Satan is a liar. He is the father of lies. (John 8:44) In verses 4 and 5, Satan tells a bald-face lie, in that he directly contradicts the words of God. To complete the deception, he in essence tells Eve that God is trying to cheat them. This is something that God does not do. (Psalm 84:11) Up until this time, Adam and Eve had only known good. Now Satan tempts them to know evil also. We must understand that God only wants us to experience good. He does not cheat us by withholding those things which are evil. Keeping your children from those things which can harm them is called love. This is what God does.

Much has been said and written about Eve and Satan’s temptation. However, it must be stated that Adam was not far away. Eve makes her statements in the plural, “we” and “ye”. (Genesis 3:2) In addition, in verse 6 makes it clear that Adam was “with her”. Furthermore, verse 7 refers to their eyes being opened apparently at the same time. It is this writer’s opinion that Adam was just as culpable as Eve, although in different ways. Eve was deceived by Satan. (1 Timothy 2:14) However, Adam was willfully disobedient, in that he knew it was wrong, but ate of the tree anyway. Adam was ultimately responsible. (Romans 5:12)

Genesis 3:6 is a case study in how worldly lust works. Eve saw that the tree was (1) good for food, (2) it was pleasant to the eyes, and (3) desired to make one wise. This parallels 1 John 2:16, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” Beware of what this world has to offer, because that is what Satan will use to deceive us.