From the Tree of Life to the Bread of Life: God’s Plan for Eternal Communion (Genesis 2:8-9, 15-17 and John 6:51)

The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and placed there the man whom he had formed. 9 Out of the ground the Lord God made grow every tree that was delightful to look at and good for food, with the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:8-9).

15 The Lord God then took the man and settled him in the garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for it. 16 The Lord God gave the man this order: You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden 17 except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. From that tree you shall not eat; when you eat from it you shall die. (Gen. 2:15-17)

51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world (Jn. 6:51).

God creates a garden in Eden, a place of perfection and harmony, and places man within it.  The narrative introduces two significant trees: the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  The Tree of Life represents sustenance for eternal communion with God.  By eating from this tree, man would have access to eternal life in God’s presence.  However, God places a command regarding the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, forbidding eating its fruit under penalty of death.  This command underscores humanity's dependence on God and the necessity of obedience to His will for continued life and communion.

Eternal life is not an inherent human possession but a gift sustained by union with God which the Tree of Life symbolizes.  The prohibition of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil reflects the boundaries of human freedom—true life is found not in autonomy but in trusting obedience to God.  

Jesus, in His Bread of Life discourse, proclaims: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” Jesus identifies Himself as the true source of eternal life, fulfilling what the Tree of Life foreshadowed in Eden.  While the Tree of Life in Genesis offered the promise of eternal communion with God, Jesus as the Bread of Life provides the reality of that communion through His incarnation, death, and resurrection.

In offering His flesh, Jesus emphasizes the necessity of partaking in His sacrificial gift.  His Divine body becomes the means by which believers share in the divine life He offers.  Jesus’ sacrifice restores and perfects the broken relationship caused by sin and the promise of eternal life is accessible to all who come to Him in faith and partake of this new Tree of Life.  

The Tree of Life in Genesis is a shadow of the reality fulfilled in Christ. In Eden, humanity’s access to eternal life was contingent upon obedience, but sin severed that connection. Jesus, through His perfect obedience and sacrifice, restores what was lost. The Tree of Life’s fruit in Eden pointed forward to the true sustenance of eternal life found in Christ.  This connection underscores the continuity of God’s salvific plan: what was lost in Eden is restored in Jesus, the source and summit of eternal life. 

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your gift of eternal life, first revealed in the Tree of Life and fulfilled in Jesus, the Bread of Life.  Help us to remain in communion with You through faith, trusting always in Your plan for our salvation.  This we pray through Christ our Lord.  Amen!

                                                       

Sources

• McSorley, Joseph. An Outline History of the Church by Centuries (From St. Peter to Pius XII). 2nd ed., B. Herder Book Co., 1944.
• Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
• Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
• Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
• Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.
• Charpentier, Etienne. How to Read the Old Testament. Translated by John Bowden, 1981.
• Komonchak, Joseph, et al., editors. The New Dictionary of Theology.