Adam and Eve — Who Were They, Really?

Adam and Eve being tempted in the Garden. Painting: Peter Paul Rubens, 1628 (PD)

Who were Adam and Eve? What were they? Were they Homo sapiens?

Genesis seems to describe them as human, yet God tells Adam that he will surely die on the day he eats from the tree of the fruit of knowledge of good and evil. And Adam lives for 930 years, according to Genesis 5. If Adam and Eve did not have children in the Garden, then Cain, Abel and Seth would have been born after their parents had been expelled. Seth was born when Adam was 130 years old, so Adam lived at least 800 years after he left the Garden. So, what died on the day he ate the fruit?

The consensus seems to be that Adam died spiritually. So was Eden only a spiritual garden? Was Adam only in spiritual form?
These are the types of concerns to be addressed by this website, though this is only the starting point. Where this discussion leads us is limited only by imagination and a thirst for understanding, but if you comment, please keep the discussion within the scope of the title.

Adam and Eve, Spirit or Flesh?

In the Garden, Adam and Eve were in spirit form only. All of the descriptions of physicality were metaphor only.

That’s my current take on Genesis. Why do I think this?

First of all, God tells Adam that he would die on the day he ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But both Adam and Eve did not literally, physically die on that day. Both were escorted out of the Garden and Adam, according to Genesis 5, lived to the ripe old age of 930.

So, in the Garden, Adam and Eve were the individuals created in Genesis 1:26—created in the image and likeness of God. In other words, they were non-physical, spiritual and potentially immortal sources of creation. Essentially, this makes them baby gods or angels. Jesus, in the New Testament, reinforces this notion when he reminds his enemies of what is written in their Law—that “ye are gods” (John 10:34). Christ’s reference to Psalm 82:6-7 seems to go beyond the use of this label to mere magistrates. After all, his enemies were about to stone him for blasphemy. They had misunderstood his claim that he and the Father were one to be a claim of being God Himself. But the oneness of which Jesus spoke was the harmony of purpose that only faith can carry. The magistrates of Psalms had abused their power and yet were still called “gods.”

Some of my friends refuse to believe that we are baby gods. Perhaps it is their humility. And that is a good thing. Those without humility would abuse their abilities if they had the chance, but humility is required to develop them. Spiritual maturity requires humility. But our mandate is to use those abilities and to become more and more like God. As we do this, we move closer and closer to Him. Christ repeated the idea that the miracles attributed to him were really the faith of the individuals who received the gift. This is what Adam and Eve gave up when they left the Garden.

Both of the trees mentioned were also spiritual and not physical. To the Jewish group, Kabbalists, the “Tree of Life” is a conceptual matrix of nodes (Sephirot). The “female” half of this tree descends from God (“crown”) and the “male” half ascends back toward God. These nodes have meanings like “wisdom,” “understanding,” “kindness,” “beauty,” “foundation” and others.

So, what of the other tree—the one bearing the forbidden fruit? This is covered in more detail in the “Forbidden Fruit” article. But quite simply, this one is also non-physical consisting of dichotomies like good-evil, right-wrong, generous-selfish, compassion-indifference, confidence-doubt and many others.

If Adam and Eve were spirit in the Garden, then they seemed to have been very physical on Earth. Genesis 5:2 gives us an unexpected perspective. Here it tells us that Adam is a group of both male and female. Thus Adam in Genesis 5 seems to be not only an individual, but an eponymous tribe, too. Could Adam in the Garden have been all of us, spiritually? Half of us?

What are your thoughts on this?

Rod Martin, Jr.
The Bible’s Hidden Wisdom

This article was originally published 2012:1212 on GenesisCode.net forum.

What Was the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden?

Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden with the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Painting: Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1530 (PD).

In Genesis, the Tree of Life is the source of everlasting life, and God sends Man from the Garden so that he will not have this after also having the knowledge of good and evil. But what is this tree, really?

In the Kabbalah (the Jewish science of nature), the Tree of Life is a symbol—a network of connected nodes. Each node has meaning, like wisdom or compassion. There are various paths between the nodes and these have meaning, too. How is this Tree of Life related to the Tree of Life which exists in the Garden? Is it the same?

Genesis 3 ends with the words, “Tree of Life.” It is perhaps by design that the following two Genesis chapters (4 and 5) contain the Kabbalah’s Tree of Life. The Genesis Code discussed on this website, and in the book, The Bible’s Hidden Wisdom, reveals this symbol embedded in these two chapters. Why would such an important concept be hidden in Genesis? What is the purpose of this Tree of Life? What is its relation to the “everlasting life” discussed by Jesus?

Why is the “Tree of Life” Hidden in Genesis?

To the Kabbalists who wrote the Bible, the Tree of Life is a pattern of attributes. Drawing: Eliyak (PD).

Genesis 3 introduces the “Tree of Life”—a source of immortality or “everlasting life.” Jesus talks of this “everlasting life” saying that we need to give up our lives in order to gain it. This immortality is the subject of another topic on this website. Here, I’m interested in exploring the significance of the “Tree of Life.”

Jesus didn’t talk about this “Tree of Life” during his ministry. He didn’t say we need to seek it out to gain the everlasting life promised us. And certainly it seems clear that that this “tree” is not a physical plant, just as the forbidden fruit was not physical plant material and just as Adam and Eve did not suffer a physical death.

The Kabbalah includes a “Tree of Life” in its teachings. This consists of ten nodes in a matrix pattern. Sometimes, this includes an 11th node called, “Da’at,” but this is only when another node is withdrawn, so the number always remains ten.

In Genesis, “Tree of Life” is Etz Chaim. The Tree of Life article in Wikipedia tells us that this is “a common term used in Judaism. The expression, found in the Book of Proverbs, is figuratively applied to the Torah itself. Etz Chaim is also a common name for yeshivas and synagogues as well as for works of Rabbinic literature. Further, it is also used to describe each of the wooden poles to which the parchment of a Sefer Torah is attached.”

The Wikipedia article also says of “Etz Chaim” (“Tree of Life”) that it is “figuratively applied to the Torah itself: ‘It [the Torah] is a Tree of Life to those who cleave to it.’“

Thus, this everlasting life seems to be the purpose of it all. Every biblical word, every story, every idea in the Bible has but one purpose—our own reclaiming of everlasting life.

The “Tree of Life” is also mentioned in Revelations in three places: Revelation 22:2, 19, and,

“Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God” (Revelation 2:7).

“Etz Chaim” are the last two words of Genesis 3—the chapter where Adam and Eve were escorted out of the Garden. The fact that the Kabbalah’s “Tree of Life” pattern is to be found embedded in Genesis 4 and 5 seems to make a pointer out of those last two words of Genesis 3.

Here is the “Tree of Life” found in Genesis 4 and 5:

One half of the Tree of Life is found in Genesis 4 and the other half is found in Genesis 5. The first shows the descending path from God. The second shows the return path toward God. Drawing: Rod Martin, Jr. ©. Click on the image to view full size.

Why Hidden?

We find clues throughout the Bible. Each one of these clues makes clear the importance of humility. We find it in the humble sacrifice of Abel, but not in that of his brother, Cain. We find it in the obedience of Abraham when he takes Isaac into the wilderness to be sacrificed. We find it in the lessons of Jesus when he tells us what he doesn’t like about the behavior of the Pharisees.

But we also find clues in human nature. When someone is certain they know the answers, they stop looking. That certainty can be “arrogance” or it can be “faith.” What’s the difference? Humility is the difference between arrogance and faith. When a scientist assumes that they know it all (and some do), they are being arrogant. They won’t find new answers. Finding new answers requires humility—an openness to receive something new.

If humility is the key to the “Tree of Life,” and humility is required to find answers hidden in the Bible, then one can be certain that a great deal of wisdom has been hidden in this Holy Book in order to elicit a never-ending flood of humility.

Rod Martin, Jr.
The Bible’s Hidden Wisdom

This article was originally published 2011:1223 on GenesisCode.net/blog.

What is the Forbidden Fruit?

Introduction: Forbidden Fruit

The red apple has frequently been used as a symbol for the Forbidden Fruit, but the real meaning is something more profound. Photo: Abhijit Tembhekar (CC BY 2.0).

If our spiritual selves are immortal, does the Forbidden Fruit still affect us?

What is the relationship between the Forbidden Fruit and Salvation?

Genesis 2:17 tells us what will happen if Adam or Eve eat this fruit: “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” What does “surely die” mean, here? After the Garden of Eden, Adam lived for at least 800 more years, according to Genesis 5.

Forbidden Fruit: What is It?

Many of attempted to relate the “forbidden fruit” of Genesis 2 and 3 to some specific form of plant material. Wikipedia on the subject says, “Potential forbidden fruits of the Garden of Eden include the pomegranate, the fig, the carob, the etrog or citron, the pear, and, more recently, the datura.” Western culture frequently portrays this as the “apple,” both in art and in literature. The phrase “bite of the apple,” means the act of turning to something evil or taboo.

The “forbidden fruit” was certainly the object of desire. In the case of Genesis, this object of desire was “fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.” That’s quite a mouth full, but what does it mean?

God had told Adam that he would surely die on the day he ate of the fruit. Genesis 3 shows Adam and Eve eating of that fruit and being escorted out of the Garden. Genesis 5 tells us that Adam lived for 930 years, giving us many sons and daughters. In fact, Genesis 5:3 tells us that Adam was 130 years when he and his wife had their son, Seth. So, what gives here? Did Adam and Eve die or didn’t they?

If we take the word “die” literally, then we have a big problem. What else could “die” mean? It could mean that Adam and Eve died in some other fashion than literally and physically. In fact, they had died spiritually.

It may well prove to be that the Garden was not a physical place at all, but a spiritual place. That would mean that the fruit of the Garden was not physical but spiritual fruit.

“Fruit” means the “product of” something. The fruit of industry includes cars, televisions, washing machines and more. The fruit of Rembrandt was masterpiece paintings.

Two Trees in the Garden: Good Fruit and Forbidden Fruit

So, what would the fruit of a tree of knowledge of “good and bad” be? Again, this tree was likely not physical, but perhaps a conceptual matrix of branches and nodes. In fact, the other famous tree of the Garden, the “Tree of Life” may provide us a clue. In the Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism), we find a “Tree of Life” which is a matrix of branches and nodes—the nodes being called “sefirot.” Each node has a meaning—crown, wisdom, understanding, kindness, severity, beauty, eternity, splendor, foundation and kingship.

Could the Tree of Knowledge have similar branches connecting conceptual nodes? What kinds of nodes? What kinds of concepts? Perhaps we already have a clue in the words “good” and “evil.” These are dichotomies—opposites. The tree might consist of dichotomies—the imperfections of the physical (non-spiritual) realm—good-evil, right-wrong, compassion-indifference, wisdom-stupidity, generous-selfish and many others.

Why would such fruit be so bad? Could it be that a non-physical being might become trapped in the physical realm when “entertained” by so many “wonderfully seductive” varieties? Add a touch of mortal good with moderate indifference, utter stupidity and just a dash of generosity. Or one could take on the traits of strong evil, enough wisdom to be dangerous, utter selfishness, but a moderate compassion to beautiful ladies in distress. Get the idea? This is the stuff of mortal existence. This is the kind of thing that could make an immortal, spiritual being blind and dependent on physical methods of sight and sense.

What are your thoughts?

Rod Martin, Jr.
The Bible’s Hidden Wisdom

This article was originally published 2011:1217 on GenesisCode.net.