Adam's Story
A painting of Eve giving Adam the fruit of the forbidden tree

Adam's Story · Event 5 of 12

The Forbidden Fruit

The Fall · The garden of Eden

Before thisAfter this

Genesis 3:1–7

1The serpent was the most clever of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?" 2The woman answered the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3But God said we must not eat from the tree in the middle of the garden, and we must not even touch it, or we will die." 4"You won't die," the serpent told her. 5God knows that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil. 6The woman looked at the tree and saw that it was good for food, beautiful to look at, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate it too. 7Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Read Genesis 3
Up nextHiding from GodGenesis 3:8–13

About this event

What happened?

The serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal God had made. It asked the woman whether God had really said not to eat from any tree in the garden. She said they could eat fruit from the trees, but not from the tree in the middle of the garden, or they would die. The serpent said, “You will not surely die,” and told her that their eyes would be opened and they would be like God, knowing good and evil. She saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for making one wise. She took some and ate it, and she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.

Who is here?

  • Eve
  • The serpent

Where did this happen?

The garden of Eden

The garden God planted in the east, in a land called Eden. A river flowed out of Eden to water it and then divided into four rivers, including the Tigris and the Euphrates.

Where this fits

Event 1 of 5 in The Fall: Adam and Eve eat from the one tree God told them not to eat from, and they are sent out of Eden.

Good to know

Genesis does not say what kind of fruit it was. The apple comes from later tradition, not from the Bible.

Keep exploring

Before thisGod Makes EveGenesis 2:21–25After thisHiding from GodGenesis 3:8–13

Adam's Story