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What knowledge means in the tree of the knowledge of good and evil How can knowing become an idol Part 2

August 17, 2022 • Nancy Teague • Episode 28

0:00 | 5:50

E28 Part 2 We call it the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But that description is misleading and a poor translation. Find out the correct Hebrew word or knowledge and you’ll understand what this tree really is. Do you eat from it? But, surprise - the foolishness of the wisdom of God shows up and it’s for our glory!

28E TRANSCRIPT What knowledge means in the tree of the knowledge of good and evil How can knowing become an idol Part 2

Podcast crazygoodgod.org

Nancy Teague

nancy@crazygoodgod.org

August 17, 2022

00:09 Hi there! I'm Nancy Teague and thanks for listening to crazy Good God podcast Go to crazygoodgod.org to learn more about me. In this podcast, by the way, if you're jumping in mid-stream on learning about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil - I use tkge when speaking about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Saves time!

00:32 Today we'll find out about the real meaning of the word knowledge, which is used in most translations for tkge. The previous episode, Part one, I explained that most think of tkge as a plethora of knowledge of good and evil 2 columns, one list the good things, the correct dos. And the other column, in the tree, describes evil things, the don'ts.

00:57 What I'm about to share was an eye opener for me, and especially understanding it in light of Jesus’ is finished work. Robert Farrar Capon, in his book “Genesis The Movie”, said the title of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is “a careless habit that introduces a gross misunderstanding.” That's pretty strong.

01:22 To call it knowledge implies that good is to be chosen and evil not. Now it also does not mean that it's to be a temptation through this knowledge, nor is it a measure by not eating, of your righteousness or even proof of your righteousness.

01:44 Capon’s contention has to do with the traditional mistranslation of using the word knowledge. The Hebrew word is yada – y-a-d-a. It's not about stored information in the head, but an intimate relationship of the knower with the thing known. Biblically, it can also refer to sexual intimacy. Yadda involves having an experience with someone or a thing, it is about encountering, and continuing to encounter. For example, let's consider your thoughts. How many times do you continue to encounter those thoughts?

02:28 Now we could say yadda involves or leads to attraction, interaction, desires, appetite, craving, passion, lust, even getting down on yourself. That kind of yadda is destructive. Gosh, maybe it's even connected to idolatry!

02:46 Isn't idolatry a focus on something that is not life giving, and yet we can think or believe it's really a good thing. No wonder God gave that as the first commandment – “You shall have no other gods before Me.” He knew He was the only life source and all other gods bring emptiness, striving, distance, deception, false identity, false love. Yadda an intimate knowing, a connection of processing in the mind in our thoughts and imaginations. Our thoughts become idols. Yikes, if any thought idols come to mind, stop eating!

03:29 Okay. So, the correct description is the tree of KNOWING good and evil. It's about blending of good and evil, of turning evil into good and good into evil in man's hands. And because this is an ongoing knowing, a continual engaging with something that is twisted or distorted, no wonder mankind is confused about their true identity and origin.

03:57 But the good news. Good has always been present because God is good! When God made everything He said it was “very good”. So, it looks like some kind of mystery going on in His very good conclusion.

04:14 This reminds me of Paul's take on the foolishness of God’s wisdom. “In the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know God’s wisdom, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory.” Now that's a deep truth in that statement “for our glory”. My goodness. “God was pleased about the foolishness of the message preached because if the rulers of this age had known this hidden wisdom, AKA God foolishness, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

04:54 This reminds me of a quote I saw recently by Cyril of Alexandria. He was a 4th, 5th century patristic teacher of the church, and he said, “The mystery of Christ runs the risk of being disbelieved precisely because it is so incredibly wonderful.” Hey, maybe, we could say foolishly wonderful!?

05:21 Okay. Part three - we will be wowed how in God's foolish wisdom He used the tree of knowing good and evil for our glory.

Until next Wednesday, Bliss to you and never forget God is absolutely crazy about you!

References:

Book Robert Farrar Capon’s Genesis The Movie.

Gn 2:9 Gn 1:31 1Cor 1:21-23 1Cor 2:6-8