“Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.
He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.””
The prelude is over, creation is complete, and now a cosmic story of tragedy and salvation begins. Enter the serpent.
When God created humanity, he created them with free will. In other words, Adam and Eve could freely choose to listen and obey God’s commands (or not). It was not a false picture that was painted when God gave Adam commands to obey (or not). With right desire, Adam and Eve obeyed rather than disobeyed. A choice had to be made, and with that choice came consequence.
In the case of Adam and Eve (and, indeed, for all of humanity), one command stands above the others: do not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The consequence for disobedience was death (Genesis 2:17). On the other hand, the consequence for obedience was a continuation of life in fellowship with God and with all the good things God had made and given to his stewards (humanity). Enter the serpent.
What starts out as a conversation of clarification quickly becomes a deceptive dialogue (vv. 2-5). The great lie—you will surely not die—is a direct contradiction to God’s own words. Worse than physical death (though it comes, too) is the spiritual death that comes when disobedience enters the world.
What can be seen at the beginning of Genesis 3 is that there is a choice to be made, and it is not between God and the serpent, as if the serpent could hold some sense of equality with God. Remember, the serpent is not equal to God but created (v. 1). The choice to be made is to obey God or not. In other words, enter the humans.
“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.””