Title: The Tree of Life (Gen. 02:9)
What kind of tree is life and the tree It was in the center of the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:9) with the tree of good and evil. If you eat the fruit of this tree, you will have eternal life (Genesis 3:22). “May he stretch out his hand, take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever.” Proverbs 3:18 says, “Wisdom is a tree of life to those who find it, and blessed are those who have it.” Also, Proverbs 11:30 says, “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, but the wise find people.” The tree of life is called the fruit of the righteous. The tree of life is also the fulfillment of wishes. “A wish is slow to come true, it breaks the heart, but the fulfillment of a wish is a tree of life” (Proverbs 13:12).
Even in summer drought, the green tree symbolizes life (Psalm 1:3; Jeremiah 17:8). Abraham prayed by the ash tree he had planted (Genesis 21:33). Canaanite pagan religions built an altar under green mountains and green trees (Deuteronomy 12:2). The golden candlestick in the tabernacle also symbolizes the tree of life, and the 12 showbreads symbolize the life of the 12 tribes of Israel (Exodus 25:31-35; Leviticus 24:1-9).
The way to the tree of life was forbidden. Concerned that sinful humans would recklessly eat the fruit of the tree of life and live forever, God took measures to ban access to the tree of life (Genesis 3:22-24). After being driven out of the Garden of Eden, humans began to clear the land (Genesis 3:23). The tree of life was guarded by a flaming sword and cherubim that revolved (Gen. 3:24).
“So God drove out the man, and on the east side of the garden of Eden he placed cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.” The shape of the cherub was a winged lion with a human head, and the cherub was painted on the walls of the tabernacle and temple (Exodus 26:31; 1 Kings 6:29). A cherubim was set up on the mercy seat that covered the Ark of the Covenant (Ex. 25:15-22), and a pair of large cherubs was painted in the sanctuary of the temple (1 Kings 6:23-28).
What is a Revolving Flame Sword Fire symbolizes the presence of God. Adam ate the forbidden fruit and sinned and led a miserable life. This is the pursuit of pleasure. It is a form of seeking self-pleasure, an unregulated instinct-seeking, like an unbridled beast. Such a life of self-pleasure is ruin.
What is the tree of life What is the tree of life that gives eternal life to mankind? It is the tree of the cross of Jesus Christ. The way of life is the way of sacrificing oneself and suffering in order to save others. It is a way of sacrificing one's instincts and accepting suffering sweetly in order to pursue the happiness of others.
First, Adam took the fruit of good and evil in pursuit of his instincts and gave tragedy to himself and his descendants. Second, Jesus abandoned the pursuit of his own instincts and sacrificed his own life for the life of others. The tree of the cross is the hidden tree of life. The life of finding the tree of life, the tree of the cross, resting under its shadow, and eating the fruit of its lips is the life of eternal life. ‘Life in Christ is life eternal.