And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow
every
tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for
food
That is, out of the ground of the garden of Eden; and this was
done on the third day, when the whole earth brought forth grass,
herbs, and trees: but a peculiar spot of ground was fixed on for
man, and stocked with trees of all sorts for his use, not only to
bear fruit, which would be suitable and agreeable food for him,
but others also, which would yield him delight to look at; such
as the tall cedars for their loftiness, spreading branches and
green leaves, with many others; so that not only there were trees
to gratify the senses of tasting and smelling, but that of sight;
and such a sightly goodly tree to look at was the tree of
knowledge, ( Genesis 3:6 ) . These
trees may be an emblem of the saints, the trees of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, and made to grow by him through the
influence of his Spirit and grace; and whom he plants in his
gardens, the churches, and transplants into the heavenly
paradise, and are often compared to palm trees, cedars, olive
trees, pomegranates
the tree of life also in the midst of the
garden;
set there as in the most excellent place, where it might be most
conspicuous, and to be come at; for before Adam sinned, as there
was no prohibition of his eating of it, so there was no
obstruction to it; and as he had a grant to eat of it, with the
other trees, it was designed for his use, to support and maintain
his natural life, which would have been continued, had he
persisted in his obedience and state of innocence, and very
probably by means of this chiefly: hence the son of Sirach calls
it the tree of immortality,
``The knowledge of the commandments of the Lord is the doctrine of life: and they that do things that please him shall receive the fruit of the tree of immortality.'' (Sirach 19:19)and it might be also a sign, token, and symbol to him of his dependence on God; that he received his life from him; and that this was preserved by his blessing and providence, and not by his own power and skill; and that this would be continued, provided he transgressed not the divine law: and it seems to have a further respect, even to eternal life; by Christ; for though it might not be a symbol of that life to Adam in his state of innocence, yet it became so after his fall: hence Christ is sometimes signified by the tree of life, ( Proverbs 3:18 ) ( Revelation 2:7 ) who is not only the author of natural and spiritual life, but the giver of eternal life; the promise of it is in him, and the blessing itself; he has made way for it by his obedience, sufferings, and death, and is the way unto it; it is in his gift, and he bestows it on all his people, and it will lie greatly in the enjoyment of him. The situation of this tree in the midst of the garden well agrees with him who is in the midst of his church and people, ( Revelation 1:13 ) ( 2:7 ) stands open, is in sight, and is accessible to them all now, who may come to him, and partake of the fruits and blessings of his grace, which are many, constant, and durable, ( Revelation 22:2 ) and who will be seen and enjoyed by all, to all eternity:
and the tree of knowledge of good and evil;
so called, either with respect to God, who by it tried man, when
he had made him, whether he would be good or evil; but this he
foreknew: rather therefore with respect to man, not that the
eating the fruit of it could really give him such knowledge, nor
did he need it; for by the law of nature inscribed on his heart,
he knew the difference between good and evil, and that what God
commanded was good, and what he forbid was evil: but either it
had its name from the virtue Satan ascribed to it, ( Genesis 3:5 ) or from
the sad event following on man's eating the fruit of it, whereby
he became experimentally sensible of the difference between good
and evil, between obedience and disobedience to the will of God;
he found by sad experience what good he had lost, or might have
enjoyed, and what evil he had brought on himself and his
posterity, he might have avoided. What this tree was is not
certain; there are various conjectures about it, and nothing else
can be come at concerning it. Some take it to be the fig tree, as
Jarchi, and some in Aben Ezra on ( Genesis 3:6 ) because
fig leaves were at hand, and immediately made use of on eating
the fruit of it; some the vine, and particularly the black grape,
as in the book of Zohar F4; others, as Baal Hatturim on (
Genesis
1:29 ) the pome citron, or citron apple tree F5;
others, the common apple, as the author of the old Nizzechon
F6, and which is the vulgar notion;
evil and an apple being called by the same Latin word "malum": in
the Talmud F7, some say it was the vine, some the
fig tree, and others wheat F8: the Mahometans say it was a
tree, called by the Africans by the name of Musa F9.
F4 In Exod. fol. 59. 4. & in Numb. fol. 53. 3. So in Bereshit Rabba, sect. 12. fol. 155. 2.
F5 Vid. Caphtor Uperah, fol. 49. 1. & 60. 2. & 63. 2.
F6 P. 147. Ed. Wagenseil.
F7 T. Bab. Beracot, fol. 40. 1. & Sanhedrin, fol. 70. 1. 2. So in Tzeror Hammor, fol. 15. 2. Tikkune Zohar correct. 24. fol. 68.
F8 Vid. Bartenora in Misn. Roshhashanah, c. 1. sect. 2.
F9 Leo. African. Desriptio Africae, c. 9. p. 772.