In this study

Tree of Life: Immortality isn’t automaticTree of the Knowledge of Good and Bad: When wisdom isn’t so wiseTree of Life = Torah = Word of God‘Did God really say…?’: Deconstructive criticism

The two key trees in the Garden of Eden represent two paths, of life or of death. “In the beginning” (Genesis 1–3), there were the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Bad, but in the “new heavens and the new earth” (Revelation 21–22), those who are in the New Jerusalem will only have access to the Tree of Life.

The apostle Yokhanan (John) wrote that there are sins that lead to death (1John 5:16–17), but we are told that we can turn away from the path of death. But that’s not enough to get us towards the Kingdom of Heaven. We also have to turn towards life. If all we do is turn away from the path of death, we have no defense when death comes back to tempt us.

Tree of Life: Immortality isn’t automatic

The Tree of Life has a fruit that leads the one who eats from it to live forever. But it can only be accessed by God’s permission. Humans don’t have automatic access to it.

One fact that people often ignore is that the Creator made both of the trees. God was not setting Adam and Eve up for failure. He gave them a free choice, because He created them in His image (Gen. 1:26–27). He created humans like Him, not equal to Him.

Here are some of the traits that humans possess that animals don’t:

* Creativity. Only God can create from nothing, we create with the things God has created.* Language. For language to mean anything, both the speaker and the receiver must understand the code. God used language to bring the world into existence and humans change the world by the words we speak.* Reason. The Holy One of Israel creates order not chaos. Reason helps us create both intellectual and physical order in our sphere of influence, where otherwise there would be disorganization and chaos.

Although animals have some rudimentary ability to create tools or change their environment, they do not have that ability to make tools or change their environment on the same scale that humans have. Animals also do communicate with each other in a form of language but they can’t communicate on the scale that humans can. They also can observe their world and function in it, but they can’t overcome their programmed instincts. Animals have no understanding of abstract ideas.

Humans, on the other hand, can make observations about their world, adapt to their world and even act in ways that contradict their instinct.

Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Bad: When wisdom isn’t so wise

There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.Proverbs 14:12 NASB; Prov. 16:25; 18:17

The Tree of Knowledge of Good (טוֹב tov, Strong’s lexicon No. H2896b) and Bad (רַע ra, H7451b) also had edible fruit. It look like it could nourish and give life but within was the seed of death. Its fruit lead to “in dying you will die.” The fruit of the Tree of Knowledge wasn’t a poison that killed one instantly. The Tree of Knowledge could also be accessed, but God warned against eating from it,