Commentaire de citation sur La Genèse 2:16

“Did God really say you shall not eat from any tree in the garden?” There is a major difficulty with this matter: If the woman added the prohibition of touching [the tree] on her own accord, then she knew the truth that God did not command about touching. If so, how was she persuaded by these meaningless words to say “just as there is no death from touching, so too there is no death from eating”? At first glance, it appears we can explain that the woman did not hear the command directly from God, but rather from her husband. This is what is meant by [the verse] (verse 16) And the Lord God commanded the man saying — what is meant by saying? Rather, that he should also tell his wife that this eating is dangerous. This is why it says commanded upon [al] the man and not “to [el] the man” — meaning regarding/concerning not bringing himself into danger. The man, using his intellect, decided to make a protective fence and add to the command by prohibiting his wife even from touching [the tree], so that she would not come to eat from it. Eve thought that everything was commanded directly by God, and therefore this mistake came to her, as the serpent found a way to deceive her. With this explanation, we don’t need Rashi’s interpretation that the serpent didn’t approach Adam because women are light-minded and easily persuaded. For in any case, this is not a difficulty, since the serpent wanted to prove from touching that there would be no death from eating. With Adam, he couldn’t prove anything, because Adam knew the truth that God had not commanded about touching, and that he had added it on his own.

Even though God said, "You shall surely eat from every tree of the Garden" (Genesis 2:16), nevertheless...

From the fruit of the trees of the Garden we may/shall eat: In truth, the clinging of the woman to Adam was only at the time that she stood with him, as is the nature of a portion that yearns for the group at the time it sees it. And at that time that the serpent spoke with her, Adam had gone away from her. So she felt a desire to eat, and said that she would eat. And regarding the clinging of Adam to his Maker, she did not feel it. Therefore she said, "'Certainly 'we shall eat.'" And she said, "From the fruit of the tree of the Garden"; and not like the language of God, "from every tree of the Garden" (Genesis 2:16) - which implies even the benefit from the wood, as I wrote above (Haamek Davar on Genesis 2:16). And that is since Adam told her that she only eat the fruit; given that she did not know to be careful with the destruction of the tree, since she did not have human knowledge.