine commands, they accept human theories, which but disguise the devices of Satan.

GC 532.1

“The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Verses 2-5. He declared that they would become like God, possessing greater wisdom than before and being capable of a higher state of existence. Eve yielded to temptation; and through her influence, Adam was led into sin. They accepted the words of the serpent, that God did not mean what He said; they distrusted their Creator and imagined that He was restricting their liberty and that they might obtain great wisdom and exaltation by transgressing His law.

GC 532.2

But what did Adam, after his sin, find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Did he find them to mean, as Satan had led him to believe, that he was to be ushered into a more exalted state of existence? Then indeed there was great good to be gained by transgression, and Satan was proved to be a benefactor of the race. But Adam did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground whence he was taken: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Verse 19. The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true in this sense only: After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, their eyes were opened to discern their folly; they did know evil, and they tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.

GC 533.3

Had man after his fall been allowed free access to the tree of life, he would have lived forever, and thus sin would have been immortalized. But cherubim and a flaming sword kept “the way of the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24), and not one of the family of Adam has been permitted to pass that barrier and partake of the life-giving fruit. Therefore there is not an immortal sinner.

The Great Controversy (1888 ed.)

Chapter 33—The First Great Deception

GC88 531.2

Had Satan revealed himself in his real character, he would have been repulsed at once, for Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous foe; but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose, that he might more effectually accomplish his object. Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed himself to Eve, “Hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” [Genesis 3:1.] Had Eve refrained from entering into argument with the tempter, she would have been safe; but she ventured to parley with him, and fell a victim to his wiles. It is thus that many are still overcome. They doubt and argue concerning the requirements of God, and instead of obeying the divine commands, they accept human theories, which but disguise the devices of Satan.

GC88 532.1

“The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:2-5.] He declared that they would become like God, possessing greater wisdom than before, and being capable of a higher state of existence. Eve yielded to temptation; and through her influence, Adam was led into sin. They accepted the words of the serpent, that God did not mean what he said; they distrusted their Creator, and imagined that he was restricting their liberty, and that they might obtain great wisdom and exaltation by transgressing his law.

GC88 532.2

But what did Adam, after his sin, find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Did he find them to mean, as Satan had led him to believe, that he was to be ushered into a more exalted state of existence? Then indeed there was great good to be gained by transgression, and Satan was proved to be a benefactor of the race. But Adam did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground whence he was taken: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” [Genesis 3:19.] The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true in this sense only: After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, their eyes were opened to discern their folly; they did know evil, and they tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.

GC88 533.3

Had man, after his fall, been allowed free access to the tree of life, he would have lived forever, and thus sin would have been immortalized. But cherubim and a flaming sword kept “the way of the tree of life,” [Genesis 3:24.] and not one of the family of Adam has been permitted to pass that barrier and partake of the life-giving fruit. Therefore there is not an immortal sinner.

Christian Temperance and Bible Hygiene

Chapter 4—Relation of Diet to Health and Morals

CTBH 42.2

Adam and Eve were permitted to eat of all the trees in their Eden home, save one. The Lord said to the holy pair, “In the day that ye eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, ye shall surely die.” [See Genesis 3.] Eve was beguiled by the serpent, and made to believe that God would not do as he had said. She ate, and thinking she felt the sensation of a new and more exalted life, she bore the fruit to her husband. The serpent had said that she should not die, and she felt no ill effects from eating the fruit,—nothing which could be interpreted to mean death, but, instead, a pleasurable sensation, which she imagined was as the angels felt. Her experience stood arrayed against the positive command of Jehovah, yet Adam permitted himself to be seduced by it.

From Eternity Past

Is God Too Severe?

EP 29.3

Many who teach that the law of God is not binding upon man urge that it is impossible to obey its precepts. But if this were true, why did Adam suffer the penalty of transgression? The sin of our first parents brought guilt and sorrow upon the world, and had it not been for the goodness and mercy of God, would have plunged the race into hopeless despair. Let none deceive themselves. “The wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23.

EP 30.3

The Garden of Eden remained upon the earth long after man had become an outcast from its pleasant paths. But when the wickedness of men determined their destruction by a flood of waters, the hand that had planted Eden withdrew it from the earth. In the final restitution, when there shall be “a new heaven and a new earth” it is to be restored more gloriously adorned than at the beginning. Revelation 21:1.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)

Lt 47, 1886

4LtMs, Lt 47, 1886, par. 13

The counsels are of God, and His Word was not given in a few days on a high-pressure plan. It took a long space of time to bring out the Bible history. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, a chapter was written, a psalm was composed, a proverb penned, a vision from God recorded, and so down through the ages the will and purposes of God were brought out. About fifteen hundred years were occupied from the time Moses began to write the book of Genesis down to the completion of the Revelation by the beloved John. God would not have us so excitable, in such a hurry; and yet there are some who need to be taught diligence.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)

Lt 47a, 1886

4LtMs, Lt 47a, 1886, par. 14

The Lord would not have us be so excitable, in such a hurry. The counsels of God in His Word were not given in a few days, on the high-pressure plan. It took a long period of time to bring out the Bible history. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, a chapter was written, a psalm composed, a proverb penned, a vision recorded, and so down through the ages the will and purposes of God were brought out. About fifteen hundred years passed from the time Moses began to write the book of Genesis, down to the completion of the Revelation by the beloved John.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)

Ms 16, 1888

5LtMs, Ms 16, 1888, par. 13

Men should let God take care of His own Book, His living Oracles, as He has done for ages. They begin to question some parts of revelation and pick flaws in the apparent inconsistencies of this statement and that statement. Beginning at Genesis, they give up that which they deem questionable, and their minds lead on, for Satan will lead to any length they may follow in their criticism and they see something to doubt in the whole Scriptures. Their faculties of criticism become sharpened by exercise, and they can rest on nothing with a certainty. You try to reason with these men, but your time is lost. They will exercise their power of ridicule even upon the Bible. They even become mockers, and they would be astonished if you put it to them in that light.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 9 (1894)

Ms 40, 1894

9LtMs, Ms 40, 1894, par. 17

From Genesis to Revelation the conditions upon which eternal life is promised are made plain. God requires that those who shall enter heaven shall be without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. “Keep My commandments and live” is the requirement of God. [Proverbs 4:4.] But one says, “My conscience does not condemn me in not keeping the commandments of God.” But in the Word of God we read that there are good and bad consciences, and the fact that your conscience does not condemn you in not keeping the law of God does not prove that you are uncondemned in His sight. Take your conscience to the Word of God, and see if your life and character are in accordance with the standard of righteousness which God has revealed in His Word. You can then determine whether or not you have an intelligent faith, and what manner of conscience is yours.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)

Lt 67, 1895

10LtMs, Lt 67, 1895, par. 14

Christ came in the form of humanity to live the law of God. He was the Word of life. He came to be the gospel of salvation to the world, and to fulfill every specification of the law. Jesus is the Word, the guidebook, which must be received and obeyed in every particular. How necessary that this mine of truth be explored, and the precious treasures of truth be discovered and secured as rich jewels. The incarnation of Christ, His divinity, His atonement, His wonderful life in heaven as our Advocate, the office of the Holy Spirit—all those living, vital themes of Christianity are revealed from Genesis to Revelation. The golden links of truth form a chain of evangelical truth, and the first and staple link is found in the great teachings of Christ Jesus. Why, then, should not the Scriptures be ennobled and exalted in every school in our land? How little children are educated to study the Bible as the Word of God, and feed upon its truths, which are the flesh and blood of the Son of God! “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood” (that is, continue to receive the words of Christ, and practice them) “hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” [John 6:53-56.] “And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.” [1 John 3:24.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 75, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 75, 1897, par. 1

Those who accept Christ will follow on to know the Lord. This acceptance means conversion through the Holy Spirit’s power and efficiency. The working of the Holy Spirit upon the human agent brings to him a conviction of sin, makes him susceptible to truth, [and] enables him to discern and make earnest application of it to his own heart. This power preserves him from falling under temptation, and imparts to him wisdom in winning souls to Christ. And every true believer who will follow on to know the Lord will have this power working in him. He will discern in Christ not only the Alpha of Genesis, but the Omega of Revelation. He will learn by personal experience that Christ is the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star, and that it is through His church, His people in their unity, that He is to shine in undimmed luster to the world. He beholds himself as the work of Christ. Having the mind of Christ, he walks in His footsteps, and his good works and love for others testify to the world that He is Christ, that God has sent His Son to impart His Spirit to His people, and that they may represent Christ in their love for one another.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 52, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 52, 1897, par. 2

After His crucifixion and resurrection, thousands would be led to open the Scriptures with an intense desire to study the prophecies, from Genesis to Revelation. And they would see with anointed eyes the predictions in the prophetic Roll of the advent of a divine Teacher. In Christ crucified they would see the very work done which the prophecies declared He would do to proclaim the gospel, the Word of life to a world that was shadowed and corrupted by transgression and sin. And the words of Christ would be gathered up; the New Testament would declare to them a work which would thrill the world.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 33, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 33, 1897, par. 30

When the students of prophecy shall set their hearts to know the truths of Revelation, they will realize what an importance is attached to this search. Christ Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the Genesis of the Old Testament, and the Revelation of the New. Both meet together in Christ. Adam and God are reconciled by the obedience of the second Adam, who accomplished the work of overcoming the temptations of Satan and redeeming Adam’s disgraceful failure and fall. The two Adams will meet in Paradise and embrace each other, while the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, and all who have refused the opportunities and privileges given to them at such an infinite cost, and have not returned to their loyalty, will be shut out of Paradise.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 21, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 21, 1897, par. 29

Here we have the Alpha of Genesis and the Omega of Revelation. The blessing is promised to all those who keep the commandments of God, and who co-operate with Him in the proclamation of the third angel’s message. “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning Star.” [Revelation 22:16.] That which Christ has spoken in the Old Testament is for all the world. What He has said in reference is His commandments is not Yea and Nay, but Yea and Amen.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 69, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 69, 1897, par. 15

Our youth must have well-conducted schools, where they can gain an all-round education. From Genesis to Revelation the gospel shines forth with no uncertain light. From the time when God talked with Adam and Eve in Eden, giving them heavenly instruction, the light has continued to shine down through the ages. Christ appeared to His servant John, and gave him a revelation of the closing events of this earth’s history.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Lt 98a, 1897

12LtMs, Lt 98a, 1897, par. 49

All who join the ranks of Sabbathkeepers should become diligent Bible students, that they may know the pillars and ground work of the truth. They should study prophetic history, which has brought us down point by point to where we are at the present time. This is God’s plan for our school. Young men should attend who desire to become educated for any line of work, who have capabilities and see the necessity of learning more and still more where we stand today in prophetic history, uniting link after link in the prophetic chain, even from Genesis to Revelation. Christ is the Alpha, the first link, and the Omega, the last link, of the gospel chain, which is welded in Revelation. These young men will not have fixed habits of wrong, or defects in disposition and character that will make them inflexible.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 54, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 54, 1898, par. 8

Perfection of character is required by God, and this is kept before us in His Word from Genesis to Revelation. “When Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.” [Genesis 17:1.] To Israel God said, “I am the Lord your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy for I am holy. ... For I am the Lord your God that bringeth you out of the land of Egypt, to by your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.” “And the Lord spake unto Moses saying, Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. Ye shall fear every man his mother and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.” [Leviticus 11:44, 45; 19:1-3.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 117, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 117, 1898, par. 12

The uneducated heathen then learns his lessons through nature, and through his own necessities; and, dissatisfied with darkness, he is reaching out for light, searching for God in the first great cause. There is recorded in Genesis various ways in which God speaks to the heathen. But the contrast between the revelation of God in Genesis and the ideas of the heathen is striking. Pagan philosophers, many of them, had a knowledge of God which was pure, but degeneracy, the worship of created things, began to obscure this knowledge. The handiwork of God in the natural world, the sun, the moon, the stars, were worshipped.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 12, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 12, 1899, par. 2

The Word of God is to be the great lesson book in all our schools. From Genesis to Revelation it is full of instruction in practical godliness.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 85, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 85, 1899, par. 12

The history of the world from the beginning is contained in Genesis. There it is revealed that all nations who forget God and discard His way and His sign of obedience, which distinguishes between the just and the unjust, the righteous and the wicked, the saved and the unsaved, will be destroyed. The first books of the Bible, which trace down the history of nations, including the destruction of the old world, show the overruling providence of God, which from generation to generation has provided for the education of a chosen people. The plainly written Word in regard to the just and the unjust is a living testimony in regard to those whom the Lord will sanctify. None who live in disobedience can receive His blessing. Only those who are obedient can receive this.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 153, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 153, 1899, par. 32

We cannot know God and Jesus Christ until we search the Scriptures, beginning with Genesis. In this Word we find out why it was necessary for Christ to leave His high command in heaven, to separate Himself from the angelic family, laying off His royal robe and kingly crown, and clothe His divinity with humanity. For our sake He became poor, that by His poverty He might make many rich, securing for them eternal riches. That He might work in our behalf, He came to live among fallen humanity, in a world marred by sin and misery.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 15 (1900)

Ms 68, 1900

15LtMs, Ms 68, 1900, par. 15

The whole gospel from Genesis to Revelation is the means appointed and specified of God through which to reveal His will to the people, and it is to be appreciated, respected, and heeded.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 110, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 110, 1901, par. 6

While they were talking thus of their crucified and buried Lord, “Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?” [Luke 24:15-17.] “Have ye not heard,” they answered, “that the prophet mighty in deed and word has been taken and crucified by cruel hands, and is now buried?” Beginning at Genesis, the Stranger told them what had been prophesied from the first concerning Jesus. While He was comforting their hearts, they came to the house where they lived, and invited their Companion to come in. He acted as though He were going further, but they constrained Him to tarry with them.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 70, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 70, 1901, par. 9

The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the Word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light which streams from the cross of Calvary, and in connection with the wondrous, central truth of the Saviour’s atonement. Those who study the Redeemer’s wonderful sacrifice grow in grace and knowledge.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 19 (1904)

Ms 170, 1904

19LtMs, Ms 170, 1904, par. 19

I have not been able to sleep since 12 o’clock, but I have a message from the Lord to bear to our people. Present to the people everywhere at this time the perpetuity of the law of Jehovah. Present to them that the only foundation for Sunday observance has its origin not in the Word of God, but in the papal authority. Now let all consider that the time has come to reason from cause to effect. We must, as ministers of the Word, delay not to impress the people more decidedly in defining our authority for keeping the original Sabbath of Jehovah. Please read the word in Genesis.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)

Ms 67, 1907

22LtMs, Ms 67, 1907, par. 17

The message of the gospel, from Genesis to Revelation, is God’s appointed means through which to reveal His will to men. It is to be appreciated, respected, and carefully studied. In a humble, prayerful spirit, Scripture is to be compared with Scripture. In the fourth chapter of Ephesians, the plan of God is so plainly and simply revealed, that all His children may lay hold upon the truth. Here the means which He has appointed to keep unity in His church, that its members may reveal to the world a healthy religious experience, is plainly declared. Those who conform their lives to obedience to the commandments of God, and are united in the faith of the Scriptures; those who are bound together as one in Christ Jesus, their lives hid with Christ in God, will practice the golden rule, doing to others as they would have others do to them. They will bear a living, abiding testimony that the Father loves them even as He loves His Son, and their testimony will have a powerful influence with the unbelieving world. These souls appreciate the great gift of God to our world; their course in life testifies that Christ has not died for them in vain. They make use of the provision made by heaven at infinite cost to draw souls to obedience to the law of God. Co-operating with the great Master Worker, they become laborers together with God. They become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Their consistent Christian lives magnify the law of God and make it honorable before the gainsaying world. Their deportment in courtesy and unwavering fidelity, their justice and mercy demonstrate to the world that the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Ms 69, 1912

25LtMs, Ms 69, 1912, par. 42

The Old Testament, containing the prophecies of the coming of Christ, is now made of small account. The cry now is, “The Christ, the Christ! The gospel, the gospel!” But the gospel is taught all the way through the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. The gospel is revealed in all the prophecies of the first advent of Christ as the Saviour of men. Every act of the old dispensation to turn men away from sin or to bring them forgiveness was done with reference to the Saviour who was to come. He was the steppingstone by which man was to be exalted.

25LtMs, Ms 69, 1912, par. 64

This act was a great victory over the powers of darkness. This display of power was an incontrovertible testimony to the supremacy of the Son of God. Satan had not expected that the body would be raised to life after death. He had concluded that the sentence, “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” [Genesis 3:19], gave him undisputed possession of the bodies of the dead. Now he saw that he would be despoiled of his prey; that man would live again after death.

Patriarchs and Prophets

Chapter 3—The Temptation and Fall

PP 52.1

No longer free to stir up rebellion in heaven, Satan’s enmity against God found a new field in plotting the ruin of the human race. In the happiness and peace of the holy pair in Eden he beheld a vision of the bliss that to him was forever lost. Moved by envy, he determined to incite them to disobedience, and bring upon them the guilt and penalty of sin. He would change their love to distrust and their songs of praise to reproaches against their Maker. Thus he would not only plunge these innocent beings into the same misery which he was himself enduring, but would cast dishonor upon God, and cause grief in heaven.

PP 52.2

Our first parents were not left without a warning of the danger that threatened them. Heavenly messengers opened to them the history of Satan’s fall and his plots for their destruction, unfolding more fully the nature of the divine government, which the prince of evil was trying to overthrow. It was by disobedience to the just commands of God that Satan and his host had fallen. How important, then, that Adam and Eve should honor that law by which alone it was possible for order and equity to be maintained.

PP 52.3

The law of God is as sacred as God Himself. It is a revelation of His will, a transcript of His character, the expression of divine love and wisdom. The harmony of creation depends upon the perfect conformity of all beings, of everything, animate and inanimate, to the law of the Creator. God has ordained laws for the government, not only of living beings, but of all the operations of nature. Everything is under fixed laws, which cannot be disregarded. But while everything in nature is governed by natural laws, man alone, of all that inhabits the earth, is amenable to moral law. To man, the crowning work of creation, God has given power to understand His requirements, to comprehend the justice and beneficence of His law, and its sacred claims upon him; and of man unswerving obedience is required.

PP 53.1

Like the angels, the dwellers in Eden had been placed upon probation; their happy estate could be retained only on condition of fidelity to the Creator’s law. They could obey and live, or disobey and perish. God had made them the recipients of rich blessings; but should they disregard His will, He who spared not the angels that sinned, could not spare them; transgression would forfeit His gifts and bring upon them misery and ruin.

PP 53.2

The angels warned them to be on their guard against the devices of Satan, for his efforts to ensnare them would be unwearied. While they were obedient to God the evil one could not harm them; for, if need be, every angel in heaven would be sent to their help. If they steadfastly repelled his first insinuations, they would be as secure as the heavenly messengers. But should they once yield to temptation, their nature would become so depraved that in themselves they would have no power and no disposition to resist Satan.

PP 53.3

The tree of knowledge had been made a test of their obedience and their love to God. The Lord had seen fit to lay upon them but one prohibition as to the use of all that was in the garden; but if they should disregard His will in this particular, they would incur the guilt of transgression. Satan was not to follow them with continual temptations; he could have access to them only at the forbidden tree. Should they attempt to investigate its nature, they would be exposed to his wiles. They were admonished to give careful heed to the warning which God had sent them and to be content with the instruction which He had seen fit to impart.

PP 53.4

In order to accomplish his work unperceived, Satan chose to employ as his medium the serpent—a disguise well adapted for his purpose of deception. The serpent was then one of the wisest and most beautiful creatures on the earth. It had wings, and while flying through the air presented an appearance of dazzling brightness, having the color and brilliancy of burnished gold. Resting in the rich-laden branches of the forbidden tree and regaling itself with the delicious fruit, it was an object to arrest the attention and delight the eye of the beholder. Thus in the garden of peace lurked the destroyer, watching for his prey.

PP 53.5

The angels had cautioned Eve to beware of separating herself from her husband while occupied in their daily labor in the garden; with him she would be in less danger from temptation than if she were alone. But absorbed in her pleasing task, she unconsciously wandered from his side. On perceiving that she was alone, she felt an apprehension of danger, but dismissed her fears, deciding that she had sufficient wisdom and strength to discern evil and to withstand it. Unmindful of the angels’ caution, she soon found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the forbidden tree. The fruit was very beautiful, and she questioned with herself why God had withheld it from them. Now was the tempter’s opportunity. As if he were able to discern the workings of her mind, he addressed her: “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Eve was surprised and startled as she thus seemed to hear the echo of her thoughts. But the serpent continued, in a musical voice, with subtle praise of her surpassing loveliness; and his words were not displeasing. Instead of fleeing from the spot she lingered wonderingly to hear a serpent speak. Had she been addressed by a being like the angels, her fears would have been excited; but she had no thought that the fascinating serpent could become the medium of the fallen foe.

PP 54.1

To the tempter’s ensnaring question she replied: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”

PP 54.2

By partaking of this tree, he declared, they would attain to a more exalted sphere of existence and enter a broader field of knowledge. He himself had eaten of the forbidden fruit, and as a result had acquired the power of speech. And he insinuated that the Lord jealously desired to withhold it from them, lest they should be exalted to equality with Himself. It was because of its wonderful properties, imparting wisdom and power, that He had prohibited them from tasting or even touching it. The tempter intimated that the divine warning was not to be actually fulfilled; it was designed merely to intimidate them. How could it be possible for them to die? Had they not eaten of the tree of life? God had been seeking to prevent them from reaching a nobler development and finding greater happiness.

PP 54.3

Such has been Satan’s work from the days of Adam to the present, and he has pursued it with great success. He tempts men to distrust God’s love and to doubt His wisdom. He is constantly seeking to excite a spirit of irreverent curiosity, a restless, inquisitive desire to penetrate the secrets of divine wisdom and power. In their efforts to search out what God has been pleased to withhold, multitudes overlook the truths which He has revealed, and which are essential to salvation. Satan tempts men to disobedience by leading them to believe they are entering a wonderful field of knowledge. But this is all a deception. Elated with their ideas of progression, they are, by trampling on God’s requirements, setting their feet in the path that leads to degradation and death.

PP 55.1

Satan represented to the holy pair that they would be gainers by breaking the law of God. Do we not today hear similar reasoning? Many talk of the narrowness of those who obey God’s commandments, while they themselves claim to have broader ideas and to enjoy greater liberty. What is this but an echo of the voice from Eden, “In the day ye eat thereof”—transgress the divine requirement—“ye shall be as gods”? Satan claimed to have received great good by eating of the forbidden fruit, but he did not let it appear that by transgression he had become an outcast from heaven. Though he had found sin to result in infinite loss, he concealed his own misery in order to draw others into the same position. So now the transgressor seeks to disguise his true character; he may claim to be holy; but his exalted profession only makes him the more dangerous as a deceiver. He is on the side of Satan, trampling upon the law of God, and leading others to do the same, to their eternal ruin.

PP 55.2

Eve really believed the words of Satan, but her belief did not save her from the penalty of sin. She disbelieved the words of God, and this was what led to her fall. In the judgment men will not be condemned because they conscientiously believed a lie, but because they did not believe the truth, because they neglected the opportunity of learning what is truth. Notwithstanding the sophistry of Satan to the contrary, it is always disastrous to disobey God. We must set our hearts to know what is truth. All the lessons which God has caused to be placed on record in His word are for our warning and instruction. They are given to save us from deception. Their neglect will result in ruin to ourselves. Whatever contradicts God’s word, we may be sure proceeds from Satan.

PP 55.3

The serpent plucked the fruit of the forbidden tree and placed it in the hands of the half-reluctant Eve. Then he reminded her of her own words, that God had forbidden them to touch it, lest they die. She would receive no more harm from eating the fruit, he declared, than from touching it. Perceiving no evil results from what she had done, Eve grew bolder. When she “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.” It was grateful to the taste, and as she ate, she seemed to feel a vivifying power, and imagined herself entering upon a higher state of existence. Without a fear she plucked and ate. And now, having herself transgressed, she became the agent of Satan in working the ruin of her husband. In a state of strange, unnatural excitement, with her hands filled with the forbidden fruit, she sought his presence, and related all that had occurred.

PP 56.1

An expression of sadness came over the face of Adam. He appeared astonished and alarmed. To the words of Eve he replied that this must be the foe against whom they had been warned; and by the divine sentence she must die. In answer she urged him to eat, repeating the words of the serpent, that they should not surely die. She reasoned that this must be true, for she felt no evidence of God’s displeasure, but on the contrary realized a delicious, exhilarating influence, thrilling every faculty with new life, such, she imagined, as inspired the heavenly messengers.

PP 56.2

Adam understood that his companion had transgressed the command of God, disregarded the only prohibition laid upon them as a test of their fidelity and love. There was a terrible struggle in his mind. He mourned that he had permitted Eve to wander from his side. But now the deed was done; he must be separated from her whose society had been his joy. How could he have it thus? Adam had enjoyed the companionship of God and of holy angels. He had looked upon the glory of the Creator. He understood the high destiny opened to the human race should they remain faithful to God. Yet all these blessings were lost sight of in the fear of losing that one gift which in his eyes outvalued every other. Love, gratitude, loyalty to the Creator—all were overborne by love to Eve. She was a part of himself, and he could not endure the thought of separation. He did not realize that the same Infinite Power who had from the dust of the earth created him, a living, beautiful form, and had in love given him a companion, could supply her place. He resolved to share her fate; if she must die, he would die with her. After all, he reasoned, might not the words of the wise serpent be true? Eve was before him, as beautiful and apparently as innocent as before this act of disobedience. She expressed greater love for him than before. No sign of death appeared in her, and he decided to brave the consequences. He seized the fruit and quickly ate.

PP 57.1

After his transgression Adam at first imagined himself entering upon a higher state of existence. But soon the thought of his sin filled him with terror. The air, which had hitherto been of a mild and uniform temperature, seemed to chill the guilty pair. The love and peace which had been theirs was gone, and in its place they felt a sense of sin, a dread of the future, a nakedness of soul. The robe of light which had enshrouded them, now disappeared, and to supply its place they endeavored to fashion for themselves a covering; for they could not, while unclothed, meet the eye of God and holy angels.

PP 57.2

They now began to see the true character of their sin. Adam reproached his companion for her folly in leaving his side and permitting herself to be deceived by the serpent; but they both flattered themselves that He who had given them so many evidences of His love, would pardon this one transgression, or that they would not be subjected to so dire a punishment as they had feared.

PP 57.3

Satan exulted in his success. He had tempted the woman to distrust God’s love, to doubt His wisdom, and to transgress His law, and through her he had caused the overthrow of Adam.

PP 57.4

But the great Lawgiver was about to make known to Adam and Eve the consequences of their transgression. The divine presence was manifested in the garden. In their innocence and holiness they had joyfully welcomed the approach of their Creator; but now they fled in terror, and sought to hide in the deepest recesses of the garden. But “the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And He said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?”

PP 57.5

Adam could neither deny nor excuse his sin; but instead of manifesting penitence, he endeavored to cast the blame upon his wife, and thus upon God Himself: “The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” He who, from love to Eve, had deliberately chosen to forfeit the approval of God, his home in Paradise, and an eternal life of joy, could now, after his fall, endeavor to make his companion, and even the Creator Himself, responsible for the transgression. So terrible is the power of sin.

PP 58.1

When the woman was asked, “What is this that thou hast done?” she answered, “The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.” “Why didst Thou create the serpent? Why didst Thou suffer him to enter Eden?”—these were the questions implied in her excuse for her sin. Thus, like Adam, she charged God with the responsibility of their fall. The spirit of self-justification originated in the father of lies; it was indulged by our first parents as soon as they yielded to the influence of Satan, and has been exhibited by all the sons and daughters of Adam. Instead of humbly confessing their sins, they try to shield themselves by casting the blame upon others, upon circumstances, or upon God—making even His blessings an occasion of murmuring against Him.

PP 58.2

The Lord then passed sentence upon the serpent: “Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.” Since it had been employed as Satan’s medium, the serpent was to share the visitation of divine judgment. From the most beautiful and admired of the creatures of the field, it was to become the most groveling and detested of them all, feared and hated by both man and beast. The words next addressed to the serpent applied directly to Satan himself, pointing forward to his ultimate defeat and destruction: “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”

PP 58.3

Eve was told of the sorrow and pain that must henceforth be her portion. And the Lord said, “Thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” In the creation God had made her the equal of Adam. Had they remained obedient to God—in harmony with His great law of love—they would ever have been in harmony with each other; but sin had brought discord, and now their union could be maintained and harmony preserved only by submission on the part of the one or the other. Eve had been the first in transgression; and she had fallen into temptation by separating from her companion, contrary to the divine direction. It was by her solicitation that Adam sinned, and she was now placed in subjection to her husband. Had the principles enjoined in the law of God been cherished by the fallen race, this sentence, though growing out of the results of sin, would have proved a blessing to them; but man’s abuse of the supremacy thus given him has too often rendered the lot of woman very bitter and made her life a burden.

PP 59.1

Eve had been perfectly happy by her husband’s side in her Eden home; but, like restless modern Eves, she was flattered with the hope of entering a higher sphere than that which God had assigned her. In attempting to rise above her original position, she fell far below it. A similar result will be reached by all who are unwilling to take up cheerfully their life duties in accordance with God’s plan. In their efforts to reach positions for which He has not fitted them, many are leaving vacant the place where they might be a blessing. In their desire for a higher sphere, many have sacrificed true womanly dignity and nobility of character, and have left undone the very work that Heaven appointed them.

PP 59.2

To Adam the Lord declared: “Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

PP 59.3

It was not the will of God that the sinless pair should know aught of evil. He had freely given them the good, and had withheld the evil. But, contrary to His command, they had eaten of the forbidden tree, and now they would continue to eat of it—they would have the knowledge of evil—all the days of their life. From that time the race would be afflicted by Satan’s temptations. Instead of the happy labor heretofore appointed them, anxiety and toil were to be their lot. They would be subject to disappointment, grief, and pain, and finally to death.

PP 59.4

Under the curse of sin all nature was to witness to man of the character and results of rebellion against God. When God made man He made him rule over the earth and all living creatures. So long as Adam remained loyal to Heaven, all nature was in subjection to him. But when he rebelled against the divine law, the inferior creatures were in rebellion against his rule. Thus the Lord, in His great mercy, would show men the sacredness of His law, and lead them, by their own experience, to see the danger of setting it aside, even in the slightest degree.

PP 60.1

And the life of toil and care which was henceforth to be man’s lot was appointed in love. It was a discipline rendered needful by his sin, to place a check upon the indulgence of appetite and passion, to develop habits of self-control. It was a part of God’s great plan of man’s recovery from the ruin and degradation of sin.

PP 60.2

The warning given to our first parents—“In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2:17)—did not imply that they were to die on the very day when they partook of the forbidden fruit. But on that day the irrevocable sentence would be pronounced. Immortality was promised them on condition of obedience; by transgression they would forfeit eternal life. That very day they would be doomed to death.

PP 60.3

In order to possess an endless existence, man must continue to partake of the tree of life. Deprived of this, his vitality would gradually diminish until life should become extinct. It was Satan’s plan that Adam and Eve should by disobedience incur God’s displeasure; and then, if they failed to obtain forgiveness, he hoped that they would eat of the tree of life, and thus perpetuate an existence of sin and misery. But after man’s fall, holy angels were immediately commissioned to guard the tree of life. Around these angels flashed beams of light having the appearance of a glittering sword. None of the family of Adam were permitted to pass the barrier to partake of the life-giving fruit; hence there is not an immortal sinner.

PP 60.4

The tide of woe that flowed from the transgression of our first parents is regarded by many as too awful a consequence for so small a sin, and they impeach the wisdom and justice of God in His dealings with man. But if they would look more deeply into this question, they might discern their error. God created man after His own likeness, free from sin. The earth was to be peopled with beings only a little lower than the angels; but their obedience must be tested; for God would not permit the world to be filled with those who would disregard His law. Yet, in His great mercy, He appointed Adam no severe test. And the very lightness of the prohibition made the sin exceedingly great. If Adam could not bear the smallest of tests, he could not have endured a greater trial had he been entrusted with higher responsibilities.

PP 61.1

Had some great test been appointed Adam, then those whose hearts incline to evil would have excused themselves by saying, “This is a trivial matter, and God is not so particular about little things.” And there would be continual transgression in things looked upon as small, and which pass unrebuked among men. But the Lord has made it evident that sin in any degree is offensive to Him.

PP 61.2

To Eve it seemed a small thing to disobey God by tasting the fruit of the forbidden tree, and to tempt her husband also to transgress; but their sin opened the floodgates of woe upon the world. Who can know, in the moment of temptation, the terrible consequences that will result from one wrong step?

PP 61.3

Many who teach that the law of God is not binding upon man, urge that it is impossible for him to obey its precepts. But if this were true, why did Adam suffer the penalty of transgression? The sin of our first parents brought guilt and sorrow upon the world, and had it not been for the goodness and mercy of God, would have plunged the race into hopeless despair. Let none deceive themselves. “The wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23. The law of God can no more be transgressed with impunity now than when sentence was pronounced upon the father of mankind.

PP 61.4

After their sin Adam and Eve were no longer to dwell in Eden. They earnestly entreated that they might remain in the home of their innocence and joy. They confessed that they had forfeited all right to that happy abode, but pledged themselves for the future to yield strict obedience to God. But they were told that their nature had become depraved by sin; they had lessened their strength to resist evil and had opened the way for Satan to gain more ready access to them. In their innocence they had yielded to temptation; and now, in a state of conscious guilt, they would have less power to maintain their integrity.

PP 61.5

In humility and unutterable sadness they bade farewell to their beautiful home and went forth to dwell upon the earth, where rested the curse of sin. The atmosphere, once so mild and uniform in temperature, was now subject to marked changes, and the Lord mercifully provided them with a garment of skins as a protection from the extremes of heat and cold.

PP 62.1

As they witnessed in drooping flower and falling leaf the first signs of decay, Adam and his companion mourned more deeply than men now mourn over their dead. The death of the frail, delicate flowers was indeed a cause of sorrow; but when the goodly trees cast off their leaves, the scene brought vividly to mind the stern fact that death is the portion of every living thing.

PP 62.2

The Garden of Eden remained upon the earth long after man had become an outcast from its pleasant paths. The fallen race were long permitted to gaze upon the home of innocence, their entrance barred only by the watching angels. At the cherubim-guarded gate of Paradise the divine glory was revealed. Hither came Adam and his sons to worship God. Here they renewed their vows of obedience to that law the transgression of which had banished them from Eden. When the tide of iniquity overspread the world, and the wickedness of men determined their destruction by a flood of waters, the hand that had planted Eden withdrew it from the earth. But in the final restitution, when there shall be “a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1), it is to be restored more gloriously adorned than at the beginning.

PP 62.3

Then they that have kept God’s commandments shall breathe in immortal vigor beneath the tree of life; and through unending ages the inhabitants of sinless worlds shall behold, in that garden of delight, a sample of the perfect work of God’s creation, untouched by the curse of sin—a sample of what the whole earth would have become, had man but fulfilled the Creator’s glorious plan.

The Story of Redemption

Chapter 4—Temptation and Fall

SR 32.1

Satan assumes the form of a serpent and enters Eden. The serpent was a beautiful creature with wings, and while flying through the air his appearance was bright, resembling burnished gold. He did not go upon the ground but went from place to place through the air and ate fruit like man. Satan entered into the serpent and took his position in the tree of knowledge and commenced leisurely eating of the fruit.

SR 32.2

Eve, unconsciously at first, separated from her husband in her employment. When she became aware of the fact she felt that there might be danger, but again she thought herself secure, even if she did not remain close by the side of her husband. She had wisdom and strength to know if evil came, and to meet it. This the angels had cautioned her not to do. Eve found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the fruit of the forbidden tree. She saw it was very lovely, and was reasoning with herself why God had so decidedly prohibited their eating or touching it. Now was Satan’s opportunity. He addressed her as though he was able to divine her thought: “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Thus, with soft and pleasant words, and with musical voice, he addressed the wondering Eve. She was startled to hear a serpent speak. He extolled her beauty and exceeding loveliness, which was not displeasing to Eve. But she was amazed, for she knew that to the serpent God had not given the power of speech.

SR 33.1

Eve’s curiosity was aroused. Instead of fleeing from the spot, she listened to hear a serpent talk. It did not occur to her mind that it might be that fallen foe, using the serpent as a medium. It was Satan that spoke, not the serpent. Eve was beguiled, flattered, infatuated. Had she met a commanding personage, possessing a form like the angels and resembling them, she would have been upon her guard. But that strange voice should have driven her to her husband’s side to inquire of him why another should thus freely address her. But she entered into a controversy with the serpent. She answered his question, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” The serpent answered, “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”

SR 33.2

Satan would convey the idea that by eating of the forbidden tree they would receive a new and more noble kind of knowledge than they had hitherto attained. This has been his special work, with great success, ever since his fall—to lead men to pry into the secrets of the Almighty and not to be satisfied with what God has revealed, and not careful to obey that which He has commanded. He would lead them to disobey God’s commands, and then make them believe that they are entering a wonderful field of knowledge. This is purely supposition, and a miserable deception. They fail to understand what God has revealed, and disregard His explicit commandments and aspire after wisdom, independent of God, and seek to understand that which He has been pleased to withhold from mortals. They are elated with their ideas of progression and charmed with their own vain philosophy, but grope in midnight darkness relative to true knowledge. They are ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

SR 34.1

It was not the will of God that this sinless pair should have any knowledge of evil. He had freely given them the good but withheld the evil. Eve thought the words of the serpent wise, and she received the broad assertion, “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil”—making God a liar. Satan boldly insinuated that God had deceived them to keep them from being exalted in knowledge equal with Himself. God said: If ye eat ye shall surely die. The serpent said, If ye eat, “ye shall not surely die.”

SR 34.2

The tempter assured Eve that as soon as she ate of the fruit she would receive a new and superior knowledge that would make her equal with God. He called her attention to himself. He ate freely of the tree and found it not only perfectly harmless but delicious and exhilarating, and told her that it was because of its wonderful properties to impart wisdom and power that God had prohibited them from tasting or even touching it, for He knew its wonderful qualities. He stated that his eating of the fruit of the tree forbidden to them was the reason he had attained the power of speech. He intimated that God would not carry out His word. It was merely a threat to intimidate them and keep them from great good. He further told them that they could not die. Had they not eaten of the tree of life which perpetuates immortality? He said that God was deceiving them to keep them from a higher state of felicity and more exalted happiness. The tempter plucked the fruit and passed it to Eve. She took it in her hand. Now, said the tempter, you were prohibited from even touching it lest you die. He told her that she would realize no more sense of evil and death in eating than in touching or handling the fruit. Eve was emboldened because she felt not the immediate signs of God’s displeasure. She thought the words of the tempter all wise and correct. She ate, and was delighted with the fruit. It seemed delicious to her taste, and she imagined that she realized in herself the wonderful effects of the fruit.

SR 35.1

She then plucked for herself of the fruit and ate, and imagined she felt the quickening power of a new and elevated existence as the result of the exhilarating influence of the forbidden fruit. She was in a strange and unnatural excitement as she sought her husband with her hands filled with the forbidden fruit. She related to him the wise discourse of the serpent and wished to conduct him at once to the tree of knowledge. She told him she had eaten of the fruit, and instead of her feeling any sense of death, she realized a pleasing, exhilarating influence. As soon as Eve had disobeyed she became a powerful medium through which to occasion the fall of her husband.

SR 35.2

I saw a sadness come over the countenance of Adam. He appeared afraid and astonished. A struggle appeared to be going on in his mind. He told Eve he was quite certain that this was the foe that they had been warned against, and if so, that she must die. She assured him she felt no ill effects but rather a very pleasant influence, and entreated him to eat.

SR 36.1

Adam quite well understood that his companion had transgressed the only prohibition laid upon them as a test of their fidelity and love. Eve reasoned that the serpent said they should not surely die, and his words must be true, for she felt no signs of God’s displeasure, but a pleasant influence, as she imagined the angels felt.

SR 36.2

Adam regretted that Eve had left his side, but now the deed was done. He must be separated from her whose society he had loved so well. How could he have it thus? His love for Eve was strong. And in utter discouragement he resolved to share her fate. He reasoned that Eve was a part of himself, and if she must die, he would die with her, for he could not bear the thought of separation from her. He lacked faith in his merciful and benevolent Creator. He did not think that God, who had formed him out of the dust of the ground into a living, beautiful form, and had created Eve to be his companion, could supply her place. After all, might not the words of this wise serpent be correct? Eve was before him, just as lovely and beautiful, and apparently as innocent, as before this act of disobedience. She expressed greater, higher love for him than before her disobedience, as the effects of the fruit she had eaten. He saw in her no signs of death. She had told him of the happy influence of the fruit, of her ardent love for him, and he decided to brave the consequences. He seized the fruit and quickly ate it, and like Eve, felt not immediately its ill effects.

SR 36.3

Eve had thought herself capable of deciding between right and wrong. The flattering hope of entering a higher state of knowledge had led her to think that the serpent was her especial friend, possessing a great interest in her welfare. Had she sought her husband, and they had related to their Maker the words of the serpent, they would have been delivered at once from his artful temptation. The Lord would not have them investigate the fruit of the tree of knowledge, for then they would be exposed to Satan masked. He knew that they would be perfectly safe if they touched not the fruit.

SR 37.1

God instructed our first parents in regard to the tree of knowledge, and they were fully informed relative to the fall of Satan, and the danger of listening to his suggestions. He did not deprive them of the power of eating the forbidden fruit. He left them as free moral agents to believe His word, obey His commandments, and live, or believe the tempter, disobey, and perish. They both ate, and the great wisdom they obtained was the knowledge of sin and a sense of guilt. The covering of light about them soon disappeared, and under a sense of guilt and loss of their divine covering, a shivering seized them, and they tried to cover their exposed forms.

SR 37.2

Our first parents chose to believe the words, as they thought, of a serpent; yet he had given them no tokens of his love. He had done nothing for their happiness and benefit, while God had given them everything that was good for food and pleasant to the sight. Everywhere the eye might rest was abundance and beauty; yet Eve was deceived by the serpent, to think that there was something withheld which would make them wise, even as God. Instead of believing and confiding in God, she basely distrusted His goodness and cherished the words of Satan.

SR 38.1

After Adam’s transgression he at first imagined that he felt the rising to a new and higher existence. But soon the thought of his transgression terrified him. The air, that had been of a mild and even temperature, seemed to chill them. The guilty pair had a sense of sin. They felt a dread of the future, a sense of want, a nakedness of soul. The sweet love and peace and happy contented bliss seemed removed from them, and in its place a want of something came over them that they had never experienced before. They then for the first time turned their attention to the external. They had not been clothed but were draped in light as were the heavenly angels. This light which had enshrouded them had departed. To relieve their sense of lack and nakedness which they realized, their attention was directed to seek a covering for their forms, for how could they meet the eye of God and angels unclothed?

SR 38.2

Their crime is now before them in its true light. Their transgression of God’s express command assumes a clearer character. Adam censured Eve’s folly in leaving his side and being deceived by the serpent. They both flattered themselves that God, who had given them everything to make them happy, might yet excuse their disobedience because of His great love to them and that their punishment would not be so dreadful after all.

SR 38.3

Satan exulted in his success. He had now tempted the woman to distrust God, to question His wisdom, and to seek to penetrate His all-wise plans. And through her he had also caused the overthrow of Adam, who, in consequence of his love for Eve, disobeyed the command of God and fell with her.

SR 39.1

The news of man’s fall spread through heaven—every harp was hushed. The angels cast their crowns from their heads in sorrow. All heaven was in agitation. The angels were grieved at the base ingratitude of man in return for the rich bounties God had provided. A council was held to decide what must be done with the guilty pair. The angels feared that they would put forth the hand and eat of the tree of life, and thus perpetuate a life of sin.

SR 39.2

The Lord visited Adam and Eve, and made known to them the consequence of their disobedience. As they heard God’s majestic approach they sought to hide themselves from His inspection, whom they delighted, while in their innocence and holiness, to meet. “And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And He said, Who told Thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?” This question was asked by the Lord, not because He needed information, but for the conviction of the guilty pair. How didst thou become ashamed and fearful? Adam acknowledged his transgression, not because he was penitent for his great disobedience, but to cast reflection upon God. “The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” The woman was then addressed: “What is this that thou hast done?” Eve answered, “The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

SR 39.3

The Lord then addressed the serpent: “Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field: upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.” As the serpent had been exalted above the beasts of the field, he should be degraded beneath them all, and be detested by man, inasmuch as he was the medium through which Satan acted. “And unto Adam He said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground.”

SR 40.1

God cursed the ground because of their sin in eating of the tree of knowledge, and declared, “In sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.” He had apportioned them the good, but withheld the evil. Now He declares that they shall eat of it, that is, they should be acquainted with evil all the days of their life.

SR 40.2

The race from that time forward was to be afflicted by Satan’s temptations. A life of perpetual toil and anxiety was appointed unto Adam, instead of the happy, cheerful labor he had hitherto enjoyed. They should be subject to disappointment, grief, and pain, and finally come to dissolution. They were made of the dust of the earth, and unto dust should they return.

SR 40.3

They were informed that they would have to lose their Eden home. They had yielded to Satan’s deception and believed the word of Satan, that God would lie. By their transgression they had opened a way for Satan to gain access to them more readily, and it was not safe for them to remain in the Garden of Eden, lest in their state of sin they gain access to the tree of life and perpetuate a life of sin. They entreated to be permitted to remain, although they acknowledged that they had forfeited all right to blissful Eden. They promised that they would in the future yield to God implicit obedience. They were informed that in their fall from innocence to guilt they gained no strength but great weakness. They had not preserved their integrity while they were in a state of holy, happy innocence, and they would have far less strength to remain true and loyal in a state of conscious guilt. They were filled with keenest anguish and remorse. They now realized that the penalty of sin was death.

SR 41.1

Angels were commissioned to immediately guard the way of the tree of life. It was Satan’s studied plan that Adam and Eve should disobey God, receive His frown, and then partake of the tree of life, that they might perpetuate a life of sin. But holy angels were sent to debar their way to the tree of life. Around these angels flashed beams of light on every side, which had the appearance of glittering swords.

From Eternity Past

Chapter 3—The Predicament of Our First Parents

EP 22.1

No longer free to stir up rebellion in heaven, Satan found a new field in plotting the ruin of the human race. Moved by envy, he determined to bring upon them the guilt and penalty of sin. He would change their love to distrust and their songs of praise to reproaches against their Maker. Thus he would not only plunge these innocent beings into misery but cast dishonor upon God, and cause grief in heaven.

EP 22.2

Heavenly messengers opened to our first parents the history of Satan’s fall and his plots for their destruction, unfolding the nature of the divine government which the prince of evil was trying to overthrow.

EP 22.3

The law of God is a revelation of His will, a transcript of His character, the expression of divine love and wisdom. The harmony of creation depends upon perfect conformity to the law of the Creator. Everything is under fixed laws, which cannot be disregarded. But man alone, of all that inhabits the earth, is amenable to moral law. To man, God has given power to comprehend the justice and beneficence of His law, and of man unswerving obedience is required.

EP 22.4

Like the angels, the dwellers in Eden had been placed upon probation. They could obey and live, or disobey and perish. He who spared not the angels that sinned, could not spare them; transgression would bring upon them misery and ruin.

EP 22.5

The angels warned them to be on guard against the devices of Satan. If they steadfastly repelled his first insinuations, they would be secure. But should they once yield to temptation, their nature would become so depraved that in themselves they would have no power, and no disposition, to resist Satan.

EP 23.1

The tree of knowledge had been made a test of their obedience and love to God. If they should disregard His will in this particular, they would incur guilt. Satan was not to follow them with continual temptations; he could have access to them only at the forbidden tree.

EP 23.2

To accomplish his work unperceived, Satan employed a disguise. The serpent was one of the wisest and most beautiful creatures. It had dazzling brightness. Resting in the forbidden tree, regaling itself with the delicious fruit, it was an object to arrest attention and delight the eye. Thus in the garden of peace lurked the destroyer.

EP 23.3

The angels had cautioned Eve to beware of separating from her husband. With him she would be in less danger than if alone. But she unconsciously wandered from his side. Unmindful of the angel’s caution, she soon found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the forbidden tree. The fruit was beautiful, and she questioned why God had withheld it from them.

EP 23.4

Now was the tempter’s opportunity. “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Eve was startled to hear the echo of her thoughts. The serpent continued with subtle praise of her surpassing loveliness, and his words were not displeasing. Instead of fleeing from the spot, she lingered. She had no thought that the fascinating serpent could be the medium of the fallen foe.

EP 23.5

She replied: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”

EP 24.1

By partaking of this tree, he declared, they would attain a more exalted existence. He himself had eaten and had acquired the power of speech. He insinuated that the Lord had jealously withheld it from them, lest they be exalted to equality with Himself. It was because it imparted wisdom and power that He had prohibited them from tasting or touching it. The divine warning was merely to intimidate them. How could it be possible for them to die? Had they not eaten of the tree of life? God had been seeking to prevent them from reaching a nobler development, and finding greater happiness.

EP 24.2

Such has been Satan’s work from the days of Adam to the present. He tempts men to distrust God’s love and doubt His wisdom. In their efforts to search out what God has withheld, multitudes overlook truths which are essential to salvation. Satan tempts men to disobedience, to believe they are entering a wonderful field of knowledge. But this is all a deception. They are setting their feet in the path that leads to degradation and death.

EP 24.3

Satan represented to the holy pair that they would gain by breaking the law of God. Today many talk of the narrowness of those who obey God’s commandments, while they claim to enjoy greater liberty. What is this but an echo of the voice from Eden? “In the day ye eat thereof”—transgress the divine requirement—“ye shall be as gods.” Satan did not let it appear that he had become an outcast from heaven. He concealed his own misery in order to draw others into the same position. So now the transgressor disguises his true character; but he is on the side of Satan, trampling upon the law of God and leading others to their eternal ruin.

EP 24.4

Eve disbelieved the words of God, and this was what led to her fall. In the judgment, men will not be condemned because they conscientiously believed a lie, but because they did not believe the truth. We must set our hearts to know what is truth. Whatever contradicts God’s Word proceeds from Satan.

EP 25.1

The serpent plucked the fruit of the forbidden tree and placed it in the hands of the half-reluctant Eve. Then he reminded her of her own words, that God had forbidden them to touch it lest they die. Perceiving no evil results, Eve grew bolder. When she “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.” As she ate, she seemed to imagine herself entering upon a higher state of existence.

EP 25.2

And now, having herself transgressed, she became the agent of Satan in working the ruin of her husband. In a state of strange, unnatural excitement, her hands filled with the forbidden fruit, she sought his presence.

EP 25.3

Adam appeared astonished and alarmed. To the words of Eve he replied, that this must be the foe against whom they had been warned. By the divine sentence she must die. In answer she urged him, “Eat,” repeating the words of the serpent that they should not surely die. She felt no evidence of God’s displeasure, but realized a delicious, exhilarating influence, thrilling every faculty with new life.

EP 25.4

Adam understood that his companion had transgressed the command of God. There was a terrible struggle in his mind. He mourned that he had permitted Eve to wander from his side. But now the deed was done; he must be separated from her whose society had been his joy.

EP 25.5

How could he have it thus? Adam had enjoyed the companionship of God and of holy angels. He understood the high destiny opened to the human race should they remain faithful to God. Yet all these blessings were lost sight of in the fear of losing that one gift which in his eyes outvalued every other. Love, gratitude, loyalty to the Creator—all were overborne by love to Eve. She was a part of himself, and he could not endure the thought of separation. If she must die, he would die with her. Might not the words of the wise serpent be true? No sign of death appeared in Eve, and he decided to brave the consequences. He seized the fruit and quickly ate.

EP 26.1

After his transgression, Adam at first imagined himself entering upon a higher state of existence. But soon the thought of his sin filled him with terror. The love and peace which had been theirs was gone, and in its place they felt a sense of sin, a dread of the future, a nakedness of soul. The robe of light which had enshrouded them disappeared, and to supply its place they endeavored to fashion for themselves a covering. They could not, while unclothed, meet the eye of God and holy angels.

EP 26.2

They now began to see the true character of sin. Adam reproached his companion for leaving his side and permitting herself to be deceived by the serpent. But they both flattered themselves that He who had given them so many evidences of His love would pardon this one transgression; they would not be subjected to so dire a punishment as they had feared.

EP 26.3

Satan exulted. He had tempted the woman to distrust God’s love, to doubt His wisdom, and to transgress His law; and through her he had caused the overthrow of Adam!

EP 26.4

The great Lawgiver was about to make known to Adam and Eve the consequences of their transgression. In their innocence and holiness they had joyfully welcomed the approach of their Creator; now they fled in terror. But “the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself. And He said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?”

EP 27.1

Adam cast the blame upon his wife, and thus upon God Himself: “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” From love to Eve, he had deliberately chosen to forfeit the approval of God and an eternal life of joy; now he endeavored to make his companion, and even the Creator Himself, responsible for the transgression.

EP 27.2

When the woman was asked, “What is this that thou hast done?” she answered, “The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.” “Why didst Thou create the serpent? Why didst Thou suffer him to enter Eden?”—these were the questions implied in her first excuse. Self-justification was indulged by our first parents as soon as they yielded to the influence of Satan and has been exhibited by all the sons and daughters of Adam.

EP 27.3

The Lord then passed sentence upon the serpent: “Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.” From the most beautiful of the creatures of the field it was to become the most groveling and detested of all, feared and hated by both man and beast. The words next addressed to the serpent applied to Satan himself, pointing to his ultimate defeat and destruction: “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel.”

EP 27.4

Eve was told of the sorrow and pain that must be her portion. “Thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” God had made her the equal of Adam. But sin brought discord, and now their union could be maintained and harmony preserved only by submission on the part of one or the other. Eve had been the first in transgression. By her solicitation Adam sinned, and she was now placed in subjection to her husband. Man’s abuse of the supremacy thus given him has too often rendered the lot of woman bitter and her life a burden.

EP 27.5

Eve had been happy by her husband’s side. But she was flattered with the hope of entering a higher sphere than God had assigned her. In attempting to rise above her original position, she fell far below it. In their efforts to reach positions for which God has not fitted them, many leave vacant the place where they might be a blessing.

EP 28.1

To Adam the Lord declared: “Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it; cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

EP 28.2

God had freely given them good and withheld evil. But they had eaten of the forbidden tree, and now they would have the knowledge of evil—all the days of their life. Instead of happy labor, anxiety and toil were to be their lot. They would be subject to disappointment, grief, and pain, and finally to death.

EP 28.3

God made man ruler over the earth and all living creatures. But when he rebelled against the divine law, the inferior creatures were in rebellion against his rule. Thus the Lord in mercy would show men the sacredness of His law and lead them to see the danger of setting it aside, even in the slightest degree.

EP 28.4

The life of toil and care henceforth to be man’s lot was appointed in love, a discipline rendered needful by his sin, to place a check upon the indulgence of appetite and passion, to develop habits of self-control. It was a part of God’s great plan for man’s recovery.

EP 28.5

The warning given to our first parents—“In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”—did not imply they were to die on the very day they partook of the forbidden fruit. But on that day the irrevocable sentence would be pronounced. That very day they would be doomed to death.

EP 29.1

In order to possess endless existence, man must continue to partake of the tree of life. Deprived of this, his vitality would gradually diminish until life should become extinct. It was Satan’s plan that Adam and Eve would eat of the tree of life, and thus perpetuate an existence of sin and misery. But holy angels were commissioned to guard the tree of life. Around these angels flashed the appearance of a glittering sword. None of the family of Adam were permitted to pass that barrier; hence there is not an immortal sinner.

EP 29.2

The tide of woe that flowed from the transgression of our first parents is regarded by man as too awful a consequence for so small a sin. But if they would look more deeply into this question, they might discern their error. In His great mercy God appointed Adam no severe test. The very lightness of the prohibition made the sin exceedingly great. Had some great test been appointed Adam, then those whose hearts incline to evil would have excused themselves saying, “This is a trivial matter, and God is not so particular about little things.”

EP 29.4

After their sin, Adam and Eve earnestly entreated that they might remain in the home of their innocence and joy. They pledged themselves for the future to yield strict obedience to God. But they were told that their nature had become depraved by sin. They had lessened their strength to resist evil. Now, in a state of conscious guilt, they would have less power to maintain their integrity.

EP 30.1

In sadness they bade farewell to their beautiful home and went forth to dwell upon the earth, where rested the curse of sin. The atmosphere was now subject to marked changes, and the Lord mercifully provided them with a garment of skins as a protection from the cold.

EP 30.2

As they witnessed in drooping flower and falling leaf the first signs of decay, Adam and his companion mourned more deeply than men now mourn over their dead. When the goodly trees cast off their leaves, the scene brought to mind the stern fact that death is the portion of every living thing.

Manuscript Releases, vol. 21 [Nos. 1501-1598]

MR No. 1539—Christ’s Sacrifice Testifies to Permanence of God’s Law

21MR 193.2

Satan will use every subtle argument to deceive men and women as he did in Eden to deceive Adam and Eve. A lie will be made to appear a very desirable fact. “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Satan said to Eve: [Genesis 3:2-5, quoted].

The Truth About Angels

Satan Speaks to Eve Through a Serpent

TA 54.2

She [Eve] really thought the serpent had a knowledge of her thoughts, and that he must be very wise. She answered him, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:2-5.]

Darkness Before Dawn

Eve Yielded to Temptation

DD 13.3

“The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Verses 2-5. He declared that they would become like God, possessing greater wisdom than before and being capable of a higher state of existence. Eve yielded to temptation; and through her influence, Adam was led into sin. They accepted the words of the serpent, that God did not mean what He said; they distrusted their Creator and imagined that He was restricting their liberty and that they might obtain great wisdom and exaltation by transgressing His law.

DD 14.1

But what did Adam, after his sin, find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Did he find them to mean, as Satan had led him to believe, that he was to be ushered into a more exalted state of existence? Then indeed there was great good to be gained by transgression, and Satan was proved to be a benefactor of the race. But Adam did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground whence he was taken: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Verse 19. The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true in this sense only: After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, their eyes were opened to discern their folly; they did know evil, and they tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.

Our High Calling

God’s Special Sign, December 3

OHC 343.3

As the tree of knowledge was placed in the midst of the Garden of Eden, so the Sabbath command is placed in the midst of the Decalogue. In regard to the fruit of the tree of knowledge, the restriction was made, “Ye shall not eat of it, ... lest ye die.” Genesis 3:3. Of the Sabbath God said, Ye shall not defile it, but keep it holy. “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8. As the tree of knowledge was the test of Adam’s obedience, so the fourth command is the test that God has given to prove the loyalty of all His people.3The Review and Herald, August 30, 1898.

From the Heart

The Fall, May 9

FH 141.1

Of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, “You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.” Genesis 3:3.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 147, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 147, 1898, par. 15

In Eden, the fruit of the tree of knowledge which stood in the midst of the garden was reserved as God’s. It was not to be used. It was one of the most attractive of trees, but God said, “Ye shall not eat of it lest ye die.” [Genesis 3:3.] God here made a declaration of His rights, and He desired that man should demonstrate His true integrity and obedience to His commandments. The tenth of all our increase is the Lord’s. It is a sacred portion, and is to be regarded as God’s special fund for the sustenance of His cause and the upbuilding and extension of His kingdom in the world.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Lt 65, 1898

13LtMs, Lt 65, 1898, par. 7

When men talk of the improvements that are made in higher education, they are aping the inhabitants of the Noachic world. They are yielding to the temptation of Satan to eat of the tree of knowledge, of which God has said, “Ye shall not eat of it, lest ye die.” [Genesis 3:3.] God gave men a trial, and the result was the destruction of the world by a flood. In this age of the world’s history there are teachers and students who suppose that their advancement in knowledge supersedes the knowledge of God, and their cry is, “Higher education.” They consider that they have greater knowledge that the greatest Teacher the world has ever known.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 86, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 86, 1898, par. 6

But while thus God could be discerned in nature, this affords no solid argument in favor of a perfect knowledge of God being revealed in nature to Adam and his posterity after the fall. Nature could convey her lessons to man in his innocence, but sin and transgression brought a blight upon nature, and intervened between nature and nature’s God. Had man never disobeyed his Creator, had he remained in his state of perfect rectitude, he could have understood and known God. But when man disobeyed God, he gave evidence that he believed the words of an apostate rather than the words of God. He was told by the enemy to eat of the tree of knowledge. God had said, “Ye shall not eat of it, lest ye die.” [Genesis 3:3.] But Satan declared that by eating of it man would be exalted to an equality with God.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 94, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 94, 1901, par. 11

There is a right way and a wrong way of conducting business. Often the hard way is the right way, and the easy way the most confusing. God grant that those connected with His sacred work shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of evil because it appears desirable. The Lord declares, Thou shalt not eat of it, lest thou die. [Genesis 2:17; 3:3.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 9 (1894)

Ms 10, 1894

9LtMs, Ms 10, 1894, par. 2

Adam and Eve became sinners because of transgression, and now the Lord has given to the world His only begotten Son. That He might abolish the law? That law that Adam transgressed? Do you read it thus? I do not. Well then, what was the matter with Adam? Adam ventured to transgress one prohibition of God which was the test that God gave to man to try his loyalty and obedience. There was nothing in the fruit of the tree of knowledge that was dangerous in itself, but the danger was in Adam and Eve listening to Satan and venturing to transgress. Here was Eve listening to the voice of the tempter. His words were contradicting the words of God that death was the penalty of transgression. Satan says, “Ye shall not die.” God says, “If ye eat of it, ye shall die.” [Genesis 3:3, 4.] Whom shall we believe?

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 8 (1893)

Ms 27, 1893

8LtMs, Ms 27, 1893, par. 1

[Read] Luke 17:26-30. Now, we know that intemperance is in our world everywhere. There is no sin in eating and drinking to sustain us physically, and in doing that which is for our spiritual good. But when we lose eternity out of our reckoning, and carry these necessary things to excess, that is when the sin comes in. We see on every side such crime, such iniquity. Is it not time that we shall begin to study for ourselves? We have souls to save or souls to lose. God created our first parents and placed them in Paradise. God made only one restriction. “The fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” [Genesis 3:3.] They would forfeit their life if they did not obey the restriction.

8LtMs, Ms 27, 1893, par. 3

When God came to inquire of Adam, he laid all the blame upon Eve. God said, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise they head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” [Verse 15.] The enemy cannot touch thee d unless you let him.

Education

Chapter 3—The Knowledge of Good and Evil

Ed 23.3

While God was seeking man’s good, Satan was seeking his ruin. When Eve, disregarding the Lord’s admonition concerning the forbidden tree, ventured to approach it, she came in contact with her foe. Her interest and curiosity having been awakened, Satan proceeded to deny God’s word, and to insinuate distrust of His wisdom and goodness. To the woman’s statement concerning the tree of knowledge, “God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die,” the tempter made answer, “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:3-5.

Ed 25.1

When Eve 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.” It was grateful to the taste, and, as she ate, she seemed to feel a vivifying power, and imagined herself entering upon a higher state of existence. Having herself transgressed, she became a tempter to her husband, “and he did eat.” Genesis 3:6.

Ed 25.2

“Your eyes shall be opened,” the enemy had said; “ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:5. Their eyes were indeed opened; but how sad the opening! The knowledge of evil, the curse of sin, was all that the transgressors gained. There was nothing poisonous in the fruit itself, and the sin was not merely in yielding to appetite. It was distrust of God’s goodness, disbelief of His word, and rejection of His authority, that made our first parents transgressors, and that brought into the world a knowledge of evil. It was this that opened the door to every species of falsehood and error.

Ed 26.1

To Adam God had said: “Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Genesis 3:17-19.

Ed 27.1

But man was not abandoned to the results of the evil he had chosen. In the sentence pronounced upon Satan was given an intimation of redemption. “I will put enmity between thee and the woman,” God said, “and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15. This sentence, spoken in the hearing of our first parents, was to them a promise. Before they heard of the thorn and the thistle, of the toil and sorrow that must be their portion, or of the dust to which they must return, they listened to words that could not fail of giving them hope. All that had been lost by yielding to Satan could be regained through Christ.

Patriarchs and Prophets

Chapter 7—The Flood

PP 96.1

It was not multitudes or majorities that were on the side of right. The world was arrayed against God’s justice and His laws, and Noah was regarded as a fanatic. Satan, when tempting Eve to disobey God, said to her, “Ye shall not surely die.” Genesis 3:4. Great men, worldly, honored, and wise men, repeated the same. “The threatenings of God,” they said, “are for the purpose of intimidating, and will never be verified. You need not be alarmed. Such an event as the destruction of the world by the God who made it, and the punishment of the beings He has created, will never take place. Be at peace; fear not. Noah is a wild fanatic.” The world made merry at the folly of the deluded old man. Instead of humbling the heart before God, they continued their disobedience and wickedness, the same as though God had not spoken to them through His servant.

The Sanctified Life

No Sanctification Without Obedience

SL 67.1

This woman did not possess genuine sanctification. It was not God who told her that she could be sanctified while living in disobedience to one of His plain commandments. God’s law is sacred, and none can transgress it with impunity. The one who told her that she could continue to break God’s law and be sinless was the prince of the powers of darkness—the same who told Eve in Eden, through the serpent, “Ye shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:4). Eve flattered herself that God was too kind to punish her for disobedience of His express commands. The same sophistry is urged by thousands in excuse of their disobedience of the fourth commandment. Those who have the mind of Christ will keep all of God’s commandments, irrespective of circumstances. The Majesty of heaven says, “I have kept my Father’s commandments” (John 15:10).

Testimony Treasures, vol. 1

Our Only Safety

1TT 99.1

Christ is the source of our strength. He is the Vine, we are the branches. We must receive nourishment from the living Vine. Deprived of the strength and nourishment of that Vine, we are as members of the body without a head and are in the very position which Satan wishes us to be in, that he may control us as pleases himself. He works “with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.” 2 Thessalonians 2:10, 11. Spiritualism is a lie. It is founded upon the great original lie, “Ye shall not surely die.” Genesis 3:4. Thousands cut off the Head, and the result is the members act without Jesus for their head, and another guides the body. Satan controls them.

Testimony Treasures, vol. 1

Satan’s Deception

1TT 117.3

The great original lie which he told to Eve in Eden, “Ye shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:4), was the first sermon ever preached on the immortality of the soul. That sermon was crowned with success, and terrible results followed. He has brought minds to receive that sermon as truth, and ministers preach it, sing it, and pray it.

Testimony Treasures, vol. 1

Unquestioning Obedience

1TT 486.1

God requires prompt and unquestioning obedience of His law; but men are asleep or paralyzed by the deceptions of Satan, who suggests excuses and subterfuges, and conquers their scruples, saying as he said to Eve in the garden: “Ye shall not surely die.” Genesis 3:4. Disobedience not only hardens the heart and conscience of the guilty one, but it tends to corrupt the faith of others. That which looked very wrong to them at first, gradually loses this appearance by being constantly before them, till finally they question whether it is really sin and unconsciously fall into the same error.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 3 (1876 - 1882)

Lt 6, 1880

3LtMs, Lt 6, 1880, par. 62

What shall I say to impress our people to awaken from our carnal security and stand like faithful sentinels against all iniquity? There are so many who ease their conscience with the thought which Satan suggested in words to Eve: “Ye shall not surely die.” Genesis 3:4.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)

Ms 16, 1884

4LtMs, Ms 16, 1884, par. 3

Here it was [that] the masterly effort of Satan would have deceived the very elect. But who were the ones blessed by him? Whom did he make glad? Whom did he honor? The combined powers of earth, the churches fallen by rejecting light and the messages of mercy Heaven had sent to heal Babylon but she refused. (Christ had declared the friendship of the world was enmity with God. Whosoever would be a friend of the world was the enemy of God.) The papal power, the man of sin which thought to change times and laws, that had presented a rival sabbath to the world to be worshiped, the apostate power who sits in the temple of God showing himself that he is God, the power that drank the blood of the saints is united with the Protestant churches, having two horns like a lamb but speaks as a dragon; the deceptions of spiritualism which have perpetuated Satan’s lie uttered in Eden, “Thou shalt not surely die” [Genesis 3:4]—all these are bound up in bundles, a corrupt harmony under a corrupt leader. The blessing is pronounced by this false christ upon the worshipers of the beast and his image, [the people] who have received the mark of the beast and the mark of the image of the beast.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)

Ms 25, 1887

5LtMs, Ms 25, 1887, par. 9

Satan knows that if men and women accept the truth they are lost to him, they will be on the Lord’s side. He does not want that a single soul shall be brought back to his allegiance to God in keeping His commandments. Therefore it is his work to bring about every delusive attraction to make sin more agreeable to man. Man will follow on in transgression, notwithstanding God has said, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” [Ezekiel 18:4.] But who believes God’s word before the word of Satan, “Ye shall not surely die”? [Genesis 3:4.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 6 (1889-1890)

Ms 51, 1890

6LtMs, Ms 51, 1890, par. 5

Satan’s work since his fall is to misinterpret our heavenly Father. He suggested the dogma of the immortality of the soul. “Thou shalt not surely die,” was spoken by the great deceiver to Adam and Eve in Eden, and we are acquainted with the result of believing his words. [Genesis 3:4.] The idea of an eternally burning hell was the production of Satan; purgatory is his invention. These teachings falsify the character of God, that He shall be regarded as severe, revengeful, arbitrary, and not exercising forgiveness. Without the correct knowledge of God, the human family would be divested of all divine strength. With false attributes kept before the mind as belonging to God, the human family would be the dupes of satanic lies and the subjects of satanic agencies, and he could practice upon their credulity with success. The plans of Satan have been indeed in a large degree successful, as the lack of a knowledge of God in the Christian world can testify. Satan’s cruel deceptions have had their effect and have demonstrated his attributes as a deceiver, a liar, a murderer, and an accuser of God and of all who love God.

Darkness Before Dawn

The Blindness of the Age

DD 23.3

Satan has long been preparing for his final effort to deceive the world. The foundation of his work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5. Little by little he has prepared the way for his masterpiece of deception in the development of spiritualism. He has not yet reached the full accomplishment of his designs; but it will be reached in the last remnant of time. Says the prophet: “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs; ... they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14. Except those who are kept by the power of God, through faith in His word, the whole world will be swept into the ranks of this delusion. The people are fast being lulled to a fatal security, to be awakened only by the outpouring of the wrath of God.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 19 (1904)

Lt 23, 1904

19LtMs, Lt 23, 1904, par. 17

Man’s pride would lead him to seek for salvation in some other way than that devised by God. He is unwilling to be accounted as nothing, unwilling to recognize Christ as the only One who can save to the uttermost. To this pride Satan appealed in the temptation that he brought to our first parents. “Ye shall be as gods: ye shall not surely die,” he said. [Genesis 3:4, 5.] And by a belief of his words, they placed themselves on his side.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 19 (1904)

Lt 25, 1904

19LtMs, Lt 25, 1904, par. 17

Man’s pride would lead him to seek for salvation in some other way than that pointed out in the Scriptures. He is unwilling to be accounted as nothing, unwilling to recognize Christ as the only One who can save to the uttermost <all who will accept Him as their Saviour>. To this pride Satan appealed in the temptation that he brought to our first parents. “Ye shall be as gods; ye shall not surely die,” he said. [Genesis 3:4, 5.] And by a belief of his words, they placed themselves on his side.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 21 (1906)

Lt 140, 1906

21LtMs, Lt 140, 1906, par. 29

“Ye shall not surely die,” the enemy declared in the beginning; “ye shall be as gods.” [Genesis 3:4, 5.] Our first parents yielded to the sophistry of the tempter, and fell.

Maranatha

Spiritualism’s Role in Deception, June 7

Mar 166.5

Satan has long been preparing for his final effort to deceive the world. The foundation of his work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5. Little by little he has prepared the way for his masterpiece of deception in the development of spiritualism. He has not yet reached the full accomplishment of his designs; but it will be reached in the last remnant of time. Says the prophet: “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs.... They are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14. Except those who are kept by the power of God, through faith in His word, the whole world will be swept into the ranks of this delusion. The people are fast being lulled to a fatal security, to be awakened only by the outpouring of the wrath of God.20The Great Controversy, 561, 562.

Patriarchs and Prophets

Chapter 67—Ancient and Modern Sorcery

PP 685.2

Modern spiritualism and the forms of ancient witchcraft and idol worship—all having communion with the dead as their vital principle—are founded upon that first lie by which Satan beguiled Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, ... ye shall be as gods.” Genesis 3:4, 5. Alike based upon falsehood and perpetuating the same, they are alike from the father of lies.

The Great Controversy

Chapter 34—Can Our Dead Speak to Us?

GC 554.1

Satan beguiles men now as he beguiled Eve in Eden by flattery, by kindling a desire to obtain forbidden knowledge, by exciting ambition for self-exaltation. It was cherishing these evils that caused his fall, and through them he aims to compass the ruin of men. “Ye shall be as gods,” he declares, “knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:5. Spiritualism teaches “that man is the creature of progression; that it is his destiny from his birth to progress, even to eternity, toward the Godhead.” And again: “Each mind will judge itself and not another.” “The judgment will be right, because it is the judgment of self.... The throne is within you.” Said a spiritualistic teacher, as the “spiritual consciousness” awoke within him: “My fellow men, all were unfallen demigods.” And another declares: “Any just and perfect being is Christ.”

GC 561.2

Satan has long been preparing for his final effort to deceive the world. The foundation of his work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5. Little by little he has prepared the way for his masterpiece of deception in the development of spiritualism. He has not yet reached the full accomplishment of his designs; but it will be reached in the last remnant of time. Says the prophet: “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs; ... they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14. Except those who are kept by the power of God, through faith in His word, the whole world will be swept into the ranks of this delusion. The people are fast being lulled to a fatal security, to be awakened only by the outpouring of the wrath of God.

The Great Controversy (1888 ed.)

Chapter 34—Spiritualism

GC88 554.1

Satan beguiles men now as he beguiled Eve in Eden, by flattery, by kindling a desire to obtain forbidden knowledge, by exciting ambition for self-exaltation. It was cherishing these evils that caused his fall, and through them he aims to compass the ruin of men. “Ye shall be as gods,” he declares, “knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:5.] Spiritualism teaches “that man is the creature of progression; that it is his destiny from his birth to progress, even to eternity, toward the Godhead,” And again: “Each mind will judge itself and not another.” “The judgment will be right, because it is the judgment of self.... The throne is within you.” Said a Spiritualistic teacher, as the “spiritual consciousness” awoke within him, “My fellow-men, all were unfallen demigods.” And another declares, “Any just and perfect being is Christ.

GC88 561.2

Satan has long been preparing for his final effort to deceive the world. The foundation of his work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden, “Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:4, 5.] Little by little he has prepared the way for his master-piece of deception in the development of Spiritualism. He has not yet reached the full accomplishment of his designs; but it will be reached in the last remnant of time. Says the prophet: “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs; ... they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” [Revelation 16:13, 14.] Except those who are kept by the power of God, through faith in his Word, the whole world will be swept into the ranks of this delusion. The people are fast being lulled to a fatal security, to be awakened only by the outpouring of the wrath of God.

The Story of Redemption

None Need Be Deceived

SR 398.2

Long has Satan been preparing for his final effort to deceive the world. The foundation of his work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden, “Ye shall not surely die: ... in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5. Little by little he has prepared the way for his masterpiece of deception in the development of Spiritualism. He has not yet reached the full accomplishment of his designs; but it will be reached in the last remnant of time, and the world will be swept into the ranks of this delusion. They are fast being lulled into a fatal security, to be awakened only by the outpouring of the wrath of God.

From Eternity Past

Chapter 67—Ancient and Modern Spiritualism

EP 496.4

Modern spiritualism and ancient witchcraft—all having communion with the dead as their vital principle—are founded upon that first lie by which Satan beguiled Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, ... ye shall be as gods.” Genesis 3:4, 5. Alike based upon falsehood, they are alike from the father of lies.

From Here to Forever

Bible Represented as Fiction

HF 343.4

The foundation of Satan’s work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5. His masterpiece of deception will be reached in the last remnant of time. Says the prophet: “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs; ... they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14.

The Great Hope (Condensed)

Understand the Scriptures

GrH_c 23.2

The foundation of Satan’s work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden: “Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4, 5. His masterpiece of deception will be reached in the last remnant of time. Says the prophet: “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs;... they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 15 (1900)

Lt 91, 1900

15LtMs, Lt 91, 1900, par. 6

What were the words Satan spoke to Eve: “Ye shall not surely die.” Today men think and act the words of the great deceiver, giving the impression that God does not mean what He says. Satan charged God with his own false attributes. “God doth know,” he said, “that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:4, 5.] The “evil” was disobedience to God’s commands. And Adam did indeed go through the experience of knowing evil, with all its fearful consequences.

15LtMs, Lt 91, 1900, par. 7

The lie which Satan told Eve, “Ye shall not surely die” [verse 4], has been sounding through the centuries from generation to generation. Thus Satan tempted our first parents, and thus he tempts us today. He is the author of evil. And from generation to generation men and women have fallen into the snare, notwithstanding Adam’s disobedience and its result.

15LtMs, Lt 91, 1900, par. 12

The accusation Adam brought against Eve, “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat,” had no influence to save him from the result of disobedience. “Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it; cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee.” [Verses 12, 17, 18.]

Christ Triumphant

Satan Urges Dependence on Self, January 16

CTr 22.1

God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. Genesis 3:5.

From Here to Forever

Satan’s Appeal to Intellectuals

HF 339.4

Satan beguiles men now as he beguiled Eve in Eden, by exciting ambition for self-exaltation. “Ye shall be as gods,” he declares, “knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:5. Spiritualism teaches “that man is the creature of progression ... toward the Godhead.” And again: “The judgment will be right, because it is the judgment of self. ... The throne is within you.” And another declares: “Any just and perfect being is Christ.”

The Great Hope (Condensed)

Appeal to Intellect

GrH_c 21.1

Satan beguiles men now as he beguiled Eve in Eden, by exciting ambition for self-exaltation. “Ye shall be as gods,” he declares, “knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:5. Spiritualism teaches “that man is the creature of progression ... toward the Godhead.” And again: “The judgment will be right, because it is the judgment of self.... The throne is within you.” And another declares: “Any just and perfect being is Christ.”

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 8 (1893)

Ms 50, 1893

8LtMs, Ms 50, 1893, par. 23

God does not consult our opinions or preferences. He knows what human beings do not know—the future results of every movement—and therefore our eyes should be directed to Him and not to the worldly advantages presented by Satan. Satan tells us that if we give heed to him we shall reach great heights of knowledge. “Ye shall be as gods,” he said to Eve, “if you eat of the tree forbidden by God.” [Genesis 3:5.] The test given to Adam and Eve was very light, but they could not bear it. They disobeyed God, and this transgression opened the floodgates of woe on our world.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Lt 155, 1901

16LtMs, Lt 155, 1901, par. 10

There are false teachers, bearing false doctrines, coming under the guise of godliness, but bearing Satan’s science, which once received, pollutes the whole being, body, soul, and spirit. These teachers are wells without water. They put on an appearance of righteousness, but they lead minds into heresy and darkness. They speak great swelling words of vanity about their own power. Thus did Satan when he promised Eve, “Ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:5.] They turn men and women from obedience to disobedience, from the pure doctrines of Christianity which make men loyal and true to God’s commandments, to the doctrines of unrighteousness which drag them down to ruin.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 17 (1902)

Ms 224, 1902

17LtMs, Ms 224, 1902, par. 10

The tempter presents matters in such a very seducing way that men love the presentation. Satan says, as he did to Adam and Eve, “Ye shall be as gods” [Genesis 3:5], and the poor souls come under Satan’s mesmeric influence; and they are among the number of those who depart from the faith and begin to weave them beautiful allurements to charm the senses. They love, they adore nature, talk science, and all is a fine gossamer picture pleasing to the fancy of the worldly, but an abomination in the sight of the Lord. Each heart has its own idol unless that heart is cleansed. It loves, adores, and worships the beautiful theories spun, but there is death in these things.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 19 (1904)

Ms 44, 1904

19LtMs, Ms 44, 1904, par. 1

Satan came to Adam and Eve with the temptation, “Ye shall be as gods.” [Genesis 3:5.] This same temptation comes to all the members of the human family. Naturally, man is not willing to be what God desires him to be. He is not willing to act his part in meekness and lowliness, as did the great Exemplar. Christ laid aside His royal robe and kingly crown and clothed His divinity with humanity, that He might stand at the head of the human race.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 20 (1905)

Ms 78, 1905

20LtMs, Ms 78, 1905, par. 16

This is the snare that Satan will lay for souls today. Once he was loyal, but the inspired statement is that he abode not in the truth. With his deceptive influence, he has been at work in our churches, bringing in one error after another to bewilder minds. Those who have been willing to listen to the fascinating delusion, “Ye shall be as gods” [Genesis 3:5], have entered upon a course of action under his guidance, thinking to accomplish some great thing.

Mind, Character, and Personality, vol. 2

Chapter 80—Satan’s Science of Self-exaltation

2MCP 722.2

Man His Own Standard of Character—Satan beguiles men now as he beguiled Eve in Eden, by flattery, by kindling a desire to obtain forbidden knowledge, by exciting ambition for self-exaltation. It was cherishing these evils that caused his fall, and through them he aims to compass the ruin of men. “Ye shall be as gods,” he declares, “knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5). Spiritualism teaches “that man is the creature of progression; that it is his destiny from his birth to progress, even to eternity, toward the Godhead,” And again: “Each mind will judge itself and not another.” “The judgment will be right, because it is the judgment of self.… The throne is within you.” Said a Spiritualistic teacher, as the “spiritual consciousness” awoke within him, “My fellowmen, all were unfallen demigods.” And another declares, “Any just and perfect being is Christ.”

The Story of Redemption

Witchcraft in Modern Form

SR 395.3

Satan beguiles men now, as he beguiled Eve in Eden, by exciting a desire to obtain forbidden knowledge. “Ye shall be as gods,” he declares, “knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:5. But the wisdom which Spiritualism imparts is that described by the apostle James, which “descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.” James 3:15.

Testimony Treasures, vol. 2

Simplicity and Majesty of Divine Revelations

2TT 306.3

Men who imagine themselves endowed with mental powers of so high an order that they can find an explanation of all the ways and works of God, are seeking to exalt human wisdom to an equality with the divine and to glorify man as God. They are only repeating that which Satan declared to Eve in Eden: “Ye shall be as gods.” Genesis 3:5. Satan fell because of his ambition to be equal with God. He desired to enter into the divine counsels and purposes, from which he was excluded by his own inability, as a created being, to comprehend the wisdom of the Infinite One. It was this ambitious pride that led to his rebellion, and by the same means he seeks to cause the ruin of man.

To Be Like Jesus

Everything Lost by Disobedience, February 2

BLJ 41.1

For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. Genesis 3:5, NKJV.

BLJ 41.2

When Eve 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.” It was grateful to the taste, and, as she ate, she seemed to feel a vivifying power, and imagined herself entering upon a higher state of existence. Having herself transgressed, she became a tempter to her husband, “and he did eat” (Genesis 3:6).

BLJ 41.3

“Your eyes shall be opened,” the enemy had said; “ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5). Their eyes were indeed opened; but how sad the opening! The knowledge of evil, the curse of sin, was all that the transgressors gained. There was nothing poisonous in the fruit itself, and the sin was not merely in yielding to appetite. It was distrust of God’s goodness, disbelief of His word, and rejection of His authority that made our first parents transgressors, and that brought into the world a knowledge of evil. It was this that opened the door to every species of falsehood and error.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 31, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 31, 1901, par. 5

In this prohibition Satan saw a chance to misrepresent God. Disguised as a serpent he came to Adam and Eve, saying, “The reason God has forbidden you to eat of that fruit is because He knows that if you do eat of it, you will be as gods. You will become wise.” [Genesis 3:5.] And they did become wise—wise in knowing the evil which God meant them never to know.

16LtMs, Ms 31, 1901, par. 6

After Adam and Eve had yielded to the tempter, the covering of light, their garment of innocence, was taken from them. “The eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.” In the past they had been glad to see their Creator when He came to walk and talk with them. Now in their sinfulness they were afraid to meet Him. Hearing the voice of God in the garden, they “hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.” “Who told thee that thou wast naked?” God asked. “Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?” And then Adam did that which it is natural for all human beings to do. He threw the blame on someone else. “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me,” he said, “she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” [Verses 7-12.]

16LtMs, Ms 31, 1901, par. 7

God told Adam that because of his disobedience the ground should be cursed. “In sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth unto thee. ... In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” [Verses 17-19.]

16LtMs, Ms 31, 1901, par. 8

The floodgates of woe were opened upon our world. All nature must feel the effects of sin. But God did not leave Adam without a ray of hope. He gave him the promise which ever since has brightened the pathway of the faithful. He said to the serpent, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” [Verse 15.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 97, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 97, 1901, par. 5

This prohibition Satan used as a means of insinuating suggestions of evil. “God doth know,” he said to the woman, “that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:5.]

16LtMs, Ms 97, 1901, par. 7

“And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life; and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow, and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also, and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” [Verses 6-19.]

Christ Triumphant

Warning Against Counterfeit Knowledge, January 17

CTr 23.1

And when the woman saw that the tree 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. Genesis 3:6.

The Ellen G. White Letters and Manuscripts: Volume 1

Practical Application

1EGWLM 39.2

Furthermore, there are also symbols of religious loyalty that have to be respected even when there is no evident reason for their selection. An example is the command to refrain from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:15-17), when there was apparently nothing dangerous about the fruit itself (cf. Gen. 3:6). These few examples illustrate the basic principle that divine commandments take precedence over, and even define, how principles are applied.

Radiant Religion

Counterfeit Pleasures—the Knowledge of Evil, August 17

RRe 231.1

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 off the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. Genesis 3:6.

Conflict and Courage

Used by Satan, January 10

CC 16.1

She took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. Genesis 3:6.

CC 16.2

Having herself transgressed, she [Eve] became the agent of Satan working the ruin of her husband. In a state of strange, unnatural excitement, with her hands filled with the forbidden fruit, she sought his presence, and related all that had occurred.

CC 16.3

An expression of sadness came over the face of Adam. He appeared astonished and alarmed. To the words of Eve he replied that this must be the foe against whom they had been warned; and by the divine sentence she must die. In answer she urged him to eat, repeating the words of the serpent, that they should not surely die. She reasoned that this must be true, for she felt no evidence of God’s displeasure, but on the contrary realized a delicious, exhilarating influence, thrilling every faculty with new life, such, she imagined, as inspired the heavenly messengers.

CC 16.4

Adam understood that his companion had transgressed the command of God, disregarded the only prohibition laid upon them as a test of their fidelity and love. There was a terrible struggle in his mind. He mourned that he had permitted Eve to wander from his side. But now the deed was done; he must be separated from her whose society had been his joy. How could he have it thus? Adam had enjoyed the companionship of God and of holy angels. He had looked upon the glory of the Creator. He understood the high destiny opened to the human race should they remain faithful to God. Yet all these blessings were lost sight of in the fear of losing that one gift which in his eyes outvalued every other. Love, gratitude, loyalty to the Creator—all were overborne by love to Eve. She was a part of himself, and he could not endure the thought of separation.... He resolved to share her fate; if she must die, he would die with her. After all, he reasoned, might not the words of the wise serpent be true? Eve was before him, as beautiful and apparently as innocent as before this act of disobedience. She expressed greater love for him than before. No sign of death appeared in her, and he decided to brave the consequences. He seized the fruit and quickly ate.13Ibid., 56, 57.

Conflict and Courage

When It’s Better Not to Know, January 11

CC 17.1

And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly. Ecclesiastes 1:17.

CC 17.2

Adam and Eve both ate of the fruit, and obtained a knowledge which, had they obeyed God, they would never have had,—an experience in disobedience and disloyalty to God,—the knowledge that they were naked. The garment of innocence, a covering from God, which surrounded them, departed; and they supplied the place of this heavenly garment by sewing together fig-leaves for aprons.

CC 17.3

This is the covering that the transgressors of the law of God have used since the days of Adam and Eve’s disobedience.... The fig-leaves represent the arguments used to cover disobedience....

CC 17.4

But the nakedness of the sinner is not covered....

CC 17.5

Had Adam and Eve never disobeyed their Creator, had they remained in the path of perfect rectitude, they could have known and understood God. But when they listened to the voice of the tempter, and sinned against God, the light of the garments of heavenly innocence departed from them; and in parting with the garments of innocence, they drew about them the dark robes of ignorance of God. The clear and perfect light that had hitherto surrounded them had lightened everything they approached; but deprived of that heavenly light, the posterity of Adam could no longer trace the character of God in His created works.14The S.D.A. Bible Commentary 1:1084.

CC 17.6

If Adam and Eve had never touched the forbidden tree, the Lord would have imparted to them knowledge,—knowledge upon which rested no curse of sin, knowledge that would have brought them everlasting joy....

CC 17.7

Age after age, the curiosity of men has led them to seek for the tree of knowledge; and often they think they are plucking fruit most essential, when, like Solomon’s research, they find it altogether vanity and nothingness in comparison with that science of true holiness which will open to them the gates of the city of God. The human ambition has been seeking for that kind of knowledge that will bring to them glory and self-exaltation and supremacy. Thus Adam and Eve were worked upon by Satan.15Ibid., 1083.

Sermons and Talks, vol. 1

The Christian Life

1SAT 319.2

After Adam and Eve had yielded to the tempter, the covering of light, their garment of innocence, was taken from them. “The eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.” In the past they had been glad to see their Creator when He came to walk and talk with them. Now in their sinfulness they were afraid to meet Him. Hearing the voice of God in the garden, they “hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou; and he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked and hid myself.” “Who told thee that thou wast naked?” God asked. “Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?” Then Adam did that which it is natural for all human beings to do. He threw the blame on someone else. “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me,” he said, “she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” (See Genesis 3:7-12).

1SAT 320.1

God told Adam that because of his disobedience the ground should be cursed. “In sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth unto thee.... In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” (Genesis 3:17-19).

1SAT 320.2

The floodgates of woe were opened upon our world. All nature must feel the effects of sin. But God did not leave Adam without a ray of hope. He gave him the promise which ever since has brightened the pathway of the faithful. He said to the serpent, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15).

Christ Triumphant

The Consequences of Sin, January 19

CTr 25.1

And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. Genesis 3:8.

Reflecting Christ

God’s Original Plan of Communication, April 1

RC 105.1

And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. Genesis 3:8.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 11 (1896)

Lt 106, 1896

11LtMs, Lt 106, 1896, par. 4

After Adam and Eve had sinned, they became conscious that their garments of purity and brightness, the covering given them by God, had fallen away from them. They saw that they were naked, and, ashamed to respond to God’s call, they hid themselves among the trees of the garden. “And God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded that thou shouldest not eat?” [Genesis 3:9-11.]