The Garden of Earthly Delights Painting by Hieronymus Bosch, 1490-1510 Museo del Prado, Madrid
Hieronymus Bosch's famous triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights depicts the journey from the innocence of The Garden of Eden (left) through the descent into the sins of the flesh (centre) and ending with utter debauchery in hell.
The left panel shows Adam and Eve in The Garden of Eden, naked and in perfect communion with God. There is no hint of the horrors to come in the second and third panels.
Satan's Stealth Tactics
In Genesis 3:1-6 we see the way Satan disguised as a serpent succeeds in seducing Eve into disobeying the instructions God had given Adam in the previous chapter by using stealth tactics.
STEP 1: CASTING DOUBT ON GOD'S GOODNESS and love (v1) Did God say?
STEP 2: DISTORTING GOD’S WORD (v1)You shall not eat from any tree...
STEP 3: DENYING THE TRUTH OF GOD’S COMMANDS (v4)You will not die.
STEP 4: CAUSING DISBELIEF IN GOD’S TRUTH(vv4-5)You will not die.
STEP 5: CAUSING DESIRES THAT LEAD US AWAY FROM GOD (v6)
STEP 6: CAUSING DISOBEDIENCE OF GOD’S COMMANDS (v6) She took the apple and ate.
Satan is using the same tactics today by telling people the same four lies he told Eve in verses 3-4:
• LIE NO.1 YOU WILL NOT DIE - the basis of atheism and reincarnation
• LIE NO 2 YOUR EYES WILL BE OPENED - the basis of occultism & esoteric mysticism
• LIE NO 3 YOU WILL BE LIKE GOD - New Age teaching to find the god within
• LIE NO 4 YOU WILL KNOW GOOD & EVIL - postmodern moral relativism & a scientific rationalism that claims to have all the answers to life