by cedars 190 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Thanks Londo111, it's clear that you've given this a lot of thought and research. I will look up those references you cite. If I may ask, do you still hold to the concept of inherited sin, and how do you reconcile this with your enlightened take on the Genesis account?
Cedars
Cedars those words are from the Bible translation. The word "and the" do not exits there now.
Its says
"the tree of life in the middle of the garden the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We are assuming there is an AND between the two.
It does not say.... "the tree of life.....AND the tree of knowledge."
We know that knowledge along with wisdom means life. We KNOW that, do we not? So why was it a sin for them to take it? I believe the answer will not come if it is believed they are TWO trees. That's my opinion. Sometimes I wonder if someone's f8ching with my computer. I think I'd like to see what my words are appearing like over there. I think I can't speak any simpler.
It doesn't have to "say" the actual words "They were created in a dying state."
They had (in your own words) ACCESS to immortality.
They did not take that opportunity and then were prevented from having ACCESS to that opportunity.
They then DIED.
Ergo, they were created in a dying state.
Had they already eaten from the Tree of Life, Jehovah driving them out of the garden would have been pointless, because they would have achieved immortality.
Not to put too fine an edge on this - but are we really sure that just eating from the Tree of Life ONCE would have given them everlasting life?
If so, how much? Just one bite? A whole fruit? Three or four fruits?
Or, would they have to have eaten from the tree of life every day? Or, every week or so?
Does Genesis actually say that they had never eaten from the tree of life before they were cast out?
Why was the tree of life destroyed in the flood? Apparantly, every other species of tree survived being immersed for all that time...
These and other such thoughts should make it clear that this whole story is ancient metaphor.
N.drew - if what you're saying is true, and the tree and life and the tree of the knowledge of good and bad are indeed one and the same tree (even though one was forbidden and the other wasn't) then how do you reconcile Genesis 3:22 which clearly differentiates between the two?
Cedars
palmtree67, please can you show me where it says that at no point did they eat from the tree of life prior to the fall? This seems to be where we differ. I would take it as a given that they ate from it given that they were not prohibited from doing so, and after all, it was evidently a fairly prominent tree.
Cedars
James, does the bible indicate that they ate from the Tree of Knowledge once? Twice? Every week? Once a year?
How many times they would have to eat from the Tree of Life would be irrelevant, since in the long run, they were prevented form eating even once.
where it says that at no point did they eat from the tree of life prior to the fall
If they had ALREADY eaten from it, then why did he kick them out before they could eat from it?
Not that anything the Jehovah God does makes much sense anyways......
Thread title reminds me of a great song.
First of all IF they are the same tree then it wouldn't be right to say one was forbidden but the other one wasn't because there were not two trees (if there were not two trees).
Genesis 3:22 does not clearly differentiate the two. The tree was still there, it was still the tree of life but I believe they had profaned it. The way to it was ruined by their disobedience. I think the problem so far with Bible study is people search it for answers. But they don't have the question. Life gives us questions. The Bible sometimes is a good go to for the answer. The question is not "what does the Bible mean?" The question is "what does life mean?"
