Genesis 3:7-8

Genesis 3:7-8

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

What does Genesis 3:7-8 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The separation that sin produces in man"s relationship with God stands out clearly in these verses. Their new knowledge that the serpent promised would make them as God actually taught them that they were no longer even like each other. They were ashamed of their nakedness and sewed fig leaves together to hide their differences from each other ( Genesis 3:7). [1] Perhaps they chose fig leaves because fig leaves are large and strong.
The "cool" of the day is literally the "wind" of the day. God came to Adam and Eve in this wind. He came in a wind earlier in Creation ( Genesis 1:2) and later to Job ( Job 38:1), Israel ( Exodus 20:18-21; cf. Deuteronomy 5:25), and Elijah ( 1 Kings 19:11).
"A more complete transformation could not be imagined. The trust of innocence is replaced by the fear of guilt. The trees that God created for man to look at ( Genesis 2:9) are now his hiding place to prevent God seeing him." [2]
Genesis 3:7 marks the beginning of the second dispensation, the dispensation of conscience (or moral responsibility). Adam and Eve had failed in their responsibility under the dispensation of innocence; they were now sinners. They had rebelled against a specific command of God ( Genesis 2:16-17), and this rebellion marked a transition from theoretical to experiential knowledge of good and evil. Their new responsibility now became to do all known good, to abstain from all known evil, and to approach God through blood sacrifice, which anticipated the sacrifice of Christ. As a period of testing for humanity, the dispensation of conscience ended with the Flood. However people continued to be morally responsible to God as He added further revelation of Himself and His will in succeeding ages (cf. Acts 14:14-16; Romans 2:15; 2 Corinthians 4:2).
Eve did not die at once physically, but she did die at once spiritually. She experienced alienation in her relationship with God. Death means separation in the Bible, never annihilation. Sin always results in alienation: theologically (between God and man), sociologically (between man and man), psychologically (between man and himself), and ecologically (between man and nature). We might also add, sexually (between men and women) and maritally (between husbands and wives).
Three kinds of death appear in Scripture: physical-separation of the body and soul (the material and immaterial parts of the person), spiritual-separation of the person and God, and eternal-permanent separation of the person and God.
The Apostle Paul wrote that Eve was deceived ( 1 Timothy 2:14). This does not mean that women are by nature more easily subject to deception than men.
"There is nothing in Scripture to suggest that the woman was inferior to the man in any way or more susceptible to temptation than he was." [3]
"The tempter addresses himself to the woman, probably not because she is more open to temptation and prone to sin, for that is hardly the conception of the Old Testament elsewhere. The reason may have lain in this, that the woman had not personally received the prohibition from God, as Adam had." [4]
She may have received God"s word through Adam. Perhaps Satan appealed to Eve because she was not only under God"s authority but also under her husband"s authority and, therefore, more inclined to think God was withholding something from her.
"It is interesting to observe that when this sin is referred to throughout Scripture, it is not referred to as the sin of Eve-but rather as the sin of Adam! The phrase in Genesis 3:6, "with her," seems to suggest that Adam was at Eve"s side when she was tempted by Satan. As God"s theocratic administrator, and as the appointed head of the family, it was Adam"s responsibility to safeguard Eve and to assure that she remained in submission to the command of God. But Adam failed in his God-given responsibility and permitted Eve to eat of the forbidden fruit." [5]
Adam, however, was not deceived ( 1 Timothy 2:14). He sinned with his eyes wide open ( Genesis 3:6 b). Eve"s was a sin of initiative whereas Adam"s was one of acquiescence. [6] Too much aggressiveness by a woman and too much passivity by a man still are tendencies of the respective sexes. Death "passed unto all men" ( Romans 5:12) when Adam sinned because Adam, not Eve, was the head of the human race under God"s administration (cf. Genesis 3:18-23). [7]
Some commentators have interpreted eating the forbidden fruit as a euphemism for having sexual intercourse. [8] They say that the original sin was a sexual sin. However the text makes such an interpretation impossible. Eve sinned first ( Genesis 3:6), she sinned alone ( Genesis 3:6), and God had previously approved sex ( Genesis 1:28).
"Adam and Eve"s nakedness ( Genesis 2:25) does not idealize nudity but shows why human beings must wear clothes. With the Fall came a tragic loss of innocence (together with resulting shame). When people"s minds are enlightened by the gospel, they understand their moral frailty and practice customs of dress that shield them against sexual temptation." [9]
The timeless lesson of these verses is that victory over temptation to violate God"s good will depends on a thorough knowledge of God"s word and unwavering confidence in God"s goodness. As Israel faced temptations to depart from God"s revealed will from the pagans she encountered, this record would have provided a resource for remaining faithful, as it does for us today. Often these temptations attract because they promise superior blessing and fulfillment, even divinity. Therefore, knowing God"s word is extremely important (cf. Deuteronomy 6:5-9; Deuteronomy 6:13-25; Psalm 119:9-16). Satan tempted Jesus similarly to the way he tempted Eve. However, Jesus overcame victoriously by accurately using the word of God to remain faithful to the will of God. True wisdom comes by obeying, not disobeying, God"s word.