The Tree of the Field is Man’s Life

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Are you fortunate enough to live among trees?  The Word of God is replete with references to trees – in the histories and prophecies.  I often think of the old adage – “he can’t see the forest for the trees,” when faced with the obstinate refusal of sinners to see the sin that they are mired in.  As they are in the midst of it – they fail to see how immense sin truly is.  The Lord made all trees and plants on the third day of creation – and He made them very, very good. . . not just good for food, shelter, clothing, and outright beauty. . .but good for our souls.

Trees Really Are ‘Pleasant to the Sight’

by Brian Thomas, M.S. *

Genesis 2:9 records one of the Lord’s original intentions for creating trees, saying, “Out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” A new study has quantified just how pleasant to the sight trees can be, inadvertently confirming the truthfulness of this ancient biblical passage.

Professor William Sullivan and lecturer Bin Jiang of the University of Illinois’ department of landscape architecture measured stress levels in participants who watched six-minute-long 3D panoramic videos of neighborhoods. The amount of tree canopy coverage in the various neighborhoods ranged from 2 to 62 percent.1

The researchers used three tactics to gauge stress: measuring salivary cortisol levels, detecting skin conductance, and conducting self-reports. Adrenal glands secrete cortisol hormone in response to stress, and sweaty skin—another response to stress—conducts electricity more efficiently than dry skin.

Their analysis revealed that those participants exposed to 62 percent tree coverage experienced a 60 percent reduction in stress.

Their results also showed that 41 percent of participants showed no change in stress levels when only a quarter or less of the neighborhood canopies had trees. However, according to University of Illinois news, “when the percentage of tree canopy increased to 36 percent, more than 90 percent of viewers reported feeling calm or relaxed while watching the videos.”1

These findings support the idea that urban planners and landscape architects who incorporate green spaces into their plans could help foster a healthier, calmer populace.

How could the calming sense of pleasure that comes from looking at trees have evolved? Did it somehow help mankind out-compete some ancient and unfeeling animals from which we supposedly emerged?

Rather, God built trees to meet humanity’s God-given ability to appreciate them and thus their Maker. What better disposition from which to appreciate the Lord than one of simple pleasure? Viewed from a biblical perspective, the positive effect of merely looking at tree canopies confirms the words of Genesis that God made certain trees—not just the tree of the knowledge of good and evil—to be pleasant to the eyes.

References

  1. Forrest, S. Watching 3-D videos of trees helps people recover from stress, researchers say. News Bureau, University of Illinois. Posted on news.illinois.edu October 21, 2014, accessed November 4, 2014.

* Mr. Thomas is Science Writer at the Institute for Creation Research.

Deuteronomy 20:18-20

18 That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; so should ye sin against the Lord your God.

19 When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man’s life) to employ them in the siege:

20 Only the trees which thou knowest that they be not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued.

Revelation 22:1-3

22 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him

Please enjoy this lovely rendition of Joyce Kilmer’s/Oscar Rasbach’s “Trees,” sung by Bob McGrath, in classical Irish tenor style...

The next time you are outside, stop and take a whiff of the oxygen and fragrance that trees provide.  Really pause, and look up at their branches moving in the wind.  Thank our Creator for giving us such beautiful, wonderful things, things that we so often overlook in our busy lives.  

sage

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