Theologian Sinclair Ferguson analyses the dialogue between the serpent and the first human beings in the story of the fall in genesis 3. He points out that in God’s original command, “Do not eat the fruit of this tree,” he did not tell them why. He did not forbid them to eat of the tree because it would be bad for them in a particular way. his lack of an explanation was a call to obey out of love and trust for who he was in himself/ So the command sought not merely behavioural compliance, but also a particular attitude and relationship to god. That relationship was what the serpent immediately attacked.
Timothy Keller