Genesis 3:12
“And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.”
KJV
Read in Genesis 3Meaning
The man does acknowledge that he ate, but his wording distributes blame outward. Relational fracture is now visible not only in hiding from God but in accusation between humans.
Read carefully
The verse does not excuse the man's responsibility because another person gave him the fruit. Genesis has already narrated his own act of eating in 3:6.
Reflection
Confession becomes evasive when responsibility is admitted only after explaining why someone else is really to blame. Ownership speaks about one's own choice without using another person's failure as shelter.