For Trees Their Bark is worse than Their Bite

When God Created the world He commanded the trees that their bark should have the same taste as their fruit but almost none of the trees listened to what God said. If you bite the bark of an apple tree it isn’t going to have the apple taste you were expecting. In fact many trees don’t even produce fruit. However, the Talmud (Berachot 36b) says, the black pepper tree was the one tree that did listen. Reportedly, its bark and fruit have one and the same taste.

Of course the crazy question is how can trees rebel against the Will of God and make their own decisions? Plus, why does the Torah state that the trees were only first punished after the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden? What’s the connection?

The Torah compares the human being to a tree in the field. But while the trees have their roots in the ground, close to their source of life, people have their roots, the thinking mind, close to heaven, the source of their lives.

The trees not bringing forth their taste in their bark, but only in their fruit, were a setup for how life would work in this world if Adam and Eve failed their test. And when they failed the world became a place where full disclosure of holiness would be hidden and truth would become opaque until the ultimate redemption. The only real insight as to the nature of the tree would be its fruits. In the metaphor to people this would mean that rarely are people as they seem on the surface. If you want to know the truth about someone look at their deeds, the equivalent to the tree’s fruit. Sadly, many people, like barren trees, waste their lives and produce no fruit.

The one exception is the true Sage, the person who has worked so deeply on his or her character that what you see is exactly what you get. These people are like the pepper tree. In Hebrew the word for pepper is the same word used to refer to in-depth research and careful analytical study. A person who delves deeply inside their being, unlocking their inner Image of God, will shine forth in quality and abundance of deeds, like the fruits, as well as radiate a holy appearance, like the rectified bark of the tree.