Creation Reversed
and when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and ate Genesis 3:6
Good – God ordered creation. That means that God put borders around every part of creation in order that every part could play the role it was intended to play. Within that order, everything was very good. As strange as it may seem, this implies that God created the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as an ordered part of His design and that it too was good! In fact, it wasn’t just good. It was very good and blessed!
How can this be? How can the Tree that caused our downfall be good and blessed? How can it be a necessary part of the created order? God made it and put Man in its vicinity. Does that seem logical? There must be a reason for the Tree – a good reason. Let’s see if we can find it.
What is the first thing that Eve notices about the Tree once she has accepted the serpent’s suggestion to follow her own heart. She notices that the Tree is good for food. The Hebrew is tovah, from tov (good). She saw that it was well-pleasing, proper, convenient and correct. But was it? Eve’s understanding echoes something God said about creation. He saw that it was good. Now Eve decides what is good. She takes the place of the Creator and judges the value of this Tree. But now it is not good because it has an ordered place under God’s sovereignty. Now it is good for me! Now it is good for food. Think about how strange this judgment really is. This is the one tree in the Garden that is not good for food. The Tree is good because God made it to fit into His ordered existence. But it is not good for food. It doesn’t qualify as something that we are to eat. Every other tree is good for food, but not this one. The first prohibition is about what I eat – and why. I don’t eat this because God said it is not food, not because I decide that it is bad for me. In other words, my diet is determined by what God says, not by my taste buds. Eve’s assessment of the Tree is only partially correct. The Tree is good, it just isn’t good as nourishment for us. It has another role to play.
What is the purpose of the Tree if it is not for food? The Tree plays the role of the schoolmaster, the tutor in obedience. This Tree is in the Garden so that human beings will remember to listen to the voice of God and not to their inner rationalization. This Tree is God’s reminder that there is a difference between obedience and instinct. This Tree is good because it pushes us toward the only source of life instruction – God’s word. It reminds us that God provides all that we need without the need for us to determine what “all” means. It underscores our dependence, His provision and our limited understanding. It is good in the same way that Torah is good. In fact, torah is tovah in exactly the reverse of Eve’s use of tovah. The character of sin is to turn “good” upside-down. Sin is deciding that I know what is good.
So, look at that Tree again. What do you see? Do you think that you know what is good and what is not? Have you taken off your Eve-colored glasses? Who decides what you eat? Who tells you what is food? Do you find it a little amusing that the first commandment is about diet? I wonder why. Do you suppose it might have something to do with determining what nourishes me (in all the nuances) based on what God says?
Topical Index: Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, good, tovah, torah, Genesis 3:6
Amen, chef Moen! excellent “food” for thought! This tragic story has been repeated (including this man) how many times? This emphasizes once again our need to “hearken” and to “heed” and to “cleave” unto the LORD and every to word that proceedeth out of the mouth of G-d. “Shema”, O Israel!
The blind man must trust the seeing man’s voice.
very good point 🙂
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made.”
I think we learned last week that in Hebrew the snake was really “cunning” and naked rather than “crafty.”
I’m no linguistic expert, but when I think of “crafty” I associate “anti Christian” things like Harry Potter.
On the other hand, when I think of cunning, I think of Odysseus and Hegel; heroic figures in Western civilization.
Eve does not strike me as a terrible person either; she seems to me like a child of God who uses her head (reason) in the wrong way, and suffers the consequences.
Sounded to her like a good idea to eat that fruit; so she tested it out.
She seems very human to me.
It’s actually comforting instead of confining to be able to count on GOD to guide me in making decisions! I know He is good all the time, and I can trust Him to enlighten me on making good choices for His glory!
Many excellent points in this article. B-)
I would not veiw the Tree of Knowledge as a schoolmaster (implying that it is the Torah), but would look at a parallel passage in Deu 13 that speaks of the False Prophet.
The Torah and its commandments are like the instruction not to eat of the Tree of K. The great signs and wonders and false ways are like the Tree of K. Satan is like the False Prophet who turns people away from walking in the ways of YHWH by the use of seducing lies. The Tree of K is “the test” to see if we will walk in the ways of the Holy One. We are given choices to demonstrate our love of YHWH. 🙂
Good point, Tom. I didn’t mean to imply that the Tree was the symbol of the Torah, but only that the Tree acts as a border or fence for our obedience in the same way that the Torah prescribes the borders of our lives. That said, I am not willing to suggest that the Tree is connected to Satan since God made the Tree, planted it in the Garden and blessed it along with all creation. The Tree is good – but only for the purposes God has in mind, not for the use it was put to by Adam and the woman. More about this is coming.
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