After driving Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, God placed cherubims at its east, along with a flaming sword, according to Genesis 3:24. “Cherubims” is the traditional King James Bible form of the plural noun; many modern translations use “cherubim.”
In the Genesis account, Adam and Eve are expelled after eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Their removal prevents them from also eating from the tree of life and living forever. The cherubims and the revolving flaming sword therefore mark the guarded boundary of Eden and the loss of humanity’s former access to it.
Cherubim in the Bible are not usually portrayed as the small, winged child figures common in later European art. In prophetic visions, especially Ezekiel, they appear as powerful heavenly beings associated with God’s presence and throne. Their imagery also appears in the design of the Ark of the Covenant and the Jerusalem Temple.
A common mix-up is answering only “a flaming sword.” Genesis 3:24 mentions both the cherubims and the sword, but the question asks what God placed at Eden’s east.