Understanding the Book of Revelation - Chapter Six, This Means War!

Chapter 6 - This Means War!

It may seem like we're getting away from our look at Revelation, but we're not. One of the beautiful things about Revelation and our ability to understand it is that we need to look at nearly every other book of the Bible. Don't worry, I'm not going to go that far, but there are some basic things that we do need to look at to establish an understanding of what's going on in Revelation. For now we need to go back to the beginning – Genesis.

“And the Lord God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, you are cursed above all [domestic] animals and above every [wild] living thing of the field; upon your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust [and what it contains] all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring; He will bruise and tread your head underfoot, and you will lie in wait and bruise His heel.” – Genesis 3:14-15

Genesis – beginnings. The world as we know it came into being. Mankind began. There was another first in Genesis as well – the first promise of the Messiah was given immediately after Adam’s act of disobedience. It shouldn’t surprise us that God seemed to be fully prepared for the events that took place in the Garden. He knows the end from the beginning and had prepared the perfect sacrifice before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). I’m sure God would have preferred that Adam hadn’t disobeyed, but kids will be kids!

Immediately following the promise of the Messiah, the Lord showed Adam the high price required for his disobedience in a very graphic way. Rather than allowing the couple’s nakedness to be covered by garments they had made from leaves, God slaughtered animals, spilling innocent blood not only to make garments to cover Adam and Eve’s nakedness, but to cover their sin and satisfy God’s holy law. It is this perfect justice that required a perfect sacrifice to eventually be made – one that would not only cover our sins, but that would actually cleanse us of our sins.

This first promise of the Messiah did something more than serve as a word of hope for fallen mankind. It also served notice to Satan. From that moment he knew his days were numbered. He also knew something else – that the Messiah would be born; He would be human. What Satan didn’t know was when or where this promised Messiah would be born. After Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden, they began having children. It is in this first generation of “Garden-exiled” people that we see Satan begin his campaign against mankind in hopes of thwarting God’s redemptive plan.

“And in the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground. And Abel brought of the firstborn of his flock and of the fat portions. And the Lord had respect and regard for Abel and for his offering, but for Cain and his offering He had no respect or regard. So Cain was exceedingly angry and indignant, and he looked sad and depressed. And the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? And why do you look sad and depressed and dejected? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin crouches at your door; its desire is for you, but you must master it. And Cain said to his brother, Let us go out to the field. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.” – Genesis 4:3-8

Here we see Cain and Abel. One brought the Lord an offering of the fruits of his own labor. The other brought an offering of the firstborn of his flock. In the sacrifices Cain and Abel brought before the Lord we see one man trying to do things his way, while the other was doing things God’s way. One sacrifice was accepted, the other was rejected. If you’re wondering whether it would have been difficult to discern God’s acceptance of an offering, the following passages should clear it up.

In 1 Kings 18:38 we read, “Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust, and also licked up the water that was in the trench.” Then in 2 Chronicles 7:1 we read, “When Solomon had finished praying, the fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the house.”

So, fire falling from heaven to consume the sacrifice meant that the sacrifice was accepted by God. No fire – no acceptance. (Personally, I like it when God makes things easy like that.) Not only did Cain see that God had accepted his brother’s sacrifice while rejecting his own, but when he got angry about it, God spoke to him directly. We can only guess that Cain’s pride was greatly injured by God’s rejection of his sacrifice. Using that offense as an opening, Satan instigates mankind’s first act of murder. (We must remember that at this point in history Satan still did not know when or where the Messiah would be born, simply that He would indeed be born of a woman.) Not only does this murder serve as a vehicle for Satan to pour his anger out on men, but it also serves as his first attempt to begin wiping out mankind with the hope of preventing the Messiah’s birth.

It really didn’t take long for things to start falling apart for mankind after that. Satan went to work right away to interfere in the affairs of men, particularly when it came to man’s relationship with God. In the beginning of Genesis 4, Adam and Eve began having children. By the end of Genesis 4 those children had grown up and had children of their own. Mankind also began profaning the name of God. Now, if you look in your Bible you will most likely find Genesis 4:26b reads something like this: “At that time men began to call [upon God] by the name of the Lord.” It is now widely held that this is an unfortunate mistranslation and that men weren’t calling upon God’s name in reverence, but rather profaning God’s name. If you think about it, this really would make more sense considering that people were already familiar with God. Also, in Genesis 5:22-24 we see that Enoch walked in habitual fellowship with God, so this must mean that the knowledge and reverence of the Lord was already with men rather than something new that began when Seth was born at the end of Genesis 4. So, by the end of Genesis 4, moral decay was rampant and about to take a turn for the worse, as we will see in Genesis 6. But first we are presented with a very curious chapter in the Bible.

Genesis 5 is a precious jewel hidden in the midst of mankind’s history. Now, if you’re like me, when you come to a list of genealogy in the Bible, such as this chapter of Genesis, you get a little bleary eyed and your mind begins to wander. I’m sure the people were very nice and it’s wonderful that God chose to immortalize them by having their names recorded in the Bible, but was it really necessary to list them all?

Would you be surprised to find out that those names really are significant and aren’t just there to test our endurance? One thing that we need to remember is that names and their meanings are very important in the Jewish culture and that every Hebrew name has a meaning. With this in mind, let’s take a closer look at the lineage God presents in Genesis 5.

Here is the list of men named in Genesis 5, in the order of their birth: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah. Methuselah is notable for two things. First, he lived for 969 years, making him the oldest person ever to have lived. Second, his death brought the flood of Noah. In fact, his name means to bring or to send forth death and many believe that it was God’s mercy in His delaying the judgment of the flood that allowed Methuselah to live so very long. Now let’s look at the meaning of each of these names to see if there is anything significant going on here.

Name	Meaning
Adam . . . . .  . . .	Man
Seth . . . . .  . . . .	Appointed
Enosh . . . .  . . . .	Mortal, frail, or miserable (root is incurable)
Kenan . . . . . . . .	Sorrow, dirge or elegy
Mahalalel . . . . . .	Blessed or praised God
Jared . . . . . . . . .	Shall come down
Enoch . . . . . . . .	Commencement or teaching
Methuselah . . . .	Death – to bring or to send forth
Lamech . . . . . . .	Lament or lamentation (despairing)
Noah . . . . . . . . .	To bring relief or comfort (comfort or rest)

So, if we put all of these names together we have the following sentence:

Man (is) appointed mortal sorrow; (but) the Blessed God shall come down teaching His death shall bring the despairing comfort, rest.

Could it be that in the genealogy of Genesis 5, God tucked away the message of the Gospel? That certainly appears to be the case. This genealogy would seem to be the next declaration of the Messiah, but more than that, who He would be, how He would come and what a portion of His ministry would be. The Messiah would be the Blessed God Himself. He would “come down” from His rightful place in heaven, and He would bring comfort and rest to those in despair. In fact, when Yeshua read from the prophet Isaiah (chapter 61, verses 1 and 2) thousands of years later, He declared this portion of His ministry and proclaimed the fulfillment of the passage from Isaiah.

“And there was handed to Him [the roll of] the book of the prophet Isaiah. He opened (unrolled) the book and found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon Me, because He has anointed Me [the Anointed One, the Messiah] to preach the good news (the Gospel) to the poor; He has sent Me to announce release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed [who are downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity], To proclaim the accepted and acceptable year of the Lord [the day when salvation and the free favors of God profusely abound. Then He rolled up the book and gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were gazing [attentively] at Him. And He began to speak to them: Today this Scripture has been fulfilled while you are present and hearing.” – Luke 4:17-21

It is very interesting to note that Yeshua stopped reading before the passage ended, leaving out “and the day of vengeance of our God.” The day of vengeance had not yet happened when Yeshua read this passage, and indeed He will not be fulfilling that portion of Scripture until the end of the seven year Tribulation period.

So, by the time we get to Genesis 5, the information given about the Messiah has increased, but it has not yet narrowed in its scope. It was probably due to the broad range of the information regarding the Messiah that Satan’s attack was still focused on mankind as a whole. And with the information he had been given thus far, I suppose it only made sense that Satan got right to the heart of the matter in trying to pollute the available gene pool in order to prevent the birth of the Messiah. Confused? Let’s look at Genesis 6 for some clarification.

“When men began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were fair, and they took wives of all they desired and chose. Then the Lord said, My Spirit shall not forever dwell and strive with man, for he also is flesh; but his days shall yet be 120 years. There were giants on the earth in those days – and also afterward – when the sons of God lived with the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.” – Genesis 6:1-4

This text can be quite perplexing. Let’s take a look at each verse of this passage to see if we can get a better idea of what’s really going on here.

Verse one says, “When men began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them.” This seems to be pretty straightforward. Men began to do a lot of begetting and as is usually the case, some of their offspring were female.

Verse two says, “The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were fair, and they took wives of all they desired and chose.” This is where things usually start getting a little muddled. There are generally two camps when it comes to this passage as a whole, and this verse in particular. On the one side, there are those that say that the sons of God were merely human men who took wives for themselves. While this sounds plausible, if we look at the passage carefully we find that this cannot be the case. The term “sons of God” is used solely for beings created directly by God. Adam was a son of God. The angels, being direct creations of God, are sons of God. (These, of course, are not to be confused with The Son of God, Yeshua the Messiah.) We who are regenerate in the Messiah are also called sons of God because through the Messiah’s atonement we have been adopted by God. But children born of human parents are never called sons of God, rather they are called sons of men. Understanding this, it becomes evident that this verse is not speaking of human men taking human women for their wives, but of angels – fallen angels – taking wives for themselves from the daughters of men.

Verse three says, “Then the Lord said, My Spirit shall not forever dwell and strive with man, for he also is flesh; but his days shall yet be 120 years.” Here the Lord seems to have finally had His fill of man’s disrespect, as well as man’s allowing, and perhaps even enjoying, this union between angels and humans. So here God limits man’s lifespan to 120 years.

Verse four says, “There were giants on the earth in those days – and also afterward – when the sons of God lived with the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.” The final verse in this passage seems to confirm the conclusions that must be made in verse two. The word in the original text that is translated “giants” does not merely mean that the offspring of these unions were unusually tall. They were in fact what we would call monsters. Yes, they were giants in that they were a great deal taller than any mortal man. In fact, there have been archeological finds confirming that there have been individuals well over thirteen feet tall. It is also interesting to note that these hybrids had six fingers on each hand.

In a recorded incident that would fall into the “and also afterward” category, we are introduced to Goliath of Gath, and we are told that he was nearly ten feet tall (1 Samuel 17). There is another interesting fact about these giants. “And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; he also was a descendant of the giants. And when he defied Israel, Jonathan son of Shimei, brother of David, slew him. These four were descended from the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hands of David and his servants.” – 2 Samuel 21:20-22.

Going back to Genesis 6:9, we see that Noah was “blameless in his [evil] generation.” If the term “blameless in his [evil] generation” meant that he was righteous, why also mention that he walked habitually with God? What we are seeing here are two different and distinct issues – one is Noah’s relationship with God, the other is Noah’s bloodline or genealogy. Noah and his family were chosen by God to repopulate the earth not only because Noah had an intimate relationship with God, but because their gene pool hadn’t been polluted by demonic intermingling. This purity was essential as the Messiah had to be born a man, not a hybrid, as it was mankind that He would come to redeem, not fallen angels.

With the flood came the second recorded widespread judgment of God upon this planet; the first being when Lucifer sinned against God. And with the end of the flood God establishes a covenant with Noah (Genesis 9). It is after the flood that God causes animals to become fearful of man. It is also at this time that God gives man animals for food in addition to the vegetation He has already given man to eat. God also establishes accountability for murder.

In Genesis 11 we find the account of the tower of Babel. This episode in our history was yet another attempt by Satan to remove man’s devotion and worship from God and redirect it to Satan and his fallen angels. The people, who all spoke a common language, decided to build a tower to reach the heavens. Perhaps they were trying to reconnect with the “sons of God” who had come down prior to the flood (and who would indeed come again). Perhaps, as some archeological finds seem to indicate, the tower was an astrological device to be used to take charge of their own fate without the interference of God. Whatever their ultimate goal, God did not like what He saw. He confused the people’s speech, giving them different languages and bringing this massive building project to an abrupt end.

It isn’t until Genesis 12 that we see God get more specific regarding the Messiah by calling one person out to be in covenant with Him. This man was named Abram (later renamed Abraham). God later chose to perpetuate this covenant through subsequent generations of Abraham’s offspring, specifically Isaac and Jacob. It is this narrowing of focus that brings the brunt of Satan’s attacks to the people God had chosen and it is here that the seeds of anti-Semitism were planted.

Understanding the Book of Revelation - Chapter Five, The Key to History

Chapter 5 - The Key To History

“Then another ominous sign (wonder) was seen in heaven: Behold, a huge, fiery-red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven kingly crowns (diadems) upon his heads. His tail swept [across the sky] and dragged down a third of the stars and flung them to the earth. And the huge dragon was cast down and out – that age-old serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, he who is the seducer (deceiver) of all humanity the world over; he was forced out and down to the earth, and his angels were flung out along with him.” – Revelation 12:3-4a, 9

“Thus says the Lord God: You are the full measure and pattern of exactness [giving the finishing touch to all that constitutes completeness], full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, the carnelian, topaz, jasper, chrysolite, beryl, onyx, sapphire, carbuncle, and emerald; and your settings and your sockets and engravings were wrought in gold. On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were the anointed cherub that covers with overshadowing [wings], and I set you so. You were upon the holy mountain of God; you walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire [like the paved work of gleaming sapphire stone upon which the God of Israel walked on Mount Sinai]. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until iniquity and guilt were found in you.” – Ezekiel 28:12-15

The most beautiful, the most perfect being ever created, filled with the sum of wisdom – that was the being we now know as The Adversary or Satan. One of a class of angelic beings known as cherubim (plural for cherub – and no, they don’t really look like chubby little babies with wings), he was anointed by God to become the highest of his class. He was positioned in the throne room of God. At that point he was then not only the most beautiful and wise of all of God’s created beings, he also held the most authority and power of any created being.

From the above passage in Ezekiel we are told several things about the original state of not only this magnificent cherub, but of the original creation as well. This being was in the original Eden, a garden not of plants, but of beautiful gems – a mineral garden – and given authority over it and this planet. From this passage we also see that He was the anointed cherub that covers – he was anointed by God and elevated above his fellow cherubim in power and authority. “You were upon the holy mountain of God; you walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire,” is speaking of the kingdom or throne room of God. So here we see that he was the guardian of the throne of God and was the one who granted or denied others access to it. The imagery used in these two statements is very reminiscent of the ark of the covenant which had two cherubim covering the mercy seat with their wings. This mercy seat was a type, or picture, for the throne of God, and above this seat is where God’s presence manifested itself in the wilderness tabernacle. Just as the cherubim on the ark “covered” God’s glory, so too, did Satan before he chose rebellion.

So, in summary, this most beautiful and perfect cherub was given unprecedented power and authority by God. And in this perfection, he was given something that we don’t have and may never fully understand – the power to make a choice contrary to his very nature. Unfortunately, he did just that, and when he did he became ha’satan – the adversary. Now let’s look at how this happened.

In Isaiah 14:13-14, the prophet has recorded the words of Satan, “And you said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit upon the mount of assembly in the uttermost north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

Let’s take a look at these five statements and what they mean.

First we have, “I will ascend to heaven.” Here we see that Satan wanted more than what he already had, but the only domain left was the very throne of God. Second we have, “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.” In Scripture, when the word star is used symbolically it is always a symbol for an angel. So in this statement he is expressing his desire to be in charge of all the angelic beings.

The third statement, “I will sit upon the mount of assembly in the uttermost north,” is a reference of Satan's desire to sit on the throne of God. If we look in the second chapter of the book of Daniel we can begin to see what might be referenced here. “As you looked, a Stone was cut out without human hands, which smote the image on its feet of iron and [baked] clay [of the potter] and broke them to pieces. Then the iron, the [baked] clay [of the potter], the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken and crushed together and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors, and the wind carried them away so that not a trace of them could be found. And the Stone that smote the image became a great mountain or rock and filled the whole earth.” The image that Daniel is referring to is one that appeared in a dream of King Nebuchadnezzar. God was interpreting the dream via Daniel. The image represented not only King Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom, but those that would come afterward as well – right up to the time that Messiah (the Stone cut without human hands) will return and establish His kingdom on earth. This passage is pregnant with Messianic connotations. So, knowing that it was God’s will for the Messiah to rule in this capacity in God’s kingdom, Satan declared his desire to rule and reign over Israel in the Messiah’s place.

Fourth we have, “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds.” The word cloud, when used symbolically, is a reference to the manifest glory of God. When the Israelites were in the wilderness they were lead by the manifest presence of God – a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day. So, here Satan is stating his desire to make that glory his own, when in fact it belongs to God alone.

Lastly we have the grand finale of the “I will” statements – “I will make myself like the Most High.” When God is referred to in Scripture as the Most High, it is most often referring to God as possessor of heaven and earth. In stating that he will make himself like the Most High, Satan is stating that he wants to make himself the owner, or title-holder, of heaven and earth.

These five “I will” statements are very telling about Satan’s desires. They can also help us understand history and what’s on the horizon. In these five short statements Satan voiced his dissatisfaction with God’s perfect will. Rather than be satisfied with his exalted position, he wanted it all! The most perfect being that God created thought he could take the place of his Creator and since that time has been busy trying to fulfill his desires.

When Satan chose to oppose God’s will, God had no choice but to judge Satan and everything that was under his authority – including the earth. In Genesis 1:1-2, we read, “In the beginning God (prepared, formed, fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and an empty waste, and darkness was upon the face of the very great deep. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters.” But in Isaiah 45:18, it says, “For thus says the Lord--Who created the heavens, God Himself, Who formed the earth and made it, Who established it and did not create it to be a worthless waste; He formed it to be inhabited – I am the Lord, and there is no one else.” At first glance it would seem that these two passages contradict each other, but God’s Word can never contradict itself. From the passage in Ezekiel 28, we see that the original Garden of Eden was vastly different than the one mentioned in Genesis. In the second verse of Genesis we can see that the earth had become an empty waste, covered with water, but Isaiah says that God did not create the earth to be a waste. What happened between verses one and two of Genesis to cause such a dramatic change? The judgment of Satan. In the Genesis account of “creation” it is actually God re-creating and re-forming the earth out of the remains of what was left after God’s judgment of Satan’s rebellion.

In Romans 8:19-21, we read, “For [even the whole] creation (all nature) waits expectantly and longs earnestly for God's sons to be made known [waits for the revealing, the disclosing of their sonship]. For the creation (nature) was subjected to frailty (to futility, condemned to frustration), not because of some intentional fault on its part, but by the will of Him Who so subjected it – [yet] with the hope that nature (creation) itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and corruption [and gain an entrance] into the glorious freedom of God's children.” Creation is waiting to be redeemed to its original mineral state. In Revelation 21:1-3, we see, “Then I saw a new sky (heaven) and a new earth, for the former sky and the former earth had passed away (vanished), and there no longer existed any sea. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, all arrayed like a bride beautified and adorned for her husband; then I heard a mighty voice from the throne and I perceived its distinct words, saying, See! The abode of God is with men, and He will live (encamp, tent) among them; and they shall be His people, and God shall personally be with them and be their God,” (italics mine).

Note that the new earth will no longer have any sea, just as the original, pre-rebellion earth had no sea. Apparently God used water as part of His judgment against Satan’s rebellion, as He would do again at the time of Noah. Because the Messiah will be redeeming creation and returning it to its original state, we can deduce from the passage in Revelation 21 that the original state of this earth was not as it is represented in Adam and Eve’s garden, but as it was before Satan rebelled – an earth of precious stones, radiant with the very glory of God. In Revelation 21 we also see that the dwelling of God will be with men. Has God given us any glimpse of what His dwelling place looks likes? He has indeed!

“You were the anointed cherub that covers with overshadowing [wings], and I set you so. You were upon the holy mountain of God; you walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire [like the paved work of gleaming sapphire stone upon which the God of Israel walked on Mount Sinai].” – Ezekiel 28:14

“Then in the Spirit He conveyed me away to a vast and lofty mountain and exhibited to me the holy (hallowed, consecrated) city of Jerusalem descending out of heaven from God, clothed in God's glory [in all its splendor and radiance]. The luster of it resembled a rare and most precious jewel, like jasper, shining clear as crystal. The wall was built of jasper, while the city [itself was of] pure gold, clear and transparent like glass. The foundation [stones] of the wall of the city were ornamented with all of the precious stones. The first foundation [stone] was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony (or white agate), the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each separate gate being built of one solid pearl. And the main street (the broadway) of the city was of gold as pure and translucent as glass.” – Revelation 21:10-11, 18-21

“And they saw the God of Israel [that is, a convincing manifestation of His presence], and under His feet it was like pavement of bright sapphire stone, like the very heavens in clearness.” – Exodus 24:10

Every time we are shown a glimpse of God on His throne or of His dwelling place it is described in terms of brilliant gemstones and jewels just like the original creation.

Is there more to learn from Satan’s rebellion than what the world once was and what it will be again? Without a doubt! To summarize, we had a created being that had been more perfect and beautiful and wise than any other created being. He then got so full of himself that he chose to act contrary to his own perfect nature and aspired to take over God’s position and authority. God then judged Satan and everything under his authority. By the time we see Satan make his appearance in the Garden of Eden as a serpent, we can only guess that his desire for complete domination had utterly consumed him and that he would stop at nothing to fulfill these five “I will” statements no matter how long it would take, and therein lies the key to history.

Understanding the Book of Revelation - Chapter Four, The First and Last Adams

Chapter 4 - The First and Last Adams

“For since [it was] through a man that death [came into the world, it is] also through a Man that the resurrection of the dead [has come]. For just as [because of their union of nature] in Adam all people die, so also [by virtue of their union of nature] shall all in Christ be made alive. Thus it is written, The first man Adam became a living being (an individual personality); the last Adam (Christ) became a life-giving Spirit [restoring the dead to life].” – I Corinthians 15:21-22, 45

“Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath or spirit of life, and man became a living being. And the Lord God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden [delight]; and there He put the man whom He had formed (framed, constituted). And the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to tend and guard and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and blessing and calamity you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” – Genesis 2:7-8, 15-17

Adam was the first person made by God’s own hands. Eve, his wife, was the only other person to ever be directly fashioned by God. After God made Adam, He put the man in the Garden and gave Adam what seems to be two relatively simple directives – tend and protect the Garden, and don’t eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. So here we see that God had given the use of the land, in this case the whole earth, to Adam. Adam was to oversee and guard the land and by doing so he was fulfilling his God-given role. Then, at the close of Genesis, chapter 2, we see God creating Eve, Adam’s helper – someone who could come along side of Adam and fully complement him in every area of his life. By the time we get to chapter 3, we can deduce that Adam may have already become negligent in his duties. In the opening verses of chapter 3, we are introduced to the serpent and he’s doing what he does best – twisting the Word of God in order to fracture a person’s relationship with the Living God, with other people and with themselves.

“Now the serpent was more subtle and crafty than any living creature of the field which the Lord God had made. And he [Satan] said to the woman, Can it really be that God has said, You shall not eat from every tree of the garden? And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat the fruit from the trees of the garden, except the fruit from the tree which is in the middle of the garden. God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die. But the serpent said to the woman, You shall 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 the difference between good and evil and blessing and calamity. And when the woman saw that the tree was good (suitable, pleasant) for food and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she gave some also to her husband, and he ate.” – Genesis 3:1-6

Eve should have just walked away from that serpent and never given him the time of day. But she, like all of us, was human and allowed herself to be drawn in to a match of wits for which she was not equipped. From this initial encounter with the serpent, we can see the pattern Satan still uses today. First, he questioned God’s Word. “Did God really say that?” Next, we see that rather than ignoring this comment, Eve answers, although her answer adds to what the Lord had actually spoken to Adam. (You must remember that when God gave that command to Adam, Eve hadn’t been created yet, so it had been up to Adam to instruct Eve in the ways of God.) Eve’s addition to God’s Word was the opening Satan was looking for.

Satan knows the Word of God, probably better than any of us will ever know it. He’s had a lot of time to study it, trying to find some loophole in order to fulfill his warped desires. So when Eve added, “neither shall you touch it, lest you die,” to the command God had given to Adam, Satan had her just where he wanted her. He told her that she wouldn’t die, and that it was only because God was withholding something from her that she had been instructed not to eat of the tree. Questioning God’s motives and His provision is another tactic that has been working for Satan through the centuries. By this point poor Eve has been swayed. She took another look at the tree for herself and saw that it was not only a good source of food, but was pleasing to the eye and could make a person wise. That was all the convincing she needed – and the rest, as they say, is history. But Eve didn’t stop there. Apparently she didn’t want to sin alone, so she brought some of the fruit to Adam and he partook as well.

At this point you’re probably thinking about what a horrible, manipulative little creature Eve was. Wasn’t it bad enough that she defied God? Did she have to drag Adam down with her? Well, let’s put the brakes on the Eve-bashing for a minute and see what really happened here.

As I mentioned earlier, Adam was the one who was in charge of tending and guarding the Garden. His first mistake was letting the serpent get in. It also seems that Adam didn’t fully communicate God’s Word to Eve. She was obviously very easily led astray by the wiles of the serpent and was ultimately deceived by the serpent. When Adam took his bite of that famous fruit, however, he did so with both eyes open and with full knowledge of what he was doing. He purposely disobeyed God’s will. In Genesis 3:7, we see that it was not until Adam ate the fruit that both of their eyes were opened and they then knew that they were naked. I believe that this clearly lays responsibility for the couple’s act at Adam’s feet. But why would Adam knowingly and willingly sin against God, losing everything that had been entrusted to him? Let’s look at Adam and Eve’s relationship a bit more to find out.

In today’s world of high divorce rates and growing numbers of dating services, you soon realize that finding the right mate is a high priority for most people. But can you imagine if God made your mate for you with His own hands, out of your own body? Eve wasn’t just the perfect wife for Adam, she was literally part of him. I can’t even begin to imagine the love these two must have shared, not only with each other, but in their unfettered relationship with God. The couple walked freely through the Garden, clothed only in the light of God’s glory. But when Adam ate the forbidden fruit, all of that changed.

When Eve came to Adam with the fruit in her hand, Adam had a choice to make. Here stood Eve, holding a piece of fruit in her hand. I can almost see her crying like a baby over what she had just done. Because Eve had been deceived into sinning, she would have no longer been able to be in perfect relationship with either God or her husband. Before Adam stood the woman that he loved, but he could no longer relate to her. He couldn’t take her in his arms and comfort her in her time of despair. There was a chasm of sin between them. The only way that Adam could ever be with Eve again was to follow her into her fallen state, and out of his great love for her, he did just that.

With that one decision, the world changed forever. For the first time in history, man knew shame and guilt. The first thing Adam and Eve did after their eyes had been opened was to sew leaves together in hopes of covering their guilt – the first religious act – but God quickly shows us that we can not cover our own iniquity nor can we dictate what will please God. The Lord had to spill the innocent blood of animals in order to make atonement for the transgressions of His children. The skins of those sacrificial animals became clothing for His children. Then God had to expel the couple from the Garden and post a guard at the entrance to keep them from eating from the tree of life and obtaining eternal life in their fallen state. But there was something else that happened that day in the Garden.

Through his willful disobedience to God’s will, not only did sin and decay enter into the human condition, but Adam forfeited his title deed to the land. Fortunately God didn’t let any time pass before He unveiled His plan of redemption. In Genesis 3:14-15, God not only makes the first proclamation of the Messiah, but that the Messiah would ultimately crush the head of Satan, while He would have His heel bruised (this was fulfilled in the life of Yeshua when He hung on the cross).

We are also shown that Satan is currently in legal possession of the earth in Luke chapter 4. In this passage Satan comes to Yeshua in the wilderness and begins tempting Him. When Satan offers Yeshua all the kingdoms of the world and all the authority to go with them, Yeshua didn’t correct him, because for the time being Satan does indeed have legal possession of the earth. Yeshua knew that the only way for Him to be eligible to ultimately redeem the land meant He would have to follow the Father’s plan and not take matters into His own hands. He stood firm and sent Satan packing.

In Romans 8:19-21, we can see that creation is indeed waiting to be redeemed. “The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.” Creation must be redeemed, just as each of us is in need of redemption, and the One who is qualified to redeem us is the same One – the only One – who will be able to redeem the earth and return it to its rightful owner – Yeshua the Messiah.

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!” – Philippians 2:5-8

It is no small thing what the Messiah has done for us. But why would Yeshua step out of His rightful place in the Godhead to be born a human and ultimately die the most hideous death known to man? Because He loves us. He looked upon us in our desperation, our souls crying out for the help that only He could give, and out of His compassion and mercy He chose, just as Adam did, to join His bride in her brokenness. But rather than joining us through an act of willful disobedience to the Father, Yeshua lived His life in perfect obedience to the will of God. Adam’s willful sin made it necessary for a human, someone who could perform in the role of kinsman-redeemer, to live a perfect and sinless life. It is because of Yeshua’s obedience that He can step into the role of kinsman-redeemer, not only for us, but for creation as well.

I believe that what we are seeing in the Book of Revelation is Yeshua stepping into the role of Kinsman-Redeemer for us, taking the title deed for the earth (the seven-sealed scroll) and transferring the legal title to the rightful owner once more. Because Adam willfully sinned, causing the title to default, there had to be a person who was completely obedient in order to qualify as Redeemer. Yeshua is that one.