After Adam ate the fruit, God said Adam became like them. This is how deception works. Satan first says a lie. Then a truth. And, you have been deceived.
Genesis 2:
9 The Lord God made all sorts of beautiful and nourishing trees sprout out of the earth, among which was
the tree of life[e] in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
BOTH THE TREE OF LIFE AND THE TREE OF KNOWLEDGE ARE IN THE GARDEN
15 The Lord God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden so that he might work it and care for it. 16 The Lord God told the man,
“You can eat of any of the trees in the garden, 17 but you must never eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you were to eat from it, you would surely die.”
The Lord God specifically states
YOU CAN EAT OF ANY OF THE TREES IN THE GARDEN but you must never eat from the tree of knowledge.
ONLY THE TREE OF KNOWLEDGE WAS FORBIDDEN
What does this mean? That prior to the "fall" mankind was awarded access to "The Tree of Life" - as long as they remained in harmony with God's plan and creation.
Genesis3:
a] 1 The serpent[
b] was the most clever of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. It said to the woman, “Is it true that God told you not to eat of any of the trees in the garden?”
2 The woman answered the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but as for the fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden, God said that we must not eat it, nor even touch it, lest we die.”
4 But the serpent said to the woman, “Certainly you shall not die! 5 God knows that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing that which is good and that which is evil.”
6 The woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to look at and desirable for imparting wisdom. She took some fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband who was with her, and he also ate it. 7 Their eyes were opened and they realized that they were naked. They took fig leaves and sewed them together, making themselves a covering.
22 The Lord God said, “Behold, man has become like one of us, for he has knowledge of that which is good and that which is evil. Now, we must prevent him from reaching out and taking the fruit of the tree of life lest he eat it and live forever.”
Did The Lord God lie? No.
When he stated "they would surely die" he was referring to a "Spiritual death" - "falling out of spiritual communion with God" When he stated he "has become like one of us" he wasn't stating that as a compliment - he was stating that it was a curse for mankind to have "knowledge of what is good and evil" because it would now make them "self aware" and subjected to "sin" It's quite simple - If "there is no good - there is no evil" - in your world - as you understand it - then anything you do would not be subjected to "sin". (Or being accused/judged of "sinning")
"Now, we must prevent him from reaching out and taking the fruit of the tree of life lest he eat it and live forever." - In my opinion, The Lord God was stating that living "forever" in a "fallen state of grace" is not an ideal path to salvation. Mankind would now need to work both physically and spiritually in order to once again have access to the Tree of Life (Redemption). And The Lord God made it clear that it would not be easy - physically mankind would need to labor and endure pain and spiritually they would need to "make it past the flaming sword that guards the tree of life."
Did the serpent lie? From a "physical" perspective - not quite - he told them "they wouldn't die (physically) and that it would open up their eyes" - And that happened. What he did not tell them would be the consequences of breaking the main rule God had put in place for them.
In my humble opinion, "The Lord works in mysterious ways." The same way Adam and Eve did not know "the reason" they could not eat the fruit could be the same way we may not be fully aware of God's intentions for us. We can read passages from the Bible and easily misconstrue their meaning. Remember - the serpent did not lie - and yet was able to persuade mankind to fall into temptation. So if "the serpent" gets in your ear and says, "look at all the things God says and does to punish mankind" - well, he may not be lying - but you can bet he's not telling you the consequences - good or bad.
If you ever have a doubt - think about the air you breathe - you can't live more than a minute without it. Think about the water you drink - you can't live more than 3 days without it. Think about the perfect ecosystem in which you live that sustains your life - you couldn't live but a few seconds without the sun's heat.
Isaiah 55:
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.
9 As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts above your thoughts.
For just as the rain and the snow
come down from the heavens
and do not return there
until they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
giving seed for the one who sows
and bread for those who eat,
11 so shall my word be
that issues forth from my mouth.
It will not return to me unfulfilled,
but it will accomplish my purpose
and achieve what I sent it forth to do.
