Tell me more about this! מַה זֶה?
What type of tree was the עֵץ הַדַּעַת (Tree of Knowledge)?
God instructs Adam that he can eat from all of the fruits in גַּן עֵדֶן, except for the עֵץ הַדַּעַת (Tree of Knowledge; Bereishit 2:15-16).
What type of tree was this???
The Torah never tells us directly, but midrashim in the Talmud (Berakhot 40b) and Bereishit Rabbah (15:7) offer several possibilities:
- Rabbi Meir says it was a grape vine
- Rabbi Nehemyah says it a fig tree
- Rabbi Yehudah says it a wheat stalk
- Rabbi Abba says it was an etrog tree
(But no one in the Torah or midrashim suggests it was an apple tree!)
