Deuteronomy 16
Keep Passover in Promised Landverses 1-8
Observe the month of Abib – and keep the Passover to the LORD your God
FOR in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you
forth out of Egypt by night
You shall therefore sacrifice the Passover to the LORD your God
of the flock and the herd – in the place which the LORD
shall choose to place HIS name there
You shall eat no unleavened bread with it – seven days shall you eat
unleavened bread therewith – even bread of affliction
FOR you came forth out of the land of Egypt in haste
that you may remember the day when you came forth out of the
land of Egypt all the days of your life
And there shall be no leavened bread seen with you in all your coast
seven days – neither shall there anything of the flesh
which you sacrificed the first day at even
remain all night until the morning
You may not sacrifice the Passover within any of your gates
which the LORD your God give you
BUT at the place which the LORD your God
shall choose to place HIS name in
There you shall sacrifice the Passover at even
at the going down of the sun – at the season that thou came forth
out of Egypt
You shall roast and eat it in the place which the LORD your God shall choose
and you shall turn in the morning – and go to your tents
Six days you shall eat unleavened bread
and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly to the
LORD your God – you shall do no work therein
Feast of Harvestverses 9-12
Seven weeks shall you number to you – begin to number the seven weeks
from such time as you begin to put the sickle to the corn
And you shall keep the feast of weeks to the LORD your God with a
tribute of a freewill offering of your hand
which you shall give to the LORD your God
according as the LORD your God has
BLESSED you
And you shall REJOICE before the LORD your God
you – your son – your daughter – your manservant – your maidservant
the Levite that is within your gates – the stranger – the fatherless
the widow – that is among you – in the place which the
LORD your God hath chosen to place HIS name there
And you shall remember that you was a bondman in Egypt
you shall observe and do these statutes
Feast of Tabernaclesverses 13-15
You shall observe the feast of tabernacles seven days
after that you have gathered in your corn and your wine
and you shall REJOICE in your feast – you – your son
your daughter – your manservant – your maidservant
the Levite – the stranger – the fatherless
the widow – that are within your gates
Seven days shall you keep a solemn feast to the LORD your God
in the place which the LORD shall choose
BECAUSE the LORD your God shall BLESS you in all your
increase – and in all the works of your hands
THEREFORE you shall surely REJOICE
Three key feasts of Israelverses 16-17
Three times in a year shall ALL your males appear before the
LORD your God in the place which HE shall choose
in the feast of unleavened bread
and in the feast of weeks – and in the feast of tabernacles
and they shall not appear
before the LORD EMPTY
Every man shall give as he is ABLE
according to the BLESSING of the LORD your God
which HE has given you
Appoints judges that are honestverses 18-20
Judges and officers shall you make you in all your gates
which the LORD your God give you – throughout your tribes
and they shall judge the people with JUST judgment
You shall not wrest judgment
you shall not respect persons – neither take a gift
for a gift does blind the eyes of the wise
and pervert the words of the righteous
That which is altogether JUST shall you follow – that you may live
and inherit the land which the LORD your God give you
False worship condemnedverses 21-22
You shall not plant you a grove of any trees near to the altar of the
LORD your God – which you shall make you
Neither shall you set you up any image
which the LORD your God HATES
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 3 You shall eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shall you eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for you came forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that you may remember the day when you came forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life. (6040 “affliction” [‘oniy] means poverty, great pains, frustration, depression, misery, or trouble)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel spent many years in Egypt as slaves. Now they were to remember the times of misery and then enjoy the freedom the LORD has given.
The men were to appear before the LORD on three occasions in a year. The three feasts were to remind them that the LORD was the one who provided their freedom and prosperity. If the men thought that they were providing their own freedom, they would forget God. These feasts were a reminder that they had to depend on God for everything. Men have a tendency to forget God in their daily lives.
As we look at the three feasts we see that the first was one to remember the misery they had in the past. They were slaves in Egypt. They were in bondage. They cried to the LORD for deliverance. They watched Egypt face ten plagues before they were allowed to leave. The last plague was the death of the firstborn of those who didn’t have the blood of the lamb on their doorposts. Part of the meal they were to eat was unleavened bread. It is called the bread of “misery or great pain.”
The other two were to be times of rejoicing over the LORD’S provision in the present. The LORD is the one who causes the early and later rains. These rains gave a good harvest to the nation. The first was called to give the LORD the first fruits of the harvest. The second was to celebrate the end of the harvest. Food is a blessing of the LORD.
We have things to remember from our past and we have a time of enjoyment when we consider the present and future, we have with HIM in heaven. The present is where we live now and that is between the times of remembrance and the freedom of heaven.
One thing that the children of Israel did in the wilderness was to think their time in Egypt were the good old days. They were not. In the present we need to see the LORD’S provision.
Do we realize that we are BLESSED of the LORD? Do we realize that HE has taken us from the slavery of sin unto the freedom of service? This is a daily choice!!! Are we a rejoicing people?
Can we move from times of trouble to times of praise with rejoicing? If we are presently in a time of trouble – are we praying for the LORD to help us serve HIM even during these times? If we are presently in a time of rejoicing – are we sharing our blessings with others?
CHALLENGE: Realize that when the LORD allows times of trouble that through obedience to HIM, we can have times of rejoicing.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 6 But at the place which the LORD your God shall choose to place HIS name in, there you shall sacrifice the Passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that you came forth out of Egypt. (4725 “place” [maqowm] means home, room, station, post, city, land, region, spot, or abode)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were still in the wilderness ready to enter the Promised Land. Moses wanted them to know that the LORD was going to at some future date chose a place to be the center of worship for the nation. It was known only to the LORD at the time but it was going to be revealed in the future.
So the LORD was going to pick a location to have all of the feasts celebrated. It was going to be central to the entire nation. Everyone would know that they must bring their Passover lamb to this location. They were not going to be allowed to celebrate the Passover any other place if they wanted to be obedient to the LORD.
We know from our reading that that place was Jerusalem. Until they conquered Jerusalem the Tabernacle would be located in a place where they could worship the LORD.
Today the LORD has chosen the local church to be the place where HE is to be worshiped. Each city or town should have a place to worship that honors the LORD.
There are many places called “church” where the LORD’S name is not honored because they are not worshiping HIM in spirit and in truth. The Bible is not read. The LORD is not glorified as the only way to heaven. People are gathering to worship their own made up god. So we find that in many building that are called churches the LORD’S name is not glorified.
The church is more than a building it is a place where the LORD is genuinely glorified through the use of the Word of God, prayer and singing of praises to HIM alone.
When you celebrate your relationship with Jesus Christ make sure it is done in a place that only holds to the standard set for a church in the New Testament.
The children of Israel were not allowed to celebrate the Passover just any place. It had to be the place that the LORD had chosen. HE only chooses places where HIS name can be glorified through obedience.
CHALLENGE: God only chooses a place that honors and glorifies HIM through obedience to HIS word the Bible.
: 14 And you shall rejoice in your feast, you, and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within your gates. (8055 “rejoice” [samach] means be merry, to gladden, to express great joy, or to cause to be happy, or to help to rejoice.)
DEVOTION: The all-inclusive God wants each of HIS feasts celebrated by everyone who is in the Promised Land. HE is not excluding anyone. All are to be able to celebrate no matter what their social status was at the time.
Every festival was to be a time of rejoicing to the LORD for all the blessings HE has given to the nation. HE has given them their freedom from slavery in Egypt. HE has given them their harvest of crops because it was HIM that gave them the rains for the good crops to produce. HE wanted them to celebrate not only the beginning of harvest but the end of the harvest as well.
They were to understand that it was HIM that provided for their every need. HE wanted these feasts to remind them that they were totally dependent on HIM for everything.
Once they realized this fact they could truly worship HIM in spirit and in truth. We have to come to the same realization. HE is the one still who is able to bless us with a fruitful life if we stay obedient to HIM and praise HIS name on a regular basis.
Do we include everyone around us when we celebrate the blessings of the LORD? We should. No social status should get in the way of our celebrating the good gifts of the LORD to us.
CHALLENGE: Who do you invite to your social parties? Do you include everyone you can invite? Our attitude should be God’s attitude toward people.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 17 Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which HE has given you. (4979 ‘able” [mattanah] means gifts, present, offering, bribe, or something acquired or given without compensation in return)
DEVOTION: No person should come to a feast empty handed. Every male individual had something that they can bring to the feast to give to the LORD. What were they celebrating at each feast?
They were celebrating freedom. They were celebrating a good harvest. They were celebrating the provisions of the LORD for themselves and their families. They were saying “Thank You” to God for all HIS blessings.
So if someone came empty handed to the feast it was informing the LORD that HE had not provided enough for them. They were not praising the LORD but were coming empty to show that they wanted more from HIM than what HE had given them.
Too often we can see the offering plate passed and many individuals not giving anything to the LORD. Some people only receive their paycheck once a month and they only give on one Sunday a month but the rest could be giving each week or every other week.
We need to be bringing our tithe into the church to help the church move forward for the LORD in their location. With enough money given to the church it could reach each house in their neighborhood for the LORD.
Our churches need to reach everyone they can with the message of the gospel. This can be done if everyone is invited to our celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Each Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Each Sunday believers should be inviting others to celebrate with them.
CHALLENGE: How many have you invited this last week to a worship service?
: 19 You shall not wrest judgment: you shall not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift does blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous. (5186 “wrest” [natah] means to change the inherent purpose or function of something in a negative way, to bend down, to turn aside, to entice, deceive, to bow down low or outspread)
DEVOTION: The LORD has the idea that when we have a decision to make regarding someone, we need to made sure that we are giving an honest evaluation as to what is going on in the life of that person.
If the person has lost something to someone else, we need to make sure that we are looking at all the facts and making an honest judgment regarding what is happening. If there is a need to have the person regain possession of something that someone has taken, we are not to look at the other person with any higher opinion as we look at the person who has lost something.
Our courts need to be honest in their dealing with people. If one party doesn’t have money and another party has money, we need to know the facts and just based only on the facts.
There are many people and courts that are more concerned with appearance rather than what is really happening. Many people who are poor go to jail because they can’t hire the right lawyers. Many communities are looking for convictions rather than the truth of a matter.
Our system needs to be one that honors the LORD and values all human beings the same. It is hard but the LORD can give us the ability to know what a proper judgement is and what is not.
There are many judgments that are based on political reasons rather than on truth. There are many judgments that are based on the personal income rather than on truth.
CHALLENGE: We need to watch what we think of people before we get to know them. We need to judge righteously.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Passoververse 1
Sacrificeverse 2
Seventh day: worshipverse 8
No workverse 8
Freewill offeringverse 10
Leviteverse 11
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Statutesverse 12
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD (Jehovah)verses 1, 2, 5-8, 10, 11, 15-18, 20-22
God (Elohim)verses 1, 2, 5-8, 10, 11, 15-18, 20-22
LORD thy Godverses 1, 2, 5-8,10, 11, 15-18, 20-22
Choose a place for HIS nameverses 6, 11
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Egyptverses 1, 3, 6, 12
Strangerverses 11, 14
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Leavened breadverses 3, 4, 8
Work on Sabbathverse 8
Appear before the LORD emptyverse 16
Respect of personsverse 19
Bribeverse 19
Plant grove of treesverse 21
Set up imageverse 22
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Chosen placeverses 2, 6, 7, 11, 15, 16
Bread of afflictionverse 3
Rememberverse 3
Blessedverses 10, 15, 17
Rejoiceverses 11, 14, 15, 17
Observe verses 12, 13
Provision of the LORDverse 17
Give according to blessing of LORDverse 17
Giveverse 18
Wiseverse 19
Righteousverse 19
Inheritverse 20
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Passoververses 1-8
Month of Ahih
Brought Israel out of Egypt
Sacrifice the Passover
Choose place
No leavened bread
Seven days
Bread of affliction
Remember all the days of your life
No flesh of sacrifice left in morning
Feast of Weeksverses 9-12
Seven weeks from beginning of harvest
Include in celebration: son, daughter, manservant, maidservant, fatherless, widow
Freewill offeringverse 10
Bondman in Egyptverse 12
Feast of Tabernaclesverses 13-15
Seven days
After gathered corn and wine
Same group as in feast of weeks
Three times a year: men gatherverse 16
Feast of unleavened bread
Feast of weeks
Feast of Tabernacles
Every male appear before the LORD
Not appear empty handed
Give as able
Judges and officers at gatesverse 18-20
Just judgment
Not wrest judgment
Not respect persons
Not take a gift (bribe)
Blind the eyes of the wise
Pervert the words of the righteous
Altogether just
Not plant a grove of trees near an altar of the LORDverse 21
No images = LORD hatesverse 22
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
16:21–17:1 The mind of the speaker returned momentarily to the idolatry Israel would find in Canaan, and once more he warned against using an Asherah pole or a sacred stone in their worship (vv.21–22). The worship of the Lord must not be with the paraphernalia of the gods of Canaan in an eclecticism that would allow Asherah poles and sacred stones alongside the altar of the Lord who hates those items of worship.
Central to the covenant-treaty of Deuteronomy is the relation of the people to the Lord. An important element in proper worship was the quality of the offerings brought to him—offerings that would indicate the esteem the worshipers showed toward him. In 15:21 the firstborn offered had to be without “serious flaw,” and in Leviticus “without defect” (Lev 1:3 et al.) or “perfect.” This rule is here applied to the sacrifice of any ox or sheep (17:1). (Kalland, E. S. (1992). Deuteronomy. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel (Vol. 3, p. 113). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House)
16:21–17:1. The first responsibility of the judges was to prevent impure worshiping practices in the land. Anything that might lead to syncretism (accommodating worship of the Lord to pagan systems of worship) was prohibited. This included any wooden Asherah pole (symbolic of Asherah, goddess of fertility and consort of Baal) or a sacred stone, a stone pillar symbolic of male fertility (cf. 7:5; 12:3; Ex. 34:13).
To take a defective sacrifice to the Lord (Deut. 17:1; cf. 15:21) was to bring something into the sanctuary that was foreign to the worship of God, just as Asherah poles and sacred stones were foreign to genuine worship. Such a sacrifice was detestable to the Lord. To offer less than the best to God was to “despise” His name (Mal. 1:6–8). Offering a less-than-perfect sacrifice was, in effect, failing to acknowledge Him as the ultimate Provider of all that is best in life. Also, it was a failure to acknowledge the vast gulf that exists between the perfectly holy God and sinful people.
The priests were normally responsible to maintain pure worship at the sanctuary (i.e., no fertility symbols or defective sacrifices), but the ultimate responsibility rested with the judges. If the priests failed, it was necessary for the judges to intervene. (Deere, J. S. (1985). Deuteronomy. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 294). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
16:21–17:7 No other gods. It is interesting that the rules about judges and other officials are interspersed with reminders of the need for faithfulness in religion (16:21–17:7; 18:9–13). Justice cannot be separated from right religion.
The first ‘religious’ command here (16:21–22) repeats Deuteronomy’s strong opposition to the symbols of Canaanite worship (cf. 7:5); only the God of Israel is to be worshipped. The second (17:1) contains another basic principle of true worship, namely that only undamaged animals should be sacrificed to God (cf. 15:21). To sacrifice an imperfect animal was no sacrifice at all, because it was of little value to the worshipper. True worship implies real self-sacrifice (see Mal. 1:6–8). Thirdly (2–7), the need to root out any who would lead astray to false religion is repeated. This law is in substance like that of ch. 13, but here the judicial means of proceeding is stressed (5–7). The gate (5) was where the judges sat. The punishment is so severe because the crime is a breach of the first commandment, and would destroy the covenantal relationship of the whole people with God. (McConville, J. G. (1994). Deuteronomy. In D. A. Carson, R. T. France, J. A. Motyer, & G. J. Wenham (Eds.), New Bible commentary: 21st century edition (4th ed., p. 216). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.)
16:21, 22 Asherah … sacred pillar. Asherah was the name of a Canaanite goddess, represented by a wooden pole, image or tree. A stone pillar symbolic of male fertility was prevalent in the Canaanite religion. These were forbidden by the first two commandments (Ex 20:3–6; Dt 5:7–10). (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Dt 16:21). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
18–22. These verses are closely connected in subject with the following chapter, and introduce certain directions for the administration of justice and the carrying on of the civil government of the people in Canaan. During the lifetime of Moses, he himself, specially inspired and guided by God, was sufficient, with the aid of the subordinate judges (cp. Ex. 18:13 seq.), for the duties in question. But now that Moses was to be withdrawn, and the people would soon be scattered up and down the land of Canaan, regular and permanent provision must be made for civil and social order and good government.
21. a grove, &c.] Render, Thou shalt not plant for thee any tree as an idol: literally “as an Asherah,” i.e. an image of Astarte or Ashtaroth, the Phœnician goddess (cp. 7:5 note, 13). The word is rendered “grove” by A. V. also in 7:5, 12:3; Ex. 34:13; Judg. 6:25, but cannot be maintained, for the word is connected with various verbs which are quite inapplicable to a grove. The wooden idol in question was the stem of a tree, stripped of its boughs, set upright in the ground, and rudely carved with emblems. (Barnes, A. (1879). Notes on the Old Testament: Exodus to Ruth. (F. C. Cook & J. M. Fuller, Eds.) (p. 303). London: John Murray.)
Ver. 22. Neither shalt thou set up any image, &c.] Graven or molten, of man, beast, fish, or fowl; the word signifies a statue or pillar which was set up for idolatry; for, as Aben Ezra observes, what was not set up for idolatry was not forbidden, as when erected in memory of any action or remarkable event; see Josh. 22:10, &c. which the Lord thy God hateth; as he does every species of idolatry, or that has any tendency to it; it being so opposite to his being, perfections, and glory; and therefore nothing should be done like it, because it is so hateful to him. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 2, p. 68). London: Mathews and Leigh)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
The CHURCH in an age of CRISIS by James Emery White
It’s time someone wrote a book for the church titled Whatever Became of Evangelism? The point would be how we tend to avoid terms like: lost, hell, or salvation. It would detail how the Great Commission became the Great Rhetoric and then finally fell into the category of the Great Community. It wouldn’t take long to lay out how it all happened. It fits nicely into a short equation: Virtue of Tolerance + Emphasis on Social Ministry = Diminished Evangelism (p. 193)
Three Types of Tolerance
· Social tolerance – accepting another person for who he or she is regardless of what that person believes
· Legal tolerance – everyone has the basic first amendment right to believe what he or she wants to believe
· Intellectual tolerance – accepting what someone believes as right regardless of what you believe or think is right; all ideas are equally valid. (p. 195)
How tragic it would be to have compassion for the immediate needs of this life but not the eternal needs of the life to come. (p. 196)
How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to have somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? (p. 197)
Most of us are well aware that the future will be VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous). (p.199)
This was, of course, the mistake of Enlightenment thinkers who felt that human progress was unlimited and could solve the world’s problems. (p. 200)
As C. S. Lewis once observed, the New Testament contains what can only be called embarrassing promises of what our lives can unleash through prayer, faithfulness, and actions.
The problem is that most of us don’t pray to that God. We don’t embrace his vision. WE don’t believe in those promises. It is as if we have decided on a lesser god, and as a result, we are more likely to accept the list of predictions from a radical pessimist than we are to embrace the promises of Jesus. (p. 201)
Hebrews 11
A parade of heroic figures from the Old Testament depicts what it means to live by faith.
INSIGHT
Faith is the operative ingredient in the Christian life. Without faith, it is impossible to please God (v. 6). Faith is important because without it we cannot even begin to approach God. Simply put, faith is believing God and acting accordingly. All that is accomplished in the world to further the work of God is accomplished by faith. This list of exemplary faithful people shows that when God spoke, His people listened, believed, and acted accordingly. The words of an old hymn sum it all up: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” (Quiet Walk)
TEN TESTS: TESTS 1-3
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. 1 John 4:16
I shall suggest to you ten tests that you can apply to yourself to know for certain that you know the love of God to you.
Here is the first. It is a loss and absence of the sense that God is against us. The natural man always feels that God is against him. He would be very glad if he could wake up and read that some bishop or other had proved that God never existed; he would be ready to believe that. The newspapers give publicity to anything that denies the faith; they know the public palate. That is why the natural man is at enmity against God; he feels God is against him. That is why when anything goes wrong he says, “Why does God allow this?” And when men and women are in a state of being antagonistic toward God, then, of course, they cannot love God. So one of the first tests, and I am starting with the lowest, is that we have lost that feeling that God is against us.
Second, there is a loss of the fear of God, while a sense of awe remains. Let us approach Him “with reverence and godly fear,” writes the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews (12:28). John is going to elaborate on that; that is the rest of the fourth chapter of 1 John.We lose that craven fear of God, but oh, what a reverence remains.
Third, there is a feeling and a sense that God is for us and that God loves us. Now I put it like that quite deliberately because it is so very true to experience. I have lost the sense that God is against me, and I begin to have a feeling and sense that God is for me, that God is kind to me, that He is concerned about me, and that He truly loves me.
A Thought to Ponder
I have lost the sense that God is against me, and I begin to have a feeling and sense that God is for me. (From The Love of God, pp. 150-151, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
Adam’s Failure, Christ’s Strength
“By the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.” (Romans 5:18)
When Adam rebelled against God, he experienced many new things—things that have haunted mankind ever since. All of these things were experienced by Christ in an intense way as He redeemed fallen mankind and the cursed creation.
Adam had never seen or experienced death (Genesis 2:17) until he sinned (3:19, 22). God had ordained nakedness (2:25), but sin distorts everything (3:7, 21). Before sin, Adam and Eve had known only blessing (1:28), but the universal curse followed (3:14-19). They had known joy and fellowship, but now they knew sorrow (3:17) and separation (3:23). They had lived in a garden (2:8), but now the plants would bring forth thorns (3:18). Prior to sin they had been assigned work to do (2:15), but now they would sweat (3:19) as they toiled. The angel’s weapon kept them from returning to the Garden (3:24), and outside violence reigned (4:8, 23; 6:13). Childbearing originally was created to be easy and frequent, but now was to be accompanied by sorrow (1:28; 3:16).
Likewise, Christ experienced death on the cross (John 19:30), but by His resurrection He conquered death (1 Corinthians 15:54-57). He experienced nakedness (John 19:23; Psalm 22:18); the full thrust of the curse (Galatians 3:13); sorrow (Isaiah 53:3); and separation from God (Matthew 27:46). Cruel thorns were placed on His head (John 19:2), and He sweat great drops of blood (Luke 22:44). The soldier’s weapon pierced Him (John 19:34), finally ending a series of violent acts (Luke 22:63; Matthew 27:26, 29-30; Isaiah 52:14; etc.). But through His suffering He overcame the curse and redeemed His fallen creation. As a result, many children have been brought forth (Hebrews 2:9-10), reborn into a glorious state through His suffering. (JDM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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