Supreme Court Case Study: God vs. Mankind

The Trial of Adam and Eve

Adam and Eve: God's Command

Genesis 2:15 “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

Adam and Eve: Their Crime

Genesis 3:6  “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. 7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.”

Adam and Eve: Indicted

Genesis 3:11 “And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

Adam and Eve: Their Defense

Genesis 3:12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. 3:13 “And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

Adam and Eve: Judgment and Punishment

Genesis 3:14 “And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. 16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. 17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;  19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

Adam and Eve: Grace

Genesis 3:21 “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: 23 Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. 24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”

The Trial:

"The Word" is the Supreme Judge. This is not a jury trial, but the question mankind has for this "Court of Appeals" is not that God is wrong in his justice, but where is it that Adam and Eve are incarcerated. The reader is one of the jurors and testimony is only allowed if it is from scripture.

Which Law was broken?

Public Defender: "Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it..." Your honor" says me, the public defender, "Is this the true cause?"  "The Word" replied:

 Exodus 20:5 "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God..."

The prosecutor: "The Word" gave the only Law which existed at that time. It's the same as the First Commandment! The defendants were to have no other god's before Him. By standing under the "Other Tree" they sought pleasure, beauty and wisdom. It appears that they wanted to be like God, according to God. In effect the defendants had another god, it was each of their "selfs". They were pleasuring the flesh and standing under the forbidden tree. In effect, just because "The Tree of Life" was alone and "The Other Tree" had a couple of admirers standing under it, God was jealous. The defendants were breaking what was to become the First Commandment. Yes, God said it differently, but the intent of "not eating of the tree" was to "not have other gods besides me"! The defendants broke that law and are guilty, according to the Law.

The defendants are accused of fornication with a god besides the One True God. Unfortunately it is self-love. They  fornicated with their "self".

Was anyone forced to break the Law or was it of their own volition?

Man was born with a free will. The defendants were created in the image of God and Matthew 6:10 says "Thy will be done in earth...", it appears that a characteristic of God is that he has a will. Since God has a will, then man must have one too. What is that "will" able to do? Choose! Since choice is an option, then it's a free will. When the defendants broke the Law, they did it for different reasons, but it was of their own volition. That's a genetic trait which God passed along so that humans are more than automatons.

Nobody made them eat of the fruit, but they had a choice and they made a bad choice. Man never has to sin, but each time men sin, a choice is made. Therefore, sins are bad choices and it's people who choose poorly.

Who broke the Law? Who is/are the defendant? Who was the co-defendant?

It would appear that both broke the Law, but they stand separately before the judge. Although they committed the crime together it was for different reasons. "The Word" will judge them separately and independently, but they both are charge with a violation of this commandment. Where do we look for further information on who is to blame? Of course it's the Bible.

Romans 5:12 "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:"
1 Timothy 2:13 "For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 

 Eve committed the sin of eating of the forbidden fruit, it seems, but Adam shirked his position and job assignment. He was to have dominion over everything, even Eve, and his job was to tend the garden. Adam was to be the priest of the family, not the woman, and his job was the serve "The Tree of Life". God didn't tell Eve anything, but she spoke with authority and got it wrong. It was Adam's role to instruct Eve in the things of God and he failed to do so. God said nothing about "touching  the tree", but Eve added that command to the "do not eat" command. She was presumptive and assumed authority which she did not have. Adam is to blame because he erred in teaching her! Then on top of that, although he knew better, he was standing under another tree rather than God's tree. He made God jealous!

Adam is the defendant. Eve, is therefore the co-defendant.

Was there an accomplice?

Yes, the serpent beguiled;  he lied. In the tradition of natural law, the accomplice shares responsibility for the crime. He instigated the crime and then used deceit to get others to do his dirty deed. Eating of the forbidden fruit was done to satisfy the serpent's pride, him being symbolic of Satan.He stole God's glory when they ate of they listened to him!

What was the motive for the crime?

The forbidden tree offered beauty, pleasure and wisdom. Adam and Eve were intrigued by what they felt that they didn't have.

Were they entrapped or victimized?

They were entrapped. That's Satan's M.O. He uses deceit to get the desired results.Satan  used their naivety to get them to do evil. As such they were victims too! People never gain when they listen to Satan. They always lose and as such, are victims.

Were there mitigating circumstances?

Yes. Both Adam and Eve were naive to deception. They believed that the serpent was offering things that God didn't. Eve wasn't told anything by God. Adam was. Eve's command was second-handed.

Did they try to hide their guilt?

Yes. They put on fig leaves to cover "their flesh". The reproductive organs, as a source of pleasure, represent sin. In Moses time, the foreskin was cut off as a show of union with God. It was a symbol of cutting off the "other god", the flesh in which we live and worship.

Also, each of them blamed another. For Eve she hid her guilt by blaming the serpent. With Adam, he blamed Eve.

What was their defense?

For Eve blame of the serpent and for Adam, blaming Eve. Just as they did, whenever, we're caught doing wrong, we look for someone else to blame. It seems that our god, us, doesn't like to accept any fault for anything!

They are judged? What does it mean “to judge”?

Judge is a continuum all the way from innocent to guilty with "having an opinion" somewhere in between. Since "guilty" includes some type of punishment we must never be harsh with out judgement.

Luke 6:37 "Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned.."

This passage equivocates harsh judgment with condemnation. When we form an opinion which involves negative results, we must be careful to not condemn, Our judgement must be as we would have others judge us; out of love.

Having an opinion is acceptable because we must form an opinion to lead others to Christ, and opinions guide us to shake the dust from our feet when people fail to respond to our teachings.

Who judged?

"The Word" who later was born and called Jesus.

Were they judged guilty or innocent?

Guilty because they were punished.

What was the maximum penalty?

Spiritual death. They got the maximum with a chance of reprieve.

What was the actual penalty?

Eve: Sorrow in childbirth - submission to the man - death  (immortality changed to mortality)
Adam - Hard work (poverty) - death (immortality changed to mortality)

Was there collateral  punishment? Did the crime effect others?

Yes. All the descendants of the defendants. This is called "original sin" or "inborn sin". "men have sinned and come short of the glory of God."

Was the judge fair? Did he show mercy?

Yes. God by nature is just. Although Adam and Eve failed to have only one God, God, even though he was jealous and offended, provided a way out. Adam and Eve were no longer immortal from a physical standpoint, but if they are contrite, have faith, love and holiness, God would reinstate their immortality, not only in this world, but after death.

1 Timothy 2:15 "Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety."

Was the accomplice punished?

The accomplice was the serpent. Satan used him as a means of deceiving. He was punished by crawling and being in the dust forever. In the end he will be destroyed!

Where is the place of bondage?

Outside the gate of the Garden of Eden. They were sentenced to a life outside the garden and were not able to sneak in and eat of the Tree of Life to get the reward which they did not deserve. Instead of being in bond within, their bondage was out in the world!

Where is safety?

It is safe inside the garden because it's guarded and those who are sinful can't get in! Considering that the “Tree of Life” is guarded, are Adam and Eve  still serving time?

Are Adam and Eve in Heaven or Hell right now? 

Instructions to the jurors:

Matthew 7:1 “Judge not, that ye be not judged.2  For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 

You're the jury. Please vote. Is it guilty or innocent? Are they sentenced to heaven and hell?”

Let's look at the judge to see what he said and did! He provided clothes of animal skin. This is the first time death came into existence. The animals were slain and shed their blood to cover the guilt of their "flesh". Salvation must be by propitiation by blood.

Hebrews 9:22 "And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission."

Apparently Adam and Eve were sorrowful enough that God  redeemed them by sacrificing animals in their behalf. The covering of the flesh is much like the Abrahamic Covenant where the foreskin was circumcised as a truce between God and man. The animal covering made peace between God and the defendants.

With that said, God's grace continued. They had only to love God, have faith, be holy and be serious in their devotion to One God. (1 Timothy 2:15).  Then God, in his mercy, allowed Eve to bear children such that she would have "seed". It was by her seed that The Word became incarnate and shed his blood for all mankind.

Romans 5:17 "For if by one man's (Adam's) offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)

Then there is a promise!

Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

There will be a barrier between the serpent and the woman and all their offspring. The offspring of the serpent are evil men. The seed of the serpent will have a bruised head, and that's how snakes are killed! Satan will be thrown in the Lake of Fire in the end and his followers with him. On the other hand Jesus was bruised for all mankind. His bruised body was the sacrifice which was bruised for all men and those who have faith are Eve's seed. By that, it would appear that Eve is in heaven and escaped God's wrath. She is enjoying eternal life again in Paradise right now, as is Adam!

The garden is guarded. Admittedly, that is confusing. It appears that God is trying to keep Adam out, and he probably is. There are requirements for admission to Paradise. People can't just walk in for some sort of protection nor can they get in through the back gate. There is one entrance to Paradise!

John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

God sits on his throne in paradise right now as always, by the river of God and near his son "The Tree of Life" It's by that Tree that man can only enter the garden. That includes Adam. That Tree is Jesus who was in the center of Eden. The only way that Adam and Eve could enter the gate guarded by the cherubim is with a password: Jesus. He is the Way to come unto Paradise. And as Adam and Eve stood there desiring to come in, it was by faith in Jesus that they could enter, just as it is today.

You see... there is no other way. They had faith in Jesus because it was he who judged them! As John said, "He who comes after me was before me!" It was Jesus to whom he was referring. That's part of the "Mystery of Christ"! Salvation, even for Adam and Eve was through The Word, who is Jesus!

Oh, by the way: The judgment of Adam and Eve is a picture of "The Great White Throne Judgement". However, there is one BIG difference! Adam and Eve were judged in life. Men will be judged in death. There will be no more opportunity for grace in death if people reject God in this life.

Adam and Eve's names were written in the Book of Life! If not already there, ours can't be. However, it can be crossed out.