Genesis 3:13

And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

1. Again, the LORD God asked Eve what she had done, giving her the opportunity to lie or tell the truth in whatever way she chose.
2. Eve admitted the serpent had lured her into eating the fruit.
3. This particular serpent opposed the LORD God by trying to fool others into doing things the LORD God told them not to do. Its motives are yet unclear.
4. The serpent appears not to have been child-like or innocent like Adam and Eve, but instead a clever troublemaker.

Genesis 3:12

And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

1. Adam answered the LORD God's question, rather than clamming up and refusing to respond.
2. Adam admitted to eating the "forbidden fruit".
3. Adam's response makes it sound a little like he wanted to place part of the blame on the Lord and Eve. Either that or he was just stating how it played out. Actually, he could have done more to place the blame on Eve, so, perhaps, that wasn't really his motive. It's hard to tell for certain.

Genesis 3:11

And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

1. The LORD God suspected (or perhaps knew) two things relative to what Adam said: 1) someone told Adam he was naked (God apparently assumed or knew he didn't figure it out himself); 2) that he had eaten the "forbidden fruit."
2. The LORD God asked Adam questions, either to find out the answers, or to give Adam the opportunity to lie or tell the truth.
3. People are not likely to progress from a state of child-like innocence to maturity without instruction from others.
4. The LORD God's language is very direct, but also free from epithets or other expressions of anger, frustration, disappointment, etc.

Genesis 3:10

And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

1. When the LORD God asked where Adam was, Adam explained why he had hidden.
2. Adam was afraid of appearing naked before the LORD God.
3. The LORD God can speak with an audible voice.

Genesis 3:9

And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

1. The LORD God appears to have been unable to locate Adam and Eve in the garden, so He called to them.
2. The LORD God's behavior here is interesting. Either He was unable to locate Adam and Eve (suggesting He is not very intelligent), or He didn't have the patience to persist in hunting for them (suggesting He has an impatient, not very loving nature or has too busy a schedule to put up with childish behavior), or, knowing they were hiding in the trees, He gave them the choice of coming out of hiding or not (suggesting an extreme regard for their right to choose). As a very imperfect parent, I relate most to #2, but this is not just childish behavior - it's disobedience and fear and shame. It seems to me that understanding the LORD God's motives here is a key to understanding His character and actions in relation to the world population in general.
3. The garden of Eden must have been relatively large.

Genesis 3:8

And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

1. Adam and Eve heard the LORD God speaking in the garden in the cool part of the day (perhaps, either the morning, or the evening).
2. Adam and Eve believed, from the sounds they heard, that the LORD God was walking in the garden.
3. Adam and Eve apparently knew the LORD God as a being capable of walking and speaking.
4. In response to hearing the LORD God in the garden, Adam and Eve hid among the trees.
5. Adam and Eve were apparently nervous or fearful about meeting the LORD God again.

Genesis 3:7

And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

1. As a result of eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve felt embarrassment at being naked. There is the unanswered question of how they were introduced to this concept of nakedness - did it just occur to them, or did someone like the serpent tell them?
2. Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons.
3. Prior to eating the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve were apparently innocent like little children.
4. Unless Adam and Eve had become sewing experts, sewing aprons from fig leaves must have required some time, since fig leaves are not generally huge. There is the unanswered question of how they sewed the leaves together.

Genesis 3:6

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

1. Eve recognized that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was good for food, was pleasing to look at, and would make a person wise.
2. After weighing the pros and cons to a certain extent (it's not clear whether she believed the serpent's claim that they would not surely die), Eve ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
3. Eve gave Adam some of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
4. Adam took the fruit from Eve and ate it.
5. Husbands tend to follow their wives when it comes to diet or other things that are good for them.
6. Question: why did the serpent approach Eve instead of Adam?

Genesis 3:5

For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

1. The serpent told Eve that eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would open her eyes, make her like the gods who understand good and evil.
2. At the time of the garden of Eden, according to the serpent, there were gods who knew good and evil.
3. Since the name of the tree was the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil" it stands to reason that eating its fruit would give one the ability to know good and evil.

Genesis 3:4

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

1. The serpent told Eve that she would not surely die if she ate fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
2. The serpent asserted that God was either mistaken or a liar.
3. In retrospect, we know that Eve died, so evidently the serpent was either mistaken or a liar.

Genesis 3:3

But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

1. Eve quoted to the serpent God's restriction that they not eat the fruit of the tree that grew in the middle of the garden. If they did, they would die.
2. Eve remembered God's commandment and the reason for it.
3. We should remember God's commandments and any associated explanations for them.

Genesis 3:2

And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

1. Eve responded to the serpent's question, affirming she and Adam were allowed to eat the fruit of the trees.
2. Eve was apparently not terrified of snakes.

Genesis 3:1

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

1. Noted: the word "subtil" is an archaic spelling of "subtle".
2. A serpent spoke to the woman, asking her a question.
3. The serpent was the most shrewd and cunning of all the animals created.
4. The LORD God created the serpent.
5. The serpent knew what the LORD God had told the man and woman, and was able to quote it.
6. This serpent was obviously different from the snakes we know of today. I'm not aware of any who have language skills or vocal cords.
7. There was a snake in the garden, so it wasn't the ideal place to live.

Genesis 2:25

And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

1. The LORD God did not make clothes right away for the man and woman He created.
2. Adam and His wife were apparently innocent like little children, for they did not experience any embarrassment at being completely naked.
3. Either the climate was very comfortable in the garden of Eden or the bodies of the man and woman were impervious to heat and cold.
4. It's okay for a husband and wife to be naked in each other's presence.

Genesis 2:24

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

1. Grown men should not remain at home with their parents, but should marry, love their wives with all their hearts, and become as one - that is, totally united.
2. A married couple should have a sexual relationship.
3. Adam was speaking in the previous verse. It's not clear whether he still is here or not. If he is, then he clearly understands the concept of mother and father. If not, then this conclusion has been drawn by someone else.

Genesis 2:23

And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

1. It appears that Adam's last act as the namer of creatures was to coin the term, "Woman".
2. The term, "woman", evidently means, "taken out of man".
3. The LORD God apparently told Adam what He had done to create the woman, because Adam appears to have understood how she was created from him.

Genesis 2:22

And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

1. The LORD God created a woman from Adam's rib.
2. The LORD God brought the woman to Adam.
3. The LORD God used a different creative method for the woman than He did for man. He created man from the ground or the dust of the earth.
4. A woman is the ideal companion for a man.
5. This raises so many questions. Why did the LORD God create the woman from Adam's rib? Why was it better to use Adam's rib than creating her from the ground like He created Adam? Why did the LORD God wait so long to create the woman? Why did God create woman somewhere else and then bring her to Adam - was God trying to keep the process of creation secret from Adam? Why is a woman the ideal companion for a man - the help meet for him? Didn't the LORD God know this was a recipe for trouble - why not just give Adam a trusty dog?

Genesis 2:21

And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;

1. The LORD God, apparently a skilled anesthesiologist and surgeon, put Adam into a deep sleep (not simply asleep), removed one of his ribs, and then closed him back up again.
2. This seems to say something about God's approach to things. Many people believe He simply spoke words and, poof, the world and everything in it was created. If so, why did He use such a primitive method, relatively speaking, to remove Adam's rib? Why not remove it instantly with the wave of His hand or by command? Besides that, why did He create Adam with that rib to begin with - why not initially create Adam with one less rib? Assuming the LORD God knew exactly what He was doing from the beginning, why did He do things this way?
3. I can understand why some regard this account as merely symbolic - it raises difficult and interesting questions. To dismiss it as merely symbolic, however, blurs the line between symbolic and real for the whole creation story or anything else in the Bible that seems strange or fantastic. No, the account identifies 3 specific steps involved in surgery, so I have to believe it occurred as it is described here, or conclude that my analysis is a waste of time and that I can know nothing about God for certain.

Genesis 2:20

And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.

1. Adam gave names to the animals and birds.
2. Adam still did not have a suitable companion.

Genesis 2:19

And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

1. The man's name was Adam.
2. The LORD God formed every beast and fowl from the ground.
3. The LORD God is capable of causing every living creature to move from one place to another.
4. The LORD God gave Adam the opportunity to name every living creature, and apparently made no attempt to coach or correct him.
5. It appears that the LORD God is quite willing to let man do things on his own.
6. I assume the LORD God had previously taught or arranged for someone else to teach Adam to speak - either that or he was created with that ability.
7. Adam either had an incredible memory or his naming decisions were recorded. That would have included both the name and a description or drawing of the creature.
8. The LORD God sounds like a parent or other interested family member who delights in hearing a child's first attempts at language, or in seeing his intellectual accomplishments. Why else would God want to hear what Adam called the creatures instead of just assigning the names Himself, which I would think He had already done, since He created them.

Genesis 2:18

And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

1. The LORD God told someone it was not good that the man was alone, and that He intended to make a companion for him.
2. It is not good for a man to live alone. It is much better to have a companion.
3. The LORD God intended to create a companion that would be especially suited to help the man.
4. One or more individuals were with the LORD God during the creation process, for either He talked to himself, which doesn't seem very likely, or He spoke to others about His plans.
5. The person who originally recorded this information either had very detailed knowledge of what occurred during the creation process, or they made it up.
6. Assuming the Bible account is true, then very detailed information is sometimes communicated from God to man - information that could not possibly be known by any other means.

Genesis 2:17

But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

1. After telling the man he could eat of any tree in the garden, the LORD God told him not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
2. Eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would eventually cause the man to die.
3. Since Adam lived 930 years after he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, it is apparent that when the LORD God said man would die "in the day that thou eatest thereof" He was not referring to an earth day. This suggests the possibility that God's work days during which He created the earth were not equivalent to what we call a day, or 24 hours, today.
4. The man was apparently innocent at this point, not understanding the difference between good and evil.
5. The man was apparently immortal at this point. Only by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would he become mortal.

Genesis 2:16

And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

1. The LORD God told the man he could eat from every tree in the garden (expection comes in the next verse).

Genesis 2:15

And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

1. The LORD God moved the man He created into the garden He had created (already stated in verse 8).
2. The garden created by the LORD God for the man is called the garden of Eden.
3. The LORD God put the man into the garden so he would dress it (adjust, put in good order, arrange - Webster's 1913 Dictionary) and keep it (care for it, tend it - Webster's 1913 Dictionary). In other words, the man was to be the gardener.

Genesis 2:14

And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.

1. The names of the last two rivers that branched off the river that flowed from Eden to the garden were Hiddekel and Assyria.
2. The river Hiddekel flowed toward the east of Assyria.

Genesis 2:13

And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.

1. The second of the four rivers that branched out from the garden was called Gihon.
2. The Gihon river defined the entire land of Ethiopia.

Genesis 2:12

And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.

1. The gold in the land of Pison was good.
2. Bedellium and onyx were also present in Pison.