Texts in Conversation
The Epistle to Diognetus uses the garden story of Genesis 2-3 to teach that true knowledge leads to true life. The tree of knowledge is forbidden in Genesis under threat of death, and in its interpretation the tree does not kill but disobedience does.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Genesis 2:9
Hebrew Bible
5 Now no shrub of the field had yet grown on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. 6 Springs would well up from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground. 7 The Lord God formed the man from the soil of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. 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.)
Genesis 3:3
Hebrew Bible
2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit from the trees of the orchard; 3 but concerning the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the orchard God said, ‘You must not eat from it, and you must not touch it, or else you will die.’” 4 The serpent said to the woman, “Surely you will not die, 5 for God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will open and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the tree produced fruit that was good for food, was attractive to the eye, and was desirable for making one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate it. She also gave some of it to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
Epistle to Diognetus 12:2
Early Christian
1 Confronted with these truths and listening to them with attention, you shall know how much God bestows on those that love (Him) rightly, who become a Paradise of delight, a tree bearing all manner of fruits and flourishing, growing up in themselves and adorned with various fruits. 2 For in this garden a tree of knowledge and a tree of life has been planted; yet the tree of knowledge does not kill, but disobedience kills; 3 for the scriptures state clearly how God from the beginning planted a tree [of knowledge and a tree] of life in the midst of Paradise, revealing life through knowledge; and because our first parents did not use it genuinely they were made naked by the deceit of the serpent. 4 For neither is there life without knowledge, nor sound knowledge without true life; therefore the one (tree) is planted near the other.
Date: 150-250 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
“... The final two chapters, almost certainly a separate document and probably written by another hand, is a two-part homily. The first section focuses on the Logos: his preexistence, his being sent into the world, his work of revelation and his blessing both in the church and the individual (Diogn. 11). The second section uses the story of the Garden of Eden to emphasize how only true knowledge leads to true life (Diogn. 12). ...”
Martin, Ralph P.
Dictionary of the Later New Testament & Its Developments
(p. 482) InterVarsity Press, 1997
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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