Was It Really Eve?

I am one who takes the Bible literally, so when I read a passage like the following it makes me pause:

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; Genesis 3:17 (KJV)

At first glance it looks like this whole work concept is because Adam listened to Eve – thus making her responsible for our sojourn with work! Yet, although the scripture is true, there is always a hidden truth that we must discover. What was the original command regarding the forbidden fruit, and to whom was it given. We all know that the original command not to eat the forbidden fruit was given to Adam and he was given the charge to seeing that it was carried out. This did not absolve Eve from all blame, for she received her punishment too. However, it places the greater blame on the one to whom the command was given. From the point of God’s sentence until now – man must labor in the soil for that which he needs, not just what he desires.

Herein is the labor – Adam had jobs in the Garden prior to his fall. Yet he did not regard it as labor, for it was something he was made to do! After the fall, there were things he did not have natural inclination for, and this became labor to him.

On this Labor Day, as I reflect on my career, I remember the many times I had to do something that was against my natural inclination – it was struggle, it was hard- yet the same God who gave me comfort in my soul, gave me strength to do the things assigned to my hand. So was it really my labor, or HIs?

It’s just a thought, but it seems to me that because of the finished work on Calvary, that our merciful God looks upon us in our toil and labor, in our distresses and temptations, in our weariness and heaviness, and if we ask Him, He will deliver us in the midst of all of our circumstances and bring us out of the struggle, into joy- and if we let Him, He’ll carry us through the years to give us a pension when those work days are over. So what Eve did, and what Adam did, and what the serpent did, can never trump what our Jesus did and does for us every day! Enjoy your Labor Day recognition by praying for a Holy Spirt directed work season.

Maria