The forbidden fruit is pleasing to the eye

Genesis 3:6

"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

When Eve looks at the forbidden fruit, she notices that it is pleasing to the eyes. But this isn't the only fruit in the garden that is pleasing to the eyes: In Genesis chapter 2 it says that "the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food."

But when our view of the forbidden fruit is coupled with a strong and inordinate desire for it, then it becomes singularly and dangerously fascinating to us. We have probably heard the following phrase, or a hybrid of it, hundreds of times during our lives: "Yeah, she is definitely beautiful, but so are a million other girls in the world. I really don't understand what he sees in her."

The forbidden fruit was "good for food" in one sense, but very bad in another

Genesis 3:6

"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

The first thing that Eve sees when she looks at the fruit of the tree is that it is good for food. Now, she hasn't tasted it yet so she can only guess that the fruit must be good for food based on its outward appearance. When she compares it to the fruit of other trees that she has eaten from, the forbidden fruit looks delicious.

We, however, come to this passage from a different perspective. We have sinned already and we know that the forbidden fruit tastes delicious, because we have bitten into it and have tasted it and we have found it to be so. We know that the fruit of the tree is good for food in the sense that it does gratify our senses, and it is that fact that keeps us coming back for more.

However, though it tastes good, the forbidden fruit is not healthy for us spiritually. In that sense it is not good for food, but the exact opposite. Far from being beneficial to us, the fruit of the tree destroys us and kills us. What God says about it is true: "when you eat of it you will surely die."

The Word of God and Jesus Christ himself, on the other hand, are good for food, always and in every way. When Jesus was tempted by the devil to turn stones into bread, "Jesus answered, 'It is written: "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."'" (Matthew 4:4) Also in John 6:54 Jesus says, "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

Nitimur in vetitum. In our sinful natures we desire what is forbidden

Genesis 3:6

"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

I don't know if Eve in her perfect and innocent state felt this way in the garden, but one thing is certain: in our sinful natures, we human beings desire that which we know has been forbidden us. Edgar Allan Poe speaks of this sinful human tendency that exists in us in his famous short story The Black Cat:

"....And then came, as if to my final and irrevocable overthrow, the spirit of PERVERSENESS. Of this spirit philosophy takes no account. Yet I am not more sure that my soul lives, than I am that perverseness is one of the primitive impulses of the human heart -- one of the indivisible primary faculties, or sentiments, which give direction to the character of man. Who has not, a hundred times, found himself committing a vile or a silly action, for no other reason than because he knows he should not? Have we not a perpetual inclination, in the teeth of our best judgment, to violate that which is Law, merely because we understand it to be such? This spirit of perverseness, I say, came to my final overthrow. It was this unfathomable longing of the soul to vex itself -- to offer violence to its own nature -- to do wrong for the wrong's sake only -- that urged me to continue and finally...."

How then can we overcome this fatal and destructive tendency in us? By coming to God earnestly and praying the Lord's prayer sincerely from our hearts, especially where it says, "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, Amen."

When Eve looked at the forbidden fruit, she saw only what she wanted to see

Genesis 3:6

"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

Here the keyword is "saw." What we see when our eyes are blinded by a sinful desire is very different from what we see when our actions are guided by sober judgment. When Eve looked at the forbidden fruit, she saw without fully seeing, she considered without fully considering. She saw the fruit, but she did not see the "No trespassing for you will surely die" sign in front of the fruit.

When we desire what is forbidden, our perception of the thing that we desire becomes distorted. Also James warns us that "after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death." (James 1:15)

So, at all costs, we must avoid falling under the spell of the forbidden fruit. How do we do that? The Bible says "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:21) It also says that we should "Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." (2 Timothy 2:22)