21. "And the LORD God caufed a deep fleep to fall upon Adam, and he flept; and he took one of his ribs, and clofed up the flesh in ftead thereof.

21. One of his ribs: Hereupon Adam faid, This is now bone of my bones, (v.23.)

22. And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the

man.

23. And Adam faid, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: the fhall be called Woman, because he was taken out of man.

24. Therefore fhall a man leave his father and his mother, and fhall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

23. Now: That is, for this once, (Hebr. for fhe fhould be o therwife produced afterward.

24. Therefore fhall, &c. i.e. Confidering this firft Original of the Woman, there is no relation whatsoe

ver either fo ancient or fo near, as that of Man and Wife: They were before Father and Mother, Brother or Sifter, and were one Flesh at firft. They shall be one flesh: i.e, They two fhall be one (fee Matt. 19.5.) as they were at the first Creation. And here is a good Argument against Polygamy and Divorces.

25. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not afhamed.

25. Were not ashamed: viz. Becaufe they were innocent, and had done no

thing as yet to be afhamed of.

The ARGUMENT.

The Woman is beguiled by the Serpent, and eats the forbidden fruit; the Man alfo did eat it. They are thereupon charged by God, and, together with the Serpent, Subjected to mifery: The Meffias is promifed. The firft cloathing

I.

cloathing of Mankind, and their cafting out of Para

dise.

OW the Serpent was more fubtil then any beast of the field which the LORD God had made, and he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God faid, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

I.

1. THE

HE Serpent was more fubtil: That is, the Serpent was naturally a more fubtil creature than the other beafts, Gen. 49. 17. Matt. 10. 16. And therefore a fitter inftrument for the Devil, who made use of him, (fee the Note on v. 15.) and also a more perfect resemblance of his Craft and Wilinefs, 2 Cor. 2.11. 11.14. Rev. 12.9. Yea, bath God faid, &c. The Devil, in these words, feems to question the kindness of God, in that he did not permit unto Man the eating of every Tree in the Garden.

2. And the woman faid unto the Serpent, we may eat of 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 hath faid, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, left ye die:

2, 3. And the Woman, &c. The Woman affures him of the great indulgence ted unto Man the free of God, who permitufe of all the Trees of the Garden, and had

onely forbidden them to eat of the fruit of that Tree in the midit of the Garden, (called the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, chap. 2. V. 17.) and to touch it under pain of death. Touch it: The bare touching it was not exprefly forbid: nor is there any just cause to think That the importance of the word Touch here. It may rather import the fame with Eat which goes before, or the free use, which was allowed, of the fruit of the other Trees, v. 2. The Hebrew word is not reftrained to bare touching, Gen. 26.11. Jer. 12. 14.

4. And the Serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not furely die.

4. Ye shall not furely die: As before he called in queftion here deny his Veracity or

God's kindness to Man, fo he does
Truth, and deferves the character which our Saviour gives

him of a Liar, Joh. 8. 44.

5. For God doth know, that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes fhall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

5. Your eyes fhall be opened, &c. As the Devil tempted her before with the hope of indemnity, fo he doeth here with a promise of a greater degree of knowledge, and an advancement to the Divine likeness. For by opening the Eyes, is meant the obtaining a greater degree of knowledge. And 'tis but a Metaphorical expreffion taken from the body and applied to the mind. See Ifai.42.7; As Gods, &c. Or, as Angels who are God's Minifters, and greatly excell in knowledge; and this fence is confirmed by what follows, knowing good and evil; which expression. comprehends all knowledge, as all things knowable are in fome fence good or evil. Thus the Woman of Tekoah fays unto David, As an Angel of God, so is my Lord the King to difcern good and bad, (2 Sam. 14. 17.) i. e. To difcern all things. For thus the expreffeth her felf, v. 20. My Lord is wife according to the wisdom of an Angel of God, to know all things that are in the Earth. On the other hand, not to know Good or Evil, is to know nothing, Deut. 1.39. And not to speak Good or Evil, is the fame as to be filent, and to speak nothing, Gen.31.29. 2 Sam. 13.22.

6. And when the woman faw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be defired to make one wife; she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave alfo unto her husband with her, and he did eat.

6. Good for food: And confequently athe flesh. Pleasant to greeable to the luft of

the

fore fuiting to the eyes: And thereluft of the eyes. To be defired to make one wife: And therefore agreeable to the pride

of life; under which three St. John compriseth all that is in the World, 1 Joh. 2. 16. Did eat: Her Sin was great and various, being guilty of ambition, incredulity, ingratitude, curiofity, inordinate defire, open rebellion against God, and drawing afide her Husband, and involving him in Sin, and their pofterity in mifery alfo, Rom. 5. 12, 15, 16. 1 Cor.

15.22.

7. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they fewed fig-leaves together, and made themfelves aprons.

7. And the eyes of them both, &c. That is, they were now fenfible of their nakedness and afham'd, which in their inno

cence they were not, chap.2.25. Their Sin was followed with fhame. Compare Exod. 32. 25. Rom. 6.21. Sewed: i. e. applied, or put on, as the Hebrew word fignifies, Job 16. 15. Ezek. 13. 18. Fig-leaves: Or, Fig-tree branches, a5 the Hebrew word fignifies, Prov. 11.28. Nehem.8. 15.

8. And they heard the voice of the LORD God, walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themfelves from the prefence of the LORD God, amongst the trees of the gar

den.

That is, toward Evening,

9. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and faid unto him, where art thou?

8. Voice: A Thunder (which is called the voice of the Lord, thofe words to 4Pfalm 29.) at leaft dam, where art thou? v. 9. See Job 38. 1. In the cool of the day: Cantic. 2. 17.

an introduction to what follows; and in them the guilty perfon is fummoned to appear before his Judge, who here examines him before he pronounceth Sentence upon him; and by doing fo, thofe who are Judges may learn not to condemn, before they have duly heard the accused.

10. And be faid, I heard thy voice in the garden: and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid my Self.

11. And he faid, Who told thee that thou waft naked? haft thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldeft not

eat?

11. Who, &c. q.d. How comeft thou to this fenfe of thy being naked? does not this fhame proceed from thy difobedience? Compare chap. 2. 25.

12. And

12. And the man faid, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, fhe gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

meet-help, when yet he was guilty

tor.

13. And the LORD God faid unto the woman, what is this that thou hast done? And the woman faid, The Serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

14. And the LORD God faid' unto the Serpent, Because thou haft done this, thou art curfed above all cattel, and above every beast of the field: upon thy belly fhalt thou go, and duft shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.

13.The Serpent,&c. The Woman throws the blame upon the Serpent, whofe guile

could not excuse her wilfull tranfgreffion, 1.Tim. 2. 14.

14. Serpent: What follows hath a reference to the Serpent the inftrument, and ufe of that creature. to Satan, who made As an argument of

the deteftableness of

the fin, and a conftant memorial of it, the abused beast is curfed: Compare Exod. 21.28, 32. 32. 20. Levit. 20. 15, 16. and Gen. 9.5. The Curfe upon the Serpent confifted, [I.] In bringing down the Serpent's ftature, which, 'tis likely, was in great measure erect before this time. Upon thy belly shalt thou go: Or, upon thy breast, &c. as fome Verfions have it. [II.] In the meanness of his provifion, And duft fhalt thou eat. Compare Ifa. 65.25. Mieab 7.17. Pfal.72.9. [III.] In that enmity which hereupon enfued between this creature and mankind.

15. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy feed and her feed: it shall bruife thy head, and thou shalt bruife

bis heel.

15. I will put enmity, &c. The last particular above-named doth more peculiarly referr to the Devil, or Satan, who

made use of the Serpent as an inftrument, and is called a Serpent, Rev. 12.9. 20. 2, 10. Rom. 16.20. Wifd. 2. 24. Thy feed: i. e. The Apoftate Spirits, and all thofe that in

wickedness