The Two Trees

[Valke2]

Not neccessarily if there is a commandment to eat from all the trees except one.
The Hebrew has a double used verb for eat:

Esword and Strongs verifies this as well:

My understanding is that a double verb implies an Imperative.

The Douay Rheims translates it to an Imperative and it is preceded by a commanding.

All other translations have the command.

and then God makes the woman from man:

Somehow the Woman found out about at least the command to not eat of the tree of knowledge.

**But the Bible does not tell us how she came by this knowledge. **

My version reads …"Of every tree of the garden you are free to eat;

As opposed to the following line which says “you must not eat…”

I think it is a stretch to see an imperativein the former, especially when contrasted with the langauge of the latter.

There prohibition is a restraint, as opposed to the freedom to eat from the other trees. It is an example of man being called upon by God to exercise self-discipline.

If you look at verse 9, there would be no need for a tree of life if man was immortal. That it existed seems to indicate that man was always mortal. Unlike previous stories dealing with immortality, it is the relationship between man and God that is stressed here, rather than any mythical pursuit of immortality.

This can be seen by the fact that man was not prohibited from eating from teh tree of life, butonly from the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

ANother thing to keep in mind is that positive commandments are generally time specific and limited in some way. Especially dietary laws. There are no dietary laws that commend us to eat a specific food. Only laws telling us what is permissible to eat. It doesn’t seem likely that this would be different in the first dietary commandment.

 

[JoeyWarren]

It may, or it may not. It is a Hebrew thing. It is often an intensifier. The very next sentence has another double word, translated, in the day that you eat from it you will surely die (die die). That “die die” thing happens often. Here is one other instance of “eat eat” 1Sam14:30,

I am not knowledgeable enough to define all the uses.

Neither am I, but I do know that the double eat in Genesis is preceded by an Command from God directly.

But I do notice that again the Douay Rheims leaves out this “freely” part:

How much more if the people had eaten of the prey of their enemies, which they found? had there not been made a greater slaughter among the Philistines?

 

[JoeyWarren]

If you look at verse 9, there would be no need for a tree of life if man was immortal. That it existed seems to indicate that man was always mortal.

unless as I have stated before, that the tree of life is that which is sustaining the immortality.

 

[Mommyof02green]

unless as I have stated before, that the tree of life is that which is sustaining the immortality.

Are you suggestion that we inherit our “immortality” from our parents?

 

[JoeyWarren]

Are you suggestion that we inherit our “immortality” from our parents?

no, I am suggesting that adam and the woman’s mortality was maintained by them unwittingly eating from the tree of life. IMO I think it is absurd to make the assumption that they never had the chance to eat of it. Now it may be safe to assume that they did not partake of this tree in particular after partaking of the the tree of knowledge and God’s subsequent return to eden.

as for your thesis on the fruits of the spirit, that is plausible, but any literal reading of genesis proposes that the tree of life was a literal tree versus a symbolic tree, since an angel was place at the entrance to guard it.

to say that the tree of life in revelations is a symbolic tree does not hold water against the literal tree in genesis.

 

[JoeyWarren]

This issue also goes hand in hand with another issue in this Chapter:

The He, She, It, They issue from Gen 3:15

Douay Rheims: which is most logical given the flow of the conversation of God: The NAB as well puts in the correct context.
I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for** her **heel.

KJV: sides steps the issue and goes neutral
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed;** it **shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

All others take the rebellious anti-catholic masculine:
And there will be war between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed: by him will your head be crushed and by you his foot will be wounded.

Hebrew : takes the everyone approach
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; they shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise their heel.’

Should I start a new thread on this so that valke can chime in as well?

 

[Mommyof02green]

no, I am suggesting that adam and the woman’s mortality was maintained by them unwittingly eating from the tree of life. IMO I think it is absurd to make the assumption that they never had the chance to eat of it. Now it may be safe to assume that they did not partake of this tree in particular after partaking of the the tree of knowledge and God’s subsequent return to eden.

as for your thesis on the fruits of the spirit, that is plausible, but any literal reading of genesis proposes that the tree of life was a literal tree versus a symbolic tree, since an angel was place at the entrance to guard it.

to say that the tree of life in revelations is a symbolic tree does not hold water against the literal tree in genesis.

I don’t doubt that is was literal however believe that is also has spiritual “symbolic” meaning.

Take the Eucharist for example we know that Christ said it is his body and that part is literal however look at what the Eucharist does for us literally and look at was it does for us “symbolically”.

We literally eat his body but at the same it “symbolic” of our union with the whole church.

In the Nicene Creed we state:
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.

We know that the Apostles receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
We also know that we receive the Holy Spirit at our Baptism.

We know that we are to bear fruit of the Holy Spirit and tradition teaches that there are 12 fruits of the Holy Spirit. Rev talks about the tree of life bearing 12 fruits.