What Happened "On That Day"? Genesis 2:17

Why did God say to Adam that he would die on the day that should he eat of the forbidden fruit when he clearly did not die on that day? It never seemed quite satisfactory that God meant that he would only begin to die after the Fall happened, that Adam would not die until almost a millennium later. I am not denying that this was also true, that there was certainly a great change in all of nature, including humanity, from that very time of disobedience. But this does not really account for all of what was implied in the divine prohibition. And it dances around the phrase "in that day".

First of all, there must be a distinction between what God threatened and what He carried out.

Second, we do not need to go far afield to imagine what the Hebrew here might mean. We have the context to guide us. Specifically, in order to know what is meant by "in that day" we only need to see how the phrase is used in a nearby parallel verse. Satan told Eve, Gen. 3:5:

"God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Now, are we also going allow for a time lapse here? I think not. The eye-opening was immediate. It happened on that day - just as Satan said. (On this point the Serpent was correct, although he connived to let Eve connect the other dots according to his own plan.)

So neither "in that day" involve a lapse of time. 

Their eyes were opened that very day.

Death happened that very day. 

But for Adam and Eve it was not a personal death. It was a substitutionary death. This brings us to Genesis 3:21:

"The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them."

What were these garments of skin? They were from animals that had to be killed. The animal (or animals) had to die because of the sin of Adam and Eve. This was the beginning of the sacrificial system. How did Abel later know just how to perform an acceptable sacrifice? He must have learned it from his dad. And Cain, for whatever reason, seemed to not put as much stock into this.

In Genesis we have two oblique glimpses of the redemption story, the Protovangelion in Genesis 3:15 and this one in verse 21.

No, Adam did not die physically that day. But physical death was a possibility that day. Moreover, along with that, spiritual, and eternal would have been the outcome. If God had not provided clothing for them, if they had not put on that clothing, they would have died in every way that very day.

But, thank God, He allowed them to put on that clothing - just as we put on Christ, the Lamb of God.

 

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