No 1

(Genesis 3:15)

This is the first of many studies that we will be doing on key passages of Scripture. The Bible is a whole and each word was carefully placed as God willed it; we will take certain passages and look at them closely. They will be presented as they appear in the Bible and not necessarily in chronological order. I chose Genesis 3:15 to start because it sets the stage for the whole redemptive plan of God. It reads: “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.” This is a familiar passage and we know the context. God is talking to Satan and is, at the same time, placing a curse and a blessing on humanity. The curse is between Satan and the woman; between his seed (unregenerate humanity) and her seed (Christ and all believers). The blessing is that Jesus Christ will become the Saviour of those who look to Him for their salvation (Hebrews 9:28). Satan will “bruise his heel” (Jesus will suffer - John 19:30) but Christ will “bruise your head” (Satan will be crushed - Rev 20:10). Paul, in a passage reminiscent of Genesis 3:15, said: “And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” (Romans 16:20). There is even an indication of the virgin birth in this passage – “the woman’s seed” . In human reproduction, the woman does not have the seed – the man does. Therefore, God at the very beginning of humanity had already provided a way for man to be reconciled to Him through the seed of the woman – Jesus Christ who was conceived by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:20) and born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14).