Fall of the Man is the first ever story of the universe that accounts for the disobedience of Adam and Eve which resulted in the casting out of humankind from the Garden of Eden. “Disobedience” was the first sin committed in the history of humankind that ended the intimate relationship and partnership with God. However, although God casts out Adam and Eve from Heaven to discipline them, he never stopped loving them and us. Humankind must find a way to renew their relationship with their Lord, God, which Adam and Eve defied due to their temptation and lust.
Overview
The story started when God created Adam and Eve, the first man and the woman in the universe, and accommodated them in the Garden of Eden, a perfect home to live in. God put the tree that was meant for knowing about evil and good in the middle of the Garden and told Adam not to come close to that tree or eat its fruit because they would die, but they could tend to other parts of the garden. Adam’s duties were clear, so he passed those warnings to Eve, his wife. One day, Satan disguised himself as a serpent and entered the garden to do what he was and still is best at, lying. He went to Eve and lied to her, “You will not surely die. For God doth know that in the day you eat thereof, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:4-5, NIV, Bible Gateway Passage). Eve believed Satan instead of God’s warnings and ate the fruit from that forbidden tree and also brought some to Adam to eat, and suddenly they realized they were naked. The Scripture says, “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked” (Genesis 3:7, NIV, Bible Gateway Passage). God invoked curses on them and Satan, but He did not destroy both humans out of His gracious love. So, God banished them from the Eden as their punishment. From that time on, the Scripture tracks a tragic history of man going against his Lord in a world full of God’s blessings.
Background
The fall of man has a background history derived from two significant events that took place before the fall of man. One was the creation of man, and the other was Satan’s rebellion against God in Heaven. Originally, the man was made in the likeliness of God. God wanted his beloved creation, “man,” to live in alliance and accordance with God’s divine life. God gave dominion to Adam and Eve over every living thing, including birds and all animal life and told them to overpower whatever they want. Adam and Eve were eternal beings sustained by the herbs and fruits God provided. Food was plentiful and free for the taking, animals got along with one another, and the garden was spectacularly beautiful. There was no death of any kind for any reason for any living being. Indeed, everything on Earth and in Heaven was absolute at that special occasion in time. The second event was Satan’s rebellion against God because of pride in his heart. He did not want to be God’s assistant or a submissive creature like an angel but wanted God’s job. So, God cast him out from the Garden of Eden, which was why he took his vengeance on first human beings by tempting them to the tree of life to rebel against God (Fodor, 1954).
Lessons Can Be Learned
The important lesson that can be learned from the story of the fall of man is that beware of the devil’s schemes because he always prowls around like a dragon to whisper lies into the ears of the sons of Adam to tempt them to rebel against God. He leads the whole world astray as he is the father of lies. So, it is an individual’s responsibility to keep a check on their life because Satan may come in various ways to deceive a believer. Another lesson that can be deduced from the story is that stay away from the passion of sin and lust because nobody can stay clean coming closer to sins.
Consequences
The book of Genesis tells humanity that humankind rebelled against God as Adam, the federal headship representing all humankind, touched every descendent. So, all the humanity born committed due to the sin of Adam. Adam and Eve destroyed all the subsequent generations when they rebelled against God’s love and goodness to seek autonomy and the worship of self which separated humankind from God. Moreover, Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God ruined human nature as the first sin of first human beings transmitted the desire to wrongdoing to every human being born since. In this world, every act of sin, misery, violence, tragedy, and illness traces back to that fateful encounter between Satan and Adam and Eve. The contrasting image when we have a glance on the universe before sin and after disobedience is terrifying. People treat each other cruelly, sufferings are rampant, different parts of the world have gone to war, and death is inevitable.
References
Bible Gateway passage: Genesis 3 – New International Version. (n.d.). Bible Gateway. Retrieved December 15, 2022, from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%203&version=NIV
Fodor, A. (1954). The fall of man in the book of Genesis. American Imago, 11(2), 203–231.
