Genesis 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together… A sense of shame either in regard to soul or body is not natural. It does not belong to the unfallen. It is the fruit of sin. The sinner's first feeling is, "I am not fit for God, or man, or angels to look upon." Hence the essence of confession is, being ashamed of ourselves. We are made to feel two things; first, a sense of condemnation; and secondly, a sense of shame; we are unfit to receive God's favour, and unfit to appear in His presence. Hence Job said, "I am vile"; and hence Ezra said, "I am ashamed, and blush to lift up my face to Thee, my God" (Ezra 9:6). Hence also Jeremiah describes the stout-hearted Jews, "They were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush" (Jeremiah 6:15). Hence Solomon's reference to the "impudent face" of the strange woman (Proverbs 7:13), and Jeremiah's description of Israel, "Thou hadst a whore's forehead, thou refusest to be ashamed" (Jeremiah 3:3). It was the shame of our sin that Christ bore upon the cross; and therefore it is said of Him that He "despised the shame." It was laid upon Him, and He shrank not from it. He felt it, yet He hid not His face from it. He was the well-beloved of the Father, yet He hung upon the tree as one unfit for God to look upon; fit only to be cast out from His presence. He took our place of shame that we might be permitted to take His place of honour. In giving credit to God's record concerning Him we are identified with Him as our representative; our shame passes over to Him, and His glory becomes ours forever. It was this sense of shame that led Adam and Eve to have recourse to fig leaves for a covering. What is it but this same consciousness of shame that leads men to resort to ornaments? These are intended by them to compensate for the shame or the deformity under which men are lying. They feel that shame belongs to them; nay, confusion of face. They feel that they are not now "perfect in beauty," as once they were. Hence they resort to ornament in order to make up for this. They deck themselves with jewels that their deformity may be turned into beauty. But there is danger here — danger against which the apostle warns us, specially the female sex (1 Peter 3:3, 4). There is nothing, indeed, innately sinful in the gold, or the silver, or the gems which have been wrought by the skill of men into such forms of brightness. But in our present state they do not suit us. They are unmeet for sinners. They speak of pride, and they also minister to pride. They are for the kingdom, not for the desert. They are for the city of the glorified, not for the tent of the stranger. They will come in due time, and they will be brilliant enough to compensate for the shame of earth. But we cannot be trusted with them now. (H. Bonar, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. |
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