
Cast away. For what, asking a question? Making ripples in the water.
There are two sides to every issue. And if one is to look at something objectively then there must be no pretense about which side is right and which side is wrong. There must be no bias. If that is possible, mostly likely not, then the two sides must be presented so that a conclusion can be made.
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any of the beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And the he said to the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" Genesis 3:1
The serpent was a creation of God, the animal itself as well as the Devil. The use of a creation of God to deceive Eve, was ingenious. As in the perfection of the Garden of Eden, no animal brought no harm to any other or to any human. So Eve would have had no anticipation of any danger on the part of the serpent. The Bible's use of the word "subtle" was no doubt the writer's interpretation of a serpent after sin had already taken place in both man and animal.
Yet the Devil, just proposed a question. And with that question -- "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" -- The Devil instill free thought. Yes I know that some would say what Eve did in return to the Devil . . .
"And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." Genesis 3:2,3
And why wouldn't Eve respond in such a manner. With death being a foreign concept to them, God's ultimatum was not an ideal threat. There was much fear in death, as Adam and Eve would have lived forever had they listened to God and not the serpent. But was that free will, or was it coerce into doing something asked of you, because of the consequence of not complying? Was the Devil just allowing Eve to think for herself, or was he trying to deceive her? Did God really have the best intentions for Adam and Eve, or was he just tyring to control them with threats?
"And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:4, 5
Whether or not the Devil intentionally knew that this was a lie, could somewhat be debated. As we do not know the full extent of the Devil's role as an angel in God's courts. There is speculation that he might have been a high ranking angel, but that again is speculation. But it is his intentions that draw some interest. Was his intention just to deceive Eve into leaving God, and giving him worship, as the Bible would tell you? Or was it just that he saw that Adam and Eve really weren't thinking for themselves? After all, all they knew was from the mouth of God.
But to look into the real conflict that existed between God and the Devil, we have to fast forward somewhat to the trials of Job. This is what the Bible says was the Devil's real intentions with mankind.
"There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed (to avoid; shun) evil." Job 1:1
Job was perfect! Okay, although I realize that the word is not meant that he was without sin, since this was after the original sin. Still it starts out the story in Job's favor. After all the Bible was inspired by God. So there isn't going to be much credit given to the Devil.
"And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and eschewed evil?" Job 1:8
So here God goes right of the bat, bragging on Job, as to how good of a man he was. Of course, God thinks that he is awesome, for God's sake he eschewes evil, for crying out loud! So, that kind of puts a damper on the Devil. How is he to respond to that? Well how do you respond when someone calls you a flake, or a jackass? Well you dish it back in kind, and with no quarter.
"Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast thou not put a hedge around him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land." Job 1:9,10
So the Devil, accuses God of blessing Job because he fears God. Or, Job only fears God because of the good things that God does for him. The exact opposite play that he used on Eve. Although the principle is still the same. In Eve's case the Devil said that God was withholding something from her, for fear that she would come to the realization that there is something beyond God. That he isn't the omnipotent being that he claims to be. Whereas with Job, he argues that the fringe benefits are the reason that God gets Job's worship. Both send the connotation that God is not the perfect being, that is only looking out for our best interest, as the Bible claims him to be.
So God lets the Devil bring upon Job all that he can. The worst of the worst. To make every attempt to break Job, so that Job admits that he doesn't have faith in God. Of course, Job does not break down and denounce God, and so therefore is rewarded tenfold for his obedience.
But what is the price of a free mind? Is death the price that we must pay, to live our lives on our terms? To learn from our own mistakes, and our own thoughts? Or is it that we NEED a higher power to tell us what is best for us? And if we choose not to listen to such a being, then our penalty is death?
God is good and the Devil is evil?
It is all about what you think is worth the sacrifice. Are you willing to sell your soul for the rewards of a being that manipulates man to get them to worship him? Or are you willing to sell your soul to a being that encourages you to be who you are with no consequence?
No consequence except God trumps the Devils hand and you die anyway. Tell me what kind of God is that? Is he your God, or not?
I know that some that may read this will just say that I am manipulating the words of the Bible to fit my own perception. But isn't that what religion has been doing since the beginning of time? I don't know . . .
You tell me . . .
What would you do?

May U Live 2 See The Dawn
"And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Revelations 12:9