First Adam—last Adam
Both are vital to the Gospel … but exactly how?
by Russell Grigg
The Bible presents Adam as the first man, and gives the Lord Jesus Christ the curious
title of ‘the last Adam’ (1
Corinthians 15:45). What does this term mean, and why is it given? What
are the similarities between Adam and Jesus that warrant Jesus having this title?
What are the differences?
Adam and Jesus compared
1. A miraculous beginning
The Bible tells us that the first man, Adam, was created by God, in His image and
likeness, directly from the dust of the ground. God breathed into Adam’s nostrils
the breath of life, and he became a living soul (Genesis
1:26–27;
2:7). Thus, Adam was not the product of some form of theistic evolution.1 God did not make him in the image or likeness
of an ape, nor from a ‘lower hominid’ by any lengthy or even abrupt
mutational processes.2 Rather God
created Adam as an immediate act, by His word (i.e. by commanding or willing this
to happen), at some time on the sixth day of Creation week.3
While Adam was made in the image of God, Christ is
‘the image of the invisible God’ (Colossians
1:15).
The Bible tells us that the last Adam, Jesus Christ, was the One through whom God
created all things (John
1:1–3;
Colossians 1:15–20;
Hebrews 1:2). Thus Jesus was pre-existent with God the Father and
God the Holy Spirit before Adam lived (John
8:58;
Micah 5:2).4 Nevertheless,
in His humanity, He too had a miraculous beginning when He was incarnated as a human
being—conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary (Matthew
1:20–23;
Luke 1:26–35).
2. Perfect, innocent, holy
Adam was created a perfect man, in full possession of all human faculties, and with
a God-consciousness which enabled him to have spiritual communion with God. Initially
innocent, sinless, and holy, he was in a right relationship to God, to woman, to
himself, and to the natural world around him.
The last Adam, Jesus, was also perfectly man, one with God (John
10:30;
17:21-22), innocent, sinless, and holy (Hebrews
7:26). Many people mistakenly refer to Jesus Christ as the ‘second
Adam’, a term not found in the Bible. However, Scripture refers to Christ
as the ‘second man’ (1
Corinthians 15:47). There have been many men since Adam, but Jesus Christ
was only the second man to ever be completely without sin.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only beacon of real hope for a lost humanity.
Its intergrity is firmly based on the historical truth of both the first and the
last Adam. Credit: Designzzz
Unlike the first Adam, the Lord Jesus was, in addition, divine, having the attributes,
offices, prerogatives, and names of deity. Being fully God, He is worthy of worship
(e.g.
Revelation 5:11–14).
3. Humanity’s head
Adam was the head of the human race. Jesus Christ is the head of redeemed humanity
(see, for example,
Ephesians 5:23). Since Christ died once for all time (Hebrews
7:27;
9:28;
10:10–14), there will never be the need for any further
‘Adam.’ Hence He is the last Adam.
4. Both givers of life
The first Adam gave life to all his descendants. The last Adam, Jesus Christ, communicates
‘life’ and ‘light’ to all men, and gives eternal life to
those who receive Him and believe on His name, giving them ‘power
to become the sons of God’ (John
1:1–14).
5. Two rulers
Adam, representing mankind, was given dominion over the created world (Genesis
1:26). After being raised from the dead, Jesus Christ was elevated to God’s
right hand, and given dominion over all things, which were ‘put
under his feet.’ (1
Corinthians 15:27;
Ephesians 1:20–22). The first Adam was lord over a limited
domain, the last Adam is Lord of all (Acts
10:36).
6. A deep sleep produces a beautiful bride
Genesis 2:21-23 tells us that God put Adam into a deep sleep, during which
time God made Adam’s bride, Eve, from Adam’s side—a wound in Adam’s
side produced a bride! Note that once again theistic evolution is excluded. The
text says that God made them male and female at the beginning (Genesis
1:27;
2:7;
Matthew 19:4). If Adam and Eve had been sub-human before God breathed
life into them, they would already have been male and female, without the
need for God to have made them so at this stage.
After the last Adam, Jesus, died upon the cross—suffering the sleep of death
for everyone—His side was pierced by a spear thrust (John
19:34). In His death he paid the penalty for mankind’s sins (1
Corinthians 15:1–4). Those who repent and put their faith in Him
are united with Christ in a relationship which the Bible likens to that of a bride
towards her husband (2
Corinthians 11:2;
Ephesians 5:27;
Revelation 19:6–8). Thus a wound in the last Adam’s
side also produced a bride—the true Church!—‘a
glorious bride, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing … holy and
without blemish’ (Ephesians 5:27).
7. A momentous testing
At the beginning of Adam’s life he underwent a period of testing as to whether
or not he would obey God.5 ‘And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, You may surely eat
of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you
shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’
(Genesis 2:16–17).
At the beginning of the last Adam’s ministry, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit
into the wilderness to be tempted (or tested—Greek: peirazō)
by the devil (Matthew
4:1;
Luke 4:1–3).6
8. A great failure and a great victory
The first Adam failed the test, and in doing so involved all humanity in his defeat,
dragging the human race down with him.7
As a result, in Adam we all stand condemned, spiritually bankrupt, enslaved to sin,
and expelled from Paradise (Romans
5:12 ff.).
The last Adam, Jesus, was victorious over sin, the flesh, and the devil. As a result,
in Christ, believers stand justified and redeemed, spiritually wealthy, liberated
from sin, and included in the Paradise of God (Romans
5:18 ff.;
1 Corinthians 15:21 ff.;
Revelation 2:7).
The first Adam disobeyed God. The last Adam was ‘obedient unto death, even the death of the cross’
9. Disobedience vs obedience
The first Adam disobeyed God. The last Adam was ‘obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross’ (Philippians
2:8).
10. Judgment and death
The first Adam experienced the judgment of God—he ultimately died and his
body turned to dust. Because of his sin, death came upon all men, ‘For
all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God’ (Romans 3:23).
The last Adam, Jesus Christ, also died—on the cross—to atone for sin
(Isaiah
53:5;
1 Peter 3:18;
Hebrews 2:9). But He did not stay dead, nor did His body ‘see
corruption’ (Acts
2:27;
13:35–37). On the third day He rose again, thereby
overcoming the devil and the power of death for all those who believe in Him (Hebrews
2:14), and bringing resurrection from the dead (1
Corinthians 15:22-23).
11. Curse and restoration
Creation was originally ‘very good’ (Genesis
1:31), so the ‘last enemy’, death
(1
Corinthians 15:26) was absent. Even the animals were originally all given
plants to eat (Genesis
1:30). The actions of the first Adam brought a reign of death and bloodshed
upon a once-perfect world, which ever since has been groaning in pain (Romans
8:22).8 Precisely because
of the blood shed in death by the last Adam, this curse of death and bloodshed will
be removed, and creation restored to a sinless, deathless state (Revelation
21:1;
21:4;
22:3).
Conclusion
We are all connected with the first Adam (the natural and legal head of the human
race) as depraved and guilty sinners, and so are included in the sentence of death
which God pronounced on him. However, all who are connected with the last Adam,
Jesus, through repentance and faith in His redeeming work, are forgiven, have ‘received the free gift of righteousness’, and
so ‘have passed from death to life’ (Colossians
1:14;
Romans 5:17;
1 John 3:14).
A reader’s commentLarry G., United States, 13 May 2011
This fine article has tightened my understanding of the truths implied by the Scriptures on this essential part of our belief. Especially insightful were the observations regarding Eve’s creation and the creation of the church. Thank you for this witness to the truth! |
Related article
References and notes
- In Genesis chapters 1–5, the term ‘Adam’ is used
specifically for a single person, not generically for the human race (although this
occurs in chapter 6 ff). The Apostle Paul’s arguments in
Romans 5:12–19 and
1 Corinthians 15:45—that death came into the world through one
man’s disobedience, and the gift of righteousness through one man’s
obedience—would fall to the ground if ‘Adam’ does not refer to
one specific person in the accounts of Creation and the Fall. Paul also taught that
Adam and Eve were real individuals in
1 Timothy 2:13–14. Return to text.
- In
Genesis 2:7 (‘and man became a living soul’),
the word ‘became’ shows that Adam was not already a living creature
that evolved into another/different living creature when he was made. He became
alive (a living soul) only when he was made. Note also that some theistic evolutionists
claim that the dust of Genesis 2:7 from which Adam was made refers to man’s
evolving from a beast, but if this was so, then the returning to dust after death
of
Genesis 3:19 would mean turning back into a beast. This is, of course, absurd.
Return to text.
- See Russell Grigg,
Creation: How did God do it?, Creation 13(2):36–38,
March 1991. Return to text.
- Comparing the origins of the two Adams, the Apostle Paul writes:
‘The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man
is the Lord from heaven’ (1 Corinthians 15:47). Return to
text.
- Since God created Adam with the power of moral choice, his obedience
to God could be confirmed only in a situation where he had the choice either to
obey or disobey God. Thus, at the beginning of Adam’s life, a period of probation
was necessary, even though God foreknew it would result in the Fall. Return
to text.
- We should not imagine that this was the only time in Jesus’
life that he was tempted by Satan, cf.
Luke 4:13;
22:28;
Hebrews 4:15;
5:8. Return to text.
- Note that Adam was in a pleasant garden, with plenty to eat, and
was not hungry. Yet despite living in the best possible living conditions, he still
sinned. Jesus was in the wilderness, with nothing to eat, and was very hungry. Return to text.
- This is a potent reason why long–age ‘interpretations’
of the Bible do so much damage to the logic of the Gospel message. The fossils show
evidence of death, suffering and disease. If they existed millions of years before
man, it means that these things were present before sin. There could not then have
been any Curse on creation because of sin, and never any sinless, deathless condition
to which all things will be restored (Acts
3:21). Return to text.
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