Gen 3:1-3

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" Gen 3:1 (NIV)

Did God really say? Right away the serpent plants seeds of doubt. Can it be true that God actually said you cannot eat from any tree in the garden? We know that is not true. God them one negative commandment: don't eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad. This does not mean you cannot eat from any tree, just that one tree.

you The Hebrew is plural. KJV has the archaic "ye", which is the second person plural. Was Adam also present when the serpent spoke to Eve? When she took of the fruit and gave it to her husband, notice that the text says he was with her. Was he there the whole time? How much of this conversation between the serpent and Eve did he hear? And if he was there the whole time, why didn't he say anything? If men are to be leaders what kind of example was Adam setting? How could he let Eve be tempted by the serpent and not rebuke the serpent? Did he not remember what God had told him? Was he also beguiled? People have been quick to blame Eve for the fall of mankind. Let us not forget that Adam was there too and he said nothing.

2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "

and you must not touch it

Well, two out of three ain't too bad, right? She was correct that they were allowed to eat fruit from the trees in the garden except the fruit from the tree in the middle. But God did not say "don't touch it or you will die." Whence cometh this prohibition? Where would Eve have heard such a thing if God hadn't said it? Answer, Adam. Where did Adam get such a notion? I hain't got the foggiest.

We see here the conflict between "making a fence about the Torah" and not adding or detracting from God's laws.

The men of the kenesset ha'gadol (great assembly) said to make a fence about the Torah. Meaning, add safeguards to make sure you don't violate the commandments. For example, if God said not to boil a kid in its mother's milk, don't have any mixture of meat and milk at all, ever. Do not have meat and dairy in the same meal. Have separate cookware, plates, cups, bowls, and utensils for meat and milk.

On the other hand, God explicity said in the Torah not to add or take away from His commandments. Deut 4:2.

The former is Talmudic, based on oral tradition, the latter is straight out of the written Torah. I place greater emphasis on the written Torah. Orthodox Jews hold the Talmud on equal footing with the written Torah. How do we find a balance? What makes sense? What allows us to live fully for God within the rules and regulations He set for us? Are 613 commandments not enough?

Perhaps Adam felt he was making a fence about God's commandment and protecting himself and Eve from transgressing that commandment. Maybe he should have checked with God first. But the Torah is silent about any conversations Adam and God may have had regarding not touching the tree of knowledge. Suffice to say, God did not say "don't touch the tree or you will die." God did say, "don't eat from that tree, or you will die." We must be careful when trying to understand what God wants of us that we first understand what He says. There is more merit in doing the obligations you're expected to do than going above and beyond the call of duty. Lest anyone boast about his or her observance of the mitzvot, let us first recognize that none of us follow it perfectly, so why add additional burdens?