Why was the Tree of Knowledge forbidden? Was humanity meant to be no different from the animals, with no special intellect? We shall attempt to seek an answer to this question within the plain text itself.
Fascinating linguistic parallels allude to a connection between eating manna in the desert and eating from the Tree of Knowledge. The Torah offers an alternative or substitute for the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, in the form of the manna.
The gap between these two types of eating teaches us that knowledge is not merely a neutral item of consumption that comes to satisfy an intellectual desire. It must be acquired on a moral platform, with an understanding of its place in the life of the human race, with all its risks and opportunities.
