With a Subtitle: Nope, just an apple.
A brief Excerpt: The Bible does not specify the type of fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, though it is commonly believed to be an apple. This belief may have originated from the Latin word for apple, “mālum,” which is similar to the word for “evil.”
Theology on the Lighter Side – Many think that the Bible is clear that the first sin committed by man was when Adam ate an apple from the tree of good and evil. In fact, no modern translation uses the word “apple” to describe the fruit that God told Adam and Eve never to eat. So where did the apple come from?
God was clear in Genesis 2:16-17 that Adam and Eve could eat from any tree, with the single exception of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Eve later clarifies to the serpent (Satan) that the tree contains the Hebrew word peri which means “fruit,” “produce,” “results,” or “reward” (Genesis 3:3). Since the context is a tree, it is typically translated as “fruit.” The first sin committed by the human race was the decision made by Adam and Eve to overrule God’s command, prompted by Satan (Genesis 3:4-5). It began the fall of mankind, which continues unabated to this day (Romans 5:12).
Why an Apple?
Scripture never mentions what type of fruit the knowledge of good and evil tree produced, which led to speculation over the centuries. Some believe that the reference to an apple began when the Bible was translated into Latin since the word for “apple” is mālum, which is very similar to the word mălum, which means “evil.”
Other traditions from folklore suggest that art and imagery of the larynx was caused by a malady from an apple being lodged in the throat … referred to as our Adam’s apple.
Regardless of the source of the forbidden fruit being an apple, it is not supported by the Bible. What is clear from the passages that follow is that Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden because of their sin and told by God …
Then he said to the woman, “I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth. And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you.” And to the man he said, “Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it. It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains. By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return.” Genesis 3:16-19
This is the life of mankind. We inherited Adamic sin and we sin ourselves.
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. - Romans 3:23
But the Lord has provided a way out of the dilemma: the birth, sinless life, and sacrificial death of His Son, Jesus Christ. Christ has paid for our release from Adam’s sin and our own sin nature. We need only to accept that gift.
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. - Ephesians 2:8-9
Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words
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