(Genesis 3:14-15) “The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you will go, And dust you will eat All the days of your life; And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall crush your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”
Satan the spiritual seducer
In Genesis Chapter three we are told that the serpent (Satan) was more cunning than any of the wild beasts God had made. When we read Satan being called the serpent it exemplifies his character. He is depicted in scripture as a blood thirsty despot consumed with hate and vindictiveness towards Israel, towards the Messiah our Lord Jesus and towards the Body of Messiah, the faithful assembly of New Covenant believers corporately. (Revelation 12:3-6, 13-17).
The fact that Satan was changed to a creature that could only crawl on his belly and eat dust describes a creature that once could walk on two legs but experienced a physical change as a judgement from the LORD because he had caused the fall of Adam and Eve.
We also know that he was one who could approach Eve and that she was not frightened at all by his appearance which must have been very attractive to her. He also had the power of seductive and mesmerising speech. He is still able to masquerade as a messenger of light as can all those who follow him (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).
His power to produce all kinds of counterfeit miracles signs and wonders will prepare the way for the man of sin to be revealed whom the Messiah our Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of His mouth and destroy by the splendour of His coming (2 Thessalonians 2:8-9).
The “seed” of the woman
In our text we are told that when God pronounced judgement on Satan that He in His absolute sovereign power would put enmity between Satan and the woman and between Satan’s seed (offspring) the man of sin, and her seed (offspring) the Messiah our Lord Jesus, the one that would crush Satan’s head.
The bruising of the Messiah’s heel would only be temporal in that even though Satan was behind His terrible death and intense suffering on the cross, by His atoning death, burial and resurrection the Messiah our Lord Jesus would bring about Satan’s ultimate and total downfall and that of his fallen principalities and demons bringing them all to an open shame in the whole of the unseen spiritual realm (Colossians 2:14-15).
In fact we are told in the Word of God that the reason the Son of God was revealed was that He might destroy the devils work, being all sin and rebellion in the hearts of unsaved men and women (1 John 3:8).
Now the word “seed” in its primary meaning refers to a single person even though it can apply to a company of people corporately as decedents. However, the emphasis of the text is the seed as a single person. The same meaning applies to the “seed” of Satan. His seed would be the man of sin also called the Antichrist.
At the end of this age there will be those who worship and follow the Lord Jesus as members of God’s kingdom being His spiritual decedents and those who worship and follow the man of sin being his spiritual decedents (Revelation 13:5-8). We see this exemplified in the account of Cain and Abel.
Cain and Abel
Now we are told in Genesis chapter four that Abel was a keeper of the flocks and Cain a worker of the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD and that Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favour on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering He did not look with favour.
The ground was cursed through the fall (Genesis 3:17-19). Cain was seeking to approach the LORD with an offering he had produced from the ground by his own works which he thought would gain the LORD’s approval. He did not have the spiritual insight from the Spirit of God that his brother Abel had, a spiritual blindness that we all have until we are given spiritual sight through the new spiritual rebirth from above (John 3:3) (1 Corinthians 2:12-15).
As for Abel he knew that he was sinful and that he could not approach the LORD other than through the shedding of the blood of the firstborn of his flocks. His offering was acceptable to God because he exercised faith in God’s mercy and forgiveness and by his faith was treated as a righteous man by the LORD (Hebrews 11:4).
Abel was put into right standing with God by faith which he knew by the revelation of the Spirit was the only way to approach the LORD (Hebrews 11:6) See also; (Romans 3:21-26; 5:1-2).
Abel’s sacrifice still speaks to us today as it points to the eternal redemption provided for sinful man made possible through the blood of Messiah at the cross, that redemption that comes through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of God’s unearned, unmerited favour lavished upon us (Ephesians 1:7). Abel’s offering was the results of his faith.
Cain’s offering was the results of his pride in his own works. Good works in themselves will never put anyone into a right standing with God. We are saved by faith through the unmerited unearned favour and mercy of God (Ephesians 2:8-10) (Titus 3:5).
Abel also knew that the LORD had made garments of animal skin to cover the spiritual and physical nakedness of his mother and father, and he also knew that only the blood of an innocent animal had to be shed to atone for the sins of his parents as well as his own sin (Genesis 3:21). Cain did not have this spiritual revelation.
Cain killed Abel because his brother Cain belonged to the evil one. As the apostle John writes; “Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous” (1 John 3:12).
Satan’s character revealed
Satan was a murderer and a liar from the beginning refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies as are his offspring who persecute and kill the righteous ones of God as Cain killed his brother (John 8:44) (Revelation 2:13).
We see this pattern in the case of Isaac and Ishmael and with Jacob and Esau and down through the centuries even to the present day. Those spiritually reborn by the Spirit will always be persecuted by those who have not been spiritually reborn (Galatians 4:29).
To whom do we belong?
The truth of the matter is that if we do not belong to the LORD Jesus, having a saving faith in Him and in His redeeming blood shed to atone for our sin, then we belong to Satan, the ‘god’ of this world.
As Rabbi the Apostle Paul writes; “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Messiah, who is the image of God” (1 Corinthians 4:3-4).
In the whole of scripture God clearly defines the difference between those who walk in the counsel of God with those who remain in the counsel and company of the wicked. We are also told that the LORD watches over the way of the righteous but that the way of the wicked will perish (Psalm 1).
Salvation from sin from judgement and hell and ultimately from the lake of fire is only possible through a willingness with God’s help to turn away from a sinful way of living by turning to God through faith in the Lord Jesus to save us, and by trusting in the power and protection of His shed blood to protect us from the coming wrath (Exodus 12: 13, 23) (Ephesians 2:8-10) (Acts 20:21) (Acts 4:12) (Romans 5:9) (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9).
The LORD then has His “seed” being the Messiah our Lord Jesus, whereas Satan also has his “seed” being the Antichrist or the man of sin yet to be revealed to the faithful Body of Messiah and manifested in the world and whose end will come when he is cast into the lake of fire along with the false prophet (Daniel 7:11; 11:45;) (Revelation 19:19-20).
Ultimately the serpent that bruised the heel of the Lord Jesus whose head the Messiah has crushed will end up in the lake of fire tormented for eternity. (Revelation 20:10). In that day the serpent will forever have been “Done and Dusted!” Selah.
