Bruised, but victorious. Genesis 3.15
Jesus throughout the Scriptures: Genesis (2)
Pray Psalm 68.19-21, 32, 33.
Blessed be the Lord,
Who daily loads us with benefits,
The God of our salvation!
Selah
Our God is the God of salvation;
And to GOD the Lord belong escapes from death.
But God will wound the head of His enemies…
Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth;
Oh, sing praises to the Lord,
Selah
To Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old!
Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice.
Sing Psalm 68.19, 20, 32,33.
(O Store Gud: How Great Thou Art)
Blessed be the LORD, our burden daily bearing,
O God, our God, our Savior and our King!
With us salvation and deliv’rance sharing,
He life from death His people daily brings.
Refrain vv. 32, 33
Sing to the LORD, O kingdoms of the earth!
Ancient of Days—praise Him on high!
Behold He speaks; His Word is going forth;
Ancient of Days—praise Him on high!
Read Genesis 3.1-15; meditate on verse 15.
Preparation
1. What will God put between the woman and the serpent?
2. What will happen to the serpent?
Meditation
Adam and Eve failed in their obedience to God, having given in to the temptation proffered by the serpent. But God’s plan to create a people for Himself who would share in His joy would not be thwarted. He swore to the serpent that He would defend His people by putting “Enmity”—an abstract noun here, but personalized as “He” in the same verse)—between the offspring of the serpent and the seed of the woman. Further, while the serpent—here, undoubtedly Satan in the guise of a creature—would “bruise His [the Enmity’s] heel”, “He shall bruise [the devil’s] head”, that is, shall destroy him completely.
Adam and Eve would have been pointed forward in time to a day when the enemy of their wellbeing would be destroyed by One descending from Eve. They could not know how long this would take, but they were expected to believe God and live toward that day of deliverance by faithfully seeking and obeying Him.
From our vantage point in time, we can easily see here the promise of deliverance through the life, death, resurrection, and reign of Jesus Christ. How does Jesus destroy the devil? First, by His death and resurrection—His victory over death and its power—and then by His reign and His continuing work through the Church to advance His Kingdom. Despite many trials, temptations, setbacks, and travails, the Church will advance and, Paul promised, Jesus Himself would crush the head of the devil under their feet (Rom. 16.20). And Jesus will finally destroy the devil upon His return (Rev. 20.7-10).
See Jesus in this verse. Hear God comforting His people and condemning their ancient foe by this one word of promise. And see Jesus as Destroyer of the devil and liberator of His people. Give thanks to God!
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
“I AM the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (Jn. 14.6).
God offered His very first people the option of life. Perfect life, in perfect surroundings, with perfect circumstances…and they chose, death. “Here is everything your heart could possibly desire, just don’t toy with this one tree, because if you do, all this perfection will die.”
Just as the Law is a tutor to show us our sin (Gal. 3.24), so also, Adam and Eve needed something whereby to test their obedience. Without choices life is just blah. If obedience is forced, it is not obedience. If love is demanded, it is not love.
So, the first folks failed—miserably.
The victors became the needy victims of Satan’s wiles—and the rest is history.
Good and evil became life and death, thus, we needed a Savior—Jesus.
“God, Who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,
has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, Whom He has appointed heir of all things,
through Whom also He made the worlds; Who being the brightness of His glory
and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the Word of His power,
when he had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high…” (Heb. 1.1-3).
Because of sin, we can only come to God through His Son, Jesus, Who is the only Way, all the Truth, and eternal Life, having always been and lasting throughout all eternity.
“You, LORD, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands” (Heb. 1.10); and You said to Your Son Jesus, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (Ps. 110.1).
You eternally were, are, and will be The Destroyer of the Devil.
“For lo, his doom is sure; one little Word shall fell him.”
(Martin Luther, 1529)
Reflection
1. How do you crush Satan beneath your feet?
2. What happens if you don’t?
3. How do these verses increase your vision of and love for Jesus?
Christ baffled Satan’s temptations, rescued souls out of his hands. By his death he gave a fatal blow to the devil’s kingdom, a wound to the head of this serpent that cannot be healed. As the gospel gains ground, Satan falls. Matthew Henry (1662-17143), Commentary on Genesis 3.15
Pray Psalm 68.1-4, 32, 33..
Thank the Lord that He is faithful to His promises and bears your burdens day by day. Pray that you might be more like Jesus in this regard.
Sing Psalm 68.1-4, 32, 33.
(O Store Gud: How Great Thou Art)
Let God arise, let all Your foes be scattered!
Let those who hate You flee before Your face!
As smoke dissolves, as wax in flame is shattered,
let all the wicked perish in disgrace!
Refrain vv. 32, 33
Sing to the LORD, O kingdoms of the earth!
Ancient of Days—praise Him on high!
Behold He speaks; His Word is going forth;
Ancient of Days—praise Him on high!
LORD, let Your righteous ones exult in glory,
let us rejoice and praise Your holy Name!
Now let us sing the Savior’s old, old story—
Who life to deserts brings, we now proclaim!
Refrain
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
