Jan 19
27
Old Testament Reading: Genesis 3:22-24
“Then the LORD God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—’ therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:22–24, ESV)
New Testament Reading: Philippians 3:7–11
“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” (Philippians 3:7–11, ESV)
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Introduction
We have come now to the seventh and final scene in this large section in the book of Genesis which runs from chapter 2 verse 5 through to the end of chapter 3. In this final scene the LORD God is the sole actor; the man named Adam is present but he is completely passive. This seventh scene corresponds to the first scene which ran from Genesis 2:5-17. There the same was true — the LORD God was the sole actor; the man was present but completely passive. In this final scene God’s judgement of the man is brought to conclusion.
It would be good to remember what transpired in the previous scene as we move into this last one. The LORD God first pronounced a curse upon the serpent. After this, he pronounced judgements upon the women . And then God addressed the man — “And to Adam he said, ‘Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return’” (Genesis 3:17–19, ESV).
Remember, although that previous scene was primarily about the judgement of God pronounced upon the snake, the man and the woman, the grace of God was also on display there. By God’s grace the man and the woman would go on living — room was left for repentance. By God’s grace, the promise of a victorious Savior was announced. And by God’s grace, the man and the woman were clothed — “the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21, ESV), we are told. God was gracious to Adam and Eve, and he is gracious to us. But the consequence of sin — both Adam’s sin and ours — is that life is now marked by difficulty. Lie is marked by perpetual conflict, pain in the process of bringing forth children, strife in our relationships, toil and frustration in our work, and ultimate vanity given the certainty of death.
In this final scene that is before us today God’s judgements upon the man are brought to a conclusion. And you would do well to note that the most tragic of all the consequences of sin are reserved for this final scene. More tragic than the conflicts which mar the course of human history; more tragic than the increased pain that women experience in the process of childbearing; more tragic than strife between husband and wife, and the toil and frustration that men encounter in their work; indeed, even more tragic than the inevitability of physical death and the vanity of life that accompanies it, is this — man, because of his sin, was driven from the presence of God to live out the years of his life alienated from his Maker. This consequence — our alienation from God; our loss of a right relationship with him — was the most tragic of all the consequences of man’s fall into sin.
Does that strike you as an odd perspective? Is your impulse to reply back saying, “No! The conflicts and strive, the pain and suffering, and the certainty of physical death must be considered worse punishments that our communion with God having been broken!” If that is your perspective it is because you have not experienced the joy of knowing God. You have not learned nor come to believe the truth so wonderfully stated by St. Augustin when he said, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” Friends, we were created to know God, and to be know by him. We were designed live in communion with God, to obey him, and to glorify his name. When Adam fell into sin, all of this broken and lost. All of the conflict, pain and strife that we experience in this world — even the event of physical death itself — cannot be compared to the tragedy of having lost that sweet communion with our Maker.
Adam in innocency knew God. He enjoyed sweet and intimate communion with God in that garden temple which the LORD had made for him. While Adam was upright he walked with God, and God walked with him. But when Adam fell into sin he that sweet and intimate communion with God was lost. Adam was not just sent out of the garden. The texts says that he was driven from that place and from God’s presence.
This loss of a right relationship with God was by far the most tragic of all the consequences of man’s sin. Man was made to know God and to glorify and enjoy him forever. Indeed, Christ himself said, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3, ESV). What does it mean to have life eternal? According to Christ, to have eternal life is to know God. To be severed from God — to be alienated from him and under his wrath because of our sin — is death. This is why scriptures call men and women who are alive “dead” if they have not been reconciled to God through faith in Christ. Though they are living they are really “dead”. The Apostle Paul wrote to Christians saying, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—” (Ephesians 2:1–2, ESV). This was their state of being prior to their having been reconciled to God through faith in Christ – though alive, they were dead in their trespasses and sins. To know God is to to have eternal life. To be alienated from him is eternal death. Christ came to make dead men and women and alive by reconciling them to the Father, thanks be to God.
In the day that Adam ate of the forbidden tree he died, for in that day he was driven from the presence of God and lost the sweet communion that he once enjoyed with his Maker. Therefore, I suppose that we might say that what is described to us here in this passage that is before us today is Adam being “put to death” by God. Yes, later we will learn that Adam lived for 930 years in total, and then he died (Genesis 5:5). But what I am saying is that in another sense, Adam truly died in the day that he ate the forbidden fruit, for its was then that he was driven from the presence of his Maker.
Let us consider this passage now in detail.
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“Then the LORD God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.’”
In verse 22 of Genesis 3 we read, “Then the LORD God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.’”
This is a very interesting and important verse. We should pay careful attention to it.
First of all, notice that Adam is in focus here. Eve is not mentioned at all. It will become clear that everything that is pronounced upon Adam in this passage will also apply to Eve. But notice that Adam in particular is the one who is judged by God in this text. This is because the covenant of life, or of works, or of creation — whichever term you prefer — was made with Adam (see Genesis 2:15-17). The covenant was made with him, and he was the one who broke the covenant. And though it is true that Adam’s sin would effects others — indeed all others — the judgements were pronounced upon Adam, for he was appointed by God to function as the representative of others in the keeping of this covenant.
Secondly, we must answer the question, who was the LORD God speaking to when he said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil”?
Commentators differ on the answer to this question. Some say that he was speaking to the angels. But in my opinion, it is best to think that God was addressing himself when he said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.”
How can it be that God would speak to himself? Well, the rest of scripture will make it clear that though there is only one God, there is also a plurality of persons, or subsistences, within the Godhead. We are right to ask our children the question, “Are there more gods than one?” and to teach them to answer, “There is but one only, the living and true God.” And we are also right to ask them, “How many persons are there in the Godhead?”, and to expect the reply, “There are three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory.”
The doctrine of the Trinity is not explicitly taught here in Genesis 3:22, but it is implied. And you would do well to remember that this is not the first time in Genesis where plurality within the Godhead is suggested. From the very beginning of Holy Scripture we are introduced to one God, the creator of heaven and earth, and we find that there is plurality within him. The rest of scripture will make it clear that there are three persons within the Godhead — Father, Word and Spirit.
Thirdly, what does God mean when he says, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.” Stated more precisely, how did man become like God when he rebelled? And what does it mean that man and God now share knowing good and evil in common?
Let me state the answer to this question briefly and directly before demonstrating my interpretation from the text. Man became like God when he rebelled in that he took to himself a right that was only appropriate for God to have – namely, the right to know or to determine that which is good and that which is evil. To “know good and evil” is to decide good and evil. God, the supreme lawgiver, commanded Adam, saying, “do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”. And Adam rejected God as the supreme lawgiver and took to himself the role of lawgiver when he ate of it that tree. It was an act of rebellion. In essence Adam said, I will not submit to God, but instead I will be God myself.
The meaning of the Hebrew word translated as “knowing” certainly allows for this interpretation. To know is to understand or to perceive. It is right for God to know, to understand, or to perceive that which is good and evil. It is right for him to give laws to man which correspond to his perception of good and evil, which is always perfect and true. And is good and right for man to agree with God’s perspective concerning good and evil and to live in obedience to his laws. On the other hand it is terribly wrong for the creature to disagree with his Maker, to seek to establish his own law so that he might live independent from his God. This is what Adam did when he ate of that tree. He pursued wisdom apart from God who is the source of all true wisdom. He sought to define good and evil on his own and in rebellion against his Maker. When he ate he sought to establish his autonomy so that he might go on living independent from God.
This interpretation of the statement, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil”, also fits perfectly with the story of Genesis.
When we encounter this communication within God himself in Genesis 3:22 with the words, “Then the LORD God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil’”, it is meant to remind us of a previous conversatin within the Godhead that was revealed to us. Remember the words of Genesis 1:26-17. There we heard God speaking within himself saying, “‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:26–27, ESV). There in Genesis 1:26-27 we encounter a conversation within the Godhead. The one true God said, let us make man in our image. And then what did the one true God do? He created man (singular) in his image and in such a way that his plurality would be reflected — “in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
I believe that it is very important for us to recognize the connection between Genesis 3:22 and Genesis 1:26-27.
In both passages we encounter something peculiar – a conversation that God had within himself is revealed to us. This is meant to grab our attention! This is meant to provoke the reader to pause and to ask, who is God speaking to?
And when we compare these two passages (they are meant to be compared) we find that they both have something important to say regarding the nature of man and man’s relationship to God. Stated differently, these two texts when set side by side reveal that man is like God in some respects, but he also not like God in other respects.
What did Genesis 1:26-27 reveal to us? It revealed that man was made in the image of God. God created man, male and female, to be like him, to image him, to correspond to him. I will not go into all that that entails, for that has already been done. Here we must simply remember that man was created to be like God in some respects.
But to say that man was made in the image of God, or that man was made to be like God, does not mean that man is God. Though it is true that some similarities exist between God and man, and this by God’s design, it must also be confessed that the differences between the Creator and creature are vast. God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent and eternal. Man is none of those things. In short, God is the Creator, man the creation. God is supreme, man subordinate. God is God, man is man. Though it be true that man was made in the image of God and is in some respects like him, man must never forget that he is not God.
That man is not God, and that man was to go on living in perpetual submission to God was made clear by the fact that God created man, placed him in the garden, provided for him, commanded the man to keep the garden, and to eat of the one tree and not the other. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil functioned as a symbol of the created order of things. God, being supreme, knows and determines that which is good and that which is evil, and he gave man his law. The question was, would man live as if God were supreme over him? Would man live in submission to his Makler? The tree of the knowledge of good and evil symbolized this order and also put man to the test.
And what did the tempter say when he approached Eve? “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And then afterwards “the serpent said… ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil’”(Genesis 3:1, 4–5, ESV). In other words, God has lied to you. This tree that God has forbidden actually has the power to give you life and wisdom. Yes, you have been made in God’s image, but if you would only eat of this tree, then truly you would be like God, no longer having to live in subordination to him. There is freedom in this tree. When you eat of it you will cast off the bonds of God. When you eat of it you will become truly autonomous and independent, as God himself now is. Adam and Eve believed this lie, and they ate.
When the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil”, he spoke truth concerning the man. In a sense the man had become like God knowing good and evil. But it is also obvious that God spoke these words in a sarcastic and condescending sort of way — there is irony in his words.
Did Adam become like God when he ate of the forbidden tree? The answer is “yes” as I have already said, but it is also “no”.
It is “no” in that Adam was still a man and not God. Adam the creature was still the creature. He was not elevated at all when ate of the forbidden fruit. In fact, he fell. The image of God that he did possess by virtue of his creation was now marred and twisted. So it might actually be said that Adam was less like God after his fall into sin and certainly not more.
And so God mocked Adam with these words — “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.” Certainly this was to impress all the more strongly upon Adam the foolishness of his sin.
When I hear God speak condescendingly to Adam in this text it reminds of a that passage in Psalm 2, where the Psalmist asks, “Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, ‘Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us [they are like their father Adam, aren’t they?].’ He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying…” (Psalm 2:1–5, ESV)
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“Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—”
In the second half of verse 22 God beings to speak a word of judgement concerning Adam, saying, “Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” (Genesis 3:22, ESV)
Notice how the voice of God drops off at the end of this verse and the voice of the narrator (Moses) picks up, saying, “therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden”, etc., etc. This is very unusual. But it is deliberate no doubt.
Perhaps the words of judgement would be too much for us to bear if they came from God’s lips, and so Moses interviews to describe the result. Or perhaps the falling off of God’s voice is meant to communicate that final judgement has been delayed? This seems to me to be the effect. God begins to pronounce judgement, but then his words are suspended creating a sense of delay, and Moses resumes with a description of what transpired.
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“Therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken.”
And what does Moses say? In verse 23 we read, “therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken” (Genesis 3:23, ESV)
Notice that though Adam was judged, and though the loss of communion with God was terribly tragic, this was not the final judgement. Adam was sent out of the garden to toil in his labor. There Adam would work the ground. And as he worked the ground he would be reminded of things: from this ground he was taken — he would have been remanded that he is a creature and not God, and to the ground he would one day return — the wages of sin is death, spiritual and physical.
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“He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.”
In verse 24 we read, “He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:24, ESV)
When God sent Adam out of the garden it was to prohibit him from having access to the tree of life. Remember, God said, “Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever” — for this reason he was sent out of the garden.
The tree of life was not a magical tree as if eating from it would automatically confer eternal life. The tree of life, like the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, was a sacramental tree. It symbolized obedience to God and the life that would be found in God by going the way of obedience.
When Adam was driven out of the garden, cherubim (plural) being set to guard the entrance with a flaming sword, it communicated in no uncertain terms that the way to eternal life that was once open to the man through obedience to the law of Go was no longer open to him. If Adam were to have eternal life it would need to be obtained through something other than the covenant of works, for that covenant had been broken. If Adam were to enter into eternal life it would need to be by some other way than through the keeping of God’s law, for he had sinned against it, and the wages of sin is death. To use the words of Paul, “For by works of the law no human being will be justified in [God’s] sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20, ESV). This was the message that was sent to Adam, and powerfully so, when God drove him from the garden and placed his cherubim and a flaming sword at its entrence. This way to glory is now shut. This way to life eternal is no more. Look elsewhere, namely to the savior that God has promised to provide.
As it was the previous passage, so it is with this one. Though these texts are primarily about the judgements of God, the gospel of the Christ is also present. How is it present here?, you ask. Let me tell you!
We must remember who this is book was written by, and for whom it was written. It was written by Moses and for the people of Israel redeemed from Egypt originally. And we should also remember that Moses did not only right Genesis but also the rest of the pentateuch — Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. And in some of those books the design and eventual construction of the tabernacle will be described to us. And what will we find except that when the tabernacle is build it is meant to remind the worshipper who is approaching God through the shedding of blood of Eden. The entrance to the tabernacle and temple was to face east. Cherubim were embroidered upon the curtain which separated the holy place from the most holy place, where the presence of God was found. And on each side of the ark of the covenant which contained God’s law stood cherubim, guarding as were mans approach to God.
The Israelites who read Gensus, and all who would read it afterwards, would make these connections. And they would also understand the meaning — though Adam was driven from the temple of Eden, and though the way life through the keeping of God’s law was now shut up and guarded, God by his grace has provided another way to come into his presence. Not law keeping, but through the sacrifice. And not by works, but by grace.
After the Christ died for our sins the veil on the temple which had the cherubim embroidered upon it was torn in two. “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh… let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:19–24, ESV).
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Conclusion
I would like to conclude by making three points of application.
First of all, do you consider the loss of communion with God to be the most tragic of all the consequences of our sin? Or do you have such a low view of God and such a high view of this world and of the pleasures found within that you weep more at the though of the loss of worldly comforts and pleasures than at the though of the loss of communion with God himself.
The Christian will agree with Augustine and says, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” And the Christian will agree with Paul and say, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” Truly, there is no greater pleasure in all the world than to God through the Christ whom he has sent.
Secondly, have you submitted to God and to his law as revealed to us in his holy word? Adam’s sin was that he rebelled against God’s word. He sought pursue wisdom apart from God. He sought to know good and evil, right and wrong, truth from error on his own. This sin of rebellion abounds within our world today. How common it is for the sons and daughters of Adam to seek to establish their own standards, their own truth and to go their own way. Our days are very much like the days of the Judges of Israel, when “everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6, ESV). It is not surprising to find that this is the way of the world, but sadly it is also the way of the church, so called. Most, it would seem to me, give little attention to God’s law. Few care to ask, how has God commanded that he be worshipped? When it comes to establishing doctrine, God’s word is pushed to the side and is replaced with rationalism, emotionalism, and pragmatism. And if you do not know what those words mean I’ll state it differently. Many Christians today refuse come under the authority of God’s word so as to submit to it. Instead they stand over God’s word and they judge it according to their standards. They will believe and teach that which makes sense to them, that which feels right to them, or that which works in their opinion, but they refuse to surrender themselves to God’s word, to believe what its says in humility. Instead of “[receiving] with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save [our] souls” (James 1:21, ESV), they pridefully stand over the word of God to judge it according to their standards. And when they do they prove that they are in Adam, and not in Christ. And so I ask, have you submitted to God and to his law as revealed to us in his holy word?
Thirdly, are you trusting in your own righteousness or in Christ. Friends, don’t you see that the way to life through the covenant or works is closed off. The way to eternal through obedience to God’s law is no longer open to any of the natural sons and daughters off Adam. Adam was able to earn eternal life through obedience to God’s law while in the garden. But when he sinned, he was driven out and the way to the tree of life was shut up and guarded. “By works of the law no human being will be justified in [God’s] sight…” (Romans 3:20, ESV). But God has graciously promised and provided another way. He sent a Savior, Christ Jesus our Lord. He was a true son of Adam. He had to be if he was to represent the sons and daughters of Adam and pay for their sins. But more than that he was a the Son of God. He had to be if he was to keep God’s law, bear the sins of all God’s elect, and conquer sin and death by raising on the third day. Indeed, salvation is found only in him. “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6, ESV). “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16, ESV).
