Knowledge Is Weakness In The Book Of Genesis

Register to read the introduction… Having and sharing knowledge is generally regarded as a basis for improving one’s reputation and thus power. In this modern sense, knowledge seems to be a positive notion that improves quality of life, but in fact through the study of biblical text it is clear that the acquisition of knowledge has not always brought positive results. In the book of Genesis, Adam and Eve were the first people to recognize that the result of knowledge is harmful and so is the “power” it brings. The consequence of knowing is not power; knowledge is a damaging force that is not all good like the modern western world believes, but rather it creates fear, weakness and makes life more difficult. …show more content…
Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden, a wonderful place where they could “eat freely out of every tree” except for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2.16). Everything god created was good, and no evil existed in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were specifically warned not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or they would die. When Eve learned from the serpent that the forbidden fruit would make her “like god” and give her “knowledge of good and evil”, they disobeyed god’s instructions. Incapable to control their hunger for knowledge, Adam and Eve ate the fruit that god specifically forbid them from enjoying. They immediately realized they were naked and when god came looking for them they hid since Adam and Eve were “afraid because [they] were naked.” Adam and Eve’s actions, a direct result of their desire to know, made them afraid and shameful, not powerful. Instead of existing forever in a garden where everything was good, the knowledge that Adam and Eve gained has afflicted man with fear and disgrace that cannot be