The Fall & Promise
But this shalom was short-lived. The next section of Genesis documents the tragic consequences of “the Fall”. Adam and Eve's representative authority was abandoned as they listened to the lies of the crafty serpent. The couple was exiled from their garden-temple, and shame entered the relationship between God and people, people and each other, and even people and the earth. Even so, God covered their shame and promised to end the serpent's work through Eve's offspring.
Genesis 3-11 spells out the increasingly ugly state of the world as death spreads. Jealousy, deceit, violence, and exploitation, the terrible intermission of the flood, restarting with Noah’s family, and eventually culminating in brokenness being systematized in the strange account of Babel. Though subtly communicated, this story highlights a world of slavery and oppression that would continue indefinitely without divine intervention.
Biblical References
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