Take a step back with me, for a moment, to the first three chapters of Paradise Lost. The audience is subjected to a description of the kingdom of hell, its subjects, and its ruler. We are then thrown into a council with these demons as they plot what their next step is concerning their banishment from heaven. Satan, their leader, suggests poisoning and overtaking God's new creation. In this crusade, we see the confliction Satan has about rebelling, and the ultimate choice of evil. He refuses to bow before God because of the tyranny he believes he was under. We are disturbed by the way we relate to the Devil, of all beings.
Fast forward, now, to chapters 10-12. Adam and eve have just committed the first heinous crime, and are devastated. God punishes them accordingly by casting them out of Paradise and imposing hard labor and strife in childbearing on them and all of their descendants (us). In despair, Eve suggests that in order to save the human race, they either submit to death or not have children, aka going against God's will for one of their seeds to defeat Satan in the future. Adam, realizing this fact, decides that repenting for sins, submitting to God, and doing God's will is not only smarter, but is beneficial to their kind. As our ancestors are led out of Eden, they are comforted by the hope they have for tomorrow in the form of their Seed.
It is truly amazing how symmetry works. Satan represents what Adam and Eve could have been, spiteful and hopeless because of the punishment rightly given to them. However, since Adam and Eve repented, they were shown that all hope was not lost. Furthermore, because of their submission, Satan will eventually be defeated and punished for all of his terrible crimes. Oh, the grace and mercy of God! Thank you for the hope given to us in spite of our sin!
PS. I commented on Steven's and Moriah's posts.
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