Shortly after, HaShem sent a clever snake to test whether they would keep His commandment. (At that time, HaShem had given the snake the ability to talk, and to walk upright.)
The snake walked up to Chava and said, "Is it really true that HaShem told you not to eat any of the fruits of Gan Eden?"
"Oh, no, not at all," said Chava. "We are allowed to eat from most of the trees, but we're not allowed to touch the tree in the middle or eat its fruit - or else we will deserve to die."
"That's ridiculous!" said the snake. "HaShem knows that eating the fruit from that tree will make you as wise as the angels - and then you will know HaShem's secrets!"
Chava was confused. She thought HaShem had commanded them not to eat the fruit for their own good - and now she wasn't sure. She was starting to believe what the snake was telling her. And, after all, that fruit did look so beautiful, and it would surely taste absolutely divine...
At that moment, the snake pushed Chava into the tree.
"Aha!" yelled the snake. "You just touched the tree, and you didn't die! See? What did I tell you? And if you eat from it, you also will not die."
Hmmm... thought Chava. Adam was wrong. He said we would die if we touched the tree!
"OK... I guess you're right..." said Chava to the snake. She reached for a tasty-looking piece of fruit and plucked it off the branch. She took a bite.
She brought a fruit for Adam to eat, figuring that if something was going to happen to her, it might as well happen to him, But Adam wouldn't eat the fruit. Chava wouldn't give up. She begged and pleaded with him... until he finally agreed to take a bite.
As soon as they had both eaten, they started to feel... different. They weren't so holy anymore. They started to want to do things they weren't supposed to do, and they had new feelings of jealousy and anger. Before, even though they had no clothes, they weren't embarrassed at all. Now they suddenly felt ashamed. So they made clothes out of huge fig leaves to cover themselves.
