Genesis 3:23

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 3:23 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “therefore Jehovah God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

therefore Jehovah God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
Genesis 3:23 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 3

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
23therefore Jehovah God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, etc.] Gave him orders to depart immediately; sent or put him away as a man does his wife, when he divorces her; or as a prince banishes a rebellious subject: for how long Adam was in the garden (see Gill on “<194912>Psalm 49:12”), however, he did not send him to hell at once, as he did the apostate angels, but to till the ground, from whence he was taken: either the earth in general, out of which he was made, and to which he must return, and in the mean while must labour hard, in digging and ploughing, in planting and sowing, that so he might get a livelihood; or that particular spot out of which he was formed, which is supposed…”
Read attributed excerpt →
Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“- XVII. The Execution 24. כרוּב kerûb ברך in Aramaic: “carve, plow”; Persian: “grip, grasp.” This word occurs about eighty-seven times in the Hebrew scriptures; in sixty of which it refers to carved or embroidered figures; in twenty-two to the living being in the vision of Ezekiel Ezekiel 10:0; in two figuratively to the king of Tyre Ezekiel 28:14, Ezekiel 28:16; in two to a being on which the Lord is poetically described as riding 2 Samuel 22:11; Psalms 18:11; and in the present passage unequivocally to real and well-known beings. The root is not otherwise extant in Hebrew proper. But from the class of actions to which it refers, and from a review of the statements of Scripture concerning…”
Read attributed excerpt →
Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“He sent him forth - Bid him go out, told him he should no longer occupy and enjoy that garden; but he was not willing to part with it. Genesis 3:24”
Read attributed excerpt →
Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“3:23 So the Lord God banished them from the Garden of Eden: Before the Fall, the garden was a sanctuary in which humans could move freely in God’s holy presence. Now their sin required expulsion from that environment. This same principle was behind the laws that restricted an Israelite’s access to God’s presence in the Tabernacle or Temple (e.g., Lev 16:1-2; Num 5:3).”
Read attributed excerpt →
Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“till: Gen 3:19, Gen 2:5, Gen 4:2, Gen 4:12, Gen 9:20; Ecc 5:9 Genesis 3:24”
Read attributed excerpt →

Related study paths

Sources and verification