I am perplexed by the idea that God barred man from access to the “tree of life” after Adam and Eve sinned. According to Genesis 3:24 “He placed cherubim at the east of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” From what I understand, the way of life should be made known to all. We are warned against following false prophets and liars who try to change the word of God. I believe God set guardians over it in order to protect it from corruption. Access to the tree of life( the word of truth) must remain open so that people know the way of salvation, as Matthew 8:12 says, “Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.” Any thoughts on this?
Thank you, LLC. You are making me think.
JESUS is the Tree of Life. So why would God seemingly block the path to Jesus after man sinned?
John 20:17 comes to mind: “Don’t cling to Me,” Jesus told her, “for I have not yet ascended to the Father.”
We can spiritualize “the tree of life.” Many do so, and also spiritualize “the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” They ask, “Are you eating from the tree life, or the tree of knowledge”? Some suggest that anyone using his brain is eating from the tree of knowledge, and is therefore devoid of spiritual life.
However, the Genesis account reads as if these were literal trees, and clearly states that the reason God forbade them from returning to the Garden and eating from the tree of life, was “lest they should live forever.” If they continued living permanently with their rebellious natures, it would be disastrous.
Paidion, I agree that they were literal trees, but their symbolic nature is the overriding issue for me.
I suggest The Tree of Life represents the unipolar Jesus, who is love freely offered (as well as ‘all things that pertain to life and godliness’).
And so The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil—the bipolar tree—might represent…
-morality
-sowing and reaping
-the religion of “do good, get good, do bad, get beat”
-earning your bread by the sweat of your brow
…where blessings and curses depend on your performance.
So the two trees could be grace versus legalism, with Satan, not God, being the legalist who will happily curse you for your consistently poor performance. And Jesus is the grace of God.
Hermano, thanks for you comment. 
I believe the word of God is the tree of life and we should all be eating of it and living in it.
Paidion, you mention that God forbade Adam and Eve’s return to the garden to eat from the tree of life “lest they live forever”. However, it seems the tree of life was no longer in the garden at that point. Genesis 3:24 indicates that it was east of Eden. From what I understand, Adam and Eve were not going to live forever in their rebellious state anyways, for they ate from the forbidden tree which is what causes death. One cannot eat fruit from the forbidden tree( disobey God’s word) and eat from the tree of life(obey God’s word) at the same time. I believe God drove them from the garden because in it’s neglect, it had become a den of thieves filled with “snakes”. Obviously, one cannot survive in this type of environment.
I see a difference in the Protestant site Got questions, and Wiki giving some Christian Catholic answers.
What is the meaning of the tree of life?
Tree of life
Here are some answers I like, from the Wiki article:
And God did hire a guard, which the Protestant site Got Questions, tries their spin on things:
Why did God have the cherubim guard just the east side of Eden (Genesis 3:24)?
It’s also interesting that in Jewish and Christian Kabbalah lore, they also have a tree of life:
Me thinks man has replaced the “tree of life” with the “tree of strife” 
I just posted a short book excerpt dealing with Myth that, I think, is at least interesting.
[The Old Testament and mythology)
Thanks Dave and Randy for your posts, very interesting and gives me something to chew on. Randy, in reading what the Protestant site Got Questions had to say in reference to guarding the tree of life, I would have to disagree with some of it. The Bible does not say that the way to the tree of life was blocked, only that the way was guarded. I take this to mean protection from harm. Also the tree was originally in the midst of the garden, however it seems to have been moved east of Eden. From the sounds of it, the tree was no longer in the garden at all, but east of it. I think God drove Adam and Eve out of the garden for their own protection, not to prevent them from partaking of the tree of life, but so that they could. I don’t think God was tossing them out of Eden because they were no longer allowed in paradise. Why weren’t the snake and the forbidden tree expelled? Common sense tells me that the place went to hell in a hand basket. If people are off enjoying themselves and fail to take the trash out, do the dishes, vacuum, etc. etc., the place turns into a pig sty. To me, the Garden of Eden simply became a place that was no longer fit for habitation.
Psalm 91 says this: “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is My refuge and my fortress. Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler… For He shall give angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. They shall bear you up in their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone. You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.”
I think this is what God did for Adam and Eve.
As I mentioned earlier LLC, the Protestant site Got Questions, is providing their own spin on things. Of course, one could also look on the story as allegorical and try to decipher the allegorical meaning. 