Bible Covenants (1): The Covenant with Adam

Hay, Jack

Part of the Bible Covenants ~ Jack Hay series.

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Introduction
It is generally recognized that, while often helpful, information in Wikipedia is not always accurate. For example, it indicates that maybe
Priscilla was the anonymous writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews! When it comes to covenants, it does indicate the wide variety of
opinion about the nature of a Bible covenant, telling us that scholars see anything between one and twelve di erent covenants. This
series will in no way embrace the top number but will be con ned to what would normally be viewed as valid Bible covenants.

Although the word “covenant” is employed extensively in Scripture, even being retained in most recent translations, it is rarely used in
current conversation, so an indication of the meaning of the word seems necessary. De nitions in secular dictionaries convey the idea
of “a solemn agreement,” or “a legally binding agreement,” and this aptly expresses the Bible’s meaning of a covenant.

The word is rst used in connection with Noah: “with thee will I establish my covenant” (Gen 6:18), and the next article will deal with
God’s agreement with Noah, one which holds good until this present day. Other covenants will be explored, including God’s pledges to
notable characters such as Abraham and David.

Some of the covenants that God initiated were unconditional commitments, such as the promises to Abraham and David, but on other
occasions, promised blessing was dependent on the compliance of the other parties to the contract, most notably the covenant of the
Law; thus we speak of unilateral and bilateral covenants.

Although the rst reference to a covenant is in the story of Noah, it seems that God had made a covenant with Adam in primeval days.
We are indebted to the prophet Hosea for enlightening us about this. The people of his generation had transgressed a covenant “like
Adam” (Hos 6:7, most translations). Thus the rst agreement that God ever made with mankind was with the head of the race, Adam
himself.

The Covenant
In his Bible notes, C.I. Sco eld speaks of the Edenic Covenant based on Genesis 1:28, whereby in the dispensation of innocence Adam
was under mandate to “replenish the earth and subdue it.” He then refers to the Adamic Covenant, based on God’s pronouncements
subsequent to the Fall, when He consigned mankind and the earth to disagreeable conditions pending the coming Kingdom Age (Gen
3:14-19). Paul described this as “the creation [being] subjected to vanity, not of its own will,” until ultimately being “delivered from the
bondage of corruption” (Rom 8:20-21 RV).

Sco eld’s description of these instructions and pronouncements as covenants is possibly valid, but the way that Hosea’s language is
couched and his use of the word “transgressed” leaves us with the distinct impression that God’s covenant with Adam relates to His
instructions regarding the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:16-17). There is no record of what was promised should Adam
submissively observe His commandment regarding that tree, but from the tenor of God’s warning, it may be legitimate to conjecture
that there was the assurance of perpetual life on the planet. The negative threat promised death for non-compliance: “in the day that
thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”(v17). Thus the covenant was a bilateral arrangement that necessitated Adam’s total
obedience to ensure his continued survival.

Disobedience
We have no idea how long Adam’s state of innocence lasted, but Genesis 3 is the sad record of his infringement of God’s covenant; it is
the account of the rst human sin, described by Paul as “disobedience” (Rom 5:19). The rebellious act was preceded by the duplicity of
the serpent, with the insinuation that God would never implement the punitive side of His covenant: “Ye shall not surely die” (Gen 3:4).
This resulted in the deception of Eve (2Cor 11:3; 1Tim 2:14). This latter Scripture insists that “Adam was not deceived”; thus his act was
one of deliberate de ance – the terms of the covenant had been breached.

Consequences
For Adam personally, the consequences of audaciously ignoring the conditions of the covenant were immediate. New unpleasant
emotions swirled around his mind: shame (Gen 3:7), guilt (v8), fear (v10) and suspicion (v11). There was now the prospect of relentless
toil to sustain life (vv17-19), but in the end, despite all the e ort, the battle would be lost. Death would be the inevitable winner: “dust
thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” (v19). Adam was now a mortal creature, for regardless of the devil’s argument to the
contrary, incorporated in God’s covenant with Adam was this: “thou shalt surely die” (2:17). God’s covenants are sure and His threats as
well as His promises are ful lled, and thus it is recorded, “and he died” (5:5). /
For humanity, the results of Adam’s insubordination were immense. Because Adam breached the rst covenant that God made with
man, tragedy ensued, with disease and death a ecting our persons, and disasters such as famines, oods and earthquakes a ecting
our planet.

Additionally, as head of the race, he brought everyone under his headship into a state of sinnership. In both Romans 3:23 and Romans
5:12 we are told that “all have sinned,” but the one is not a replica of the other. The rst is a reference to our personal failure to attain
God’s perfect standard, whereas in 5:12 the thought is that when Adam sinned, we sinned in association with him as the head of the
race. It is the oriental concept of the solidarity of a race of people, illustrated in Hebrews 7, where Abraham’s actions are seen to
involve his descendants (vv4-10).

Adam is the only person in Scripture who is stated to be a “type” of the Lord Jesus (Rom 5:14 NKJV). He is a type in one speci c way. One
act on his part, an act of disobedience, had massively adverse e ects for all who came under his headship; one act on the part of the
Lord Jesus, an act of obedience in going to the cross, had enormously bene cial e ects for all who come under His headship (Rom
5:19). We are those who are no longer “in Adam” but “in Christ,” and as such, have the assurance that death will not be the ultimate
victor, for “in Christ shall all be made alive,” and, “we shall also bear the image of the heavenly” (1Cor 15:22, 49).

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