I. Number
Tree of Life with the other trees in the Garden of Eden
There are three types of trees in the garden.
Kind of trees in the garden
- trees pleasant to see and good for food and may freely eat
- tree of life -located in the middle of the garden
- tree of the knowledge of good and evil – prohibited to be eat for those who consume it will die
Genesis 2:8-9, 16-17, LBP Lamsa
““₈ And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed₉ And out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
₁₆ And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
₁₇ But 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.“
Twelve kinds of fruits of tree of life
In the book of Revelation, we’ll find out that the tree of life has 12 kinds of fruits.
Revelation 22:2, Lamsa
2 In the midst of the great street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve kind of fruits, and each month it yielded one of its fruits; and the leaves of the trees were for the healing of the people.
| Genesis | Revelation | |
| tree of life | Genesis 2:9, 16-17 | Revelation 22:2 tree of life bores 12 kinds of fruits |
| tree of the knowledge of good and evil | Genesis 2:9, 16-17 | Not mentioned |
| trees pleasant to see and good for food | Genesis 2:9, 16-17 | not mentioned |
II. Location
1. Middle of Eden’s Garden (Genesis) God’s Paradise (Revelation)
Genesis 2:9, 16-17, LBP Lamsa
“₉ And out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Revelation 2:7, Lamsa
7He who has ears, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches: To him who overcomes, I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of my God.
Revelation 22:14, 18-19, Lamsa
14 Blessed are those who do his commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
18 I testify to every man who hears the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add to these things, God shall add to him the plagues that are written in this book:
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his portion from the tree of life, and from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
2. River
Genesis 2:8,10-14 LBP (Lamsa)
“₈ And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
“₉ And out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
₁₀ And a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it divided and became into four heads.
Revelation 22:2 LBP (Lamsa)
“2 In the midst of the great street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve kind of fruits, and each month it yielded one of its fruits; and the leaves of the trees were for the healing of the people.”
| Genesis 2:9 | Revelation 2:7 |
| Middle of Eden Garden | midst of the paradise of God in Heaven |
| a river flowed out of Eden. God planted a garden eastward in Eden | n the midst of the great street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life |
III. Who can eat it?
Revelation
1. Those who overcome
Revelation 2:7, LBP, Lamsa
7 He who has ears, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches: To him who overcomes, I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of my God.
2, Those were able to do the commandments of God
Revelation 22:14, 18-19, Lamsa
14 Blessed are those who do his commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
IV. Who will be deprived from accessing the tree of life
1. Adam and Eve and their descendants (Genesis)
Genesis 3:24, LBP – Lamsa
“₂₃ Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
₂₄ So the LORD God drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the path to the tree of life.“
2. Anyone who reduced words from the book of prophecy Revelation
Revelation 22:19, Lamsa
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his portion from the tree of life, and from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Revelation 22:19 King James Version
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Revelation 22:19 New Living Translation
19 And if anyone removes any of the words from this book of prophecy, God will remove that person’s share in the tree of life and in the holy city that are described in this book.
Revelation 22:19 New American Standard Bible
19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and [ a]from the holy city, which are written in this book
Revelation 22:19 English Standard Version
19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
Discrepancy Note: By comparing the different English translations of the bible, we noticed that King James did not include the “tree” of life in Revelation 22:19. It’s ironic that this verse emphasize that anyone who remove any words from the book of prophecy will have their part be removed from the tree of life, yet King James replaced the word Tree of Life with Book of Life.
We’d like to emphasize that we don’t malign King James Version. We just aim to as much as possible be able to accurately present what’s written in the bible. That’s why we continuously study and edit our posts whenever we find something that must be corrected.
V. Effect of consuming tree of life
1. Live forever (Genesis)
Genesis 3:22 – LBP (Lamsa)
₂₂ Then the LORD God said, Behold, the man has become like one of us, to know good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever;
2. Healing (Revelation)
Revelation 22:2, Lamsa
“2 In the midst of the great street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve kind of fruits, and each month it yielded one of its fruits; and the leaves of the trees were for the healing of the people.”
VI. What does Tree of life represents in Proverbs?
1. Wisdom
Proverbs 3:13-20, LBP (Lamsa)
₁₃ Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the son of the man who finds understanding.
₁₄ For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and its gains than fine gold.
₁₅ She is more valuable than precious stones; and there is nothing to be compared to her.
₁₆ Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honor.
₁₇ Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.
₁₈ She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; and blessed are those who wait for her.
2. Fruit of the righteous
Proverbs 11:30, LBP (Lamsa)
₃₀ The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; but the souls of the wicked shall be driven out.
Proverbs 11:30 New Living Translation
30 The seeds of good deeds become a tree of life; a wise person wins friends.
Proverbs 11:30 New American Standard Bible
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And one who is wise [a]gains souls.
3. Wholesome tongue
Proverbs 15:3-4 LBP (Lamsa)
₃ The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the good men and the bad.
₄ A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, and he who eats of its fruit shall be filled with it.
Proverbs 15:4, New Living Translation
4 Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.
Everlasting 