The Tree of Life
"The Lord Giveth, Taketh Away, and Giveth Again"

There are many symbols that come from the Bible with which we associate great events, such as a brass serpent (cf. Num. 21:4-9), Noah’s ark (cf. Gen. 6-9), and a shepherd’s staff (cf. Ps. 23). It is probably not too often that we think of the “tree of life” as a great Biblical symbol. Let us consider the “tree of life” and its significance through spiritual history.

Given As A Blessing

When God created man from the “dust of the ground” and “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life” (Gen. 2:7), the “Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed” (Gen. 2:8, NKJ). Adam was placed in the perfect setting. God garnished the garden with vegetation that was not only pleasant to look upon, but was also good for food. God placed two trees as the centerpiece of the Garden: “The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Gen. 2:9). The “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” was off limits (Gen. 2:17), but the “tree of life” was intended especially for the first man and his wife to eat of its fruit and live forever (cf. Gen. 3:22b). This tree stood in the paradise of God as the symbol of blissful eternal fellowship in the presence of God. There is no indication that Adam and Eve actually partook of the fruit of the tree of life, but it was available as a kind of food of immortality. God had fellowship with Adam and Eve, until sin came along and ruined it (cf. Gen. 3:8-9). God ideally intended for us to live forever in fellowship with Him!

God’s desire for our fellowship has not changed. He sent His Son that we might have access to God through His blood (Heb. 10:19-22). He left us His word so that we might know His will (2 Tim. 3:16-17). In fact, John wrote of the reality of Jesus so “that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1 Jn. 1:3). There is only one thing that keeps us from fellowship with God—sin (Isa. 59:1-2)!

Taken Away As A Blessing

When God placed Adam in the Garden, He “commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die’” (Gen. 2:16-17). Satan successfully deceived Eve by first getting her to doubt the goodness of of God (Gen. 3:1), and then by convincing her that disobeying God was actually to her advantage (Gen. 3:5). As a result, “when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate” (Gen. 3:6). True to God’s word, Adam and Eve died spiritually that very moment in that they were separated from God (Gen. 3:7-13). After announcing judgment upon those involved (Gen. 3:14-21), “the Lord God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever—23therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. 24So He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life” (Gen. 2:24).

Expulsion from the Garden was a punishment meant for our own good. While exposing mankind to temporal death outside the Garden, God intends to preserve mankind from eternal death. The afflictions of this world can motivate our search for a better way (cf. Jas. 1:2-4). After Adam and Eve sinned, the fruit that produced immortality could only do them harm. Immortality is a state of sin is not life eternal, but endless misery! The tree of life, although never seen again, remained a symbol of blissful eternal life in the presence of God.

Given Again As A Blessing

The first book in the Bible records how access to the tree of life was lost. The last book in the Bible records promises of the tree of life restored. To the church at Ephesus, John wrote, “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God” (Rev. 2:7). To eat from the tree of life is to partake of life everlasting, which Adam and Eve forfeited in the Garden. Experiencing the fruit of eternal life is based on “overcoming.” which means that we must be victorious over the forces that would keep us from being faithful to God. This can only be accomplished through the blood of Christ (Rev. 12:11). As John concludes the Revelation, he describes one aspect of the New Jerusalem as follows: “In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” (Rev. 22:2). The perpetual nature of this blessing is described by the twelve seasons of fruit bearing every month.

The tree of life becomes a reality only to the obedient: “Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city” (Rev. 22:14).