Before the curse was pronounced, God gave a remarkable promise that Adam appears to have held onto. Just a few verses earlier, in Genesis 3:15, we find what is widely recognized as the first Messianic prophecy in Scripture:
“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.”
Adam’s hope rested on this promise. Even as he faced judgment, he trusted that a Deliverer would arise from the woman’s seed and ultimately crush the serpent’s head, a figure he had already come to know all too well.