Genesis 2:17

but ¹  you must not eat ²  from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when ³  you eat from it you will surely die.” ⁴ 

biblegateway Gen 2:17

but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

biblegateway Gen 2:17

but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die."

biblegateway Gen 2:17

except fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat of its fruit, you will surely die."

biblegateway Gen 2:17

except from the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil. Don't eat from it. The moment you eat from that tree, you're dead."

SABDAweb Gen 2:17

But of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you may not take; for on the day when you take of it, death will certainly come to you.

bibleoremus Gen 2:17

but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die."

biblegateway Gen 2:17

"but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

biblegateway Gen 2:17

but ¹  you must not eat ²  from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when ³  you eat from it you will surely die.” ⁴ 

¹ tn The disjunctive clause here indicates contrast: “but from the tree of the knowledge….”

² tn The negated imperfect verb form indicates prohibition, “you must not eat.”

³ tn Or “in the very day, as soon as.” If one understands the expression to have this more precise meaning, then the following narrative presents a problem, for the man does not die physically as soon as he eats from the tree. In this case one may argue that spiritual death is in view. If physical death is in view here, there are two options to explain the following narrative: (1) The following phrase “You will surely die” concerns mortality which ultimately results in death (a natural paraphrase would be, “You will become mortal”), or (2) God mercifully gave man a reprieve, allowing him to live longer than he deserved.

⁴ tn Heb “dying you will die.” The imperfect verb form here has the nuance of the specific future because it is introduced with the temporal clause, “when you eat…you will die.” That certainty is underscored with the infinitive absolute, “you will surely die.”

⁴ sn The Hebrew text (“dying you will die”) does not refer to two aspects of death (“dying spiritually, you will then die physically”). The construction simply emphasizes the certainty of death, however it is defined. Death is essentially separation. To die physically means separation from the land of the living, but not extinction. To die spiritually means to be separated from God. Both occur with sin, although the physical alienation is more gradual than instant, and the spiritual is immediate, although the effects of it continue the separation.