Ezekiel 31:8-9

31:8 The cedars in the garden of God could not eclipse it,

nor could the fir trees ¹  match its boughs;

the plane trees were as nothing compared to its branches;

no tree in the garden of God could rival its beauty.

31:9 I made it beautiful with its many branches;

all the trees of Eden, in the garden of God, envied it.

Ezekiel 36:35

36:35 They will say, “This desolate land has become like the garden of Eden; the ruined, desolate, and destroyed cities are now fortified and inhabited.”

Genesis 2:8

2:8 The Lord God planted an orchard ²  in the east, ³  in Eden; ⁴  and there he placed the man he had formed. ⁵ 

Genesis 3:23-24

3:23 So the Lord God expelled him ⁶  from the orchard in Eden to cultivate the ground from which he had been taken. 3:24 When he drove ⁷  the man out, he placed on the eastern side ⁸  of the orchard in Eden angelic sentries ⁹  who used the flame of a whirling sword ¹⁰  to guard the way to the tree of life.

Genesis 13:10

13:10 Lot looked up and saw ¹¹  the whole region ¹²  of the Jordan. He noticed ¹³  that all of it was well-watered (before the Lord obliterated ¹⁴  Sodom and Gomorrah) ¹⁵  like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, ¹⁶  all the way to Zoar.

Isaiah 51:3

51:3 Certainly the Lord will console Zion;

he will console all her ruins.

He will make her wilderness like Eden,

her desert like the Garden of the Lord.

Happiness and joy will be restored to ¹⁷  her,

thanksgiving and the sound of music.

Joel 2:3

2:3 Like fire they devour everything in their path; ¹⁸ 

a flame blazes behind them.

The land looks like the Garden of Eden ¹⁹  before them,

but behind them there is only a desolate wilderness –

for nothing escapes them! ²⁰ 

Revelation 2:7

2:7 The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers, ²¹  I will permit ²²  him to eat from the tree of life that is ²³  in the paradise of God.’ ²⁴ 

¹ tn Or “cypress trees” (cf. NASB, NLT); NIV “pine trees.”

² tn Traditionally “garden,” but the subsequent description of this “garden” makes it clear that it is an orchard of fruit trees.

³ tn Heb “from the east” or “off east.”

⁴ sn The name Eden (עֵדֶן, ’eden) means “pleasure” in Hebrew.

⁵ tn The perfect verbal form here requires the past perfect translation since it describes an event that preceded the event described in the main clause.

⁶ tn The verb is the Piel preterite of שָׁלַח (shalakh), forming a wordplay with the use of the same verb (in the Qal stem) in v. 22: To prevent the man’s “sending out” his hand, the Lord “sends him out.”

⁷ tn The verb with the vav (ו) consecutive is made subordinate to the next verb forming a temporal clause. This avoids any tautology with the previous verse that already stated that the Lord expelled the man.

⁸ tn Or “placed in front.” Directions in ancient Israel were given in relation to the east rather than the north.

⁹ tn The Hebrew word is traditionally transliterated “the cherubim.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “the flame of the sword that turns round and round.” The noun “flame” is qualified by the genitive of specification, “the sword,” which in turn is modified by the attributive participle “whirling.” The Hitpael of the verb “turn” has an iterative function here, indicating repeated action. The form is used in Job 37:12 of swirling clouds and in Judg 7:13 of a tumbling roll of bread. Verse 24 depicts the sword as moving from side to side to prevent anyone from passing or as whirling around, ready to cut to shreds anyone who tries to pass.

¹¹ tn Heb “lifted up his eyes and saw.” The expression draws attention to the act of looking, indicating that Lot took a good look. It also calls attention to the importance of what was seen.

¹² tn Or “plain”; Heb “circle.”

¹³ tn The words “he noticed” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹⁴ sn Obliterated. The use of the term “destroy” (שַׁחֵת, shakhet) is reminiscent of the Noahic flood (Gen 6:13). Both at the flood and in Sodom the place was obliterated by catastrophe and only one family survived (see C. Westermann, Genesis, 2:178).

¹⁵ tn This short temporal clause (preposition + Piel infinitive construct + subjective genitive + direct object) is strategically placed in the middle of the lavish descriptions to sound an ominous note. The entire clause is parenthetical in nature. Most English translations place the clause at the end of v. 10 for stylistic reasons.

¹⁶ sn The narrative places emphasis on what Lot saw so that the reader can appreciate how it aroused his desire for the best land. It makes allusion to the garden of the Lord and to the land of Egypt for comparison. Just as the tree in the garden of Eden had awakened Eve’s desire, so the fertile valley attracted Lot. And just as certain memories of Egypt would cause the Israelites to want to turn back and abandon the trek to the promised land, so Lot headed for the good life.

¹⁷ tn Heb “found in” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

¹⁸ tn Heb “a fire devours before it.”

¹⁹ tn Heb “like the garden of Eden, the land is before them.”

²⁰ tn Heb “and surely a survivor there is not for it.” The antecedent of the pronoun “it” is apparently עַם (’am, “people”) of v. 2, which seems to be a figurative way of referring to the locusts. K&D 26:191-92 thought that the antecedent of this pronoun was “land,” but the masculine gender of the pronoun does not support this.

²¹ tn Or “who is victorious”; traditionally, “who overcomes.” The pendent dative is allowed to stand in the English translation because it is characteristic of the author’s style in Revelation.

²² tn Or “grant.”

²³ tn Or “stands.”

²⁴ tc The omission of “my” (μου, mou) after “God” (θεοῦ, qeou) is well attested, supported by א A C and the Andreas of Caesarea group of Byzantine mss (Ï^A). Its addition in 1611, the Ï^K group, latt, and others, seems to be evidence of a purposeful conforming of the text to 3:2 and the four occurrences of “my God” (θεοῦ μου) in 3:12.