Father’s Day had me thinking about Genesis 3.
Adam and Eve sin, hide from God, and make their own covering out of leaves. Then God calls for Adam: “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9)
God is not confused. He is drawing Adam out.
That is the part that gets me. God judges the sin. He names the curse. He sends them out of the garden. But before they leave, He covers them Himself (Genesis 3:21).
Their covering was not enough, so God provides one.
Even the exile from Eden is not God being done with them. He keeps them from the tree of life so they do not live forever in a broken state (Genesis 3:22-24). That’s judgment, but it’s also mercy.
And then the rest of Scripture keeps showing the same pattern.
God preserves Noah. He calls Abraham. He sends prophets. He keeps calling His people back. Then in these last days, He speaks through His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2).
Jesus is God coming all the way into the mess. The same God who called Adam in the garden is the God who sends Christ to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). The same Father who covered Adam and Eve is the Father who gives His Son for the world (John 3:16-17).
So I do not read Genesis 3 as God losing His patience and walking away. I read it as judgment, discipline, and mercy all at once.
He is and always will be our loving Father.
-Armin