Why did God create the tree of knowledge if He was all-knowing?

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This is a question we were asked whilst studing for my Christian Philosophy exam for my Religious Education A-level, and it’s one which has stumped me since.

Why would God, an all-knowing being, create the tree of knowledge if he knew Adam and Eve would committ original Sin?

And also, in the Bible, why did God not know where Adam and Eve were hiding when he called out to them?
 
Why the tree of knowledge?

The ultimate in giving humanity their free will.

It wasn’t an appropriate choice nor one they should have been tempted by, but they were.

Whether or not to be our own god, is a problem we face every day, to decide if we will think less about ourselves and more about the good of humanity.
 
“Why did God not know where Adam and Eve were hiding when he called out to them?”

😃

Do you have children, or employees?
 
LemonAndLime said:
This is a question we were asked whilst studing for my Christian Philosophy exam for my Religious Education A-level, and it’s one which has stumped me since.

Why would God, an all-knowing being, create the tree of knowledge if he knew Adam and Eve would committ original Sin?

And also, in the Bible, why did God not know where Adam and Eve were hiding when he called out to them?
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What you are reading was from man’s viewpoint, not God’s.

That aside, if you haven’t already, you should run across the question, “Why does God permit evil?” That’s a very common question. The answer is a theological no-brainer. God allows evil in order to bring a greater good out of it. Best example: The crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ, Son of God. No greater evil than “killing” God. From that evil, however, we all received redemption, which is the greatest good for us.

God is simultaneously in the past, present and future. He does not “foresee” the future, but “see’s” the future like you and I see the present moment. But, unlike God, we live from moment to moment. He does not. He just “is.” He identifies Himself as “I am Who am.”
He is above time. He already knows how everything will turn out. But that doesn’t, in any way, interfere with our free will to chose what we do.
 
Barbkw said:
“Why did God not know where Adam and Eve were hiding when he called out to them?”

😃

Do you have children, or employees?
Click to expand...
I used to be a supervisor when I was 17 of a team of 6-7 staff, I know exactly what it feels to lose someone and have to go chasing after them when I’m responsible. 😛

But he’s meant to be all-knowing.

Oh and I accept the explanation for evil, but I always thought that it was more like there could be no such thing as good without evil existing as well. Also, “evil” is made out of man’s actions - and we have free will, therefore bad decisions are made as often as good.
 
God truly loves us. To withhold the knowledge of good and evil from us would mean that we could not completely love Him back.

You can only completely love someone when it is a choice, and you are not a captive, but give your love freely, knowing that you don’t have to.

That is why an all-knowing God and an all-loving God let us decide how to freely love Him.
 
God asked where they were - so they would describe back their condition - to help them confess their sin.

“We are naked”. No longer in Your graces.

Unfortuneately, Adam and Eve didn’t confess. Adam blamed Eve and God. Eve blamed the serpent. Neither Adam or Eve were repentant nor did they ask for forgiveness.
 
Why would God, an all-knowing being, create the tree of knowledge if he knew Adam and Eve would commit original Sin?

Using that logic…why would God create our ability to speak…when some of us choose to sin by using it wrongly to speak angry and hateful and lying words?

Why did God give is the ability to procreate, when many people use if wrongly, to sin.

We could actually go on and on, and in the end, there would be no creation at all.

There’s nothing wrong with what God creates. It’s we who make the choice for right or wrong.

On a human level…Why did the engineers facilitate the creating of the bridges? Some people have used bridges to jump off to kill themselves.
We don’t have to choose despair rather than hope.

Why do they build cars and roads, so many people are killed or maimed in accident?
We, or the others involved don’t have to be careless, or drunk, or tired and inattentive at the wheel…

Do you imagine you, or any of us, would not choose to do selfish and sinful things at any time, even if 'Adam" and Eve" had not?

Why begin a game of sport at all? Someone might get hurt…
Why create, some people may abuse the gifts of creation?
The 'Tree of Life" wasn’t a bad creation. The sin is to disobey and use it wrongly, or appropriate wasn’t isn’t yours to take or meddle in.
 
But the tree of knowledge had no obvious benefit other than in being a temptation. Theres nothing in the Bible which said that it had any special benefits to the world. It’s kinda like placing some meat in front of a hungry dog and then blaming it for eating it, and then saying that the butcher which cut the meat was doing it for the common good.

I do accept the theory behind it though, just that God knew that Adam and Eve would both be tempted and God allowed sin to happen. But why would he then be angry? Was it because Adam and Eve sinned by lying to God about what happened or because they actually ate the fruit?
 
Eve made the Tree of Knowledge a tree of temptation. She had no reason to be hungry (as you write). God had supplied all that they needed.

Eve apparently was less than content with what she’d been given.
 
But the tree of knowledge had no obvious benefit other than in being a temptation. Theres nothing in the Bible which said that it had any special benefits to the world. It’s kinda like placing some meat in front of a hungry dog and then blaming it for eating it, and then saying that the butcher which cut the meat was doing it for the common good.
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I do accept the theory behind it though, just that God knew that Adam and Eve would both be tempted and God allowed sin to happen. But why would he then be angry? Was it because Adam and Eve sinned by lying to God about what happened or because they actually ate the fruit?
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Taking a bit of a reductionist route you could use this perhaps as an example.

Say as a Father you found a box of joints with marrijuana in your son’s room, but instead of condemning him immediately you decide to give him a chance to admit what he’s done. You put the box back perfectly and then later on in the day talk to your child about the dangers of drugs and how it hurts you as a father and himself by doing it. The son nods in agreement and after contemplating it he still goes and smokes the joint; at which point you come in and take it away; rightfully angery that your son did not admit his wrong doing.
 
The tree of knowledge isn’t defined, so you can’t actually postulate anything about it.
God didn’t say it was bad or useles. God simple gave parameters for compliance and the folks transgressed them.
…And you may need to learn more about how the ancient Jews thought and perceived things and how they passed on knowledge.
 
There is interesting symbolism in The Tree in creation stories of the area - in the Sumerian story, it’s a rite of passage for the Great Goddess Inanna (The Queen Of Heaven and Earth, later Ishtar) that the tree of knowledge (the Huluppu Tree) - which had become very threatening having become inhabited, inter alia, by Lilith, a snake that couldn’t be charmed and an Anzu (thunder) bird - had to be cut down. It was the act that marked her passage to adulthood.

That’s what is happening in Eden, mankind is making that passage into ‘knowledge of good and evil’, to adulthood and choices.

Then again, of course, Judaism doesn’t have the concept of ‘original sin’.
 
And part B) to your question is, Why did GOD send Gabriel to ask the Virgin Mary to be the Mother of JESUS, when HE knew She would say Yes, and with that “yes” reverse the no of Eve and with that “yes” join with the “YES” of JESUS and become our Co-Redemtrix?
The answer to both of those questions, your original and the above is posited by Father Anthony Alexander and/or Prof Peter Kreeft, but I cannot recall, at the moment, the full response as it was in length. But I will review their apologetic books tonight to refresh and reply then.

However as to call out to Adam & Eve, it was not for a physical location, but it was a spiritual call about their souls and their sin and their relationship with HIM.
 
“That’s what is happening in Eden, mankind is making that passage into ‘knowledge of good and evil’, to adulthood and choices.”

More goin’ on than that.
 
Barbkw said:
“That’s what is happening in Eden, mankind is making that passage into ‘knowledge of good and evil’, to adulthood and choices.”

More goin’ on than that.
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Or not, as the case may be?

Just to be a bit more gnomic.🙂
 
“Or not, as the case may be?”

O.K. Have it your way, it’s all about Lilith, a goddess, a bird and an ancient Sumarian story.
 
Barbkw said:
“Or not, as the case may be?”

O.K. Have it your way, it’s all about Lilith, a goddess, a bird and an ancient Sumarian story.
Click to expand...
I didn’t say that, I talked about ‘The Tree’ as a common rite of passage in Middle Eastern religions.

Of course I don’t share the Christian interpretation, I made that clear by saying that we don’t have the concept of ‘original sin’ and there are any number of you to talk about that.

The OP is doing an exam of a kind that requires discussion and a little background knowledge, so I introduced a perspective that she may not have considered - ‘A’ Level examiner’s like that sort of thing.
 
Sure, background, whole picture.

Fr. Corapi mentioned that in a talk I listened to yesterday about Christian theology and Jewish theology.

Catholic theologians don’t teach theology at Jewish seminaries. And, Jewish theologians don’t teach at Catholic seminaries.
 
LemonAndLime said:
This is a question we were asked whilst studing for my Christian Philosophy exam for my Religious Education A-level, and it’s one which has stumped me since.

Why would God, an all-knowing being, create the tree of knowledge if he knew Adam and Eve would committ original Sin?

And also, in the Bible, why did God not know where Adam and Eve were hiding when he called out to them?
Click to expand...
From OP regarding a Christian Philosophy exam: “Why would God, an all-knowing being, create the tree of knowledge if he knew Adam and Eve would committ original Sin?” What a strange question! Makes me wonder what kind of a book it came from.
About the only reasonable approach to an answer is to present the Catholic teaching regarding Adam and Original Sin.

Basic Catholic teaching regarding Adam and Original Sin is found in the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition, ISBN: 1-57455-109-4
Paragraphs 355-421.

The good news of Jesus Christ follows in Paragraph 422, etc.

One can put the word paragraph and its number in the Catechism’s search bar in link www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm
Entering topics, like Adam or Original Sin, is also very useful.

Blessings,
granny

The human person is worthy of profound respect from the moment of conception.
 
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