“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” – Genesis 3:15
Scripture reading: Genesis 3:14-15; Romans 16:20; Galatians 3:15-16
Paradise was lost. But all hope was not lost. Before banishing Adam and Eve from Paradise, He graciously gave them promises that filled them with hope. One promise was embedded in the curse God pronounced upon Satan: “You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15).
What hope for humanity is found in this curse! God broke the bonds of loyalty that bound Adam and Eve to Satan by placing enmity (enemy-likeness) between them and their respective descendants. God made them enemies, rather than friends, of Satan.
God also condemned the serpent to crawl on his belly and eat dust all the days of his life. This symbolized Satan’s subjugation, defeat and ultimate doom at the hands of a descendant of Eve. Galatians 3:16 tells us that this serpent-crushing descendant or seed is Jesus. He is the promised Saviour who would reverse the curse and rescue humanity from sin and death.
What hope is found in God’s words of curse upon Satan! They contain the first promise of Christ’s coming, making this day in the Garden of Eden the very first day of Advent! God would keep repeating this same Advent promise in many different ways until Jesus came to ensure His people could keep looking forward to Christ’s coming.
Suggestions for prayer
Ask God to help you hate Satan and all that is evil; pray for strength to love and cling to what is good. Thank God that He will soon crush Satan completely (Romans 16:20a).
This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015.
