Genesis 3:17 - PAINFUL Toil

When I have read this verse in the past, the emphasis always seemed to be on the word toil. Beginning with Adam, mankind would have to toil to get his daily sustenance.

This morning, the thought struck me that the emphasis should be on the adjective "painful." Before the Fall, Adam was charged with keeping the garden; he was to tend it, which implies work. From this I conclude that toil is not a product of the Fall, painful toil is.

The reason it would be painful is that the toil would be less productive than it was before the fall. Adam would now have to contend with weeds (thorns and thistles) and he would have to contend with disease of the crops. He would have to work harder than ever before to realize less produce. This would result in physical pain, the pain of hard labor.

I can imagine that as Adam worked in the fields, seeking to overcome these handicaps, he would remember what it was like before the Fall. He would remember how well the plants grew, how every small effort he invested provided a perfect result. He would remember the vitality he felt in tending the Garden. He would remember that God was present with him while he worked.

Jesus said, in Matthew 5:4, that those who mourn are blessed. In some sense we are all longing for the Garden, longing for the effects of sin to be removed from ourselves and our world. We have painful toil because we know it could have been different and will eventually be different. But not yet.