Genesis 3:22

Genesis 3:22 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
• New International Version (NIV)And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—"
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”—

Context of Genesis 3:22

20And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living. 21Unto Adam also and to his wife did Yhwh God make coats of skins, and clothed them. And Yhwh God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: 23Therefore Yhwh God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. 24So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Genesis 3:22 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר׀ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהִ֗ים הֵ֤ן הָֽאָדָם֙ הָיָה֙ כְּאַחַ֣ד מִמֶּ֔נּוּ לָדַ֖עַת ט֣וֹב וָרָ֑ע וְעַתָּ֣ה׀ פֶּן־יִשְׁלַ֣ח יָד֗וֹ וְלָקַח֙ גַּ֚ם מֵעֵ֣ץ הַֽחַיִּ֔ים וְאָכַ֖ל וָחַ֥י לְעֹלָֽם׃Read the interlinear

• And Yhwhיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Beholdהֵןhên · look!H2005
• the manאָדָם'âdâm · the man (Adam)H120
• is become as oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
• of us, to knowיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• goodטוֹבţôb · goodH2896
• and evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
• and now, lest he put forthשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: reachH7971
• his handיָדyâd · handH3027
• and takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
• also of the treeעֵץ‛êts · treeH6086
• of lifeחַיִּיםchay · lifeH2416
• and eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
• and liveחָיַיchâyay · to liveH2425
• for everעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769

Cross-references for Genesis 3:22

• Genesis 3:5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
• Genesis 1:26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
• Genesis 11:6And Yhwh said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
• Isaiah 19:12Where are they? where are thy wise men? and let them tell thee now, and let them know what Yhwh of Armies hath purposed upon Egypt.
• Isaiah 47:12Stand now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, wherein thou hast laboured from thy youth; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail.
• Jeremiah 22:23O inhabitant of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail!
• Genesis 2:9And out of the ground made Yhwh 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, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
• Proverbs 3:18She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
• Revelation 2:7He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Assemblies; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Garden of God.
• Revelation 22:2In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
• Psalms 22:26The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise Yhwh that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.
• John 6:48I am that bread of life.

Commentaries on Genesis 3:22

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22Behold, the man is become as one of us - On all hands this text is allowed to be difficult, and the difficulty is increased by our translation, which is opposed to the original Hebrew and the most authentic versions. The Hebrew has היה hayah, which is the third person preterite tense, and signifies was, not is. The Samaritan text, the Samaritan version, the Syriac, and the Septuagint, have the same tense. These lead us to a very different sense, and…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 22-24Verses 22-24 - XVII. The Execution 24. כרוּב kerûb ברך in Aramaic: “carve, plow”; Persian: “grip, grasp.” This word occurs about eighty-seven times in the Hebrew scriptures; in sixty of which it refers to carved or embroidered figures; in twenty-two to the living being in the vision of Ezekiel Ezekiel 28:14, Ezekiel 28:16; in two to a being on which the Lord is poetically described as riding 2 Samuel 22:11; Psalm 18:11; and in the present passage…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 22-24Verses 22-24 God bid man go out; told him he should no longer occupy and enjoy that garden: but man liked the place, and was unwilling to leave it, therefore God made him go out. This signified the shutting out of him, and all his guilty race, from that communion with God, which was the bliss and glory of paradise. But man was only sent to till the ground out of which he was taken. He was sent to a place of toil, not to a place of torment. Our first…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 22like one of Us: The plural likely shows God speaking with his heavenly court of angels (see study note on 1:26). the tree of life … live forever: God showed mercy by preventing the humans from eating from the tree of life and living forever in a sinful condition. But through Jesus Christ, eternal life is available again (see Revelation 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2222. And God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us--not spoken in irony as is generally supposed, but in deep compassion. The words should be rendered, "Behold, what has become [by sin] of the man who was as one of us"! Formed, at first, in our image to know good and evil--how sad his condition now. and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life--This tree being a pledge of that immortal life with which obedience should be…Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 3:22

• Adam
• Banishment
• Knowledge
• Life
• Sin
• Tree
• Trinity

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Tree of life
• Above
• Adam
• Beguile
• Bread
• Clothe
• Coat
• Conception

Commentaries on Genesis 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings