Genesis 2:8

The Lord God planted an orchard ¹  in the east, ²  in Eden; ³  and there he placed the man he had formed. ⁴ 

Ge 2:15; Ge 3:24; Ge 4:16; Ge 13:10; 2Ki 19:12; Eze 27:23; Eze 28:13; Eze 31:8,9; Eze 31:16,18; Joe 2:3

¹ tn Traditionally “garden,” but the subsequent description of this “garden” makes it clear that it is an orchard of fruit trees.

sn The Lord God planted an orchard. Nothing is said of how the creation of this orchard took place. A harmonization with chap. 1 might lead to the conclusion that it was by decree, prior to the creation of human life. But the narrative sequence here in chap. 2 suggests the creation of the garden followed the creation of the man. Note also the past perfect use of the perfect in the relative clause in the following verse.

² tn Heb “from the east” or “off east.”

sn One would assume this is east from the perspective of the land of Israel, particularly since the rivers in the area are identified as the rivers in those eastern regions.

³ sn The name Eden (עֵדֶן, ’eden) means “pleasure” in Hebrew.

⁴ 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.