Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
And it was just given an arbitrary name which meant absolutely nothing? Why do you suppose that, just before casting them out of the Garden, God said, "The man is become as one of us, to know good and evil"? Could it possibly be that the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil gave them a knowledge of good and evil?
How was Adam not deceived? Eve simply repeated to him what Satan had told her, and she believed him.
Adam was not deceived because it was Adam that is the Serpent. But more specifically it is his exhibited "disobedient nature" that is the Serpent. Just like when Jesus called Peter, Satan. Peter is not satan but his disobedient nature was.
The question I would like to see answered is this: What would one gain by eating the forbidden fruit? To me, it seems like the fruit of the Tree of Knowlege of Good and Evil would give the person who ate it a knowledge of good and evil. Yes, Satan told Eve that it would make her be like God. But what would God have told them about the fruit? He told them not to eat it, but if they'd asked Him what eating its fruit would do to or for them, how would He have answered? I believe the answer to this question is critical.
Ostensibly, Satan told Eve that eating from the Tree would make her be like God. But, what comes from Satan is not truth ( my point in saying this is that what comes from Satan is always suspect even when he tells Eve a seemingly straightforward statement that she will be like God).
Jesus says in John 8:44 the following, " You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies."
Jesus was making reference to the events that took place in the Garden of Eden. Satan could rightly be called a "murderer from the beginning" because although Adam and Eve made a choice to disobey God it was Satan who set those events in motion so that Adam and Eve lost their everlasting life. Satan could also rightly be called the "father of lies" because of the statements he made to Eve.
So what did God mean when he says in Genesis 3:22, "And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil." Did God mean that Adam (and Eve) acquired a special knowledge that they didn't have before? I don't think that is the case. Didn't Adam and Eve already have a sense of what was good and bad? Eve already knew enough about which trees to eat from and which one to avoid. She even corrected the serpent about not being able to eat from any tree in the garden. Doesn't seem reasonable that this would be the only dos and don'ts given to the pair during their undefined length of time in Eden as God is also referred to in the Bible as the "Grand Instructor." So it appears when God said this he is saying that they are now elevating their judgement about what is right or wrong on par with his.
Seems to me that if they had further inquired about what eating its fruit" would do to or for them" God would have simply stated they would be elevating their judgement about what is right or wrong on par with his own and they would be declaring their independence from him. However, they would discover that without the right or wisdom to judge good and bad or set such standards their ability to do so would not be the same as his.
Ostensibly, Satan told Eve that eating from the Tree would make her be like God. But, what comes from Satan is not truth ( my point in saying this is that what comes from Satan is always suspect even when he tells Eve a seemingly straightforward statement that she will be like God).
How can you say this when it is confirmed in Genesis 3:22:
22 And he said: Behold Adam is become as one of us, knowing good and evil: now, therefore, lest perhaps he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever.
This passage is misunderstood because of the mistaken beliefs about God's true nature. God was not angry. He was acknowledging the purpose of the event. Now that we knew Good and Evil . . . we could perhaps eventually achieve eternal life. In other words . . . we had achieved the knowledge necessary to begin to learn how to achieve eternal life. But we were not being very successful. We needed closer supervision and guidance than was available from the words "written in ink." That is why Jesus was needed and why God instituted the New Covenant and wrote the truth in our hearts. Christ abiding with us provides the supervision and guidance as the Comforter. The problem remains that we must sincerely want to follow His guidance to the truth God has "written in our hearts." Far too many of us don't . . . even among those who profess to believe and follow Christ.
So what did God mean when he says in Genesis 3:22, "And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil." Did God mean that Adam (and Eve) acquired a special knowledge that they didn't have before? I don't think that is the case. Didn't Adam and Eve already have a sense of what was good and bad? Eve already knew enough about which trees to eat from and which one to avoid.
I believe that God meant what He said. By eating of the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, they acquired a knowledge of good and evil. This is an godly attribute they did not previously have and one that God himself pointed out that they now had. They knew from the start that God had told them not to eat the fruit, but they didn't understand that disobedience fell under the umbrella of "evil." When you tell a three-year-old not to touch the pretty red stovetop, and he is so intrigued by the glow that he does so anyway, it's because he hasn't yet acquired the understanding that to disobey his mother is wrong. There will be consequences for his action (he'll get burned), but he can't be said to have "sinned."
Eve had God telling her, "Don't eat this fruit. If you do, you'll die." She had Satan telling her, "Eat this fruit. If you do, you'll be like God." To her, it was a simple matter of deciding which option to go with. Now after they ate the fruit, disobedience became a different matter. They were cast out into a world where they would be faced with a myriad of choices, causing them to have to make value judgments. From then on, they had a knowledge of good and evil; from then on, to choose evil would be sinful.
This passage is misunderstood because of the mistaken beliefs about God's true nature. God was not angry. He was acknowledging the purpose of the event. Now that we knew Good and Evil . . . we could perhaps eventually achieve eternal life. In other words . . . we had achieved the knowledge necessary to begin to learn how to achieve eternal life.
Yes! (Couldn't rep you yet, but I want you to know I tried.)
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Why do you suppose that, just before casting them out of the Garden, God said, "The man is become as one of us, to know good and evil"? Could it possibly be that the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil gave them a knowledge of good and evil? 
(Couldn't rep you yet, but I want you to know I tried.)
