The Gospel, Part Three
A Devotional Series from Genesis
Online Bible Audio/Readings Links (ESV)
3/27 Reading Portions: Exodus 38; John 17; Proverbs 14; Philippians 1
Genesis 3:14-15, KJV
The LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel.”
INCARNATION
As mentioned yesterday, while the curse and judgment upon Satan for his sin against God was pronounced in Eden’s garden, it was fulfilled in the incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus Messiah. As the Old Testament saints looked forward to its fulfillment in Christ, you and I look forward to its ultimate fulfillment in the promised return of Christ in the new heavens and the new earth.
In Genesis 3:15, while not all the elements of the gospel are expressed here, we do have several wonderful truths tucked within its words in the original Hebrew language. As devotionals, we will look at them one at a time over the next few days so we may meditate upon the full impact of the gospel’s beauty, majesty, and wonder unto the exaltation of our Lord Jesus Christ. You’ll also notice that I’m using the KJV today. Though I love the ESV as an English translation of the Hebrew, in Genesis 3:15, I believe the King James Version translators did a little better than the ESV translators. Today, let’s consider the incarnation.
As the KJV says “seed” whereas the ESV uses “offspring,” translated from the Hebrew root word זֶרַע (ZE-ra). It literally means “seed,” and figuratively means “fruit,” “posterity,” “planting,” “sowing,” or “offspring.” Why is this an important distinction? Because a woman doesn’t provide the seed in procreation, the man does, as it is inferred in Scripture:
And Judah said unto Onan, Go in unto thy brother’s wife, and marry her, and raise up seed to thy brother. And Onan knew that the seed should not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in unto his brother’s wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest that he should give seed to his brother. Genesis 38:8-9, KJV (emphasis added)
Genesis 28:8-9 above uses the Hebrew words zera thrice, translated “seed” (KJV) or “offspring” (ESV). Therefore, Genesis 3:15 presents the truth of Christ’s virgin birth, and thus, Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God; and as the Son of God, He is very God. Moreover, modern science informs us that blood formation in the infant developing in the womb happens at about day fifteen or sixteen after the “fertilization” of the embryo—that is, at conception. In other words, blood formation comes from the man after the seed has entered in conception to affect its processes. Why is this an important fact? Because it further tells us that Jesus’s blood was not from Joseph, the carpenter of Nazareth, but from the Holy Spirit; and therefore, Jesus’s blood was pure and untainted by the sin of Adam’s fall. Hallelujah! What a Savior!