THIS MIGHT SURPRISE YOU
The answer
That they may not even touch the tree. God's words in Genesis 2:17 forbid eating from it. The woman tells the serpent, "You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die" (Genesis 3:3). The touching is her addition.
Why it’s interesting
God gave the rule to the man in Genesis 2:17, before the woman is made in Genesis 2:22. A study Bible, the New Oxford Annotated Bible, points out that she takes the rule as covering her too, even though the text shows it spoken only to him.
Scholarly consensus
Learn the Bible.
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