Why did God put the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden?

Answer

God placed the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden to offer Adam and Eve a choice between obeying or disobeying Him. Adam and Eve had the freedom to do anything except eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. In Genesis 2:16-17, it states, “And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.’” Without this choice, Adam and Eve would have been mere robots following programmed instructions. God designed Adam and Eve to be autonomous beings capable of making choices and distinguishing between good and evil. True freedom for Adam and Eve required having a choice.

There was nothing inherently evil about the tree or its fruit. It is improbable that the fruit itself granted Adam and Eve additional knowledge. While the physical fruit may have provided some vitamin C and fiber, it lacked spiritual significance. However, the act of disobedience had spiritual consequences. Their disobedience exposed Adam and Eve to evil, introducing them to feelings of shame and the desire to hide from God. By disobeying God, sin entered their lives and the world. Eating the fruit, as an act of defiance against God, was what gave Adam and Eve the awareness of evil—and their own nakedness (Genesis 3:6-7).

God did not intend for Adam and Eve to sin. He foresaw the consequences of sin. God knew that Adam and Eve would choose to sin.And would thereby bring evil, suffering, and death into the world. Why, then, did God allow Satan to tempt Adam and Eve? God allowed Satan to tempt Adam and Eve to compel them to make the choice. Adam and Eve chose, of their own free will, to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit. The consequences—evil, sin, suffering, sickness, and death—have afflicted the world ever since. Adam and Eve’s decision results in every person being born with a sin nature, a tendency to sin. Adam and Eve’s decision is what ultimately necessitated Jesus Christ to die on the cross and shed His blood on our behalf. Through faith in Christ, we can be liberated from sin’s consequences, and ultimately liberated from sin itself. May we echo the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 7:24-25, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!”