Humans are great at blaming others for their problems or short-comings and we have no greater example than Adam and Eve. In Genesis 3, we find that the two have eaten from the tree of Knowledge, to which both were given direct instructions on not to eat. Adam was told directly from Yahweh and Eve by Adam, however, before we go any further, let's look specifically at verses 12 and 13:
The passages above follow as they both have eaten the fruit of the tree of knowledge. Now, while there was some deception at play, we also know that the Lord always provides us with a way to escape temptation (see 1 Corinthians 10:13). It's up to us to take His offer and escape!(12) Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” (13) And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
While the two hid from the Lord (because they knew what they did was wrong), God called out to them and asked why they were hiding. He knew the answer, but it was a matter of whether or not they would be truthful. We start off with Adam responding to the Lord and he does two things:
- He indirectly blames God for providing the woman too him, and then
- He directly blames Eve for the reason he ate the fruit.
In both cases, they displayed this new found desire for man to cover and/or protect themselves when they knew they had done wrong. This is the reason why Adam and Even covered themselves with leaves when Yahweh called out to them. They felt ashamed because they were naked. Now, had they not ate from the tree, they would not have this knowledge of being naked or have a feeling of being ashamed!
You see, it is easier to blame others for our problems, but it takes a mature person to look inward and ask what was your role in a particular situation. Instead of blaming others for your problems, why not see how you can fix your part of the problem. Do a little self-reflection and if we are honest with ourselves, there are enough issues to solve within ourselves without pointing fingers at others.
