And when the woman saw that the tree was good for
food,
&c.] She being near the tree, and perhaps just at it when the
serpent first attacked her; wherefore looking more wishfully at
it, she could discern nothing in the fruit of the tree which
showed it to be bad, and unfit to be eaten, or why it should be
forbidden for food; but, on the contrary, had a most promising
aspect to be very delicious, nourishing and salutary, as any
other fruit in the garden: and that it was pleasant to the
eyes;
of a beautiful colour, and very inviting to the taste: and
a tree to be desired to make one wise;
which above all was the most engaging, and was the most
prevailing motive to influence her to eat of it, an eager desire
of more wisdom and knowledge; though there was nothing she could
see in the tree, and the fruit of it, which promised this; only
she perceived in her mind, by the discourse she had with the
serpent, and by what he had told her, and she believed, that this
would be the consequence of eating this fruit, which was very
desirable, and she concluded within herself that so it would be:
she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat;
she took it off of the tree, and not only tasted of it, but ate
of it; what quantity cannot be said, enough to break the divine
law, and to incur the divine displeasure: so Sanchoniatho says
F12, that Aeon (the same with Eve)
found the way of taking food from trees: and gave also to
her husband with her;
that he might eat as well as she, and partake of the same
benefits and advantages she hoped to reap from hence; for no
doubt it was of good will, and not ill will, that she gave it to
him; and when she offered it to him, it is highly probable she
made use of arguments with him, and pressed him hard to it,
telling him what delicious food it was, as well as how useful it
would be to him and her. The Jews infer from hence, that Adam was
with her all the while, and heard the discourse between the
serpent and her, yet did not interpose nor dissuade his wife from
eating the fruit, and being prevailed upon by the arguments used;
or however through a strong affection for his wife, that she
might not die alone, he did as she had done: and he did
eat;
on which an emphasis may be observed, for it was upon his eating
the fate of his posterity depended; for not the woman but the man
was the federal head, and he sinning, all his posterity sinned in
him, and died in him; through this offence judgment came upon all
to condemnation; all became sinners, and obnoxious to death, (
Romans
5:12-19 ) . If Eve only had eaten of the forbidden fruit, it
could only have personally affected herself, and she only would
have died; and had this been the case, God would have formed
another woman for Adam, for the propagation of mankind, had he
stood; though since he fell as well as she, it is needless to
inquire, and may seem too bold to say what otherwise would have
been the case.