Relevant Passages: Genesis 1-3

Leading Question: Who was responsible for the first sin in Eden?

If one is looking for the ultimate culprit, the one responsible for introducing sin into our wretched world, there are four potential candidates: God, the serpent, Eve, Adam.

1. Question: In terms of degree of responsibility for the first sin, how would one rank the four primary actors in Genesis: God, the serpent, Eve, and Adam?

Note: In seeking to rank the key players in terms of their responsibility, one must face a whole series of significant questions about God, Satan, and human beings. In particular, Genesis 3:1-19 describes the roles filled by each of the key players.

2. Question: How are the key principles of love vs. selfishness played out in this passage of Scripture? Let’s ask this question of each of the players:

God.

Serpent.

Eve.

Adam.

3. Question: What picture of God is suggested by his appearance in the narrative? God is active in 1:8-19.

Note: Christian interpretation has taken Genesis 3:15 as central to the story of salvation, showing how the “seed” would eventually wound the head of the serpent. A gentle God who comes walking in the garden looking for his wayward children eventually will bring the sharpest focus on the issues in the Great Controversy. God will give everything, including life itself. Satan would take everything, including the life of the Creator in order to establish his principle of selfishness in the universe. In the kingdom, every person will be able to trace out the conflict in the light of all the evidence.