“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.””
Humanity has fallen. Sin has entered the world. But God is still present, and God is still speaking! He addresses the three individuals involved in this cosmic incident, and he does it in this order: snake, Eve, and then Adam. This is the third: God’s words to Adam. Representing all of humanity, Adam formally received the curse of corruption humanity now faces.
Adam’s choice has consequence, and God expresses it clearly. Because of his disobedience, Adam and his surroundings are now cursed. As with Eve, pain is the marker of the fall. The very nature of things work against humanity rather than for them (thorns and thistles). Work will no longer be fully rewarding but exhausting (sweat of your face). Where life and life everlasting was the marker of creation, now corruption deals its damage (till you return to the ground).
Death is the ultimate reminder of the fall—humanity’s breaking of God’s commandment. It is unnatural but not unwarranted. God himself told Adam the wages of sin would be death.
At the same time, death is the ultimate reminder of humanity’s salvation—God’s fulfilling his own commandment. To say the least, death reminding humanity of salvation is unnatural but not unwarranted. God himself told Adam (3:15), would show Adam (3:21), and would reveal through Adam how this would come to pass.
“Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.”
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”