“For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor” (1 Timothy 2:13-14 ESV).
In light of this reference to Adam and Eve here in 1 Timothy 2:13-14, let’s take a moment to revisit the events mentioned in this passage…
“Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?’ And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’’
Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate…” (Genesis 3:1-6).
Those choices led to the following exchange…
- “[the Lord God said] ‘…Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?’ The man replied, ‘It was the woman You gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it'” (Genesis 3:11-12 NLT).
- “Then the LORD God asked the woman, ‘What have you done?’ ‘The serpent deceived me,’ she replied. ‘That’s why I ate it'” (Genesis 3:13 NLT).
- “And to the man He said, ‘Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you…'” (Genesis 3:17 NLT).
So this decision to listen to his wife led to ruinous consequences for Adam. However, those consequences were not related to anything Eve may have said. The problem was related to how Adam acted upon what he heard.
Remember that God spoke to Adam and issued a direct prohibition against eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When the serpent suggested to Eve that she ought to do something else, Adam should have acted to ensure that she followed God’s directive. Instead of listening to Eve (or following her lead in this instance), he should have taken responsibility and made certain that he and his wife honored God’s instruction. His failure to do so led to repercussions that continue to this day.