The phrase in Hebrew: טוֹב וָרָע / tov V'ra, translatable as good and evil, may be an example of the type of figure of speech known as merism. This literary device pairs opposite terms together, in order to create a general meaning; so that the phrase "good and evil" would simply imply "everything". It is equivalent to the Egyptian expression evil-good which is indeed normally employed to mean "everything". In Greek literature, the concept is also used by Telemachus, "I know all things, the good and the evil" (Od.20:309-10). However, given the context of disobedience to God, other interpretations of the implications of this phrase also demand consideration.