The Tree of Life, in Hebrew is "Etz Ha-Chayim" (עֵץ הַחַיִּים). This is more literally something like "tree of the lives" perhaps intending something like "tree of the abundance of life". The word can also mean "wood", "timber", or "pole".
This suggests an interesting thing to my mind about Jesus's crucifixion. In several places, Jesus is described as having been hung from a tree (or pole), and the greek word used, "xylon" (ξύλον), is very similar to the Hebrew "etz", in that it can be used to refer to either a living tree or a pole. This idea of Jesus hanging from a tree or pole, led me to realize that Christ hanging from the cross was, to the ancient mind, a not-so-subtle allusion to the Tree of Life, with Christ hanging there like fruit on a tree. However, there's an irony in the fact that this pole was used as an instrument to kill Jesus. It was a pole designed to judge and to bring death, which is really the role of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, to bring death and judgement into the world; to apply the cold unfeeling punishment of the law. This might at first seem like a contradiction, until we think of how Christ, at this time has transformed the law into a higher law. Having done that, we can see in his crucifixion, that he has transformed the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil into a Tree of Life.
The Hebrew root at the heart of "Etz" is ayin-tsadi-he, which, at its core, refers to the idea to fastening of making firm. How we get the idea of a tree from this is clear, and similarly, it connects to the idea of "bone". Interestingly, it also connects with the idea of counseling. The idea apparently is that of giving firm advice or devising a solid plan. The idea then, of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, is connected to the idea of a counsel of discernment, or judgement, whereas the Tree of Life is a Counsel of Life.
There is, in here, something akin to the distinction between knowledge and wisdom, in a sense. This is not to say that everyone agrees on what these terms mean, but, in a particular sense, knowledge divides. It creates taxonomies, and rules for defining right and wrong. Wisdom, however, in this particular sense, is the proper application of knowledge, to enable execution of plans, creation, and life. There is an idea present in this that one must progress from ignorance to knowledge, and then from knowledge to wisdom, in order to be made complete.
As an example, when we are born, we are innocent. We have neither knowledge, nor wisdom. As we grow, we gain a knowledge of right and wrong. Parents often joke that their teenagers think they know everything, and, in a sense, maybe they do. They have knowledge, and as they apply it to the world, they judge their parents, and the world. Then, they go out into the world, must deal with the harsh reality of loneliness, thorns, thistles, briars, and noxious weeds. They are a seed thrown into soil, some of it stony, some of it hard, some of it good. They can discern between good and evil, and everyone is condemned, but can they discern between that which brings death, and that which brings life, and can they forgive the weaknesses of others in a healthy way that allows life to flourish, and become, thereby a life-bringer themselves.
The law of Moses is a manifestation of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for by it, are all men condemned, and death is brought upon the world. The Tree of Life, however, represents a higher law; a law which incorporates repentance, forgiveness, and mercy, but also consecration. It involves the application of faith by watching for the signs of life and diligently fostering that life. It does not mean abandoning the judgement and the law, but instead using it as a tool to attain unto wisdom, so that we judge as God would judge.