4) The Garden of Eden Made in the Likeness of a Heavenly Garden
Introduction
The biblical narrative intertwines themes of heavenly paradises and earthly temples, presenting a vision of God's rule from celestial heights down to earthly dominion. References to gardens in the heavens and paradisal temples establish a foundational framework where humanity, fashioned in God's image, is granted kingly and priestly roles. This dual function is echoed throughout Scripture, from Eden to the eschatological restoration of all things depicted in Revelation. Elements such as rivers, precious metals, and tree motifs further connect these heavenly and earthly realms, suggesting a profound theological symmetry between God's heavenly abode and humanity's earthly stewardship. This intricate tapestry of imagery underscores the divine intent for creation to reflect God's glory, with humankind serving as priestly stewards in the paradisal temple of Eden, mirroring God's rule over the cosmos.
The Paradisal Temple
Not only does God "build his upper chambers in the heavens" (Amos 9:6), but the chambers of his temple are also surrounded by gardens, or "the paradise of God”:
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’ (Revelation 2:7, ESV Bible)
So Paul references the heavenly paradise:
"I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. …I know that this man was caught up into paradise whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter" (2 Corinthians 12:2-4, ESV Bible)
This basic framework of a plural, continuous, and physical heavens, within which God rules from a paradisal temple, ultimately informs the context and meaning of the statement:
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26, ESV Bible).
Humanity’s Role as Kings and Priests
As humanity was created in the image of God to rule, so also Eden was viewed as a garden-temple in the likeness of God's garden-temple in the height of the heavens. Man's kingship is apparent in the Genesis creation account:
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26-28, ESV Bible)
What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. (Psalm 8:4-8, ESV Bible)
Man’s priesthood is less apparent in the Genesis account. However, the priesthood of humanity and the Edenic garden temple are clearly inferred from eschatological texts that describe the end as a restoration of the beginning. Echoing the creation of humankind, the redeemed are declared to be a kingdom and priests to our God:
And you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:10 ESV Bible)
This dual kingly and priestly function is the broad theme of the book of Revelation from beginning (1:6) to end (22:5). When Jesus returns and sets up his throne upon the earth, the redeemed "will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him" (Rev. 20:6).
There are, however, explicit references in the Scriptures to the first priesthood of mankind. Ezekiel 28 speaks of Eden as an ideal "sanctuary" (v. 18), which was then desecrated:
By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. (Ezekiel 28:18, ESV Bible)
Eden and the Tabernacle/Temple
Psalm 36:7-9 also compares the temple to Eden, since the Hebrew word (eden) means “luxury, delight, pleasure.” Furthermore, many scholars have listed the various similarities between the garden of Eden and the tabernacle and/or Jerusalem temple. God "walked" in both, representing his unique presence:
And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. (Genesis 3:8, ESV Bible)
And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. (Leviticus 26:12, ESV Bible)
Because the LORD your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and to give up your enemies before you, therefore your camp must be holy, so that he may not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you. (Deuteronomy 23:14, ESV Bible)
I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling.In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’ (2 Samuel 7:6-7, ESV Bible)
Human beings are commanded to "serve/work" and "keep/guard" both Eden and the Temple, representing their priestly role and function:
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. (Genesis 2:15, ESV Bible)
They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle. They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. (Numbers 3:7-8, ESV Bible)
And from the age of fifty years they shall withdraw from the duty of the service and serve no more. They minister to their brothers in the tent of meeting by keeping guard, but they shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites in assigning their duties.” (Numbers 8:25-26, ESV Bible)
And you shall keep guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel. And behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the people of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to the LORD, to do the service of the tent of meeting. (Numbers 18:5-6, ESV Bible)
Thus they were to keep charge of the tent of meeting and the sanctuary, and to attend the sons of Aaron, their brothers, for the service of the house of the LORD. (1 Chronicles 23:32, ESV Bible)
The structure of both Eden and the Temple is threefold, with an entrance facing east:
And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. (Genesis 2:8, ESV Bible)
He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. (Genesis 3:24, ESV Bible)
And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the LORD. And behold, at the entrance of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs to the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east. (Ezekiel 8:16, ESV Bible)
Then he went into the gateway facing east, going up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed deep. (Ezekiel 40:6, ESV Bible)
Both Eden and the temple are situated on a mountain, and both are guarded by cherubim:
Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to David his father, at the place that David had appointed, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. (2 Chronicles 3:1, ESV Bible)
It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, (Isaiah 2:2, ESV Bible)
You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; (Ezekiel 28:13-16, ESV Bible)
He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. (Genesis 3:24, ESV Bible)
And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel. (Exodus 25:18-22, ESV Bible)
For it that you were shown on the mountain. “And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen. It shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it. (Exodus 26:31, ESV Bible)
In the inner sanctuary she made two cherubim of olivewood, each ten cubits high. Five cubits was the length of one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the length of the other wing of the cherub; it was ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other. The other cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same measure and the same form. The height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub. He put the cherubim in the innermost part of the house. And the wings of the cherubim were spread out so that a wing of one touched the one wall, and a wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; their other wings touched each other in the middle of the house. And he overlaid the cherubim with gold. Around all the walls of the house he carved engraved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms. The floor of the house he overlaid with gold in the inner and outer rooms. For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors of olivewood; the lintel and the doorposts were five-sided. He covered the two doors of olivewood with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. He overlaid them with gold and spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees. So also he made for the entrance to the nave doorposts of olivewood, in the form of a square, and two doors of cypress wood. The two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. On them he carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and he overlaid them with gold evenly applied on the carved work. (1 Kings 6:23-35, ESV Bible)
Rivers flow out of both Eden (Gen. 2:10) and the eschatological temple in Jerusalem:
A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. (Genesis 2:10, ESV Bible)
Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar.Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and behold, the water was trickling out on the south side.Going on eastward with a measuring line in his hand, the man measured a thousand cubits, and then led me through the water, and it was ankle-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was waist-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen. It was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. And he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?” Then he led me back to the bank of the river. As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.” (Ezekiel 47:1-12, ESV Bible)
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. (Revelation 22:1-2, ESV Bible)
Precious metals and stones are used in and adorn both (Gen. 2:11-12; Ex. 25:7-31; Ezek. 28:13):
The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. (Genesis 2:11-12, ESV Bible)
Onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the xephod and for the breastpiece. And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it. The Ark of the Covenant “They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside shall you overlay it, and you shall make on it a molding of gold around it. You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. And you shall put into the ark the testimony that I shall give you. “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel. The Table for Bread “You shall make a table of acacia wood. Two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. You shall overlay it with pure gold and make a molding of gold around it. And you shall make a rim around it a handbreadth wide, and a molding of gold around the rim. And you shall make for it four rings of gold, and fasten the rings to the four corners at its four legs. Close to the frame the rings shall lie, as holders for the poles to carry the table. You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, and the table shall be carried with these. And you shall make its plates and dishes for incense, and its flagons and bowls with which to pour drink offerings; you shall make them of pure gold. And you shall set the bread of the Presence on the table before me regularly. The Golden Lampstand “You shall make a lampstand of pure gold. The lampstand shall be made of hammered work: its base, its stem, its cups, its calyxes, and its flowers shall be of one piece with it. (Exodus 25:7-31, ESV Bible)
You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared. (Ezekiel 28:13, ESV Bible)
Trees filled the garden (Gen. 2:9), and tree-like decorations adorned the temple (1 Kings 6:18-35; 7:18-20). Moreover, the tree of life and the tree of knowledge (Gen. 2:9) seem to be symbolized in the sanctuary lamp-stand and law, respectively.
Summary
Later Jewish tradition also depicts Adam as a priestly minister in the Edenic temple. The combination of Genesis, Revelation, and the prophets all paint a picture that I believe was clear in the minds of the New Testament writers- that God ruled over creation from a paradisal-temple in the height of the heavens, and humans were created in his image as kingly priests to rule over the earth from the paradisal-temple of Eden. The heavens and the earth were created to enhance the glory of God as reflected in the creation of mankind, and consequently the two realities organically correspond to one another.