The missing translation in Satan’s deception to Eve in Genesis 3:1-7 – Part A

Here is the NASB English translation of Genesis 3:1-7, which is the famous conversation between Satan and Eve where he successfully deceived her into believing she could do exactly what God said she could not do….so that she disobeyed God’s one and only commandment or limitation (prohibition) in life. Pease read these verses from the NASB translation, so that I can then point out what did not come through in this English translation from the original Hebrew.

Genesis 3:1-7: Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. 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 loin coverings.

The important item missing is found in verse 4 where the NASB translates it, ”The serpent said to the woman…You surely will not die. For God knows…”. My Hebrew Interlinear by JP Green translates it this way, “Dying, you shall not die” or “In dying spiritually (to God), you shall not die physically”. At first this seems like a contradiction. How can one die, but not die? But it is not a contradiction. It is revealing how subtle Satan was, who is called the “Devil”, “Deceiver”, “Father of lies”, “Tempter” and the “Accuser”, among other things. “Subtlety” may be Satan’s most cunning skill, as shown right here in Genesis 3:4, and this is his very first lie to mankind. So, we must take note of how subtle and cunning and deceiving he was and still is. In 2 Cor 2:11, Paul warned us that we must be aware of Satan’s schemes.

So what is the urgency in understanding these two different phrases….“You surely will not die” and “In dying spiritually (to God), you shall not die physically”? The first phrase from the NASB indicated one death. The second phrase from Green’s Interlinear indicates two deaths. The NASB phrase basically says to Eve that God knew that if she ate the forbidden fruit, she would not die, but rather her eyes would be opened. The Hebrew Interlinear is saying to Eve that if she ate the forbidden fruit, she would experience one death for sure, but she would not really be dead. This is bringing out the subtlety! Here is how it would have come across to Eve.

Eve, if you eat the forbidden fruit you will die spiritually to God (and be free from His restrictions and limitations), but you will not die physically. Physically and intellectually and emotionally - your eyes will be opened and you will become like God (you will be your own god). You will know good and evil from experience and there is so much great stuff in knowing both good and evil in your personal experiences. God is really trying to keep all of this from you or evil is not really bad, but it is really just freedom and independence from God…try it – you will like it.
Adam & Eve already knew the good life, which is what God created for them to enjoy in a life that would never end, if it had no evil in it. They already had everything they could want or need or dream of, but again - one of Satan’s greatest goals is to convince us that we just do not have enough and it is just not fair. All of that freedom and pleasure and power and satisfaction (in evil) is just out there waiting for you. And you won’t die from it!

In other words, Eve you can die to God spiritually, but you will not die physically or intellectually or emotionally. You will just be free from God’s unfair limitations. The thing Satan failed to tell her was that physical death would come later. The moment Adam and Eve took that first bite of the forbidden fruit, their spirits morally and spiritually died to God on the spot (revealed in how they were then afraid of God and ran off and hid the next time He came down to talk with them). They were now spiritually separated from their God, their Lord, and their Creator. They were lost souls.

Adam lived out a long life physically and did not die until he was 930 years old. The Bible does not say how long Eve lived. So, Adam lived a long time, but God’s Word eventually came true in his life and he died, but his 930 years on this earth was full of the consequences of his sin and rebellion to his creator God. If Adam & Eve would have never sinned, they would still be alive today and living in that same Garden Paradise. There would be no sin and death in the world. You and I would have been born into this world as the natural children of God with no need for salvation and would never face physical death.

In Part B of this study, we will look at how the Devil and demons still use the same subtle tactics with us today in trying to deceive us into ignoring and violating the loving, protective commands (limitations) God has given us.

Yours in Christ,
Gene