[#28] Genesis 2:8-15 – The Garden of Eden Is the Temple of God

Do you ever think you’ll be bored in heaven, just sitting around on clouds playing harps? Well, Genesis 2 indicates that this will not happen. Work existed before the fall of humanity into sin, and it will also exist in the future state. But don’t worry. It will be work you enjoy and love.

In Genesis 2:8-15, we see why Adam was given work to do in the Garden of Eden, and why you and I still carry on this work today. We will also look at this strange description of all the rivers that surrounded Eden, and why these rivers are listed. It’s not so that we can figure out where Eden used to be located.

We will see these things, and much more, as we look at Genesis 2:8-15.

The Text of Genesis 2:8-15

The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.  And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads. The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and the onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one which goes around the whole land of Cush. The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one which goes toward the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.

Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to tend and keep it.

In this discussion of Genesis 2:8-15 we look at:

• Why Genesis 2 is a temple text describing the temple of God.
• What to make of the 4 rivers in Genesis 2:10-14.
• Why humanity was given work to do before the fall into sin.
• How humanity serves as both the statue of God and the priesthood of God in the temple.
• Why the role of humanity as the priesthood involves protecting the Garden of Eden.

Resources:

• Order my new book, The Atonement of God
• Heiser, The Unseen Realm – Amazon
• Niehaus, Ancient Near Eastern Themes in Biblical Theology – Amazon
• Walton, The Lost World of Adam and Eve – Amazon or CBD
• Zevit, What Really Happened in the Garden of Eden? – Amazon
• Subscribe and Leave a Review on iTunes

Downloadable Podcast Resources

Those who are part of my online discipleship group may download the MP3 audio file for this podcast and view the podcast transcript below.

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