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NASB | Genesis 2:9 Out of the ground the LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Genesis 2:9 And [in that garden] the LORD God caused to grow from the ground every tree that is desirable and pleasing to the sight and good (suitable, pleasant) for food; the tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the [experiential] knowledge (recognition) of [the difference between] good and evil. [Rev 2:7; 22:14, 19] |
Bible Question:
That Search option doesn't work as well as people think it does. I typed in Tree of Life and found a number of pages. The articles there either had the word Tree or Life in it, but none of them pointed me to anything on the Tree of Life. I love the Forum here. There is no doubt in my mind that this site is extremely helpful when it comes to studying God's Word. My understanding is that the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge are two separate trees. I, too, am looking into why God said you can eat from every tree except the Tree of Knowledge. What is the significance of the Tree of Life? |
Bible Answer: Hi, Convict... As you study, keep in mind that Scripture interprets Scripture. There are ten verses that use the phrase "tree of life." A sound exegesis will take into account all ten of them. Here are some articles that might prove useful to you: http://www.eternallifeministries.org/rm_tree.htm http://www.biblebb.com/files/spurgeon/3251.htm http://www.kerux.com/documents/KeruxV11N2A3.asp You asked, "What is the significance of the Tree of Life?" (sic) "Man was furnished with food against hunger, with drink against thirst, and with the tree of life against the ravages of old age." --Augustine of Hippo "[As] the attestation of His grace, [He gives the tree,] not because it could confer on man that life with which he had been previously endued, but in order that it might be a symbol and memorial of the life which he had received from God. ... [God often uses symbols though He doesn't transfer His power into these outward signs, but] by them He stretches out His hand to us, because, without assistance, we cannot ascend to Him. ...Thus he intends man, as often as he eats the fruit, to remember the source of his life, and acknowledge that he lives not by his own power, but by God's kindness." --John Calvin (Calvin disagreed with the Augustinian view) "Question 20: What was the providence of God toward man in the estate in which he was created? Answer: The providence of God toward man in the estate in which he was created, was the placing him in paradise, appointing him to dress it, giving him liberty to eat of the fruit of the earth; putting the creatures under his dominion, and ordaining marriage for his help; affording him communion with Himself; instituting the sabbath; entering into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of personal, perfect, and perpetual obedience, of which the tree of life was a pledge; and forbidding to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon the pain of death." --Westminster Larger Catechism "If we consider the use of the tree of life that grew in the midst of the earthly paradise, it was to confirm man in life in case of obedience. If he had stood, he was to have received the reward in that way, by eating the fruit of that tree. Christ, being the tree of life in the heavenly paradise, is so to all the inhabitants of that paradise." --Jonathan Edwards "In the midst of the garden grew that mysterious tree of life, of which we know so little literally, but of which, I trust, we know so much in its spiritual meaning, for we have fed upon its fruits, and have been healed by its leaves. Hard by it stood the tree of knowledge of good and evil, placed there as the test of obedience." --Charles H. Spurgeon "Of the two trees specially mentioned, the tree of life seems to have been the pledge of the covenant, while the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was the test of the obedience required." --Francis R. Beattie In Him, Doc |