The Tree of Knowledge/2/en

The Tree of Knowledge

Exegetical Approaches

This topic has not yet undergone editorial review

Sexual Desire

The fruit tree instilled sexual desire in mankind.

Sources:Ibn EzraBereshit First Commentary 2:9, 17Bereshit First Commentary 3:7Bereshit Second Commentary 2:9, 16-17Bereshit Second Commentary 3:7About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, RadakBereshit 2:9Bereshit 2:17Bereshit 3:7About R. David Kimchi, AbarbanelBereshit 2:1About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel

Meaning of the root "דעת"

Meaning of "טוֹב וָרָע"

"וַיֵּדְעוּ כִּי עֵירֻמִּם הֵם"

"וְהָאָדָם יָדַע אֶת חַוָּה אִשְׁתּוֹ"

"וִהְיִיתֶם כֵּאלֹהִים יֹדְעֵי טוֹב וָרָע"

Measure for measure punishment?

"וַיִּקְרָא הָאָדָם שֵׁם אִשְׁתּוֹ חַוָּה"

"כִּי בְּיוֹם אֲכׇלְךָ מִמֶּנּוּ מוֹת תָּמוּת"

Eating from the Tree of Life

Free Will

Upon eating from the tree, humans attained the ability to choose between good and bad, or in other words, they were given free will.

Sources:RambanBereshit 2:9, 17Bereshit 3:7, 16, 22About R. Moshe b. Nachman

Subjective Knowledge or Moral Conventions

Before the sin, humans had objective knowledge of truths and falsehoods, knowledge gained by pure analytical reasoning.  Afterwards their intellectual level dropped and became the subjective knowledge of moral convention, knowledge gained by custom and empirical observation, but not necessarily true or false.

Sources:Rambam1 2About Rambam Moreh Nevukhim, Ralbag

"וִהְיִיתֶם כֵּאלֹהִים יֹדְעֵי טוֹב וָרָע" – Rambam understands "" in the secular sense of teh word to refer to political leaders.

Partial / Moral Knowledge

Sources:R. Saadia GaonCommentary Bereshit 2:17Commentary Bereshit 3:1Commentary Bereshit 3:22About R. Saadia Gaon, R. D"Z HoffmannBereshit 2:17Bereshit 3:7Bereshit 3:22About R. David Zvi Hoffmann

Objective Knowledge

Sources:Cassuto

Appreciation of Aesthetics

Sources:? Rashbam

No New Knowledge

The fruit of the tree did not change the intellect of man at all.

Sources:Midrash Tadshe, R. HirschBereshit 2:9About R. Samson Raphael Hirsch,