What Happened to Us in Eden? - Psychology of the FallSample

THE DANGER OF DISTORTING THE STORY

The moment also came when Adam had to make his own decision: would he follow The Voice, or another one—in this case, his wife’s? And we know how the scene ends.

When God later says to the man, “Because you listened to the voice of your wife…” I don’t believe the rebuke is about dismissing some kind of “male leadership.” Rather, it points to the much greater “subtle obviousness” we mentioned earlier in the serpent–woman scene: by giving weight to what his wife said and preferring it, Adam chose another voice over God’s. That, I believe, was the real problem: choosing the wrong voice. Both of them did it. We really are made of the same “stuff.”

By listening to everything else—the serpent, the other’s voice, their own inner voice—over God’s voice, they also failed one another:

• She did not consider the implications her obedience to the serpent (and disobedience to God) would have for both of them.
• He did not consider the implications of giving her voice more weight than the Lord’s. And from that moment on, both fell into ruin.

The relationship was broken—not only with God, but also between themselves.

Yes, Eve convinced Adam (her action facilitated his, to some extent). But from there to the exaggerated claims we sometimes hear—that she seduced him, manipulated him, and so on—is a stretch of imagination and poor hermeneutics. When these statements are made without nuance, many people end up picturing a twisted replay of the serpent–woman scene, equating the woman with the serpent as though they were the same. And they never were.

Nothing the woman did legitimizes or justifies the man’s disobedience. It’s about time we corrected the caricatured narratives that have circulated for too long.

That said, I won’t try to excuse the first woman in what has no excuse. Some elements may help explain the situation (like how cunning the serpent was in its dialogue with her), but none of it can defend what happened as something minor.

She should have believed God’s voice and not let herself be deceived by others. Exactly the same as Adam.