THE RIVER OF EDEN - A SYMBOL OF FAITH

THE RIVER OF EDEN - A SYMBOL OF FAITH

The Waters of Eden, along with the Tree of Life, the first appearance in the Bible is before the original sin and the other mention is along with the creation of a new heaven and a new earth.

Genesis 2:8-10 -

And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD 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. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.

Revelation 22:1-2 -

And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In 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.

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Due to sin we have fallen from God's grace. Between Genesis 2 and Revelation 22, excluding the first and last chapters of the Bible, man has to contend with sin.

Hosea 6:1-3 -

Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.

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Water is seen as playing a special purpose in the Tenakh, in the form of the mikvah, or immersion.

Within the Torah, the mikvah is associated with those commandments for which there is no readily apparent reason (such as the kosher laws). These commandments are known as Chukim. The keeping of such commandments is seen as a sign of someone whose faith is strong enough to place God's will above their own understanding.

There is a very mystical element to the process of the mikvah, that somehow it works to bridge the gap between God and man. The mikvah was a very important part of the conversion process in Judaism, being associated with a spiritual change in identity. Such an act of faith, taking part in a ritual that does not have an obvious meaning, was a sign of the convert's readiness.

Matthew 3:1-2

1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judæa, 2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

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In the days of Jesus, John proclaims baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin, and says another will come after him who will not baptize with water, but with the Holy Spirit. We are redeemed through listening to The Lord's instruction and believing in Him. We learn of this in the Torah:

Exodus 15:22-27 -

So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee. And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

Soncino Zohar, Shemoth, Section 2,Page 60a -

In Scripture “water” stands as a symbol for the Torah: “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters” (Isa. LV, 1). ‘But’, remarked R. Jesse, ‘the time for the giving of the Torah was not yet, and how could they expect to find this “water” there?’ Said R. Eleazar: ‘They went out into the wilderness to see the glory of the Holy One, but could not, for He removed it from there. We learn from this that “water” is the symbol of the Torah, and the Holy One and the Torah are one.’ Said R. Simeon: ‘There in the wilderness a strange power, representing the nations of the world, the ruling spirit of the desert, appeared to them, but they soon discovered that it was not the radiance of their King's glory. Hence it says: AND WHEN THEY CAME TO MARAH THEY COULD NOT DRINK OF THE WATERS OF MARAH, FOR THEY WERE BITTER, and they did not feel the same “sweetness” in their souls as before. Moreover, this power came to act as an accuser against them. Then HE (Moses) CRIED UNTO THE LORD, AND THE LORD SHOWED HIM A TREE, WHICH, WHEN HE CAST IT INTO THE WATERS, THE WATERS WERE MADE SWEET. The tree is a symbol of the Torah, which is “a tree of life to those who lay hold upon her” (Prov. III, 18), and the Torah and the Holy One, blessed be He, are one.’ R. Abba said: ‘The “Tree” is a direct symbol of the Holy One, for it says: “The tree of the field is (the supernal) Adam” (Deut. XX, 19). The “field” is the “Field of the holy apples”. Thus, when the light of their King's glory manifested itself to them, “the waters were made sweet”, and the accuser became an intercessor.’

Numbers 20:8 -

Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.

Numbers 20:12 -

And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.

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In the midst of the tribulation, as in exile, the waters are "dried up" and a beginning of restoration:

Luke 11:23,24 -

He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth. When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.

Isaiah 44:3 -

For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:

John 3:5 -

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

John 1:10-13 -

He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

Luke 3:16 -

John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."

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In turning from our sin we refrain from being lead astray:

Soncino Zohar, Bereshith, Section 1, Page 26a -

AND THE TREE OF LIFE. This means that at that time the Tree of Life will be planted in the Garden, so that “he shall take also of the Tree of Life and eat and live for ever” (Gen. III, 22). The Shekinah will no longer be in the power of the “evil influence”, i.e. the mixed multitude who are “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”, and shall no longer receive into itself anyone unclean, to fulfil what is written, “the Lord alone shall lead him and there shall be no strange god with him” (Deut. XL, 12). For this reason proselytes will no longer be admitted in the days of the Messiah. The Shekinah will be like a vine on which there cannot be grafted any shoot from another species, and Israel shall be “every tree pleasant to see”, and their former beauty shall be restored to them, of which we are told: “He cast from heaven to earth the beauty of Israel” (Lam. II, 1). “The tree of the knowledge of good and evil” shall be thrust from them and shall not cleave to them or mingle with them, for of Israel it is said: “and of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil ye shall not eat”. This tree is the “mixed multitude”, and God pointed out to them that through mixing with them they suffered two losses, of the first and of the second Temple, as it is said: “and on the day that thou eatest of it thou shalt surely die”. They caused the Zaddik to be left parched and desolate by the loss of the first Temple, which is the Shekinah in heaven, and by the loss of the second Temple, which is the Shekinah on earth. Hence it is written, “and the river shall be drained dry”; i.e. the river vau shall dry in the lower he, so as to deprive it of the flow of yod issuing from En-Sof. But as soon as Israel shall go forth from captivity, that is, the holy people alone, then that river which was dried up shall become “the river that goes forth from Eden to water the garden”. This river is the Central Column; “goes forth from Eden” is the supernal Mother; “to water the garden” is the Shekinah on earth. In reference to that time it is said of Moses and Israel, “Then thou shalt delight in the Lord”, and the words shall be fulfilled, “then Moses shall sing” (Ex. XV, 1) ...

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Moreover, there shall be union and blessing:

Soncino Zohar, Vayikra, Section 3, Page 58a -

Mark now that in future generations the Torah will be forgotten, and there will be none to close and open. Alas for that generation! There will be no generation like the present until the Messiah comes and knowledge shall be diffused throughout the world. It is written: "A river went forth from Eden" (Gen. II, 10). It has been laid down that the name of that river is Jubilee, but in the book of Rab Hamnuna the Elder it is called Life, because life issues thence to the world. We have also laid down that the great and mighty Tree in which is food for all is called the Tree of Life, because its roots are in that Life. We have learnt that that river sends forth deep streams with the oil of plenitude to water the Garden and feed the trees and the shoots.

Soncino Zohar, Bereshith, Section 1, Page 247b -

Up to this point the blessings were given in general; they were now particularized with the words: BLESSINGS OF HEAVEN ABOVE, ETC. THE BLESSINGS OF THY FATHER HAVE PREVAILED ABOVE THE BLESSINGS OF MY PROGENITORS . This was so because Jacob inherited the cream of all more than the other patriarchs, he being perfect in all, and he gave all to Joseph. This was fitting, because the Righteous One takes all and inherits all, and all blessings are deposited with him. He first dispenses blessings above, and all the limbs of the body are disposed so as to receive them, and thus is brought into being the "river which goes forth from Eden". Why Eden (lit. delight)? Because whenever all the limbs are knit together in harmony and in mutual delight, from top to bottom, then they pour blessings upon it, and it becomes a river which flows forth, literally, from "delight". Or again, the word "Eden" may refer to the supreme Wisdom, from which the whole flows forth like a river until it reaches this grade, where all is turned to blessing.

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Immursion is but a symbol, the renewal is for all those born of spirit, mikvah continues on:

Matthew 28:18-20 -

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.