Genesis 2:16

And the LORD God commanded him, “You may eat freely from every tree of the garden,

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — The LORD God speaks directly to the man in the Garden of Eden immediately after placing him there to cultivate and keep it. This declaration establishes the scope of permitted activity before the subsequent restriction.

The words — The verb יְצַו (Tzav) translates literally as "he commanded," marking a divine directive rather than an invitation. The phrase מִכֹּל עֵץ (mi-kol etz) means "from every tree," emphasizing the totality of the granted access.

The thread — The principle of divine permission over creation runs through 1 Timothy 4:4, which states that every creature of God is good and nothing should be rejected with thanksgiving. The balance between granted freedom and enforced boundary appears in 1 Samuel 15:22, which contrasts obedience to God's voice with ritual sacrifice.

Why it lands — The text requires the reader to acknowledge that human enjoyment of creation is explicitly granted but structurally bounded. It demands immediate recognition that permission and prohibition function as a single divine instruction.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

וַיְצַו֙va/y.Tzavand/ he commanded יְהוָ֣הYah.wehYahweh אֱלֹהִ֔ים'E.lo.HimGod עַל־'al-to הָֽאָדָ֖םha./'a.Damthe/ man לֵאמֹ֑רle./Mor<to>/ saying מִכֹּ֥לmi./Kolfrom/ any עֵֽץ־'etz-<the> tree of הַגָּ֖ןha./Ganthe/ garden אָכֹ֥ל'a.Kholcertainly <to eat>תֹּאכֵֽל׃to.Khelyou will eat

King James Version

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

Cross-references

1 Samuel 15:22 But Samuel declared: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to His voice? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams.
1 Timothy 4:4 For every creation of God is good, and nothing that is received with thanksgiving should be rejected,
1 Timothy 6:17 Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us to enjoy.
Genesis 2:9 Out of the ground the LORD God gave growth to every tree that is pleasing to the eye and good for food. And in the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field that the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’”