8 The Lord God planted an orchard in the east, in Eden; and there he placed the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow from the soil, every tree that was pleasing to look at and good for food. (Now the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil were in the middle of the orchard.) 10 Now a river flows from Eden to water the orchard, and from there it divides into four headstreams.

8 Before the creation of the world, a garden had been planted by the Memra of the Lord God from Eden for the righteous, and He made Adam dwell there when He created him. 9 And the Lord God caused to grow from the ground every tree that is desirable to see and good to eat, and the tree of life in the middle of the garden, whose height was a journey of five hundred years, and the tree whose fruit enables those who eat it to distinguish between good and evil. 10 A river goes out from Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides and becomes four river-heads.

‘And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden’ (Genesis 2:9). It was taught: It was a tree which spread over all living things. R. Judah b. R. Ila'i said: The tree of life covered a five hundred years' journey, and all the primeval waters branched out in streams under it. R. Judan said in the name of R. Judah b. R. Ila'i: Not only its boughs but even its trunk was a five hundred years' journey.