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A temptation is an opportunity to accomplish a good thing in a bad way. It’s a good thing to pass a school examination but a bad thing to do it by cheating. It’s a good thing to pay your bills but a bad thing to steal the money for the payments. In essence, Satan said to Eve: “I can give you something that you need and want. You can have it now and enjoy it, and best of all, there won’t be any painful consequences. What an opportunity!” Note the stages in Satan’s tempting of Eve.
Satan disguised himself (v. 1a). Satan isn’t an originator; he’s a clever imitator who disguises his true character. If necessary, he can even masquerade as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). When he came into the Garden, Satan used the body of a serpent, one of God’s creatures that He had pronounced “good” (Gen. 1:31). Eve didn’t seem disturbed by the serpent’s presence or its speech, so we assume that she saw nothing threatening about the encounter. Perhaps Eve hadn’t been introduced to this species and concluded that it had the ability to speak.
Satan still works today as the great impersonator. He has produced a counterfeit righteousness apart from the righteousness that comes only by faith in the Savior (Rom. 9:30-10:13). Satan has false ministers (2 Cor. 11:13-16) who preach a false gospel (Gal. 1:6-10), and he has false brothers (and sisters) who oppose the true gospel (2 Cor. 11:26). The Devil has gathered his counterfeit Christians into false churches that God calls “synagogues of Satan” (Rev. 2:9), and in these assemblies, Satan’s “deep secrets” are taught (v. 24 niv).