97 lines
7 KiB
Plaintext
97 lines
7 KiB
Plaintext
<p>In part 1 (0-19:15), Tim and Jon quickly review the last episode. Tim says the entire scriptural<br />
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canon is to be viewed as “wisdom literature,” but the books that specifically pertain to Solomon,<br />
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Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Job are considered to be the classic wisdom<br />
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books.<br />
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Then they dive into examining the trees in the garden of Eden. Specifically the “Tree of the<br />
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Knowledge of Good and Evil.” Tim notes that the Hebrew word ra<code> doesn’t necessarily imply “evil;” it only means “bad.” Tim shares some other examples of the Hebrew word ra</code> in the Bible.<br />
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Good/Bad condition or quality:<br />
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Jeremiah 24:1-2<br />
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the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. One basket<br />
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had very tov figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very ra’ figs, so ra’ they could<br />
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not be eaten.<br />
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Proverbs 25:19<br />
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a ra’ tooth and an unsteady foot, is confidence in a faithless man in time of trouble.<br />
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Pleasant/unpleasant, beneficial/harmful:<br />
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1 Kings 5:4<br />
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But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no enemy or ra’.<br />
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Judges 16:25<br />
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It so happened when they were tov of heart, that they said, “Call for Samson, that he may<br />
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amuse us.” So they called for Samson from the prison, and he entertained them. And they made<br />
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him stand between the pillars.<br />
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Ecclesiastes: 2:16-17<br />
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For the wise, like the fool, will not be long remembered; the days have already come when both<br />
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have been forgotten. Like the fool, the wise too must die! So I hated life, because the work that<br />
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is done under the sun was ra’ to me.<br />
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Tim’s point is that to use the English word “evil” loads in too many ideas about moral issues<br />
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between good and evil. Because of this, a more accurate translation would be “the tree of the<br />
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knowledge of good and bad.”<br />
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In part 2 (19:15-30:00), Tim notes that Adam and Eve are depicted as being in their moral<br />
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infancy in the garden. They don’t know what is right and wrong. They need God to teach them<br />
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how to be wise and how to choose what is right from wrong. Here are some other passages that<br />
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use the Hebrew phrase “tov and ra’” or “good and bad” to illustrate this moral infancy in the<br />
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Bible.<br />
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“Knowing tov and ra’” is a sign of maturity. The phrase appears elsewhere to describe children:<br />
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Deuteronomy 1:39<br />
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“...your little ones... and your sons, who today do not know good or evil, shall enter there, and I<br />
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will give it to them and they shall possess it.<br />
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1 Kings 3:7-9<br />
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“Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am</p>
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<p>but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. So give Your servant a heart that<br />
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listens, to judge Your people, to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this<br />
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great people of Yours?”<br />
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Isaiah 7:15-16<br />
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“[Immanuel] will eat curds and honey at the time He knows to refuse evil and choose good. For<br />
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before the boy will know to refuse evil and choose good, the land whose two kings you dread<br />
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will be forsaken.<br />
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The narrative in Genesis 1-2 has shown that God knows what is “pleasant/beneficial,” and he<br />
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will provide tov (the woman) when something is not tov (man being alone), that is, ra’. So the<br />
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tree represents a choice: Will they live with God, allowing him to know/define tov and ra’?<br />
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Presumably they need this knowledge as they mature, but the question is who will teach it to<br />
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them? Will they learn from watching God’s knowledge at work?<br />
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Adam and Eve are portrayed as “children.” The tree of knowing tov and ra’ represents two<br />
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options or modes for how to know and experience tov and ra’: Will they “take” this knowledge for<br />
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themselves, so that they “become like elohim,” knowing what is tov and ra’? Or instead, will they<br />
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allow God to teach them wisdom? The gift of God to the man and woman became the means of<br />
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the downfall. Instead of waiting for God to teach them “knowing good and bad,” they chose to<br />
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take it for themselves, in their own time and way.<br />
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Genesis 3:6<br />
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When the woman saw that the tree [of knowing good and bad] was good for food, and that it<br />
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was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise (Heb. śekel), she<br />
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took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.<br />
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“Wisdom” = śekel (להשכיל:(<br />
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“śekel refers to a kind of wisdom. Its core meaning is “insight,” the ability to grasp the meanings<br />
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or implications of a situation or message. Śekel is consequently discernment or prudence, the<br />
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ability to understand practical matters and interpersonal relations and make beneficial decisions.<br />
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It later comes to include intellectual understanding and unusual expertise.” (Michael V. Fox,<br />
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Proverbs 1–9: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, vol. 18A, Anchor Yale<br />
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Bible [New Haven; London: Yale University Press, 2008], 36.)<br />
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In part 3 (30:00-39:45), Tim and Jon discuss the fallout of Adam and Eve’s decision to eat from<br />
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the tree of the knowledge of good and bad. When God holds “trial” with Adam and Eve, their<br />
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response is to “fear” Yahweh, but in a way that drive them away from him.<br />
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Genesis 3:8-10<br />
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They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man<br />
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and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.<br />
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Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the<br />
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sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”<br />
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Then they blame each other: man and woman, united in their rebellion and divided by the<br />
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fallout.<br />
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Genesis 3:16<br />
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“Yet your desire will be for your husband,<br />
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And he will rule over you.”<br />
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This is the opposite of the ideal vision in Genesis 1:26-28 where man and woman rule together.<br />
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The two are no longer one, but rather two, trying to gain leverage over one another.<br />
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In part 4 (39:45-end), the guys discuss how God acts mercifully after Adam and Eve eat of the<br />
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tree. Tim then starts to look forward to the stories of Solomon and how it hyperlinks back to the story of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden.</p>
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<p>Thank you to all our supporters!</p>
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<p>Show Resources:<br />
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Michael V. Fox, Proverbs 1–9: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, vol.<br />
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18A, Anchor Yale Bible (New Haven; London: Yale University Press, 2008), 36.</p>
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<p>Show Music:<br />
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• Defender Instrumental<br />
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• The Size of Sin by Beautiful Eulogy<br />
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• Come Alive by Beautiful Eulogy<br />
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• The Size of Grace by Beautiful Eulogy</p>
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<p>Show Produced by:<br />
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Dan Gummel, Jon Collins</p>
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<p>Powered and distributed by SimpleCast.</p>
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