Deception of the Snake
Most of us know that the serpent lied to Eve and tricked her into eating the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This is how sin entered our world. But did the snake really lie? Let’s look at Genesis 3 to find out.
In Genesis 2, God created Adam and Eve and put them in the Garden of Eden. God told them “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen 2:16-17). Then in Genesis 3, the snake asks Eve, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” (Gen. 3:1). This is in essence what God said. Then in verses 4 and 5, the serpent says “You will not surely die. 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.” All of this is true. Adam and Eve didn’t die after they ate the fruit, and they knew the difference between good and evil. So where was the deception? In verse 6. Eve “saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes and a tree desirable to make one wise” (Gen. 3:6). It was what the snake did that deceived Eve, not a lie that he told. Eve saw the snake eating the fruit, saw that it looked good and saw that it apparently gave the snake the ability to talk. This caused her to doubt what God had said, and thus not heed God’s instruction.
Satan uses this same subtle method of deception today. He will hide little deceptions within a bigger truth. Only God can give us the wisdom to discern between what is true and what is deception. As we follow Him day by day we no longer have to worry about the Devil’s tricks.
Jade Covel is a junior studying religion.