WHAT WAS ADAM’S SIN?

I would like to reflect on whether there might be a sin that has befallen all males, not necessarily in an exclusive way, but in a more incessant and more “natural” way because of what Adam (the man) did, as opposed to what Eve (the woman) did.

We’ve all been instructed in the root cause of all sin, and so we attribute our original sin to the sin of the first man, Adam.  Bible scholars and theologians have presented the fall of man, and we’ve heard many homilies attributing the sin to a form of doubt about God’s love and providential promises.  They discuss the sin that then befalls all humankind.  But we’ve also been instructed that God has created man and woman distinct in character and personality and purpose.

One author, Jan Meyes in The Allure of Hope says, “Eve was convinced that God was withholding something from her.”  Another author, John Eldredge in Wild at Heart says, “not even the extravagance of Eden could convince her that God’s heart is good.”  And so he proceeded in that book to dissect the first sins of Adam (the man) and Eve (the woman) and point to weaknesses in the male and the female species.

This author, Eldredge, whom I’m currently reading now then asks, “where is Adam, while the serpent is tempting Eve?”  I paused and thought about it.  I went back to the bible and saw something that caught my attention.  First, I realized that (Gen 2:17) the command to not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil was given to Adam, not to Eve.  Eve wasn’t yet created then (verse 23).  Hmmm.  I’m not trying to exempt Eve from the guilt of disobedience; rather I simply notice that because of the particular sequence of events, it would seem to me that the author of Genesis means to say that God gave the man, and not the woman, the primary responsibility for keeping and obeying His commands.

But Eve was the first one to eat of the forbidden fruit.  So, where was Adam?  Genesis 3:6 says, “The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom.  So she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.”  Hey guys!  Adam was with her!  Eldredge says, “The Hebrew for ‘with her’ means right there, elbow to elbow.  Adam isn’t away in another part of the forest, he has no alibi.  He is standing right there, watching the whole thing unravel.  What does he do?  Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

I reflected on that first sin of Adam.  The first sin of the man.  It wasn’t the consumption of that forbidden fruit.  It was a sin of neglect.  A sin of omission.  He was given a command.  He saw Eve was about to violate a command.  He did nothing.  Sure, Eve was the first to eat of the fruit, but Adam was the one who should have known better, but didn’t act.  He was strong enough to repel the serpent, but he didn’t stomp the creepy thing to death.  He, too, was tempted.  And while he may have agreed with the serpent and, like Eve, doubted that God really meant that they would die if they ate of the fruit, what did he do?   He let Eve try it first … just in case. 

What a coward!  The sin of pride (doubting God’s goodness), the sin of negligence and omission (not acting on the good that we know), coupled with a betraying cowardly heart.  My, oh my.

That’s the sin that we all men (not women) have acquired from our first father, Adam.  Pride, negligence, cowardly betrayal.  God have mercy on us.