Tree of life (biblical)
In Judaism and Christianity, the tree of life (Hebrew: עֵץ הַחַיִּים) is first described in chapter 2, verse 9 of the Book of Genesis. There is some debate as to whether the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is the same tree.
Quotes
[edit]- וַיַּצְמַח יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהִים מִן־הָאֲדָמָה כׇּל־עֵץ נֶחְמָד לְמַרְאֶה וְטוֹב לְמַאֲכָל וְעֵץ הַחַיִּים בְּתוֹךְ הַגָּן וְעֵץ הַדַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע׃
- Genesis 2:9 (MT)
- Translation:
- And from the ground the Lord God caused to grow every tree that was pleasing to the sight and good for food, with the tree of life in the middle of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and bad.
- וַיֹּאמֶר יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהִים הֵן הָאָדָם הָיָה כְּאַחַד מִמֶּנּוּ לָדַעַת טוֹב וָרָע וְעַתָּה פֶּן־יִשְׁלַח יָדוֹ וְלָקַח גַּם מֵעֵץ הַחַיִּים וְאָכַל וָחַי לְעֹלָם׃
- Genesis 3:22 (MT)
- Translation:
- And God יהוה said, "Now that humankind has become like any of us, knowing good and bad, what if one should stretch out a hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever!"
- “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”
- Book of Revelation 2:7 NKJV.
- In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
- Book of Revelation 22:2 NKJV.
- Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. [...] and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
- Book of Revelation 22:14,19 NKJV.
Quotes about the tree of life
[edit]- The Tree of Life can never be disjoined from the Tree of Knowledge for both have one and the same root.
- Ruth Nanda Anshen, The Credo Series: It’s Meaning and Function in Fred Hoyle, Encounter with the Future (1965), p. xii
- According to Gen. ii. 9, there stood in the midst of the Garden of Eden a "tree of life," apparently by the side of the "tree of knowledge of good and evil." Although Gen. iii. 3 seems to presuppose but one tree there, Gen. iii. 22 asserts that, after the primitive pair had eaten of the tree of knowledge, they were expelled from Eden lest they should put forth their hands and take of the tree of life and live forever. The view of the writer was that Eden contained a tree the magical power of the fruit of which conferred immortality upon him who partook of it, though Yhwh prohibited mortals from partaking of this fruit.
- Emil G. Hirsch and George A. Barton: "Tree of life", Jewish Encyclopedia
