Reading the Bible thorugh in One Year. Jan 2, 2003

Reading Genesis 3 - 5


Chapter 3

1 - 5 One rule is all they had. One stinking rule. Eat or do not eat. I have asked myself for years why could they not keep one stinking rule. But I saw in reading this time something new. Eating ment they were ruling themselves, not letting God rule them. In other words, it could have been any rule, like 'Don't kick the cat!' and man would have still broken it because by nature man is not one to be ruled over but to rule over others. The very authority he was given in Chapter 2 is what led to the downfall here. He wanted self control, not God control. And we strugle with it even now.

Eve enlarges the truth here. Is she doing it on purpose, did Adam teach her falsely, why?

v. 6 Did Adam know what Eve was giving her to eat. I have heard preachers say that it is his fault, he was there with her and took the fruit willingly. But I am not so sure about that. Maybe she gave it to him and he had been off somewhare working. In the end it is all bad, we have the fall. I have read where people say Adam could have stoped the fall because he took and ate willingly, not decived like Eve was. How much of this is men-bashing? I sure Adam should have recognized the fruit so it is a mute point.


v. 7 - 8 They were naked. They had seen the power now, they were naked. They were vulnerable. There is more than phyical nakedness here, there is the eternal power strugle that has gone on through the ages.

v 9 Can you hear God, "Kids what are you doing?" As a parent I can see it.


v 10 - 11 How did he know he was naked? The fruit. But look at the reaction. He is vulnerable to God. Instead of talking to God, he is no longer on that equal level he was on before. He is now subserviant to God. He is naked, exposed to him.


v 12 - 13 Here we have the oldest profession in the Bible. It is called passing the buck. It still goes on today.

v 14 Why is the serpant cursed? Did he allow Satan to use him. Did the animal kingdom have a greater ability before the fall? Does this curse cause all the animals to fall under it or just the serpant?


v. 15 Clearly the promise of the Messiah and what would happen. The serpant would appear to defeat Him, but in the end, the Messiah would crush the serpant.

v. 16 God says clearly the problem here that is in most marriges today. Your desire shall be to rule over your husband, but he is to rule over you (my rough translation). Man is not to be an abuser in this situation. But no matter what, he is to lead. It is up to the woman to learn not to take the leadership role, to go against what is being taught in the world today. There is to be a joint-sharing of the power but in the end, the man to make the decisions.


v. 17 - 19 The man gets the worst sentance here. Woman is just going to get a desire to rule over the husband, but man is going to get to work the rest of his life, and it is to be hard work. And it will not come without many problems. Want to know why you have problems at work. Thank Adam for the bristles and thorns.


v. 21 Man's work (fig leaves) will never do in redemption. Blood has to be shed (leather clothes).

v. 22 - 24 Man is now removed from the direct communion that he had with God. He can no longer talk to God when he wants to as he could in the garrden, he is now limited to when God wants to talk to him.

If man had eaten from the tree of life, would he forever live in his sins? Is this a foreshadow of the person Jesus who would give us life on a tree (cross)?




Chapter 4


v 1 - 2 We see here the farmer and the herdsman. They are forever at odds with each other throughtout history.

v 3 - 5 Why did God not respect the offering of Cain? Was it not meat, that was of the blood, necessary to cover the sins? Was it an attitute problem, giving some food, maybe not the best. Able offfers first fruits, the first of the born of his heards. Cain offers some food. I think it was more than the blood, I think it was the attitude. He did not bring the best or the first, he brought some. And when what he brought was not good enough, did he look to himself to find out why? Or did he get angry and blame others? How about me? When I do not do my best, do I get angry at others for it?


v 6 - 8 God says to him that his efforts need to be his best efforts, not just getting by. And if he does not then anger will take over. And it does.

v 9 We are our brothers keeper, and if we do not do so, we will suffer from not taking care of him.

v 10 - 15 Even though God cursed Cain, He gave him, the sinner, a mark, so that no one else would kill him. He protected the sinner even when he did not deserve it.

v 16 - 24 A short listing of the decendants of Cain.

Also near the end of this, sin is increasing. Lamach is bosting of his sin.


v 25 Seth is born to replace the killed Able. The bloodline of Jesus has started. Did Satan use Cain here to stop the bloodline of Jesus from starting only to have it backfire when Eve became pregnant again?



Chapter 5


From Adam to Noah, 10 people total. Another 10 like 'God spoke'.



Psalm 2


v 1 - 3 People will always try to break from God's rule, just as the nations will try to fight the anointed one God had put on the throne of Israel. I guess the anointed one on the throne of our heart is moved out by our desire to rule our own lives.

v 4 - 6 God laughs at the whole thing. He has set the authority on the throne.

v 7 - 9 God tells his Son that all He has to do is ask for the nations and He shall have them. Jesus did that (john 17). But gave us the job to do it.

v 10 - 12 All the nations (and the people) are to submit to God.




Follow along at Country Keepers. Thanks Gary