1Now the serpent was more subtle than any animal of the field which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, "Has God really said, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?'" 2The woman said to the serpent, "Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat, 3but of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" 4The serpent said to the woman, "You won't surely die, 5for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." 6When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and ate; and she gave some to her husband with her, and he ate. 7The eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. 8They heard the voice of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. 9Yahweh God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" 10The man said, "I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." 11God said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" 12The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate." 13Yahweh God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." 14Yahweh God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, you are cursed above all livestock, and above every animal of the field. On your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. 15I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will bruise your head, and you will bruise his heel." 16To the woman he said, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you will bring forth children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." 17To Adam he said, "Because you have listened to your wife's voice, and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground for your sake. In toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. 18Thorns also and thistles will it bring forth to you; and you will eat the herb of the field. 19By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return." 20The man called his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living. 21Yahweh God made coats of skins for Adam and for his wife, and clothed them. 22Yahweh God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. Now, lest he put forth his hand, and also take of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever..." 23Therefore Yahweh God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. 24So he drove out the man; and he placed Cherubs at the east of the garden of Eden, and the flame of a sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
The Book ofGenesis 3Chapter III 3
· 24 verses · 3 minute read
About this chapter
Genesis 3 — The Fall: The Entry of Sin into the World
Genesis 3 explains why everything is broken. The serpent (nachash) introduces the first doubt about God's goodness: "Did God really say?" The strategy of temptation is ancient and contemporary—distort the word, promise divinity without God, blame others when exposed. Adam and Eve are not deceived by ignorance; they eat consciously, opening their eyes to a shameful awareness. The consequence is not merely physical death, but alienation: from God (they hide themselves), from one another (they accuse each other), and from the earth (it now resists their labor). Yet in the midst of judgment, a ray of hope breaks through: the protoevangelium in 3:15—"I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." This is the Bible's first messianic promise, pointing to Christ. God does not abandon the fallen couple; He makes them garments of skin (the first recorded sacrifice) and drives them from the garden not in wrath, but to prevent them from eating of the tree of life in their fallen state—an act of mercy disguised as exile. Every subsequent drama in Scripture—covenant, law, prophets, Christ—is God's answer to the fall of this chapter. Christian theology calls this the "original sin," the wound from which all human suffering flows.
Genesis 3 is the theological explanation for human suffering and the brokenness of creation. The entire biblical narrative that follows—from Abraham through the prophets to the incarnation of Christ—is God's redemptive response to this pivotal moment of disobedience.
Read this when you need to understand why the world is broken—and why God already had a plan of rescue from the very first moment of tragedy.
Key verses in Genesis 3
Genesis 3:4Genesis 3:19Genesis 3:1
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