From the first page of the Bible to the last it covers thousands of years, different people groups, unique geographical settings, and even various languages and genres. Despite the broad scope of literature included in the Bible, there are clear overarching narratives. One of the most prominent ones is found front and center. It is the link between the first created man, Adam, in the Bible, and the Savior, Jesus Christ.
Who Is Adam in the Bible?
The Bible begins with a dramatic scene. There’s a pitch-black abyss of nothingness.
“When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground” (Genesis 2:5-6).
It is in this dark, hopeless space that God decides to create Adam. It is a little-known fact that the Creation account is actually given twice in two different variations in chapters 1 and 2 of Genesis. In the first Creation account—Genesis 1—humankind is the last to enter the scene, so it is notable that the second Creation account—Genesis 2—places them first.
“Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2:7-8).
According to the Jewish and Christian tradition, Adam was the first human being created by the maker, God. His name literally means “from the soil” or “from the Earth” since it is written that God sculpted him using dust from the ground. In another scene, Adam is put to sleep, and God takes out one of his ribs to form the first woman, Eve.
The story continues and tells us how Adam and Eve lived with God in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were not like the other created things since they were made in the image of God. Even though God created everything, he invited them to co-labor with him.
The Significance of Adam’s Story
Adam’s story carries significance in the greater Biblical narrative. In order to understand that, let’s first look at his life. The dramatic plot twist called the Fall of Sin (Genesis 3) indicates how Adam and Eve turned away from friendship with God for selfish reasons.
Their first sin is also the root of all sin. It is to clench fists tightly and say “mine” instead of living in open surrender with God as Lord of one’s life.
Following their betrayal, Adam and Eve are banished from the Garden—and from abiding in the presence of God. They chose themselves, and so they had to live by themselves. The punishment fit the crime. God said to Adam: “By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19).
In a remarkable act of compassion, God clothed the people who had just betrayed him before sending them out of the Garden for good. Adam and Eve struggled all their days, separated from God’s care. They had four children: Cain, Abel, Enoch, and Seth—and possibly more (Genesis 5:4). Adam lived to a ripe old age, and then he died.
Adam remained a central figure in the Israelites’ stories for generations to come. For instance, the prophet Hosea writes about the Israelites: “But like Adam they transgressed the covenant; there they dealt faithlessly with me.” (Hosea 6:7), and in 1 Chronicles 1, a clear link is drawn between Adam’s bloodline and that of Abram to whom God made a new covenant.
How Is Jesus Christ Similar to Adam?
Theologians and Biblical scholars have found that there are many similarities between Adam and Jesus Christ. Just a few will be summarized here.
- When Jesus’s genealogy is given in the Gospel of Luke, it is drawn all the way back to Adam. So, first of all, they were related.
- Secondly, both Adam and Jesus were fully human. Jesus called himself the “Son of Man.” He had siblings, he worked, ate food, and even wept.
- “In the Gospels, Jesus is presented as a representative man who corresponds to the first man in Scripture”—Brandon D. Crowe. Adam was one person who represented many; Jesus Christ was one man who took the judgment meant for many upon himself (1 Peter 2:24). Romans 5:12 says Adam is “the pattern of the one to come.”
- Michael Kochenash writes that just as Jesus was born of God’s Spirit (according to Luke 1:35), Adam was born of God. While God breathed life into Adam’s nostrils, an Angel announced to Mary that she was expecting a baby. Mary was impregnated by the Spirit of God.
Was Adam Exactly Like Jesus?
Despite all of these significant similarities, Adam was not exactly like Jesus. There are some differences between Adam and Jesus that highlight starkly what sets them apart:
1. A big contrast is seen between Adam and Jesus’s obedience. While Adam disobeyed and caused the Fall of Sin, Jesus only did the will of God (John 5:19). Even though Jesus also faced temptation (Matthew 4), he never sinned.
“For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.” — 1 Corinthians 15:22
2. Adam was a normal human person, but Jesus was the “Son of God” (John 3:16). He was no ordinary human because he had direct and full access to God. Not only that, but according to the concept of the Trinity, Jesus is fully God.
“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” — Philippians 2:5-7
It is fascinating that the stories of the first man, Adam, and the Messiah, Jesus, are so closely related. Even the parts where they differ are significant because they describe why salvation was needed. Adam could not resist the temptation to want to become like God (by eating from the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil). Adam’s shortcomings describe why it was necessary for God to come to Earth. The story of Adam in the Bible is a relatable story for most human beings, who all fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and, therefore, need a Savior.
Understanding the story of Adam in the scripture is helpful for understanding the Gospel—the Christian message—as a whole. And, if the story of Adam is read by itself, you can miss out on spotting the golden thread that runs through the whole Bible.
Overarching Narratives in the Bible
The parallels one can draw between Adam and Jesus are fascinating. It is baffling how such minute details can be incorporated in the Bible as it is such an ancient text. This makes us wonder if there could be more similar stories in the Bible.
The answer is that there are many other overarching narratives in the Bible. Consider this striking foreshadowing of events that happened much later:
Daniel in the Lion’s Den vs Jesus in the Tomb:
In the Old Testament story of Daniel in the Lion’s Den (Daniel 6), we see how an innocent and blameless man named Daniel is falsely accused by his enemies. Daniel is thrown into a lion’s den, and “a stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den” (v. 17). In the morning, they return and roll away the stone to find Daniel unscathed.
The New Testament talks of Jesus as an innocent and blameless man. Jesus is crucified and has to face death. Joseph placed Jesus in a tomb and “he rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb” (Matthew 27:60). Three days later, Jesus rose up from the dead unscathed. Add to this that lion imagery is often utilized in the Bible to describe the battle with sin, the very same battle that Jesus won.
When we discover who Adam was in the Bible, we should not try to read Genesis alone. To get to the true meaning of Adam’s story, we need to read it in the bigger picture of scripture. Only then might we discover there’s much more to the story than what it seemed like at first glance.
