Does scripture tell us Adam's motivation to sin?

[Artfuldodger]

Someone told me it was his desire to become evil. Adam was good but figured it he ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good & Evil, that he could become evil.
I told him that was merely speculation as scripture doesn't tell us what Adam's motivation was.
I've heard other say his motivation was "power."
Is it possible that he didn't have a motivation? Perhaps he just fell into temptation like we do.

 

[JustUs4All]

My guess would be woman since money wouldn't have been a thing.

 

[brutally honest]

Study Finds 100% Of Men Would Eat Any Fruit Given To Them By A Naked Woman

WEST OF EDEN—A double-blind study conducted by angel scientists has confirmed that 100% of men would eat any fruit given to them by a naked woman. The study seems to suggest that the fall of Adam and Eve was unavoidable.

babylonbee.com

 

[kmh1031]

He simply chose his wife over obedience to god
Romans 5:12

 

[gordon 2]

This is a question like the thorn in Paul's side.

I might suggest that for Adam nakedness was not an issue of motivation perhaps before he ignored God's command regards eating the fruit from The Tree of Good and Evil. Nakedness was not in the world ( fallen world) of good and evil before he decided to do the deed.. Nakedness just was in the realm of good and innocence...


"16Do not test the LORD your God as you tested Him at Massah. 17You are to diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God and the testimonies and statutes He has given you.…"

If God is consistent Adam's problem was his willingness to test God. Papa Adam had free will and tested his Friend. And so the rest of the story...

 

[Artfuldodger]

Do you

This is a question like the thorn in Paul's side.

I might suggest that for Adam nakedness was not an issue of motivation perhaps before he ignored God's command regards eating the fruit from The Tree of Good and Evil. Nakedness was not in the world ( fallen world) of good and evil before he decided to do the deed.. Nakedness just was in the realm of good and innocence...


"16Do not test the LORD your God as you tested Him at Massah. 17You are to diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God and the testimonies and statutes He has given you.…"

If God is consistent Adam's problem was his willingness to test God. Papa Adam had free will and tested his Friend. And so the rest of the story...

Do you think Adam's motivation was to test God? The nakedness link was satire.

 

[gordon 2]

Do you

Do you think Adam's motivation was to test God? The nakedness link was satire.

Yes I know... about satire.

It is my easiest generic explanation of a possible motivation. The only other explanation that would fit is a failure to follow instructions due to poor concentration and so a failure to check with God before the taste test. "Here hold my beer" might apply.

To be sincere in being saintly like God is saintly is not a sin. When we question what makes Him saintly and answer with error it is a sin even if the motivation is excellent. The action can only be a test or a trial left to chance with the result making it a sin.

In the context, there is One Tree that is man's food and all others being false. Adam had no reason to fear the Lord so he tested Him for the sake of testing Him.

And maybe not. In a way Adam was just like Solomon in the sense that he just did not follow instructions. Wisdom is to iron as love is to gold perhaps.

 

[Core Lokt]

Free will, it gets us every time. Don't think God didn't know it before it happened either. It's our choicer to obey or not.

 

[BanjoPicker]

The curse upon the man Gen. 3:17-19

The man was the third of the Earth-creatures to be cursed because he was the third to yield to sin and the devil. both the serpent and the woman were factors in causing the head of creation to sin. God began His conversation with the rightful ruler of the Earth and worked down, tracing the guilt, while the devil began with the beast of the field and worked up in causing rebellion. Adam implied blame on the Creator, as well as his wife, when he said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me the tree, and I did eat" Gen. 3:12, and, we may add, man has been placing the blame on woman ever since. In other words he says, "God, if you had not given me the woman, I would not have sinned." The woman laid the blame upon the serpent Gen. 3:13, but the serpent did not lay the blame upon anybody. In this respect beasts have higher principles than fallen man, who is always placing the blame of any wrong doing upon someone else. When it comes to take credit for some good deed, man generally wants the credit. Very few will be meek enough to give credit to the other fellow when he is due the praise.
The curse upon the man was "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" Gen. 3:17-19. Man was driven out of paradise and kept from the Tree of Life. He was doomed to die and pay the full penalty for the broken law.

 

[Artfuldodger]

The curse upon the man Gen. 3:17-19

The man was the third of the Earth-creatures to be cursed because he was the third to yield to sin and the devil. both the serpent and the woman were factors in causing the head of creation to sin. God began His conversation with the rightful ruler of the Earth and worked down, tracing the guilt, while the devil began with the beast of the field and worked up in causing rebellion. Adam implied blame on the Creator, as well as his wife, when he said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me the tree, and I did eat" Gen. 3:12, and, we may add, man has been placing the blame on woman ever since. In other words he says, "God, if you had not given me the woman, I would not have sinned." The woman laid the blame upon the serpent Gen. 3:13, but the serpent did not lay the blame upon anybody. In this respect beasts have higher principles than fallen man, who is always placing the blame of any wrong doing upon someone else. When it comes to take credit for some good deed, man generally wants the credit. Very few will be meek enough to give credit to the other fellow when he is due the praise.
The curse upon the man was "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" Gen. 3:17-19. Man was driven out of paradise and kept from the Tree of Life. He was doomed to die and pay the full penalty for the broken law.

That's a pretty good summary, thanks. You mentioned the serpent as not blaming anyone. How could a serpent have the mind to do such? Thus I can't see why God cursed the serpent as he was just the organ of Satan.
Also how does Adam's sin affect the purpose of the earth being our testing place? Was that the earth's purpose before Adam sinned?

 

[Artfuldodger]

It seems like if Adam was the one who broke covenant with God, that God should not have cursed the serpent nor woman.
If Adam preexisted as a spirit then he definitely failed the purpose of the Earth as a testing ground.
God planting that tree and telling man not to eat lets me know that man was doomed to sin, free will or not. That's just human nature.
Evil had to already be present before Adam sinned. Adam and Eve had a propensity to sin even before they sinned.
Maybe the mystery of Adam's motive was a preexisting propensity? If Adam had freewill, then he would have to know the difference between good and evil.

 

[Artfuldodger]

Genesis 3:4-5 (KJV) And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

The Serpent is talking to a human that was made good, perhaps not perfect. I'm not sure if her motivation was to "be as gods" in the sense of power or to just be closer to God.
Either way it was still wrong.

 

[Spotlite]

It seems like if Adam was the one who broke covenant with God, that God should not have cursed the serpent nor woman.
If Adam preexisted as a spirit then he definitely failed the purpose of the Earth as a testing ground.
God planting that tree and telling man not to eat lets me know that man was doomed to sin, free will or not. That's just human nature.
Evil had to already be present before Adam sinned. Adam and Eve had a propensity to sin even before they sinned.
Maybe the mystery of Adam's motive was a preexisting propensity? If Adam had freewill, then he would have to know the difference between good and evil.

We all have to give an account for ourselves.

Adam failed to be a keeper of the garden. Being a keeper of the garden included taking care of Eve - being a man of the house, keep things out that don’t belong, protecting your wife, etc.

I have heart burn with men talking “boasting” about a 10, 15 or 20 day fast. They’re ignoring the needs of their wife if they fast biblically.

Eve didn’t follow Adam as Adam was supposed to follow Christ.

 

[Artfuldodger]

We all have to give an account for ourselves.

Adam failed to be a keeper of the garden. Being a keeper of the garden included taking care of Eve - being a man of the house, keep things out that don’t belong, protecting your wife, etc.

I have heart burn with men talking “boasting” about a 10, 15 or 20 day fast. They’re ignoring the needs of their wife if they fast biblically.

Eve didn’t follow Adam as Adam was supposed to follow Christ.

There are other accounts of Satan using woman or woman using her own free will to seduce men to do things against God. Even before Adam sinned, Satan knew his weakness.
I don't think using woman as a weakness is an excuse to sin but it could show a propensity or weakness that was present in man even before the fall. Even Satan knew it existed.
According to God, woman is not an excuse nor is Satan. Yet both were the fall of man. And I guess the snake. We can't blame the organ of evil for our own evil.
Adam did fall on being the keeper of himself, Eve, the snake, and the Garden.

 

[Artfuldodger]

We all have to give an account for ourselves.

Adam failed to be a keeper of the garden. Being a keeper of the garden included taking care of Eve - being a man of the house, keep things out that don’t belong, protecting your wife, etc.

I have heart burn with men talking “boasting” about a 10, 15 or 20 day fast. They’re ignoring the needs of their wife if they fast biblically.

Eve didn’t follow Adam as Adam was supposed to follow Christ.

Any thoughts on what Eve and Adam were trying to achieve by eating the fruit?

 

[Spotlite]

Any thoughts on what Eve and Adam were trying to achieve by eating the fruit?

Wisdom.

“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food,and that it was pleasant to the eyes,and a tree to be desired to make onewise, she took of the fruit thereof,and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat”

Edited: ultimately, self reliant. A rich man has his money, he don’t need God.

We are to lean on God for understanding, not obtain it “our way”.

 

[Spotlite]

There are other accounts of Satan using woman or woman using her own free will to seduce men to do things against God. Even before Adam sinned, Satan knew his weakness.
I don't think using woman as a weakness is an excuse to sin but it could show a propensity or weakness that was present in man even before the fall. Even Satan knew it existed.
According to God, woman is not an excuse nor is Satan. Yet both were the fall of man. And I guess the snake. We can't blame the organ of evil for our own evil.
Adam did fall on being the keeper of himself, Eve, the snake, and the Garden.

I would agree that we can’t use anyone’s weakness as an excuse to sin.

I’m just saying deception preys on the weak. If Adam would have been the man he was supposed to be - Satan could not have entertained Eve to begin with.

Think of it this way - this didn’t happen with just one conversation. It Satan beguiled her. Most likely there’s been some “on going conversation”. A man not paying his wife any attention, someone else will……….

Adam has no-one to blame but Adam.

 

[gordon 2]

" Love God with all your heart..." Trust God with all your heart. Don't trust your slithering (move smoothly over a surface with a twisting or oscillating motion) thinking as a substitute to God's love and command. It's a game you can't win at. The slithering roads of Good and Evil, Sin and sorrows ain't where it's at.

Adam and Eve were trying to be smart, from naming the things of creation to a PHD in Theology. Like Spotlite says: Wisdom. I might add wisdom is no substitute for love. There is a good reason why the Song of Songs follows Solomon's lament in scripture. The Song of Songs is the answer to the book that precedes it. I think, I reason, therefore I think that I'm the cat's meow. Here hold my beer.

From the very fact of naming things differently one from the other... the computer gets these style of thinks... and before you know it...