Then came the Fall. A crafty serpent spoke to Eve and convinced her that God was withholding something good. She believed the lie that she could achieve wisdom, a good gift of God, on her own. Seeking to become wise, she, and Adam, and all of humanity became fools. The serpent promised that as soon as she ate of the fruit her eyes would be opened, and he was right. Both of their eyes were opened, and they realized they were naked. They immediately knew shame, and they hid themselves from each other as well as God. They had transgressed against their maker, and hid themselves with leaves.
God had told them that they would die if they ate of the fruit, and they did. They were immediately cut off from access to the tree of life, and uprooted from the land that they had been given. They were alienated from God and each other--and so were we.
Yet in the midst of this judgment, they found mercy. The curse that was pronounced on the serpent contained a promise. One day a descendant of the woman would crush the serpent's head. This is the promise that underlies all of the Bible. The Old Testament authors told the story of Israel with this promise in mind. When Abram was promised a seed, it was in anticipation of the coming seed of the woman. When David was promised that one of his sons would always sit on the throne, it was in reference to this promise. The prophets looked forward to the day when the serpent's head would be crushed.
When Matthew and Luke tell us the story of Jesus life and ministry, they are careful to record his genealogy to show that he was connected in this line of seed. Jesus was the seed of the woman who came to defeat our enemies and set all things right.
