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Promises

                And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel. (Genesis 3:15)

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?  (Romans 8:32)


A friend shared this passage yesterday, noting that it was the first promise in Scripture. I’ve been told that it’s wise (or at least interesting) to take note of firsts in Scripture. There are a few things to notice. God was talking to Lucifer, the enemy. And God said that He would put enmity between him and the woman, and between his offspring and hers.

Given how God behaves through the rest of Scripture, it’s not reasonable to assume that God waved a magic wand and voila, enemies. God put enmity between Lucifer and the woman simply by His choice of relationship with the woman. If humanity was God’s beloved possession, then Lucifer would hate humanity. It would be through her offspring that Lucifer would be crushed. What else could be expected of Lucifer but to consider all of Eve’s offspring to be his enemy? And what better way to attack his enemy than by manipulating them to attack themselves and God? She and her offspring now stand between Lucifer and victory (in his mind at least.)

This promise has been fulfilled through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. End of story. Problem solved. Except I still feel attacked, and I still have the automatic response that I must fight because no one will fight for me. So when my friend shared this promise from Genesis 3, even though I know it was not a promise made to me, and that it has been fulfilled, I still find myself wanting to take hold of that promise. I’m a descendant of Eve, so the enmity continues. Yes, Jesus has accomplished what was promised, but if God was willing to go that far, why would He not also protect me now?

It goes without saying that His protection may not take the form I want. It may not allow me to sit on the sidelines and watch or cheer. I don’t know about you, but there are times when I could sure use a crushing of my enemies. Why wouldn’t He accommodate?

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