Sunday School Lesson:In the Begining (Part 3)
I do not think that Adam and Eve wandered near to the sacred Tree of Life often. But the Tree of Knowledge was in a more open space. One day, Eve was in the garden when she heard a rustle near the tree, and presently, among the waving bushes, she saw the head of a large serpent. It spoke to her, and asked why she was not gathering the fine fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, which was the best fruit of all to eat in the garden, and certainly most tempting. “God told us not to,” answered Eve simply. She was not afraid of the Serpent, but stood looking at it in wonder.
What would happen to you if you disobeyed Him, do you think?” asked the Serpent. “We should surely die,” said Eve. “Surely not,” the Serpent told her with a wicked, cunning look in his eyes. “God knows that if you eat that fruit, you will be great and powerful, as He is. That is the reason He has told you not to.”
Eve looked at the Serpent again and then she looked at the fruit on the Tree. It hung, tempting and fragrant and cool among its pretty leaves. There was such a lot of it too; the Tree almost seemed to bend with its weight. The Serpent went nearer the Tree and drew the branches towards her, rustling and twisting its long shining body among them.
“You would be as powerful and know as much as God Himself, “ it repeated. “Why don’t you pick the fruit and eat it?”
Eve wanted to obey God, but somehow the temptation was too strong. She plucked some of the fruit and ate it guiltily. Then Adam came down the path to see what she was doing, and she gave him some to eat, too. When they had finished eating, they looked at each other. And, all at once, they were miserable and sorry and ashamed, and they hurried away from the Tree and the Serpent, and went to the other end of the garden, wondering why they should be so unhappy, instead of becoming clever and powerful, as the Serpent had said they would.
The day wore on, the sun sank and the garden grew sweet and holy and cool. Then a deeper hush came over it, and a little wind thrilled through the hush, and a Voice spoke, gravely and tenderly, through the soft breeze. Adam and Eve knew that God was in the garden, and they hid themselves more deeply and trembled among the trees. But God called to them and asked why they had hidden themselves, and Adam answered that it was because they were so unhappy and ashamed.
God knew before Adam spoke that they had eaten the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge; nothing else could have taken from them the joy and happiness that would always have been theirs if they had not disobeyed Him. He was very grieved and displeased, and told them they could not live in the garden any longer, for He could not trust them. And He told the Serpent that it too, must be punished. From that moment on, it would always have to crawl on the ground, instead of being able to lift itself up, as other creatures could.
When God had said this, the Serpent crept away and Adam and Eve went sorrowfully out into the desert. And God put His winged angels at the gate to guard the Tree of Life, so that the man and woman were never able to go back into the garden any more.
This was the story told to the little children of the Tent people in the Land of Wanderings.