June 8, 2008

Why a tree?

Genesis 3:8 "Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden."

Today my pastor mentioned this tiny, almost insignificant detail during his sermon: When Adam and Eve became aware of their nakedness and their sin, they hid among the trees of the Garden of Eden. I've never noticed this before, I just remembered that they made for themselves coverings out of fig leaves.

Isn't it interesting that Adam and Eve hid in the trees? They didn't hide themselves in the bushes, or in the flowers, but among trees. They placed a barrier between themselves and Almighty God, and that barrier was a tree. Do you think that Moses included this fact merely for literary embellishment, or was he divinely inspired to include this detail in order to show the greatness and foresight of a Holy, omniscient God?

How could Adam and Eve have known that thousands of years later, God's own Son would redeem even this tiny detail to Himself, by His death on a tree. I Peter 2:24 states, "Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness." While the first Adam hid behind a tree, the second Adam exposed Himself on a tree. While sinful man used a tree to hide from Almighty God, Christ used a tree to make Himself available to mankind. Isn't our God wonderful to include this awesome detail in His plan to redeem His people?

4 comments:

Vera @ Cozy Little Cabin said...

Why indeed a tree? I never made connection between Adam hiding behind a tree & Jesus hanging on one.

Thanks for sharing the insight.

The Mom said...

i have never thought it that way...thanks for sharing what God is teaching you.

Charlotte Mathis said...

What a wonderful comparison! Thank you for sharing.

worthy1 said...

It is amazing what you can find in the over growth of God's Word. You were able to look into His forest and see the TREE. Great insight. I guess you could say that Adam and Eve (not Steve) were the first tree huggers holding on to "Green Peace." But the only way to hold on to "Real Peace" is to embrace the Savior who hung on the TREE of Calvary.