Deceive: 1. To catch by guile; ensnare. 2. To give a false impression: appearances can deceive.

Nothing like weaving a bit of truth into a lie to cause the listener to consider it to be entirely true. Yes, you know one part is true and it's so easy to assume that the other part may be true, too.

The serpent, being the craftiest beast made said, Gen 3:1 "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" Quite ingenious reasoning. "Oh, no," Eve was quick to set him straight, "just the one tree that would cause us death. But Satan was quicker: "You will not surely die," "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." Eve obviously forgot she was already "made in God's image", as did Adam and so in disobedience they ate the fruit. Gen. 3 is a chapter known as the "fall of man". It's a little hard to grasp all that took place that day.

Adam having been put in charge of the earth lost it all for himself and all mankind due to his disobedience. Essentially, they had to relinquish the keys (their dominion) of earth. Satan became the legal "Prince of the Earth". Adam and Eve were exiled from the Garden of Eden.

Thought: Had Adam sought forgiveness for himself and Eve from the God of Love, could the result have turned out differently?