Genesis 3:1–6
The serpent sows doubt, and the woman sees the fruit is “a delight to the eyes”
Study it word by word1Now the serpent was more shrewd than any animal of the field that YHWH Elohim had made. And it said to the woman, “Did Elohim really say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”
2And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat;
3but from the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden Elohim has said, ‘You shall not eat from it, and you shall not touch it, or you will die.’”
4And the serpent said to the woman, “You will certainly not die;
5for Elohim knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like Elohim, knowing good and evil.”
6And 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 for gaining insight; and she took of its fruit and ate, and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.
In its context
…
7And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed together fig leaves and made themselves loincloths.
8And they heard the sound of YHWH Elohim walking about in the garden in the wind of the day, and the man and his wife hid from the presence of YHWH Elohim among the trees of the garden.
Its words in the original
- נָּחָשׁnachash· serpent
Serpent, snake. In Genesis 3 the text presents it as one of the animals of the field that God had made, and it speaks. Later the Bible calls the devil "the ancient serpent" (Revelation 12:9; 20:2).
- הָיָהhaya· be, become, happen
Be, exist; also "become" or "happen". It is the verb of "there was", "it was" and "it came to pass".
- עָרוּםarum· crafty, shrewd
Crafty, clever at getting what one wants. In Proverbs the same word is good ("prudent"); in Genesis 3:1 it describes the serpent. In Hebrew it sounds almost the same as "naked" (2:25).
- חַיַּתchayat· living, animal, life
Living, alive; also fresh (of water). As a noun, "living thing" or "animal" (above all wild animals); in the plural, "life".
- שָּׂדֶהsade· field
Field: open country, cultivated or not.
- עָשָׂהasa· do, make
Do, make, in the widest sense: build, produce, carry out, keep (a command), prepare.
- יְהוָהyehva· YHWH
The personal name of the God of Israel, written in Hebrew with four letters, Y-H-W-H, without vowels. Out of reverence Jews stopped pronouncing it and read "Adonai" (Lord), so many Bibles put "the LORD" or "Jehovah". This translation keeps the four letters. The name is related to the verb "to be" (Exodus 3:14-15). He is not a god other than Elohim: "YHWH Elohim" is the same Creator God, called by his name.
- אֱלֹהִיםelohim· Elohim, God, gods
The Hebrew word usually translated "God". This translation keeps "Elohim" when it speaks of the one true God, the Creator, the God of Israel. The word ends like a plural, but it does not mean several: for him the verb is singular ("Elohim created"); the plural form expresses greatness. The same word as a common noun names the "gods" of other peoples, and there it is a true plural, translated "gods". It is also used of mighty ones or judges.
- יֹּאמֶרyomer· say
Say, speak. The most common verb for bringing in what someone says; sometimes "think" (say to oneself) or "command".
- אִשָּׁהisha· woman, wife
Woman; with a possessive ("his woman"), wife. In Hebrew it is "ishah", which sounds like "ish", man.
- תֹאכְלוּtochlu· eat
Eat; also consume, devour (said of fire or the sword).
- עֵץets· tree, wood
Tree; also wood and what is made of it (a stick, a pole).
- גָּןgan· garden
Garden: an enclosed and tended piece of land, with trees and water.
- פְּרִיperi· fruit
Fruit: what a tree or a plant bears. Figuratively, the result of something, or children ("fruit of the womb").
- תוֹךְtoch· midst
The middle, the center of something; "in the midst of", "among".
- תִגְּעוּtigu· touch
Touch; also reach, or strike.
- תְּמֻתוּtemutu· die
Die. In the causative form, kill, put to death. Hebrew can repeat the verb for emphasis ("dying you will die" = "you will surely die").
- יֹדֵעַyodea· know
Know. Not only having a fact: it is knowing by experience and closely; also recognize, care for, make known. So Hebrew also uses it for the intimate union of a man and his wife ("he knew his wife").
- יוֹםyom· day
Day: the hours of light, or a whole day from one evening to the next. Also an indefinite time or age ("in the day that...", "in those days").
- נִפְקְחוּnifkchu· open (the eyes)
Open (the eyes or the ears); from there, become aware.
- עֵינֵיene· eye
Eye. "In someone's eyes" means "in his opinion"; "find favor in the eyes of" is to please him. Also a spring of water.
- טוֹבtov· good
Good in the widest sense: pleasant, beautiful, useful, right, of good quality. As a noun, "good", "good things", "well-being".
- רָעra· evil, bad, harm
Bad; evil. It includes what is morally wrong and also what does harm: misfortune, disaster, distress.
- תֵּרֶאtere· see
See. Also look, observe, notice, consider; in some forms, "appear" or "show".
- מַאֲכָלmaachal· food
Food.
- תַאֲוָהtaava· desire; delight
Strong desire; something attractive, a delight.
- נֶחְמָדnechmad· desire
Desire, find something attractive; "desirable", pleasant to look at. The same verb is "covet" in the commandments.
- הַשְׂכִּילhaskil· act wisely, understand
Act wisely, understand, have insight; make wise, teach. Also succeed, prosper.
- תִּקַּחtikach· take
Take: seize, take along, receive. Also "take a wife" (marry).
- תִּתֵּןtiten· give, put, set
Give, in a very wide sense: hand over, put, place, grant, allow, make something be.
- אִישָׁisha· man, husband, each
Man, male; with a possessive, husband. Also "each one", "anyone". It is "ish", distinct from "adam" (human being); it is used for the man in contrast with the woman ("ishah").