In my previous two studies about the Garden of Eden, I mentioned that I’ve come to the conclusion that the Garden is a spiritual, not a physical, place. Folks may look for it in the Middle East, but I’m fairly certain, they’ll never find it, because even the best of ancient world maps, couldn’t help one find something that isn’t physical. If this is true, how should we understand the trees that the Lord planted in the Garden? What was good, and what was not? What would it look like, if one ate the fruit of a spiritual Garden?
Notice what the Lord told mankind: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you may not eat, for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17). Reading ahead, it seems obvious that, when Adam and Eve ate from the tree, they didn’t really die. We are told that, afterward they began raising a family (Genesis 4:1-2, 25). In fact, Adam lived for 930 years, and then he died (Genesis 5:5). So, if the Bible shouldn’t be read in a manner that contradicts itself (John 10:35), how should we understand the Lord speaking of death, if mankind ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17), and what about those other trees, the good ones (Genesis 2:16), how should they be understood?
What we need to understand is that, when man ate of the forbidden fruit, he was cut off from the presence of God (Genesis 3:22-24; cp. Jeremiah 2:13; 17:13). Life, eternal life, exists only in Christ (the Tree of Life; cp. 1Timothy 6:16). Therefore, the life that was lost in Eden was spiritual life, eternal life (cp. Ephesians 2:1-6), when Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3:6-7), they died immediately, this was the first death; the second death (Revelation 2:11; 20:6, 14; 21:8), occurred when Adam was 930 years old. The life they lost in the garden was life in the Presence of God—eternal life (Genesis 3:22-24).
So, what about the good trees in the Garden? Well, technically, the word of God never calls the other trees good. They are pleasant to the sight (inner sight); they’re pleasing to think about, and they are good for food. However, we know from life’s experience that even “good” things aren’t always good. Neither is it true that, if something is good, it remains good, if we partake of it in great quantities. This is experience, and this is what the Lord wants us to do—experience life and learn from him, what is and is not good for us. He has placed within us the ability to enjoy and find pleasure in many things, but although all things are permitted, not all things are profitable (1Corinthians 6:12). So, we need to work (Genesis 2:15) at finding what reflects the character of God (Genesis 1:26-27; Hebrews 1:3; 1Corinthians 3:9-17) and when we find it, we must preserve and protect it (Genesis 2:15). In the Garden of God, we learn to build character by embracing and discerning the Lord’s table (Ezekiel 39:20).[1]
Notice that the Lord at this point says that something is “not good” about the man. He was alone, and probably didn’t realize it. In the beginning, the state in which he was was good (Genesis 1:31). God looked back on everything he had created, and it was very good. What changed? What changed is experience. When we come to Genesis 2:18, we’ve come to a moment, which occurred sometime after creation. How long afterward would be a matter of opinion, but Adam has had some experience living and learning about life. When God created him, he created him male and female.[2]
Next, the text refers to the Lord’s creation of the animals, which many assume stands in contradiction to the chronology found in the first chapter. However, this simply isn’t so. The animals are referred to here in reference to what God commanded Adam to do. He was to name them, and in doing so, he came to realize he was alone, and this was no longer a good thing at this point in his life. Each of the animal species had a mate, but Adam didn’t (Genesis 2:19-20), and the time had now come for him to meet his other side!
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[1] See my earlier study in the Book of Ecclesiastes “Rejoice at the Table of the Lord!”
[2] In very rare instances there are babies born today that have both genitalia (Ambiguous Genitalia). This is a malfunction in its growth in the womb, and it can be corrected. However, this is not the same as what occurred in creation. God did what he did in Genesis 1:26-27 for a purpose, and this purpose is revealed in Genesis chapter two.
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