Something that I think is crucial to understanding the resurrection out of the death from sin incurred by Adam is the fact that certain curses resulted from his sin.
Genesis 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.That was the first curse-they were made conscious ( or were given a "conscience") of their already existent nakedness. So then, the conscience of sin had to be removed because it was a result of sin.
Second, they despised the presence of God, so they fled from Him-much like Israel did and the natural man does today when presented with the Gospel ( the presence of Jesus Christ).
Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.Also, it is interesting that God said:
Genesis 3:11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?"Who told you that you were naked?" The answer is: no one but Adam's very own conscience. This is what the world of sin and death is-a conscience guilty because of the knowledge of sin, whether of deeds or unbelief.
A third result of sin was not taking responsibility for sin. Justifying self etc.
Jeremiah 3:13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the LORD.Notice the correlation of Israel running to "every green tree" of the strangers (heathen). Compare:
Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.As you know, very often the Bible uses trees as a metaphor to describe people. It seems possible that Adam and Eve may have fled into the presence of wicked men and looked to others and works for protection. Israel looked for others for protection and trusted in their works, the gods of the nations, etc. She played the harlot. The fig tree certainly represented the system of Israel in which her citizens trusted. Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves for themselves, which could by no means cover their nakedness:
Isaiah 59:6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.Finally, as we also know, Israel was considered blessed among all nations for God choosing to be their God. But He gave them a law to be their taskmaster. They rebelled and used the law to try to sanctify themselves:
Isaiah 66:17 They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.Since they now took what was holy (the law) and profaned God's name, they became cursed above all men. It seems that the covenant given to Adam made him cursed above all men. We have previously studied how frequently God uses the term "beasts" to describe men. Even Peter was given that same imagery to depict the Gentiles whom God had declared clean:
Acts 10:12-15 Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. {13} And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat. {14} But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean. {15} And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.God said to the Devil (the father (perhaps teaching and false doctrine) of the Jews:
Genesis 3:14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:Could it be that God was declaring that "spirit of error" existing within those who had heard God's law was that spirit that the Jews had? Notice the serpent's place-the dust. Here is what God said concerning Israel:
Deuteronomy 32:23-24 I will heap mischiefs upon them; I will spend mine arrows upon them. {24} They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust.
Matthew 23:33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?Those correlations are very interesting to say the least. Is it possible that the serpent represented the spirit in those of the flesh ( the actual nationality of those to whom God had given law and their works under that law) and that that spirit tempted Adam and Eve (everlasting covenantal people of God) to trust in self-righteousness? God did provide a typological covering for them, but certainly not for the serpent. Also, remember what God called the Jews: serpents and "offspring of vipers":Isaiah 59:4-6 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity. {5} They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper. {6} Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.The "father" may very well have been that spirit in a particular person who deceived Adam and Eve into thinking they could be come as God. Notice that in the passage in John the subject is doctrine and truth:
John 8:31-33 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; {32} And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. {33} They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?Notice, they still cannot hear His word. "We were *never in bondage* to any man."
John 8:34-37 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. {35} And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. {36} If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. {37} I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.They were slaves of sin. His word had no place in them.
John 8:38-39 I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father. {39} They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham.They had seen works of their father. The Pharisees were the most outwardly righteous and self-righteous of any. Therefore it follows that they were pursuing the path of the first "worker"--the person in whom dwelt that spirit of error. Jesus declared that if Abraham (not a worker, but a believer) were their father, they would do his "works":
John 6:28-29 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? {29} Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.Jesus continues dealing with the offspring of the adversary:
John 8:40-41 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. {41} Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.Notice the Jews' response. Nowhere did Jesus speak of fornication. Therefore, we must ask why the Jews suddenly used this term when all Christ said was that they were of their father, and that Christ was clearly saying that their father was not God. Their immediate response was, "we be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God." In essence, these Pharisees understood what fornication really was-idolatry. Of course the situation concerned the adulterous woman. But Christ was implying that they had a different father. Could it be that they were completely aware of how God rebuked Israel for their fornication with other gods, nations, etc., but they were not aware of the most critical form of fornication and idolatry-the works of the flesh to attain justification before the holy God? It seems that the greatest lie ever given to men was that spirit working to deceive Adam and Eve into thinking they could have the righteousness of God by "partaking of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." It really does seem that these Jews certainly understood the non-sexual emphasis of the use of the word fornication, however, they were oblivious to the way the first deceiver (their father the devil) tempted Adam and Eve to fornicate through self-righteousness.
Jesus then said:
John 8:42-47 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. {43} Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word. {44} Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. {45} And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. {46} Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? {47} He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.If these Pharisees were as Paul, they were blameless concerning the outward works of the law:
Philippians 3:4-6 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: {5} Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; {6} Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.And Christ said to the disciples:
Matthew 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.So then, when the Pharisees said they were not born of fornication, they really believed it and outwardly this was true. However, Christ was addressing an aspect of fornication that they had not even remotely considered. Christ even went so far as to say that they would do the lusts of their father, the adversary. Jesus immediately described that lust as murder. How was it murder? The adversary deceived Adam and Eve through false teaching, and thus they were slain. Notice how "lusts" is used elsewhere in connection with works:
James 4:1-7 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? {2} Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. {3} Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. {4} Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. {5} Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? {6} But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. {7} Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.To whom was James speaking? Certainly Israelites:
James 1:1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.…but specifically to self-righteous Pharisees:
James 5:1-3 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. {2} Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. {3} Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.These metaphors represent the riches of self-righteousness that would be used as a "witness against them."
So their lusts and fightings primarily had to do with their constant comparisons with one another, which also was a temptation, considering their enormous accomplishments of outward self-righteousness:
2 Corinthians 10:12 For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.They would lust and of course desire glory for the persuasion of others to their false teaching:
Galatians 6:12-13 As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. {13} For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh.The adversary desired this from Adam and Eve. Certainly they bowed. And of course the adversary desired this of Christ:
Matthew 4:9-11 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. {10} Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. {11} Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.Interesting here is that the adversary left Christ after Christ resisted him and his attempt to gain the worship of the Son of God. James said:
James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.So I would venture to say that these lusts of the flesh are those to which Christ was referring when He said to the Jews that they were of their father, the adversary, and his lusts they would do.
Continuing with the Genesis curses:
Fourth, God said:
Genesis 3:16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.The question is, was this curse dissolved? The closest passage we have that is related to this is found in John:
John 16:20-22 Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. {21} A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. {22} And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.I believe that the curse in Genesis was the reality that under the law of sin and death the covenant people of God (Israel-i.e. Eve) travailed in sorrow, not bringing forth the fruit of God. But since the church would live by the waters of Christ, flowing first through the apostles-the foundation of the church-she would finally bring forth fruit, and that fruit would remain. It would remain in the form of the tree created from the small corn of wheat that fell to the ground (Christ) and the consequential seeds that would later fall to the ground (i.e. fall away from the wicked source of the adversary-Israel under the law) during the transitional period while the OC was passing away. A child would be brought forth for the first time in redemptive history that would not be born of the seed of the serpent, but born of the seed of God. These are called also the seed of Abraham, being children of faith. This picture of sorrow and travail concerns the forming of the church, the new man growing up into its head (Christ) through His being formed in them:
Ephesians 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:Notice how Paul uses the identical language of Christ and Genesis-travailing and birth. How was this discussed in the OT?Galatians 4:19 My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,
Isaiah 54:1-3 Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD. {2} Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; {3} For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.It appears that the final result of the corn of wheat and travailing woman would be the everlasting fruit of the new man created in Christ Jesus, which included the complete union of Israelite and Gentile under the bond the New Covenant. This is the significance of being born again-literally, joined together in the entire new creation of the new man in Christ Jesus.
Another curse that fell upon the covenant people of God was the curse of the woman being under the rule of her husband:
Genesis 3:16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.Israel would desire her old husband and he would rule over her:
Romans 7:1-3 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? {2} For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. {3} So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.Through Christ, this curse is abolished. For not only would Israel forsake the old man; the old man would die and she would be married to a new man. Her first husband would no longer bear rule over her. She would now be free and married to the new or second Adam, Christ:
1 Corinthians 15:45-47 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. {46} Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. {47} The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.Under the Old Covenant, the physical relationship of those marriages in Israel only showed forth the dominion of the man over the woman. Under the New Covenant the physical relationship of marriages in Spiritual Israel show forth the dominion of Christ over His bride. Israel became united with her New Husband rather than the first husband under the law, or of the earth. That curse was abolished.
But there was yet another curse:
Genesis 3:17-19 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; {18} Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; {19} In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.Again, the question is, has this curse been abolished? If we understand this in light of the curse that came upon Eve and the other curses, it would seem very probable that this too would have some relation to the curse of the law of sin and death. Notice that the ground was cursed. I will not even address the logical problems that arise with the suggestion of some that the physical ground was cursed. But just to say that Romans 8 is clearly dealing with the same idea:
Romans 8:18-23 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which is about to be revealed in us. {19} For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. {20} For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, {21} Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. {22} For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. {23} And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.The creation was groaning and travailing. That creation represented the whole body of OC believers still under the curse of the law of sin and death. We must understand that this cursing of the ground represents the cursing of Israel's land, for they were under this curse of the law of sin and death. Under the curse of the law of sin and death, Israel was under law and not grace. Though her salvation would ultimately be by grace through the work of Messiah, she was under the law and the OC until then:
John 1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.Let us reread the passage in Genesis:
Genesis 3:17-19 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; {18} Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; {19} In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.The sorrow represents the sorrows of death, which would be completely swallowed up at the time of Messiah and the New Covenant:
Revelation 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.The thorns and thistles represent the dryness of Israel under the law, completely deprived of the living waters of Christ:
Isaiah 35:6-7 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. {7} And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes.Compare that last verse. It mentions the words thorns and briers. The whole context of the passage is dealing with the prophetic Messianic kingdom. Since the OC was about to pass away at the time of the writing of the book of Hebrews, the following passage makes perfect sense when we compare it with Isaiah 55 and Genesis 3:
Isaiah 55:10-13 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: {11} So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. {12} For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. {13} Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
Hebrews 6:7-8 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: {8} But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.Notice that the writer uses the words earth, thorns, and briers. I have no doubt that there was strong allusion to the passage in Genesis. Isaiah mentions this problem:
Isaiah 5:6-7 And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it. {7} For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.Other passages that clearly use this type of language to show the sinfulness of Israel are abundant:
Isaiah 9:18 For wickedness burneth as the fire: it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.Again, consider the Hebrews passage:
Isaiah 10:17 And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day;
Isaiah 27:4 Fury is not in me: who would set the briers and thorns against me in battle? I would go through them, I would burn them together.
Isaiah 32:13 Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city:
Hebrews 6:7-8 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: {8} But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.Not only this, but even Christ spoke of the different soils:
Mark 4:7-8 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. {8} And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.In other words, Christ and the apostles taught that under the OC only thorns and briers were brought forth, whereas under the NC, life, fruit, and righteousness would be brought forth. This is accomplished in and through Christ Jesus.
Therefore, I believe that all the curses incurred through the sin of
Adam were abolished through the death, resurrection, and parousia of Jesus
Christ, and that those curses primarily represented the fall of covenant
man under the law of God.