What Really Happened in Eden? | The Fall of Man

The Fall of Man, the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, stands at the foundation of both Jewish and Christian tradition. For Christians, it represents Original Sin, the reason humanity needs salvation and why the sacrament of baptism is considered necessary from birth. For Jews, it represents the tension between freedom and obedience, highlighting humanity’s responsibility in exercising free will. Across all traditions, this story marks the moment when humanity became separated from God, paradise was lost, and death entered the world.

This video presents a retelling of the story based directly on the original Hebrew text and supported by ancient writings such as the Book of Jubilees, the Life of Adam and Eve, the Testament of Adam, and the Dead Sea Scrolls. These sources present the Fall not only as disobedience, but as the beginning of a cosmic struggle that explains the human condition, mortality, and the promise of redemption.

The narrative begins with the creation of Adam from the dust of the earth and the divine breath of life that made him a living soul. God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, abundant with trees, rivers, and the Tree of Life, alongside the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eve was later formed, and together they were given dominion over creation. However, they were also given a single command: not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for doing so would bring death.

The serpent, often identified in ancient sources with Satan, approached Eve with subtle words, twisting the divine command and suggesting that eating the fruit would open their eyes and make them like God. Eve ate and shared the fruit with Adam, and at that moment their eyes were opened. They realized their nakedness, felt shame, and covered themselves with fig leaves. When God walked in the garden, they hid among the trees. Upon questioning, Adam blamed Eve, and Eve blamed the serpent.

Judgment followed. The serpent was cursed to crawl on its belly and live in perpetual enmity with the woman’s offspring, a prophecy that introduced the theme of a future deliverer who would crush the serpent’s head. The woman was told her pain in childbirth would increase and her relationship with her husband would be marked by struggle. Adam was told the ground itself would be cursed, and survival would come only through labor, toil, and sweat until returning to the dust. This was the introduction of death into human existence.

Even in judgment, there was mercy. God clothed Adam and Eve with garments of skin to replace the fig leaves, a symbolic act that foreshadowed sacrifice and covering for shame. Yet they were banished from Eden, and cherubim with a flaming sword were placed at the east of the garden to guard the way to the Tree of Life. From this moment forward, humanity lived outside paradise, marked by mortality but carrying the hope of future redemption.

This retelling draws on Genesis alongside ancient Hebrew traditions and apocryphal texts to show the Fall of Man not only as a story of disobedience, but as the origin of the human struggle between good and evil, life and death, and the longing for restoration. By exploring the creation of Adam and Eve, the role of the serpent, the consequences of the forbidden fruit, and the exile from Eden, the video presents the Fall of Man as the beginning of human history and the foundation for understanding themes of sin, mortality, and salvation found throughout the Bible.

Script: Lucas Martins Kern
Editing: Pedro Anthony Alves Souza