Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”
4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. Genesis 3:1-6
Definition of Cunning: crafty in the use of special resources (as skill or knowledge) or in attaining an end.
The serpent couldn’t care less about Adam or Eve. What he wanted was for them to join him in his rebellion against God. The serpent was also after God’s image to be tarred with sin and rebellion. He didn’t have Eve’s best interests at heart when he began talking to her, so he approached her cunningly, in a way that made it seem like he did.
Pick your counsel carefully
Don’t easily give your trust to people who have not proven they have your best interests in mind. Observe their lives and see how they handle their own affairs. If they continually speak badly about others, operate out of insecurity, or manipulate decisions to gain an advantage, do not seek counsel from them.
Doubt is poisonous
The serpent asks the question, “Did God really say…,” in a way that suggests God was unreasonable in asking Eve not to eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. By questioning a decision made by the One in authority, the serpent became the catalyst for Eve to open the door to doubt and distrust. This should have been a red flag for her. However, she took the bait and decided to engage by responding to it.
Discontentment led to exaggeration
Eve responded to the serpent, but she didn’t provide complete and accurate information. She said that God had commanded them not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. However, she added that God had also commanded them not to touch it, exaggerating His command to make it seem more severe than it was.
When the poison of doubt enters someone, discontentment sets in. From there, everything is viewed through a darkened lens, and authority appears exaggeratedly unreasonable. The Israelites faced a similar problem after leaving Egypt. They began reminiscing about the good aspects of Egypt, forgetting that they had endured miserable slavery for 400 years!