Genesis 2:17 Question

[Phil_Not_Bill]

In Genesis 2:17 (ESV) we read "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

According to a footnote in my Bible "for in the day THAT you eat of it" can also be "for in the day WHEN you eat of it".

I heard someone point something out that I found interesting, but I'm wondering if the text is really saying this specific thing. What was pointed out is that God does not say IF you eat of the tree but rather says THAT or WHEN you eat of it. The point being that God is displaying his omniscience in this verse and sort of foreshadowing what is to come.

Reading the verse like that doesn't seem to do any harm to the character of God because we do believe that he knew that our first parents would eat from the tree in eternity past. But I also don't want to read something into a text that isn't really there. IE, it could just be a "you may, you may not" juxtaposition type statement.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? I'd love to hear thoughts from someone who understands Hebrew.

 

[Contra_Mundum]

אֲכָלְךָ֥

The Hebrew term is a verb, specifically an infinitive in construct form, with a pronominal suffix (hence "you"). In literal English-terms, "in-day you-to-eat of/from-it"

The gloss, "when," is not meant to function in predictive fashion, if it is preferred in translation. "When" goes smoothly with "in the day, which itself is a general temporal Hebraism that could all by itself be rendered "when." But the use of it in such sense does not mean that such a day must or will come inevitably. Often it does mean an expected day, which may justify (even strongly indicate) not-using "when" but "that," inasmuch as we actually should not take God's warning as predicting Adam's failure. Bottom line, there is no embedded linguistic preference for either translation; but even "when" should not be interpreted to anticipate an ill-result.

 

[Phil_Not_Bill]

Amazing response! Thank you!