EDEN

I. The land of Eden

A. Is unknown

Potential locations, or suggested locations?

Northern Iran- Geographical similarities to Eden

Eastern Turkey- Tigris and Euphrates rivers are thought to have had their source hear

Southern Iraq- This is where Euphrates and Tigris merge

Africa- Oldest evidence of humans and the Nile river is thought to be the Gihon

Israel- Suggestion that the original river that split into the 4 rivers was the Jordan river Ezekiel 28:13-14

13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.

What the Bible tells us.

1. The garden was in the eastern portion of Eden

2. There was a river that flowed to water the garden.

3. The river parted into 4 rivers

A. Pison- It compassed Havilah, a land of gold, bdelium, and onyx.

B. Gihon- It compassed Ethiopia.

C. Tigris- It flows east of Assyria

D. Euphrates- No description given.

4. It belonged to God. Genesis 13:10

King James Version Chapter 13

10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.

5. Eden was a geographical location.

6. Eden is derived from a West Semetic word meaning “a place of abundant waters”.

7. There were two distinct trees.

a. The Tree of Life

There is also a tree of life in the New Jerusalem Rev. 22:2 maybe pointing to the garden of eden being in Israel. This could have possibly been an olive tree? The olive tree is referred to as the tree of life because it was an olive branch that the dove returned with after the flood. Also olive trees can live for thousands of years. Genesis 8:11. Also, Revelation 11:4 states that there are two olive trees before the Lord. The tabernacle and temple required olive oil for the

b. The tree of Knowledge of good and evil.

This can be a perplexing study. Did Adam and Eve bare responsibility for sin if they were not aware of wrong and right? What was the problem with desiring wisdom? One of the main issues was that they desired to gain wisdom without God. Proverbs 2:6 Proverbs 3:13

The big issue was that they obtained wisdom through disobedience. Gen. 3:5, 22

King James Version Chapter 2

6  For the LORD giveth wisdom:

Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

King James Version Chapter 3

13  Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,

And the man that getteth understanding.

8. The chief concern isn’t the beauty of the garden but rather man’s place within it.