Genesis: The Foundation of Biblical Doctrines

Part 5: The Doctrine of the Fall of Man – The Nature of Sin

In our previous article, we introduced the Doctrine of the Fall, recognizing it as the origin of humanity’s sinful condition. We highlighted the presence of evil in the Garden before humanity’s sin and examined the symbolic nature of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Now, we will delve deeper into the nature of sin itself, particularly the “first sin” committed in the Garden and the concept of “original sin.”

Let’s revisit our core text:

Genesis 2:16–17 (NASB 2020): “The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may freely eat; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for on the day that you eat from it you will certainly die.””

We previously posited that the “eating” of the forbidden fruit was more than a mere dietary transgression. For the woman, it involved believing the Serpent’s deceptive words and participating in a deeply corrupting act that violated God’s command. For the man, it was listening to his wife and engaging in an act tainted by the evil that had just entered, thus embracing the corrupted “knowledge.”

Key Questions:

  • What was the first sin committed?
  • What is “sin” in its essence?
  • What is “original sin”?

What was the “Sin” in the Garden?

Various theological statements have attempted to encapsulate the essence of sin, often pointing to specific aspects of the Garden transgression:

  • Sin is “unbelief” / “doubt”: This perspective, championed by some, emphasizes that Eve’s fundamental error was disbelieving God’s Word when presented with Satan’s deception. From this viewpoint, other sins (like adultery or drunkenness) are seen as “attributes of unbelief,” stemming from a core distrust in God.
  • Sin is “disobedience” / “rejecting”: This highlights the active defiance of God’s clear command.
  • Sin is “defiance to God’s law”: This emphasizes the breaking of divine injunctions, recognizing that laws require consequences.

A Proper Definition of “Sin”:

Combining these insights with broader biblical understanding, a comprehensive definition emerges:

  • Lexham Bible Dictionary: “Human activity that is contrary to God’s will.”
  • Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms: “The fundamental unbelief, distrust and rejection of God and human displacement of God as the center of reality.”
  • Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary: “Lawlessness or transgression of God’s will, either by omitting to do what God’s law requires or by doing what it forbids. The transgression can occur in thought, word or deed.”

The simplest and most direct biblical definition comes from 1 John:

1 John 3:4 (NASB 2020): “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.” (KJV: “sin is the transgression of the law.”)

“Lawlessness” (Grk. anomia) refers to a state of being or behaving in open defiance of the law. Therefore, sin is lawlessness, or a transgression of the law or will of God. This transgression can manifest in three ways:

  • In thought: This encompasses unbelief, doubt, and evil intentions.
  • In word: This includes defiant or rebellious speech.
  • In deed: This refers to acts of disobedience.

Adam and Eve both transgressed God’s law, though their specific roles differed.

1 Timothy 2:14 (NKJV): “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.” (NASB: “became a wrongdoer.”)

Eve was directly “deceived” by the serpent; she doubted, and then ceased to believe, God’s Word (2 Corinthians 11:3). Adam, however, was not deceived. His transgression was a deliberate act of choosing to participate in the “fruit” offered by his wife, despite God’s clear command (Romans 5:14). Thus, the sin committed in the Garden was a comprehensive transgression of God’s law, in thought, word, and deed, by both Adam and Eve.

What “Original Sin” Is Not

To properly understand “original sin,” it’s helpful to clarify what it is not. The terminology itself was popularized by Augustine of Hippo (AD 354-430), who distinguished between:

  • Peccatum originis originans (“originating original sin”): The actual event of the first sin.
  • Peccatum originatum (“original sin”): The condition that resulted from the first sin.

Therefore, original sin is not the first sin committed in the Garden. The act of Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit was the originating original sin, or the primal sin.

Furthermore, original sin is not a personal sin that we ourselves commit. Adam and Eve committed personal sins, which is why they were judged and cursed individually. The Bible clearly states that individuals are accountable for their own sins:

Ezekiel 18:19–20 (NASB 2020): “The person who sins will die. A son will not suffer the punishment for the father’s guilt, nor will a father suffer the punishment for the son’s guilt; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.”

What “Original Sin” Means

So, if it’s not the first sin or a personal sin, what is original sin?

Original sin is the state of sin inherited from the fall of Adam and Eve. It is an inherited condition, not a sin we personally committed.

  • It is an inherited condition/nature:1 Corinthians 15:47–49 (NASB 2020): “The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. As is the earthy one, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly one, so also are those who are heavenly. Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.”Just as we are born physical beings “of the dust” like Adam, we also “bore the image of the earthy,” meaning we inherited his sinful nature.Psalm 51:5 (NASB 2020): “Behold, I was brought forth in guilt, And in sin my mother conceived me.”
  • It is a corrupt condition or sin nature; depravity: This inherited nature manifests as a pervasive corruption within every human being, a propensity toward sin.Romans 3:9–18 (NASB 2020): This passage vividly describes the universal depravity of humanity, concluding, “There is no righteous person, not even one… There is no one who does good, There is not even one.”Romans 3:23 (NASB 2020): “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”Job 15:14–16 (NASB 2020): “What is man, that he would be pure, Or he who is born of a woman, that he would be righteous?… How much less one who is detestable and corrupt: A person who drinks malice like water!”
  • It is the sin nature that makes every human commit personal sins – a propensity to commit sin: This inherited nature drives us towards acts of disobedience.Ephesians 2:1–3 (NASB 2020): “And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the rest.”

God’s Response to the Problem of Original Sin

God’s solution to original sin was embedded in the Genesis narrative itself, demonstrating His redemptive plan from the very beginning:

  1. God promised a Seed that would destroy the seed of the serpent!Genesis 3:15 (NASB 2020): “And I will make enemies Of you and the woman, And of your offspring and her Descendant; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise Him on the heel.”This is the protoevangelium, the first Gospel proclamation. The “Descendant” (or “Seed”) of the woman prophetically refers to Jesus Christ, who would be “born of a woman” (Galatians 4:4) to “destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8).
  2. God performed a temporary solution that prefigured His final solution!Genesis 3:21 (NASB 2020): “And the Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.”The provision of animal skins as covering implies that an innocent animal life was sacrificed. This act visually represented that righteousness before God could only be achieved through the shedding of innocent blood, prefiguring the ultimate sacrifice of Christ.Romans 3:21–26 (NASB 2020): This passage elaborates on how God revealed His righteousness apart from the Law, through faith in Jesus Christ, who was publicly displayed as a “propitiation in His blood.” Through Christ’s sacrifice, God could be both “just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
  3. God closed the access to the Tree of Life.Genesis 3:22–24 (NASB 2020): “Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out with his hand, and take fruit also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”—therefore the Lord God sent him out of the Garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. So He drove the man out; and at the east of the Garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.”God, in His mercy, prevented fallen humanity from living forever in a corrupted state by blocking access to the Tree of Life. This underscores that humanity could not resolve its fallen condition through its own efforts. Humanity was driven from God’s presence to suffer the consequences of sin, until God’s righteousness could be perfectly fulfilled by the promised Seed.

Justification by Representation

The impact of Adam’s sin is highlighted by Paul’s teaching on justification by representation:

Romans 5:12–14 (NASB 2020): “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned—for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not counted against anyone when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the violation committed by Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.”

God’s warning was fulfilled: “you will surely die.” Death, both spiritual and physical, became part of the inherited “state of sin” for all humanity.

Adam, therefore, serves as a “type” of Christ (an inverted parallelism). Just as Adam represented all his descendants in condemnation, Christ represents all who believe in Him in justification!

Romans 5:15–16 (NASB 2020): “But the gracious gift is not like the offense. For if by the offense of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many. The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one offense, resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the gracious gift arose from many offenses, resulting in justification.”

Romans 5:17 (NASB 2020): “For if by the offense of the one, death reigned through the one, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.”

Romans 5:18–19 (NASB 2020): “So then, as through one offense the result was condemnation to all mankind, so also through one act of righteousness the result was justification of life to all mankind. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”

Through Adam’s offense, humanity became enslaved to the corruption of sin. But now, in Christ, all who believe are set free from this bondage (Colossians 2:13–15).

Henceforth:

  • The way to the Tree of Life has been opened again through Christ!
  • There is no more curse that will hinder anyone from coming to God through Christ.
  • The only thing that can hinder is one’s unbelief!
  • This also means that even infants, who cannot believe, are not held by Hades because of the encompassing grace of Christ’s sacrifice.

Conclusion

Adam’s offense was one of disobedience – he defied God’s will and command. This disobedience resulted in the state of sin into which every human is born.

Now, in glorious contrast:

  • Christ’s righteous act was perfect obedience – He perfectly fulfilled God’s will!
  • Christ’s obedience results in the state of righteousness into which everyone who believes is born!

Therefore, Jesus can boldly declare:

John 14:6 (NASB 2020): “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.”

John 8:24 (NASB 2020): “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins.”

The Doctrine of the Fall of Man sets the stage for the profound necessity of redemption, revealing the depth of human brokenness and the magnificent breadth of God’s redemptive plan through Jesus Christ.


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