Show Don't Tell: Genesis 3:1-7

Instead of saying "The serpent tempted Eve and she sinned," make them hear the hiss. The serpent doesn't slither up shouting accusations; he slides in with a question. "Did God really say...?" Feel how the words drip with reasonableness, how they make the woman pause mid-step. Watch her eyes drift to the tree—the only tree she's never studied. And suddenly it looks different. The fruit seems to glow. Her hand reaches out. Feel the smooth skin of the fruit against her palm, the slight give as she grips it. The whole garden holds its breath. Then: teeth breaking skin, juice running down her chin, the sweet taste flooding her mouth. She hands it to her husband, who has been standing there the whole time, silent. He eats. And immediately—not later, not gradually—they know. Something has broken. They look at each other and feel exposed. Hands scramble for fig leaves. The hiding has begun.