Di First Promise

Evening for one garden. Small breeze dey pass through di trees. And two people dey bend down for shadow, dem hold dia breath, dem dey hope say nobody go find dem.

Dis na di garden of Eden, di first house wey God make for di first people, Adam and Eve. Everytin inside am good. Fruit trees of every kind. Rivers dey run pass. And God imself dey waka there, near dem, like friend. God give dem only one rule. No chop from di tree of di knowledge of good and evil. But one serpent, wey get sense for wayo and sweet mouth, whisper doubt for dia ear. God really talk dat one? Notin bad go happen. So Eve chop, and she give Adam, and im too chop. Dat same moment dia eye open. Shame catch dem. Dem sew fig leaves together to cover dia body. Now di day dey cool down, and dem hear one sound wey dem bin dey love before: di sound of God as e dey waka for di garden.

For di first time ever, Adam and Eve hide from God. Dem slip enter inside di trees. And God call out. “Where you dey?” No be say God no know. E dey call dem make dem comot from where dem hide. Adam answer, im voice small. “I hear your voice for di garden, and fear catch me, because I dey naked. So I hide.” God ask, “Who tell you say you dey naked? You don chop from di tree wey I tell you make you no chop?” And then di blaming start. Adam point finger for Eve. “Di woman wey you give me, na she give me di fruit.” God turn to Eve. “Wetin be dis wey you don do?” And Eve point finger for di serpent. “Di serpent deceive me, and I chop.” Fear, hiding, blaming. For just one afternoon, di friendship between people and God, and between people and each oda, don crack.

Now God turn to di serpent. E no ask am any question. E pass judgment on top am. Di serpent go dey crawl with im belle and chop dust. Dem bring am down. And then God talk something wey change everytin. Listen well, because dis na di very first promise of dis kind for Bible. “I go put enmity between you and di woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. E go bruise your head, and you go bruise im heel.” Fight dey come. Di serpent go strike di heel of di woman pikin, and di wound go be real. But di pikin go strike di serpent head. Di one wey bring destruction enter di garden no go win.

Think about where dis promise come. No be for di end of one happy day, but right for di middle of di worst one. Adam and Eve don break trust. Hard consequences go follow: pain, hard work, and one day, death. Dem go comot from di garden. But still, before dem comot, God give dem hope wey dem go carry. One pikin dey come. Genesis come tell us say God make clothes from animal skin for Adam and Eve and e dress dem with im own hand. Even as dem dey go out to one harder world, God still dey take care of dem. And far, far down di years, Christians go look back for dis moment and see di first light of Christmas: one pikin wey woman born, wey go win di fight against evil, even though e go wound am.

Christians don dey read dis promise as good news about Jesus for long-long time. Around di year one hundred and eighty, one church leader wey dem dey call Irenaeus, bishop of Lyon for di place wey be France today, write one long book wey im name na Against Heresies. Inside am, e explain say di pikin of di woman for Genesis come true for Jesus, wey woman born and wey defeat di enemy. Later, Christians give dis verse one name: di protoevangelium, wey mean di first gospel, di first announcement of di good news.

Di first promise. You fit read am for Genesis chapter three, verse eight reach fifteen. For di day wey people first hide from God, God come find dem, and e carry one promise come. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When you don do something wey no good, you dey hide from God, or you dey allow am find you?