What could possibly be wrong with having knowledge of good? I understand this tree was coupled with the knowledge of evil, but even God acknowledged that in eating of this tree Adam and Eve would have knowledge more like His own. Wouldn’t this be an ideal tree to eat from? Is it wrong to have knowledge, especially if that knowledge is of good? Did God’s instruction to Adam and Eve signify He wanted them to remain ignorant?
In an attempt to flatter king David, the woman of Tekoa would praise him for being able to discern good and bad (II Samuel 14:17). Likewise, when the Lord appears to Solomon in a dream asking “what should I give you,” the new king requests the ability to discern between good and bad (I Kings 3:5-9). Wasn’t this a good thing?
Let’s Look at The Story.
Before his sin, man lived in a world in which everything was distinguished by two concepts, that which was true and that which was false. After the fall, the concepts of good and evil becomes the defining characteristic of man’s world. Good and evil are subjective and relative concepts, while “truth and falsehood” are not. Something can be good for me while being bad for you, something can be both good and bad for me, but nothing can be both true and false at the same time. Sometimes I may tell a “white-lie” to avoid hurting someone’s feelings, but I still know it is a lie. Before sin, the world was one of true and false, and after the sin it became a world of good and evil.
Before Adam sinned, he was entirely free to choose the path he wished to follow, whether to obey or disobey God. In his pre-fallen state, he was not prompted by evil influences within himself. He was pure and holy in all things, entirely good, without the interference of any internal evil inclination. He had no old nature to battle as you and I do.
But, the powers of evil stood close by, yet apart from him. Therefore, when Satan wished to cause man to sin, the serpent had to come from outside to tempt him. This is no longer the way things work. Although temptation can come from without, often the temptation to sin comes from within, from the old nature. Man, can easily be drawn towards evil behavior with little or no outside influence. Now, the forces of good and evil are combined within a man. Now, good and evil are often mingled together and the battle is within, not just without. So, man has a hard time distinguishing good and evil, right and wrong, true and false.
Isn’t Good, Good?
After the Creation, God proclaimed everything to be “very good.” So, isn’t good, a good thing? In fact, on the third day of Creation “good” is used to indicate the nature of all the fruit trees. “Evil” is a word that appeared later. To know good is to know pleasure, and evil is presented as simply its opposite, like something not good. Eve already had knowledge of what was good, for she had been eating of the delightful fruits of the Garden. She had no knowledge of its opposite. She didn’t know what could happen in a world of evil and decay.
What was the attraction of knowing something other than perfection? Eve saw that the fruit was good-to-eat and beautiful, but so was the fruit from the other trees. The additional element was that this tree suggested the gift of knowledge, and the serpent came to point this out. Most members of the animal kingdom are instinctively curious and man shares this trait. Humans seek that greater and deeper knowledge through moving into all realms of experience. Man, climbs high mountains, dives deep into the sea, and seeks to explore the darkness of outer space to satisfy his natural curiosity and quest for knowledge.
God programmed man to be curious, but man must learn to discipline his natural human urges, such as hunger, passion, and curiosity. Furthermore, humans can achieve a higher level of knowledge which does not depend on mere natural curiosity. You see, man is also programmed with a curiosity for the spiritual world. Although this can be perverted, when used properly it gives us a hunger to know God. Perhaps Eve was seeking this greater level of knowledge; however she wanted a quick and effortless way to achieve it.
Why Was This Tree Evil?
Actually, it wasn’t. There was not any poisonous or malignant power in the tree. No horrendous physical side effects were felt when the fruit was digested. As with all food, the natural effect is on the body. Until Adam ate from this tree, it was known simply as a “tree” just like all the other trees. However, once he ate from it, and transgressed the command of God, it was called “the tree of knowledge of good and evil”, because of its ultimate status. Many things are identified by their final status. What makes us think that this tree did not have its dubious title from the beginning? First, from Eve’s reply to the serpent. She said to him: “But, of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, You shall not eat of it…” (Genesis 3:3) She did not say: “From the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Furthermore, when God asked Adam why he was hiding, He said: “Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?” (Genesis 3:11) He did not say: “… of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.”
Apparently, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil did not receive its title because of its inherent nature. It could not have been an evil tree from its creation, or God would have been the Creator of evil. Its name arises from its final status, from its outcome, because ultimately it brings about something that is both good and evil. Just as I was Angie’s boyfriend in high school, my final state is Sherry’s husband and that is the title by which I am identified.
And why is it “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?” Because, by eating of it, man gained an experimental awareness of evil. Evil became internalized. Until he transgressed God’s command he never knew the consequences of evil, but once he disobeyed, his life was drastically affected by his decision.
Adam and Eve already knew, intellectually, the difference between good and evil because of God’s command not to eat of the tree’s fruit. However, when they chose to disobey, they knew evil experientially because they had sinned against God. At that point, they also had a personal acquaintance with good and evil which they did not have in the state of innocence. They became “like God” in that they now intellectually understood what evil was really like.
By the fall man had sunk morally, but grown mentally. All those qualities which constitute man’s likeness to God—free-will, self-dependence, the exercise of reason and of choice—had been developed by the fall, and Adam was now a very different being from what he had been in the days of innocence. Adam and Eve wanted more knowledge and more experience, and they got it, to their own detriment. Knowing good and evil was not a positive thing for Adam and Eve; because they attained that knowledge in an unlawful way. They learned immediately to feel the guilt that would be produced; and became aware, in their own person and to their own condemnation, of good and evil, as distinct and opposite qualities.
So the tree was a tree like any other, only acquiring the title “tree of knowledge of good and evil” once Adam sinned and gained the promised knowledge of evil. The evil effect of the tree resided in the conduct of man in regard to the tree, as a thing prohibited, not within the tree itself.
Now man gained a new awareness that good and evil would now co-exist along with true and false. It is the serpent who says: “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5) In other words, we see a clear transition from the world Adam knew before.
What Did the Name Really Mean?
Again, we ask the question, why wouldn’t God want them to know all about good and evil? Wouldn’t you like to have that knowledge today, to always know what was good? The first problem is that this indicates an experimental knowledge of evil, not just an intellectual knowledge. Secondly, it implies a broader knowledge than man was equipped to handle.
Have you ever heard of a “merism?” The Bible is filled with merisms. A merism is an expression of totality, defined by the example of a polarity. In other words, by the mention of two extreme opposites, you imply the spanning of all things in between. The Bible says that if I ascend to heaven God is there, if I descend to hell, God is there also. Does that mean that God is only at these two extremes? No, He is everywhere, and that is the point. Another merism we often use might be “I have searched high and low.” People know this doesn’t refer to the altitude of your search, but that you have simply looked everywhere you know to look.
Then “good and evil” is actually a very common merism. It means “anything in between the two extremes.” The knowledge of good and evil is a way of saying “I want to experience knowledge of everything and then judge for myself if it is good or evil.” However, there are things God does not want us to know, simply because we can’t handle the information. If you read the story, you see that is what Satan says. He says, “God knows you will become like gods knowing everything. That is what he is trying to keep from you. Don’t you want to know everything?” Knowing everything sounds interesting. And apparently, that’s exactly what happened. After the fall, God says: “Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil…” (Genesis 3:22) God was simply saying that man had acquired a level of knowledge that he cannot morally or mentally handle. Does that mean they knew everything? Of course not, but the idea is that we now have more knowledge than wisdom. A similar point is emphasized in the story of the tower of Babel. (Genesis 11:6)
So because of the fall, humans have enormous knowledge of how to do bad things as well as how to do good things. The same human being that knows how to use atomic energy for good makes weapons out of it that can destroy mankind. Americans outlawed alcoholic drink during prohibition while other Americans were exploiting the law to keep it flowing. Human beings, unlike cockroaches, have enormous capacity for choices; taking skills that they could use and should use for good and employing them for evil. We are in a lot of trouble today because we are so good at doing bad.
However, since we don’t like to be called bad, we had to eliminate God from our culture and define our own standard of morality. In other words, when man abandons God, he becomes his own judge of what is true and righteous. Man recognizes no higher authority than himself, so man becomes his own god. Trouble is, the god called me, and the god called you, may not always agree. So, we have a quest for power to determine who is right. This is not a quest for truth, since that is not what we want, it only a quest for power. Because the one who has power and influence, in a world without God, defines what is right and what is true.
So, What Have We Learned?
First, we learned that man is now internally ruled by the subjective and relative concepts of good and evil, more than we are by truth and error.
Second, we learned that man has more knowledge than he can responsibly handle. This, coupled with his human curiosity, leads man into constant missteps and blunders. Since man does not have sufficient wisdom to discern good and evil, God has given us His Word and the Holy Spirit to lead us. However, these assets are often ignored.
Third, since man doesn’t like his deeds to be judged as untrue or evil, he eliminated God from the equation so he could determine for himself what is good or evil, truth or error.
Fourth, man makes this determination based on power and influence rather than truth. The abortion industry proves this with horrifying clarity.
Finally, when we try to run the world our way, our perverted mentality shows up all too clearly. Every tyrant, every anarchist, started off by thinking they had the right answers and knew how the world ought to be.
That’s why, when the New Testament talks of Jesus’ death and what it accomplished, it doesn’t just talk about dealing with sin. It talks about God overthrowing the dark powers that have taken over the minds of men.
The powers that have kept humans locked up in their foolish thinking have been overthrown. Now our minds can be renewed through Christ. (Romans 12:2, Ephesians 4:23) As God’s children we are free to resume our vocation. We are called to be clear headed thinkers, image-bearers, a “royal priesthood”, and His agents in the world. Our curiosity and quest for knowledge can now be fulfilled in seeking the knowledge of God, the greatest knowledge of all.
I still have the knowledge of good and evil, that was not taken away. But today, through Christ, I can use that knowledge in a positive way because I can have His mind to judge all things. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) I must use that resource. Many Christian’s today are making foolish choices because they are not using the assets made available to them through Christ. Isn’t it interesting that our Lord commanded us to be as “…wise as serpents…”? (Matthew 10:16) Eve was not, we must be. We have the wisdom we need to conduct ourselves in this evil world. It has been provided for us through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
Dr. Worthington has been in the ministry over forty years and serves as President of Pathway Ministries.