Genesis 2:8-17: The good, the bad and the two trees of Eden

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God gave Adam several profound responsibilities: tending the Garden of Eden; naming the animals and choosing between the Tree of Life v. the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Bad.

(Note: In Hebrew, evil is a slightly different word – רָעָה ra’ah, Strong’s lexicon No. H7463a, meaning wickedness — than what’s used here – רַע ra, H7451b, meaning not good.)

Adam made the wrong choice. All of us as Adam’s heirs also have a similar choice to make. God gives each of us free will to choose the good, which leads to righteousness and eternal life or we can choose the bad which leads to evil and eternal death.

I have a lots about Genesis 2 [see this, this, this and this]. There are many awe-inspiring precepts embedded in it. It talks about the creation of man, the creation of the Garden of Eden and the introduction of a couple of important trees. 

The focus of Genesis 2 is mankind, not the animals, plants, water and land. Mankind is the culmination of creation.

If you were with God at this period, you would have seen a dusty land. You would have seen God kneeling on the ground. Then some water appeared, and God started to mold the water and dust into something that looks like Him. Then you would have seen God lean forward towards the face of the man and breathe into him. At that point, the man — אָדָם ’Adam (H120), from אֲדָמָה ’adama (H127) for dirt — was alive, a being of dirt walking on the very dirt he sprang from. 

God then took the man on a small trip to a garden with lots of green plants and trees (Gen. 2:4–9). God told Adam He was giving him that place. Adam was called to live in the garden and tend the plants in that place. 

What is this garden? It is nothing more than a hedge. (Hebrew for garden is גַּן gan (H1588), which means an enclosure or garden.) We also know that garden had a gate, an entryway. God also created the trees in the garden, but in the center of the garden were two special trees: the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Bad. 

God said that all these trees were pleasant to the sight and good for food — all of them. That includes the Tree of Knowledge.

God also created a river that started in the garden then divided in four directions (Gen. 2:10–14). The four rivers were:

• The first is פִּישׁוֹן Pishon (H6376), which means “to scatter and disperse” in a circular pattern. This river went to a place called חֲוִילָה Khavilah. We have no idea where this place is now.
• The second river is called גִּיחוֹן Gihon (H1521), which means “gushing forth.” It must have been a very fast-moving pace. 
• The third river is called Tigris, which in Hebrew is חִדֶּקֶל Chiddeqel (H2313) 
• The last one is called the Euphrates, which in Hebrew is פְּרָת Perath (H6578). 

About Gan ’Eden, God told Adam that he was to “cultivate and keep it” (Gen. 2:15). The Hebrew word that is translated as cultivate in the NASB is עָבַד ’abad (H5647), which literally means “to work, to serve.” Adam was, in a sense, a slave or a servant of the garden. The Hebrew word for keep is שָׁמַר shamar (H8104) which means “to watch, to preserve.” He was to guard the garden. Adam was appointed by God to be the gatekeeper of the garden. 

Initially, there were no animals in the garden. Adam went out into to the field, which was outside the garden to meet and name the animals. God gave Adam the authority to name the animals. How did Adam name the animals? He named them by their actions. 

God already embedded language into Adam. Adam was created as an adult with knowledge, intelligence and a capacity to learn new things. 

God gave Adam a stern warning about the two trees in the middle of the Garden. Gen 2:17 says, “but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” God tells Adam when you decide to take of the tree of knowledge, you will be executed. 

Adam was given a choice of what he wanted more: life or knowledge. He chose knowledge. 

Matt. 3:1-12 John the Baptist warns the Pharisees and Saducees that God can raise sons (and daughters) for Abraham from stones. If Adam was made from dirt, God can certainly create people from stones. 

John says that God will cut down any tree that doesn’t bear good fruit. John also warns them that there is one coming after him who is greater than him and will be the one with authority from God to cut down the unproductive trees and burn them down. 

In Matt. 7:13-20, Yeshua tells us that the gate to life is a narrow gate. Only one person can enter at a time. The path to that gate is difficult but it leads to live. 

Yeshua also assures us that we will know the false from the righteous prophet by their fruit. A good tree can not bear bad fruit and a bad tree can not bear good fruit. The bad trees and their bad fruit will be thrown into the fire. 

What do you think God was trying to teach Adam? 

The Apostle Ya’akov tells us that from the same mouth people can speak blessing or cursing. Yeshua tells us that we can make a tree produce good fruit. 

Later, Yeshua says in Matt.7:21-23 that there are those who will perform great feats in His name, but He rebukes them and says, “I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.” In other words, He is not rebuking non-believers here, but people who claim to be — or pretend — His believers. 

We can make our trees produce good fruit when we study His Torah and put into practice what He says is good and avoid what He says is bad. 

What is the “Tree of Life”? Prov. 3:13-18 tells us,

“How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding.”

Finding wisdom is not easy. 

How do you get into the garden so you can partake of the Tree of Life? The path is narrow and not easy. 

Prov. 11:30-31 says,

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who is wise wins souls. If the righteous will be rewarded in the earth, How much more the wicked and the sinner!” 

Prov. 13:12 says,

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” 

The Book of Hebrews tells us that hope is something we can’t see but when we have hope, we have life. 

Prov. 15:4 says,

“A soothing tongue is a tree of life, But perversion in it crushes the spirit.” 

Can your tongue be pure, wholesome, honest and humble? In a nutshell, the way we live our lives, we are showing those around us that the Tree of Life is real. 

If we become a tree that produces bad fruit, Yeshua’s axe will come and cut us down. 

In Judges 9:7-15, Yotam (Jotham) tells a parable about the trees who wanted to find a king to rule over them. At the end, the trees chose the least righteous of the trees to be their ruler, the bramble which doesn’t produce fruit. At the end, both the trees and the bramble were consumed by fire because the alliance was not righteous. 

God gives us free will and the option of choosing the good, which leads to righteousness and eternal life, or the bad, which leads to evil and eternal death. 

Speaker: Richard Agee. Summary: Tammy Quackenbush.