TREES  January 19, 2024

What I have with trees

Trees are often large, sometimes even huge. And there are many stories comparing trees with people. There are also several parables found in the Bible.

Definition of the word: Tree = Woody plant with a single, sturdy, woody and perennial trunk, which branches at a certain height above the ground.

What does a tree mean in the Bible?

In Psalm 1,

a person who follows God's law is compared to a tree that produces fruit.

He is like a tree planted by the water, whose roots reach into the river. He does not notice the arrival of the heat, his leaves always remain green. Times of drought do not bother him, he always bears fruit.

 

Where is the tree of life?

“In the middle of the town square and on either side of the river stood a tree of life.…
The leaves of the tree brought healing to the people.
There will be nothing left under a curse” (Revelation 21:22).
It is the inversion of the paradise story.

Growth and strength:

a tree is a universal symbol of strength and growth. They spread their roots deep into the earth and stabilize. Trees can withstand the toughest storms, which is why they are such a prominent symbol of strength. The Tree of Life represents growth.

Old as man

The symbolic meaning we attribute to plants is perhaps as old as humans themselves. The first book of the Bible, Genesis, tells us that Eve ate the 'forbidden fruit', the apple. A plant, and especially the flower, has a lot to tell us. Almost unnoticed, we have thoughts and feelings when we see flowers, fruits, herbs and trees. If you think that those symbolic meanings we attribute to plants have disappeared, we can safely say that you are mistaken.

 

The tree in the parable of Jesus

Matthew 7:16-20

You can recognize false prophets by their evil deeds. It's just like trees. You cannot pick grapes or figs from a thorn bush. A good tree bears good fruit, a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. All trees without good fruit are cut down and thrown into the fire. So you can tell from someone's actions whether he is good or bad.

 

Luke 13:6-9

Then Jesus gave this example: “A man has planted a fig tree in his garden. Every year he looks to see if there are any figs on the tree. But he never finds any. So he says to the gardener, “I have been coming for 3 years now.” look at a tree. But there are still no figs on it. Just cut down the tree, because the land is not being used properly." But the gardener answers, "Lord, let the tree stand this year. I will take extra good care of it, maybe there will be figs next year. If not, you can cut it down next year.”

 

Luke 21:29-33

The example of the fig tree

Jesus set an example. He said, "Look at a fig tree or any other tree. When you see the leaves growing on the branches, you know that summer is coming soon. This also applies to the things I have told you about. If you see things happening, then you know that God's new world would come soon.

Listen carefully to my words: Some people alive today will experience this. The heavens will pass away, and the earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

 

Matthew 21:18-22

Jesus curses a fig tree

Early the next morning, Jesus returned to Jerusalem. On the way he got hungry. He saw a fig tree on the side of the road. He walked over. But he found no figs on the tree, only leaves. Then Jesus said to the tree, “Never again will a fig grow on you!” And immediately the tree withered. The disciples saw it and were amazed. They asked, "How can that tree wither immediately?" Jesus answered, “Listen carefully to my words: If you believe and do not doubt, you can cause a tree to wither. In fact, you can say to that mountain, “Come from your place and fall into the sea.” "And then it will happen. Everything you ask of God in your prayer will be given to you. As long as you believe."

 

From the Old Testament:

Genesis 2:8-17 The Garden of Eden

The Lord God made a garden in the east in the land of Eden. He brought man whom he had made into the garden. He made all kinds of trees grow there. They were beautiful trees with tasty fruits. There were two special trees in the middle of the garden. If you ate from one tree, you would live forever. And if you had eaten from the other tree, you would know what was good and what was evil.

 

There was a river in Eden that provided water for the garden. Further on it became four rivers. One of those rivers is the Pishon, which flows around the land of Chawilah. In Chawila there is pure gold in the ground, and gemstones and perfumes come from it. The second river is called the Gihon. It flows around the country of Nubia. The third river is called the Tigris. It flows east of the land of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

The tree of good and evil.

So the Lord God had brought a man into the garden of Eden. Man was to take care of the garden and look after it. God said to man, "You may eat from any tree in the garden, but not from the tree that teaches good and evil. If you eat from that tree, you will die."

 

Genesis 3:1-13 The serpent talks to the woman

The serpent was a clever animal, the cleverest of all the animals that the Lord God had made. The serpent asked the woman, "Did God say that you should not eat from any tree in the garden?"

“No,” said the woman. “We may eat the fruit of any tree except the tree in the middle of the garden. If we eat of that tree, or even touch it, we will die. That is what God has said.”

"Die?" said the snake. "You will not die at all! But God knows what will happen if you eat from that tree: Then you will understand everything. You will then be like God. Like him, you will know what is good and what is evil."

The woman and the man eat from the tree

The woman looked at the tree. The flights looked beautiful and delicious, and the woman wanted to know everything.

She took some fruits from him and ate them. She also gave one to her husband, who was with her

And he had it too.

Then they realized that they were naked.

So they took large leaves from a fig tree and tied them around their hips.

God walks through the garden

At the end of the afternoon a fresh breeze started to blow. God walked through the garden. When the man and woman heard him, they hid among the trees. But God called to the man, "Where are you?" “I hid,” the man replied. “When I heard you in the garden, I was afraid. Because I am naked." God asked, "How do you know you are naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which you were not allowed to eat?" "It is because of the woman you gave me," said the man. "She gave me some fruit, and I ate it.

"Why did you do that?" the Lord God asked the woman. “It's because of the snake,” she said “It lied to me and then I ate from the tree.”

Micah 4:1-5
Peace is coming to Jerusalem

one day there will be peace. There will come a day when everything will be different. Then the temple will stand firm, on top of the highest mountain. Many nations will say, "Let us go to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Israel. On Mount Zion we will hear the words of the Lord. He will speak to us from Jerusalem. He will teach us what we must do. And we will live the way he wants.” Then all the nations will come together on Mount Zion. There God will speak to them as a judge. He will teach mighty peoples from distant lands what is good and bad. Then they will melt their swords and muscles in the fire, and they will make tools from them. Then the nations will no longer fight against each other, they will no longer know what war is. Then no one has to be afraid anymore. Everyone can sit quietly in his own Vineyard, and under his own fig tree. That is what the mighty lord has decided. Other peoples live as their own god wants. But we will live as our God wants, forever!