As a counterpart to the previous essay, The Tree of Life: Jesus in the midst of the Garden, and having more to add, it seemed necessary to write a separate article to fill in some blanks and elaborate more on some specific points.

We read in the first few books of Genesis that when the Lord formed Adam of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, he became a living soul. And the Lord planted a garden eastward in Eden, where he placed Adam to tend and dress the garden. And also in the garden, the Lord placed every tree that was pleasant to behold and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, along with the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And Eve was created to be Adam’s helper and mate.

The Genesis account of creation holds many and great mysteries for signs and similitudes, wherein are hidden secrets of the work that God would perform, not only from the beginning to the end of the world but also a glimpse of that which lies beyond. As the Lord spoke through Isaiah, “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.”

Jesus Christ is the beginning of the creation of God; then were created beings celestial, after which he made man from the earth. The number three and the number seven are both very special throughout scripture, sharing a number of correlations. It is of note that the third planet from the sun was chosen to form man out of the dust of the earth and inhabit it with life.

And the Lord planted a garden wherein every tree that was pleasing to the eyes and good for food would bring forth fruit from the earth. Clearly, the Lord delights greatly in gardens that bring forth good fruits abundantly, especially when it is a people for himself, as it is written, “Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receives the early and latter rain.”

The Garden of Eden, being a figure of the true, represents God’s plan for man, fashioned from the same earth as in the garden, to bring forth fruit for himself that is pleasing to his eyes and delightful to his taste.

However, in the midst (heart) of the garden were two trees, one good and one evil, one that gives life and the other that takes it and brings death. “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; 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.”

It is to be pointed out that although there were many trees in the garden, including the two trees in the midst of the garden, only one tree was forbidden, and it was not the Tree of Life. It is assumed that Adam never ate of the Tree of Life because had he, he would have lived forever. But why would he not have eaten of it if he was not forbidden and the Lord had said that of all the trees you may freely eat except from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil? It is written, “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city” (Revelation 22:14). Adam and Eve had the right to eat from the Tree of Life until they broke the one commandment given them.

Adam and Eve were driven from the garden and deprived of the Tree of Life, which was the source of their eternal lives. Likewise, the Word of God in the midst of the garden (our hearts) is our tree of life that perpetuates our spiritual lives. To continue in life, we must do his commandments and continue eating the fruit of life, as the Lord prayed, “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Whereas God always possessed all knowledge of good and evil, without sin, there was no revelation of guilt to be had by coming to that knowledge; this was not so with Adam.

For although there were two trees in the midst of the garden, there was only one in the midst of the Father: the Tree of Life, “the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” (John 1:18).

Jesus is the heart of God in the bosom of the Father. “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he;” as God thinketh in his heart, so is he. Jesus said that what comes out of the mouth defiles a man because it comes from the heart. Even so, that which comes from the mouth of God is God. The heart of God spoken is the express image of God manifested by his word, Jesus Christ. In him is all knowledge of good and evil, without sin, but with all power over all sin.

Man was made in the image of God after his likeness, but Jesus, being the only begotten Son of the Father, is the express image of God, knowing both good and evil. Unlike Jesus, Adam possessed in his inner man not only life from God but also the potential of death through his own spirit, which, in a figure, is represented by the two trees in the garden—one tree of life and the other of death—by coming to the knowledge of good and evil through transgression. As it is written, “…until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law” (Romans 5:13).

Indeed, for Adam and Eve were alive without the law, but once they knew good and evil, they were aware of their sin, realized they were naked, and tried to cover up their nakedness. Thus, the fruitful garden that God had planted in Eden was no longer a joyful habitation where God and man had fellowship but rather a place of disobedience, separation, and the onset of death to be passed on to all generations.

The name Eden is of Hebrew origin, meaning “place of pleasure.” Eve, nonetheless, being enticed to reach beyond the blessings given in a quest for something more, brought death to humanity by the choice she made in disobeying the Lord for a taste of sinful pleasure.

Notwithstanding, unlike the place of pleasure in the Garden of Eden, which produced the fruit of death, the fruit of redemption unto life was brought to bear in a garden of suffering and sacrifice, the opposite of pleasure. Gethsemane in Hebrew (gat shemanim) means “oil press.” Only pure beaten olive oil could be used for the seven lamps of the candlestick of the temple, which were to burn continually and never be allowed to go out.

Likewise, Christ was bruised for us, reconciling us back to God so that our lamps may be lit with pure beaten olive oil and burn forever before the Lord. As said the prophet Isaiah, “he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

Crushed by the weight placed upon him like olives under the press, he prayed three times. “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:44) After surrendering his will to the will of the Father, he surrendered his life to the will of men.

Then, being condemned, he carried his cross to the hill of Golgotha, the place of a skull, dead to the world, having no thought for his own personal life on earth. Later, before the beginning of the Sabbath, his body was carried back to the garden, where there was the tomb, wherein he lay for 3 days, after which he rose again, bringing forth through his resurrection multitudes of fruit unto God.

We are also faced with the choice of two gardens and two trees in the midst. The examples set before us are either Adam and Eve or Jesus Christ. We can eat of the bread Jesus ate and drink of the cup from which he drank, or now having knowledge of good and evil, we can eat of the fruit from the tree of sin.

When speaking to the multitudes, Jesus said, “Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.”

If we are to follow Christ into life, we must be willing to forego the pleasures of this world’s garden and instead choose the garden of Gethsemane. There, the olives are crushed, but many more olive trees grow. Be fruitful and multiply.