| The Forbidden Fruit - Sexual Relations |
Added: April-14-04 |
The worship of the gods through the ancient mystery religions consisted of orgiastic sex rituals as offerings to the gods. This was in stark contrast to the manner of worship and purity offered by the God of the Hebrews. To the pagans, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was too confining, hence, the gods (to them) held true light, a form of role reversal. The mystery religions also reflect that Eve was created by demons through which she seduced Adam, whose soul was of the "divine light." Therefore, by giving-in to the seduction offered by Eve, Adam would know of Darkness as well as Light. The mystery religions were Luciferian in nature and thus truth was revealed as relative to a particular belief system. The mystery religions practiced the hope of finding true "Light."
It is said of the mystery religions that sexual relations between Adam and Eve opened their eyes to the mysteries of life. Paganism further promotes that "the Holy One created the world by help of the Tree of Knowledge; that by eating thereof and so only was he able to create the world; and that if the woman ate of it, on her own part, she would attain the same power." ("The Holy Kabbalah," pg. 280). This strongly implies that the One True God needed help in creation. This is absurd.
The God of the Hebrews forbad immoral sexual acts, while the "greater knowledge of the gods" condoned them. We tend to forget that paganistic ideas and philosophies often spring from the same events or occurrences as do godly truths. They are just interpreted differently, much differently. It must be noted that the Tree of Life did not produce forbidden fruit. It was the forbidden tree that produced forbidden fruit.
The opening of Adam's and Eve's eyes after eating the "apple" was that they might behold all the ills of the world (according to mysticism). The immediate problem with this is that the forbidden fruit is not named, whether an apple, orange, fig, grape or an abberation of the mind. Additionally, there were no "ills of the world" for Adam to view, only the act of the serpent, the act of Eve and his own disobedience to God.
Facts about the tree of knowledge of good and evil: *God planted this and all trees (Gen. 2:8-9). *It, as all the other trees, was pleasant to the sight (Gen. 2:9). *It, as all the other trees, was good for food (Gen. 2:9; 3:6). The Hebrew word for tree in Genesis 2:9, is ets, which directly refers to wood, not human flesh. The Hebrew word for food (2:9) is ma'akal, which means "something eatable" and does not even imply sex. *It was in the midst of the Garden of Eden alongside the Tree of Life (Gen. 2:9). *It, as well as the other trees, was present in the Garden before Eve was created (Gen. 2:9).
Note: Adam was told to dress and keep the Garden and eat from every tree (Gen. 2:16) except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:17). If the tree of knowledge of good and evil referred to Eve (or flesh) and sex as the fruit, then "all other trees" here would also refer to human flesh. Note also that the command not to partake of this forbidden tree was given to Adam alone. Because after the command, God said "It is not good that the man should be alone" (Gen. 2:18). The chronology given here should be enough evidence to reveal that Eve was not the tree of life or the tree of knowledge of good and evil and the fruit of the tree was not sex. It is said of Adam and Eve that they were husband and wife (Gen. 3:6). In the Old Testament, the consumation of marriage was not necessarily made by ceremony or legal document. It was, however, consumated by sexual relations between a man and a woman (Gen. 24:67); this began with Adam and Eve. The passage (3:6) does not state that Eve gave to Adam and he became her husband, it says that she gave to her husband and he (then) ate. Thus, Adam and Eve were husband and wife before they ate of the forbidden fruit. Contrast: Touch If sexual relations consumated marriage and Adam and Eve were husband and wife, they would have to touch in order to be fruitful and multiply. But, Adam and Eve were commanded not to even touch the tree (Gen. 3:3). God does not command one thing and turn and command the opposite? They were to mulitiply (rabah, to increase {in whatever respect}). They were to replenish (male', maw-lay'; or mala' - to accomplish, consecrate, gather selves, together, satisfy, to have wholly).
More Contrasts: Married to Whom? If marriage was consumated by sexual relations and sexual relations was the forbidden fruit, then Eve was really married to the serpent, for she "took of the fruit thereof and did eat." If this be the case, then Eve committed adultery with Adam. This means that Adam's sin would have been adultery. However, no law, no reference nor anything else is even implied concerning adultery. The tree was simply that, a tree ("ets") having eatable fruit ("ma'akal"). It was whether obedience or disobedience was administered by Adam, not whether the act of sexual relations was implemented.
Good And Evil The tree nor the fruit contained good or evil. What the tree and the fruit did contain was the choice of obedience or disobedience toward God. Adam chose to listen to Eve rather than God. Adam could follow God's command or rebel against it. God could have chosen whatever He wished to offer the choice of obedience or disobedience. God chose a simple tree with simple fruit. He supplied man with the ability of choice from the very onset of man's existence. The choice of obedience or disobedience will continue to exist until Satan is cast into hell (Rev. 20:10).
Knowledge:Their knowledge involved knowing the pleasure of obedience and that of knowing the displeasure of disobedience. God knew the heart of the serpent and used his subtility to allow the plan of redemption, through man, to be set in motion. God also knew the heart of man and knew that disobedience would occur when given the choice. Such disobedience had already occurred through Lucifer. Therefore, the plan of redemption was in the making long before Adam.,
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,..." (Ephesians 1:4-5).
Note that the angels in heaven were created in a perfect place with perfect conditions and yet some of them fell due to the persuasion of Lucifer (later known as Satan, the Devil and so forth). The plan of redemption simply means to redeem what was lost. God will redeem men, by which fallen angels will be replaced. Man has existed in an imperfect world with imperfect conditions ever since the fall of Adam. God's will for us is for us to reveal our love for Him while living in the midst of a troubled and imperfect world. Thus we live as overcomers. Such persons will inherit the tree of life: "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God" (Revelation 2:7).
Above the paganistic aspect, the sexual interpretation of Genesis' forbidden tree and fruit is a classic case of the symbolic interpretation contradicting the literal interpretation. It must be noted that the truth of Scripture will run parallel whether the spiritual, literal, figurative, symbolic or whatever interpretative method is used. If there is a contradiction between any aspect of interpretation with another, you've got the wrong view. If Scripture is trully inspired by God --and it is-- there will be no contradictions. Only our inability to "rightly divide the Word of Truth" produces contradiction.