This might be a supremely stupid question, but how was it "supposed" to go? I mean, if Adam and Eve had "followed the plan" and not eaten the fruit, then what? Would they have multiplied, and the same rule would have applied to everyone forever and ever, and then... what? I'd never thought of that before, and it occurs to me that I've no clue what the "right" ending was supposed to be and how the heck that could have worked out. The whole story is a setup for failure from the beginning, but it seems that even a "non-failure" would have been doomed to fail eventually anyway?
(Never been a JW, and not particularly well-versed in the Bible either, obviously LOL. But I am curious about this.)
So in 30 years, Adam never thought of eating from the tree of life
by Mr Ben 26 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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nameless_one
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Mr Ben
They never ate from the tree of life. The Wholly Babble says J E Hoover - plus unnamed friend as he says "we"- put the angel guards at the entrance to the garden so as to stop the naughty couple from eating from the tree of life and "living to time indefinite".
But why didn't Adam eat it earlier? There was no restriction about it!
Oh wait! Let me see...
Eve: So, Adam, God said we were not to eat of just the tree of knowledge of good and bad, correct?
Adam: Yep, pretty sure about that now. Well, He's been goin' on about it for 30 years, so I'm pretty sure that's it.
Eve: (sigh!) Ok, and there is no restriction on eating from the tree of life?
Adam: Correct again! You're real quick Eve! Took me ages to get that!
Eve: (bigger sigh) Ok, never mind. Now listen, God is trying to tell us something. We are SUPPOSED to eat from the tree of life!
Adam: Wow! That never occured to me!
Eve: Why am I not surprised!
Adam: Errr... what?
Eve: Never mind. Just tell me which tree is which.
Adam: Errr... eenie meenie... THAT ONE!
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StAnn
The whole story is a setup
Nameless One, you've hit the nail on the head: it's just a story. Not an actual, historically verifiable event. It's considered "prehistory" and is in the literary genre of "myth." Myth meaning "...a usually traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the world view of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon" per Merriam Webster. So, God did cause mankind to come into being and mankind quickly fell into sinful practices, creating a rift between God and mankind. Folks wanted to know why there was distance between them and their creator and the story of Adam and Eve evolved over time to try to explain man's fallen nature. The rest of the details aren't the important part of the story, just nice storytelling.
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Mr Ben
Well of course it's just a story, but a billion people think it's real, so saying it's just a story won't help them. That's why it's good to take these stories apart, brick by brick, so that one day, someone reading these threads will have a light bulb go off in their brain!
That's why I want some biblical types to speak up for their beliefs. (I generally get no answers from bible believers, boo hoo!)
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zagor
Actually for me is way harder to accept that he [Adam] was able to go all that time standing by such a hot babe [Eve] and never wanting to have sex with her at least not until they got kicked out
Then again I suppose you have to have dirty [imperfect] thoughts to want to have sex in the first place. Not sure how they were then supposed to 'fill the earth'
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owenfieldreams
It really doesn't matter if it 'sounds right'--. Neither you or I were there--we don't know for a certainty what happened. Why pass judgment and not know all the facts? You certainly have the right to draw any conclusion that you want as a free moral agent, but that doesn't mean you're right...
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Mr Ben
Of course we weren't there! It's just a story from some bronze age goatherd or something. But what kind of cop out is that? That kind of argument will never help those lurking here who are struggling with the nonsense the Bait & Switchtower has put in their heads. The Wholly Babble reckons it is God's undisputable word, THE TRUTH, so if we proceed on that premise we can then quote scripture and say, "This is what the Wholly Babble claims to have taken place, but does it make any sense?"
But it doesn't make any sense. That's the point. It is NONSENSE!