Man’s Nakedness
For the past month I have spent quite a bit of time in Genesis 3 in preparation for teaching the first week of my Bible study, Equipped and Empowered: Preparing Women for Spiritual Battle. Once the first week’s lesson was behind me, I was ready to move on to preparation for the second week’s lesson. But I couldn’t get God’s second question to Adam out of my mind after sin entered and God sought him in the garden.
God’s first question to Adam had been, “Where are you?”
Adam said he was hiding because he was naked.
Then God asked His second question, “Who told you that you were naked?”
God followed that question with yet another.
“Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?” Genesis 3:11
As I thought about this, I saw two options. Either someone had told them that they were naked or they had eaten from the tree God had told them not to eat from. One thing I was sure of: God wanted Adam to identify the source of his new knowledge about himself. He wanted him to be able to distinguish His voice from the voice of the deceiver and accuser.
God wanted Adam to identify the source of his new knowledge about himself.
God wants us to be able to distinguish His voice and identify when the deceiver and accuser is speaking to us.
Let’s think about their initial state at creation prior to the damage of sin.
God had created them to be naked and without shame.
God had created them to live in perfection and beauty.
God had created them to be in fellowship with Him and to live in His presence with no separation.
Then sin damaged all of that.
The Damage to Humanity’s Divine Nature
The root/source of the sin was the enemy who spoke to and tempted Adam and Eve based on their flesh desires. Sin caused them to see nakedness and be ashamed.
As I thought about their state and the awareness of their nakedness, I wondered if before sin they were actually clothed in God’s glory. I thought about the fact that they were made in God’s image—in His likeness. And then once sin entered, God’s clothing of His glory was removed. I had never really thought about it before, but today I realized the possibility that, prior to sin, they had been clothed in His righteousness, which we now all seek to be clothed in, therefore removing the shame of our sin and spiritual nakedness.
I remembered reading Exodus 34:29-35 about Moses being in God’s presence and being so radiant that other humans could not look at him. Therefore, Moses covered himself with a veil to shield them from the blinding radiance of God’s glory.
It seems that before sin we had different eyes.
Before sin man could see God in His glory and themselves the same way. Hence, they could walk with God in His holy presence. But sin came and removed their spiritual clothing and changed the way they saw themselves. Instead of blameless, spiritual, human beings, they saw only their physical state. They saw themselves as shameful, so much so that they hid from God.
Their nakedness and shame separated them from God because it exposed that they were no longer like God.
I always thought that sin made them see themselves differently, which it did. But I never thought that while their physical state was nakedness, God had clothed them in His own spiritual likeness, holiness, glory, and righteousness pre-sin.
Spiritual Clothing
Since sin entered and we realized our spiritual nakedness, we have all longed to get back to our original and initial state of perfection at our creation.
Just as God clothed Adam and Eve in animal skin in Genesis 3:21, we need God to clothe us today.
I wrote about this in my blog: What the Bible Says About Being Blameless in Christ.
As I thought about spiritual clothing, Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:28-29 came to mind.
“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, and yet I say to you that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” Matthew 6:28-29
Notice the bolded and underlined—his glory in the passage above. His glory is talking about Solomon’s glory, not God’s. Even the richest, wisest man known to man could not provide himself with glory that compared to the covering and glory God provided the most minimal aspects of His creation.
Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” Matthew 6:30
Jesus was never talking about physical clothing provided by God. He was talking about something so much grander and more glorious—the same glory, holiness, and righteousness we had initially been created for and with. Not clothing made by man’s hands that wears out and must be thrown away and replaced. But a divine spiritual clothing that lasts forever that can only be provided by the Creator Himself, who always intended for us to be like Him.
The Gift of Divine Nature
In light of how God created us and intended us to carry His glorious nature, it’s no wonder Satan seeks to steal, kill, and destroy humanity. (John 10:10)
He could never compare.
He could never measure up.
The glory God gave to humanity was the serpent’s target in the garden. And it is why he fights so hard to keep us from coming to Jesus, learning who we really are, and understanding how Jesus really clothes us.
Jesus takes us back to our original perfected state, covered in God’s glory and likeness, pre-sin.
Jesus clothes us in robes of righteousness—His robes of righteousness.
“I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns herself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels.” Isaiah 61:10
Those are words spoken of Jesus, our Messiah and Savior who comes to give us and clothe us in His own robes.
In Zechariah 3:1-5, God’s word gives us an incredible picture of the spiritual reality of His redemption of our nakedness exposed in the garden
In Zechariah 3:1, we see:
Joshua— a human high priest
the Angel of the LORD
And Satan
Joshua stood before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan, the accuser, stood to his right hand to oppose him. They were all present together. But the LORD rebuked Satan on Joshua’s behalf. Then He commanded that Joshua’s filthy clothes be removed.
And He said to him, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.” Zechariah 3:4
Rich Robes
Such an incredible picture of what Jesus does for us while our accuser stands next to us pointing to our filthy clothes we made for ourselves. But Jesus removes everything that gives Satan a cause to accuse. He takes away our sin and clothes us. I looked at the original Hebrew language of the words, “rich robes.”
According to the Complete Word Study Dictionary of the Old Testament, “rich robes” means finely woven white clothing—festival clothing or festive robes. These robes were given as a sign of a time for rejoicing.
These God-gifted robes were a sign—a reason for rejoicing—because man’s filthy, human, inadequate clothing had been replaced by the Lord with clean, divine robes that would last forever and eliminate every accusation of the devil.
Praise the Lord!
That is reason to rejoice!
Dear Sister in Christ, your accuser has been rebuked and silenced by God Himself. Because of Jesus, because you are clothed in His righteousness, God does not tolerate or accept any of the devil’s accusations against you.
If God doesn’t accept his accusations, why should we?
It is time for us to accept the gift of His eternal, pure, clean clothes and rejoice!
“Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage supper of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready” And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Revelation 19:7-8
Amen! Praise the Lord!
Want to Dig Deeper Into God's Word?
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Continue the Conversation on HER Podcast
What does it look like when the Vinedresser begins pruning something from our lives? If Jesus' words about being the True Vine in John 15 spoke to you, I hope you'll listen to my conversation with author and winery owner Donna Kirkwood and be encouraged to trust the One who knows exactly what needs to remain.
🎙️ Listen to HER Podcast: God Prunes: A Winery Owner’s Story of Surrender
Frequently Asked Questions About Spiritual Clothing
Why were Adam and Eve ashamed of their nakedness?
Before sin entered the garden, Adam and Eve were naked and unashamed. After they disobeyed God, they became aware of their nakedness and hid from Him. Genesis 3 reveals how sin changed the way humanity saw themselves and affected their fellowship with God.
What does it mean to be clothed in God's righteousness?
Being clothed in God's righteousness means receiving the spiritual covering that only God can provide through Jesus Christ. Isaiah 61:10 describes this beautiful gift as garments of salvation and a robe of righteousness. We cannot provide this covering for ourselves; it comes from God.
Why did God clothe Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden?
Genesis 3:21 tells us that God made garments of skin for Adam and Eve and clothed them. Even after their disobedience, God provided a covering for their nakedness. This beautiful picture reminds us of our need for God to provide what we cannot provide for ourselves.
What do the filthy garments and rich robes represent in Zechariah 3?
In Zechariah 3:1–5, Joshua the high priest stands before the Angel of the LORD while Satan accuses him. Joshua's filthy garments are removed, and he is clothed in rich robes. The Lord declares that Joshua's iniquity has been taken away. This illustrates the beautiful exchange God makes possible when He removes our sin and clothes us in righteousness.
How does Jesus free believers from Satan's accusations?
Through Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven, and we are clothed in His righteousness. Just as the Lord rebuked Satan when he stood accusing Joshua in Zechariah 3, believers can find confidence in what God has done for them through Jesus. Our identity is established by Christ, not by the accusations of the enemy.
What does Revelation 19:7–8 teach us about spiritual clothing?
Revelation 19:7–8 describes the Bride of Christ being clothed in fine linen, clean and bright, representing the righteous acts of the saints. It is a beautiful picture of the joy, purity, and celebration associated with belonging to Christ. Just as your blog reminds us, God's divine clothing gives us reason to rejoice!
