Lesson 9 — The Dispensation of Innocence

1. 1 THE DISPENSATION OF INNOCENCE

PART II: GOD’S HISTORICAL DEALINGS WITH MAN

(LESSONS 9–18)

The Dispensation of Innocence

Genesis 2:15–3

THE ANTEDILUVIAN AGE Genesis 1:3–8

The Antediluvian Age is that period of time from the re-creation of the Earth and the creation of man to the flood of Noah. There are two dispensations in this age: Innocence and Conscience .

There are nine main points for the student to learn in connection with each dispensation, if a general knowledge of that period is to be gained. They are as follows:

• The definition of the name of the dispensation.

• The length of the dispensation.

• The favorable beginning for man in each age.

• The test for man in each period.

• The purpose of God in each test for man.

• The means of God in accomplishing His purpose.

• The failure of man to meet the test.

• The judgment of God upon man because of his failure.

• God’s provision of redemption for man at the end of each age.

When these nine points of each of the seven dispensations for man are learned then God’s Universal Plan for Creation as a whole will become very simple to understand. If the student will study these periods and the subjects of importance of each period as they are discussed, and if he will concentrate upon the connection of all these parts to the whole purpose of God in the whole plan, every question of importance will soon be solved and no mystery will remain concerning the Bible and God’s eternal plan and purpose. One should study in detail the history of God’s dealings with man in each past age and then the prophecy predicting the future dealings with man in each future age. When this is done, it should be a simple matter to solve many perplexing problems that men have in their minds concerning the Bible. Many problems will automatically clear up, and the rest will be simple to solve as one studies the Bible with these facts in mind. One can then see from God’s standpoint what God had in mind before He began to bring His plan to pass, as revealed in the Scriptures.

The word “innocence” itself is simple to understand. It merely means the quality of being without consciousness of evil; harmlessness; or freedom from crime, guilt or sin. An innocent person is one who is free from guilt or violation of any law, guiltless, sinless, pure, upright, harmless.

The word “innocence” as applied to a period of time or a dispensation means that it was an age of sinlessness, innocence, harmlessness, and freedom from guilt or sin on the part of man who was responsible to rule for God in this period. Adam was perfectly innocent when put in the Garden of Eden. He was not even self-conscious to the extent of being ashamed of his nakedness. “They were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed” Genesis 2:25. They became self-conscious of their nakedness when sin entered: “The eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked” Genesis 3:7. When a person is in this state we could speak of his being God-conscious, perfectly innocent of all wrong doing. In the fall, man lost this God-consciousness and gained self-consciousness. Conscience was awakened and both man and woman became sinners, knowing by experience both good and evil.

We call this former age the Dispensation of Innocence because man was tested in this first probationary period while in a state of innocence. He was tested as to right and wrong, or to the free exercise of his created will power while he was sinless and free from all evil.

II. The Length of the Dispensation of Innocence

The length of the Dispensation of Innocence is unknown, but judging from Satan’s character and his dealings with all men of all ages, we can historically and scripturally conclude that he did not let God’s work go very long without trying to defeat Him. He was jealous of Adam and would not be satisfied with man ruling in his place as governor of the earth. He no doubt got busy immediately to cause the fall of man and regain dominion of the restored earth through man.

On the small chart, you will notice that we have the length of this dispensation to be six days followed by a question mark. This means we do not know how long this age lasted, but putting it at one week cannot be very far off for the following reasons:

1. Satan does not let man alone for very long today, unless he already controls the individual and there is no fight to get him.

2. The story of the record of the creation of man and of his fall continues without a break or without any time element between them, thus indicating they followed each other in close succession.

3. We have record of God resting on only one sabbath day Genesis 2:1-3.

4. The next statement about God is that He was walking in the Garden in the cool of the day Genesis 3:8. This had to be after the sabbath of rest, for God rested on that day.

5. Neither Adam nor Eve had yet had time to visit and eat of the Tree of Life, for when they sinned they were driven out of the Garden and kept from this tree lest they should eat of it and live forever Genesis 3:22-24.

6. Both the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil were evidently shown to man so that he could distinguish them from all the other trees and be able to tell which was the forbidden one and which was the Tree of Life. The fact that they went first to the Tree of Knowledge indicates that they were curious to look this tree over to see why it was so different from all the other trees of the Garden. When curiosity is aroused in any person he is generally not long in trying to satisfy the curiosity.

7. The serpent was near the forbidden tree at the time man came to satisfy his curiosity; which was evidently aroused when God gave the commandment not to eat of the tree, and that was on the day of man’s creation when he was put in the Garden. Man could have sinned the very next day when God was resting from all his work, for there is no command for man to rest and no record that he did rest on that day. It would have been ridiculous to ask man to rest before he had worked one day. The first day of man’s work was the day on which he was created, for he named the animals, and that was a good day’s work for any man. If God taught him in the beginning to rest on the seventh day after six days’ work, as some teach, then Adam’s first sabbath would have been on the fourth day of the second week instead of the seventh day.

8. Adam fell before he knew his wife and had offspring, for the first children to be born were as sinful as those that are born today, for death has passed upon all men for all have sinned Romans 5:12-21. This would prove that he sinned at least before a few days passed. He was married to the woman on Day 6 of the restoration of the Earth, for he said on that day, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” Genesis 2:21-25. Judging that he was a normal man, he would not wait indefinitely to love his wife and carry out his creative purpose and satisfy his natural desire. Few men, if any, ever wait a week to fulfill the purpose of marriage, and we can believe that Adam was no exception. Hence, we conclude that he sinned before Eve conceived and that man was not long in a state of innocence before he ate of the forbidden fruit.

We must add here that the forbidden fruit was not intercourse with his wife, as many rebels against truth teach, for this he was created to do, else he could never multiply and replenish the Earth as he was commanded the first day of his existence Genesis 1:26-28. He was commanded to have children, but not to eat of the tree. Hence, the two acts could not have been the same.

The forbidden fruit was simply a natural fruit that grew on a tree as is plainly stated of it: “The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden . . . And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil . . . And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree in the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die . . . The woman saw that the tree was good for food . . . she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also to her husband with her; and he did eat” Genesis 2:9, 16Genesis 3:1-6, 11.

It is pure nonsense to claim that such simple language of eating of the fruit of the tree was sexual intercourse. The words “food” and “eat” are used 14 times in Gen. 2-3, proving that natural food and real eating was the cause of the Fall. The Tree of Knowledge is classed as one of many other trees in the Garden, and it is just as easy to prove that eating of every tree of the Garden is sexual intercourse as to prove this of only one of these trees.

In the very beginning of our study of the Bible we must learn to reject the foolish theories of men and believe what is plainly written. This is the only way to gain a working knowledge of the Bible. If we are to question and do away with what is written we had better put up the Bible forever and have nothing to do with it, for we shall receive less judgment in the end than we will if we change everything it says.

Taking the Bible literally will enable us to get a simple knowledge of the truth as to what caused man to Fall and when. There is no mystery attached to the Fall and there can be no misunderstanding if we believe what is recorded in God’s Word. The Fall could have been brought about by doing anything that God commanded man not to do. It was not the nature of the fruit that caused the sin, but it was disobedience to God that constituted the sin. This is plainly stated in Rom. 5:12-21, “For if by one man’s offense . . . by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” Again, “where no law is, there is no transgression,” and “sin is the transgression of the law” Romans 4:151 John 3:4. If man had been told not to do any one of a thousand acts, a transgression of any one commandment would have constituted the sin that caused the Fall and would have brought the death penalty.

III. The Favorable Beginning of Man in Innocence Genesis 1:26-30Genesis 2:8-24

Man and woman fresh from the hand of the Creator had physical, spiritual, and eternal life; communion and fellowship with God and all creatures in the new creation; dominion over that creation; the revealed will of God and His law and the knowledge of penalties and rewards; God-consciousness or innocence; a natural disposition of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self-control; the power to make free choice and to rule his dominion and defend it from all enemies; and a right to attain to a higher glory should he prove true in his test.

Man was a miniature of God in soul and spirit faculties and had a physical body made in the image and likeness of God. He was uncorrupt, free from prejudices, sinful lusts, and all evil. He was in a highly enlightened state and of a glorious spiritual, moral, and mental makeup. He could enjoy the pleasures of that state to the full. He had power over Satan and all fallen spirits that were loose in the Earth. He could have resisted them and remained true to God if he had so desired. The animal and sensitive natures of man were free to enjoy themselves in everything aside from the one forbidden tree. Nothing else he could have done would have been sin at that time.

As time went on, God no doubt would have revealed more of His moral law and government, but at that time there was only one command to obey. Man’s body was perfect. His senses were quick and lively and able to perform with vigor and delight their various operations. He enjoyed nature in all of its original beauty, purity, and harmony, revealing the goodness of the Creator. His soul passions, appetites, feelings, and desires, and his spirit-faculties were in perfect union with God and were exercised in all dignity over the new Earth and all things therein.

He enjoyed the fullness of natural, spiritual, and eternal life and could have remained in that condition if he had obeyed one commandment. The law of his nature contained those moral principles concerning good and evil which were the measures of his duty to God, to the universe, and to himself and his posterity. He understood fully the law and its penalties and his great responsibility to God and his own kind.

God placed in man’s reasonable spirit and in his sensitive soul the principle and power of obedience and made a covenant with him on condition of obedience. He was perfectly holy, but in a mutable state. He was sinless, but capable of sin. He was eternal, but placed on probation. He was invested with power to prevent his falling, yet lived under the possibility of it. He was complete in his being, but receptive to sinful impressions.

Man had a wonderful helper in his wife, who was created from one of his ribs. As it is true today, so it was then: a woman can either make or break a man. Of woman’s creation Matthew Henry says, “Not out of man’s head to be topped by him, nor out of his feet to be trampled on by him, but out of his side to be equal with him; under his arm to be protected by him, and from near his heart to be beloved by him.” This expresses the fact that man and woman were to be partners in life. If they had both cooperated with God, the curse never would have come. There would have been no sin, no sickness, no death, no pain, no failure, and no unhappiness in all creation, and no cancellation of eternal life. Man, before the Fall, was not to be a lazy being, for God put him in the Garden to dress it and to keep it (preserve from enemies as expressed in Gen. 3:24; 17:9-10; 18:19). He was to eat of the wonderful fruits, nuts, grains and vegetables that grew in the restored Earth. He was to reproduce his own kind and keep them obedient to God and in harmony with all creation. He was free to utilize the whole creation to the best good of all concerned. He was to consecrate himself to the best and highest good of being and of the universe, and remain a free and eternal subject of the Moral Governor of all. These and other favorable conditions made it entirely and easily possible for man to have been true to his trust and rule the Earth for God forever.

IV. The Test—Man on Probation Genesis 2:16-17

Man, being created a free moral agent, needed to be tested to see whether he would remain true to God before being placed in the eternal responsibility that God had in mind for him. (See Lesson One, Point VIII, for a full discussion of why man had to be tested.) Adam had the power to choose for himself whether he wanted to obey or disobey God and needed only to be enlightened as to what the will of God was. God made known to him His will and the rewards of obedience and penalty for disobedience, so there was no excuse for man to choose the evil and cooperate with the enemy of both God and man. Being created with power to prevent his own Fall and with free choice in the matter, man was and still is held entirely responsible to God for his choice and its results.

Adam was placed on probation or trial. If he had proved true he would have attained to a higher glory than before Romans 3:23, and could have lived forever to enjoy the fruits of obedience. The penalty for sin was eternal death, so naturally the reward for obedience was life—eternal life. He would have lived forever, physically as well as spiritually. If one can conceive of how man would have continued forever physically and would have continued to multiply and live a natural existence, he can also conceive of how this is going to be true in the New Earth when the curse is removed, when man is again placed in the sinless state he was in before the Fall and before this present sinful career of the Earth and its inhabitants. One can envision how there will be eternal generations of natural people on Earth in the future, as we have proven in Supplement Two, Question 2.

Even after the Fall, man could have lived forever if he had eaten of the Tree of Life. The reason God drove him out of the Garden and placed cherubims to guard the Tree of Life from man was “lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever” Genesis 2:22-24. If sinful man could have lived forever physically if he had eaten of the Tree of Life, then it certainly is clear that natural, redeemed man in the New Earth will also be able to eat of this tree and live forever Revelation 21:1-7Revelation 22:1-5.

The fact that man would have lived forever physically even after he had sinned and was under the sentence of death if he had eaten of the Tree of Life, proves that the penalty for sin was not merely physical death—it was eternal death. No fruit of the Tree of Life could have cancelled this eternal death penalty. It could have made man incapable of dying physically and of being redeemed from death, Hell and the grave, so that he could become a higher being than he ever could be in the natural fallen state. God really wanted man to live forever physically, but not in spiritual and eternal death, or separation from Him by sin. It was in God’s plan, therefore, to redeem man spiritually and eternally before placing him back on the Earth to live forever physically.

The particular test for man in the Dispensation of Innocence was that he should not eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, which would result in the loss of his dominion and fellowship with God. It would seem that sinless and perfect man could have obeyed one simple law if sinful and imperfect men of today are obligated to keep many laws. It would seem that man could have kept himself true to God when today redeemed man lives in righteousness and true holiness according to the gospel Romans 6:1-23Romans 8:1-13Romans 12:1-2Galatians 5:16-26Ephesians 4:22-24Ephesians 3:5-71 John 1:7-91 John 2:291 John 3:7-101 John 5:1-4, 18.

The purpose of God in testing man while in a state of innocence was to see whether or not man would obey Him, so that he could be trusted in an eternal responsibility in connection with the Earth and God’s universal kingdom. God had seen how Lucifer, the first ruler of the Earth, had been lifted up in pride and had rebelled against His sovereignty; so it was only natural for Him to test the new ruler of the Earth to see if he would exalt himself as Satan did Isaiah 14:12-14Ezekiel 28:11-171 Timothy 3:6.

God planned that if man fell he should do it before he ate of the Tree of Life, so that he would not have to live forever in a sinful state. Therefore, He tested man soon after creation instead of later on in life. God further intended that if man fell he should do it before he had offspring, so that his children could be born into the world on the same level with himself in order that God could have mercy upon all alike.

This kind of plan would make all men alike dependent upon God for needed grace for body, soul, and spirit. This would give every person the same opportunity to be saved or lost as he freely chose. God wanted to demonstrate to man that He was not a tyrant as He was accused of being by Lucifer and other fallen spirits. As it is now, as revealed in God’s Universal Plan for Creation, God can speedily and eternally redeem the race and the Earth to a state of perfection as before the Fall and be assured that His plan for man in all eternity will never be marred again.

VI. The Means of God in Accomplishing this Purpose

The restriction of man from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and the temptations offered by the devil were the means of God in testing man as to his ambitions to become like God Genesis 3:1-6. To become like God had been the main desire of Lucifer who had said in his heart, “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God . . . I will be like the most High” Isaiah 14:12-14. Lucifer knew that the way to become unlike God was to exalt self, and he further knew that if he could appeal to man to misuse his faculty of humility, which is the glory of the creature and his native makeup, he could cause God to curse him.

Without the tempter the first man might have remained true to God, but he was attacked by the most subtle of spirit-beings, who used the most subtle of the creatures of Adam’s creation to cause man to Fall and corrupt himself, as well as all his posterity Romans 5:12-21, as we shall study in the next point.

Earth’s Second Sinful Career Genesis 3:1

VII. The Failure of Man—The Fall

In Gen. 3; Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Tim. 2:13-14 and other passages we have a simple record of the fall of man including what caused him to Fall. Without a clear faith in the fall of man there cannot be a clear faith in the redemption of man. Men who preach and teach that man did not have a Fall or that if he did he fell upward, that man is simply a victim of environment and is incapable of sin, such beliefs can never lead souls to redemption from sin through Jesus Christ. These men destroy the very foundation of Scripture and of man’s eternal life and hope. One must believe in the Fall, or he cannot be saved. Jesus Christ did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance Matthew 9:13. If man never had a Fall he could never be redeemed. Likewise, if a man does not believe he is a sinner he cannot be saved. He must repent to be saved Mark 1:4Mark 6:12Luke 13:1-10Luke 24:47Acts 2:38Acts 3:19Acts 17:301 John 1:7-9. This is the chief fundamental of the Gospel of Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe Romans 1:161 John 1:7-9Revelation 1:5-6Ephesians 1:7.

In Gen. 3 we have the historical record of the fall of man, and if anyone denies this truth he is incapable of true faith in any other part of the Bible, for all Scriptures center around man, his creation, Fall, and redemption through Jesus Christ. The cause of the Fall is stated as being the breaking of the commandment of God in eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. God had said, “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” Genesis 2:16-17.

The whole temptation centered around this tree and its fruit. Why Adam and Eve happened to go near the forbidden tree is not stated, so we have to believe that they were curious as to why God would not permit them to eat of this tree, when all the other trees were not withheld from them. At any rate, they were at this tree together, as is clear from the statement: “she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked” Genesis 3:6-7.

It is true that the serpent talked with the woman, but that does not prove that the man was not present. There is no statement that Adam was not present, so we naturally conclude that he was. The main facts of the story of the fall of man are the following:

1. 1 DOUBT CONCERNING GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:1. The serpent raised a doubt or a question whether God would permit man to eat of every tree of the Garden. Thus, Satan’s first utterance in Scripture shows opposition to the Word of God. Satan’s opposition to the Bible accounts for our having so many false theories of the Word of God. Any theory that teaches that God does not mean what He says and that adds to, misinterprets, takes from, or changes in any form what it plainly says is satanic. All theories claiming that the Bible is hard to understand or that it is a mystery, that it means anything one interprets it to mean, that one can prove all things by the Bible, that one man’s interpretation is as good as another, that it must be changed before it can be understood and many like theories, are satanic.

1. 1 ADDITION TO AND MISQUOTING GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:2-3. The woman answered the doubt raised by the serpent by adding to God’s Word the statement “neither shall ye touch it,” which is a misquotation of Gen. 2:16-17. God did not say touching the tree would bring death, but only eating of it.

1. 1 CONTRADICTION OF GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:4. Next, the serpent directly contradicted the Word of God of Gen. 2:16-17. God said, “thou shalt surely die,” and the devil said through the serpent, “ye shall not surely die.” Both statements cannot be true. One must choose to believe one or the other. Those who believe God today believe that men will die if they sin, but those who believe Satan believe that men will not die if they sin. This is a definite contrast which requires definite decisions on the part of men today just as it required a definite stand on the part of Adam and Eve. God still says, “the soul that sinneth, it shall die” Ezekiel 18:4; “If ye live after the flesh, ye shall die” Romans 8:1-13; “he that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption” Galatians 6:7-8; “the end of those things is death . . . For the wages of sin is death” Romans 6:14-23; “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy” 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; “they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” 1 Corinthians 6:9-11Galatians 5:19-21; and “If we deny him, He also will deny us” 2 Timothy 2:12. If one will be honest and read these passages he can see that they were spoken to Christians (except Ezek. 18:4) and this applies to all men, as did Gen. 2:17, and as is clear in itself, for God could not be a respecter of persons to permit one to die for sin and not another James 2:9.

1. 1 MISINTERPRETATION OF GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:5. Satan, in his second statement to the woman through the serpent, gave the basis of many false doctrines: “Ye shall be as gods,” or as it is put today, “we all have the God-power [a God-law] in us,” or “we are all a part of God” and all we need to do is to look to the God in us and use the divine power of which we are a part.

1. 1 TEMPTATION TO TRANSGRESS GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:6. The appeal of Satan to man that he would become like God was a strong one. This desire in itself is no sin. It is a high ideal, and every Christian should strive to be like God, but in the divine way as demonstrated by Christ, not the selfish, sinful way as demonstrated by Lucifer and Adam and Eve. That is, seeking to become like God by self-gratification and rebellion is the way to become unlike God, but to be like God by self-emptying and humiliation as Christ did is to become like God, as we shall see in Lesson Twenty-one.

When Eve “saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise,” she was tempted to sin. Paul tells us in 1 Tim. 2:13-15 that Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. In 2 Cor. 11:3 we read of Eve being beguiled by the serpent. This appeal consists of three main lines of temptations, the only three with which man has to deal. John speaks of them as “the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” 1 John 2:15-17. These are the three lines of temptation Christ went through in the wilderness and overcame, as recorded in Mt. 4:1-11. If man overcomes these three lines of temptations he is an overcomer of Satan, the flesh, and the world. These three lines of temptations as expressed in Gen. 3:6 are:

(1) “Good for food,” or “the lust of the flesh.” In the temptation of Christ it was, “command that these stones be made bread;” that is, you are hungry, make yourself some bread so that you may live. The answer of Jesus, the second Adam, was, “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God;” that is, I will not use my power to satisfy my personal appetites and desires. Only for others will I use my power to do as you tempt me to do. My appetites are crucified and controlled, and I will not yield them to be exercised at your suggestion to satisfy any soulish desire or passion.

(2) “Pleasant to the eyes,” or “the lust of the eyes.” In the temptation of Christ it was, “cast thyself down . . . He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone;” that is, you have need of personal protection, use your power to preserve your bodily perfection and beauty. Christ answered, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God;” that is, I will not use my power for any personal bodily benefit. My body is controlled and yielded to God for the bodily needs of others.

(3) “A tree to be desired to make one wise,” or “the pride of life.” This is expressed in the temptation of Christ as follows: “All these things [the worldly kingdoms and the glory of them] will I give thee, if thou wilt Fall down and worship me;” that is, act wise and yield your spirit to me as did Adam, and be rewarded. Christ answered, “Get thee hence, Satan . . . Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve;” that is, true wisdom and God-likeness is to yield my whole spirit to God for the exaltation of others, not for my own personal gain and glory.

1. 1 TRANSGRESSION OF GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:6. Adam and Eve went through the same routine of temptation until actual sin was committed, as is true with many men today. James said, “Every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death” James 1:13-16. Sin is not sin until lust hath conceived and the law has been broken. Any temptation short of breaking the law is not sin. Any created faculty exercised along any line is perfectly sinless and legitimate within the bounds of the law. It is only in exercising these faculties in breaking the law that sin is committed. For example, it was perfectly sinless and legitimate for Adam and Eve to eat and to have a desire to be like God, but it was in eating what was forbidden by the law of God that sin was committed. There is a right and a wrong way, and a right and a wrong time to exercise our faculties. When we are tempted to use them in self-gratification and sin the exercise of them is wrong, but when they are exercised lawfully no sin is committed.

1. 1 THE RESULTS OF TRANSGRESSION OF GOD’S WORD Genesis 3:7-19. In the Fall man lost spiritual, physical and eternal life and gained instead the opposite—spiritual, physical, and eternal death or separation from God, and was cut off from the purpose for which he was created. He was created to live forever spiritually, but spiritual death or separation from God by sin deprives him of that privilege Isaiah 59:2Ephesians 2:1-10. He was created to live forever physically. Physical death or the separation of the soul and spirit from the body deprives him of that benefit James 2:26. He was created to live forever both spiritually and physically. Eternal death, or the eternal separation from God in Hell, deprives him of that great blessing. Thus, it became necessary to redeem man—body, soul, and spirit—before he could fulfill the purposes for which he was created. In the fall man lost the following:

(1) Spiritual, physical, and eternal life Isaiah 59:2Ephesians 2:1-10Matthew 25:46.

(2) Communion and fellowship with God Isaiah 59:2Colossians 1:20.

(3) Fellowship and pleasure with animals Genesis 2:19Genesis 9:2.

(4) Dominion over all the works of God’s hands Psalms 8:3-7.

(5) Rulership of the Earth John 14:30Ephesians 6:10-182 Corinthians 4:4.

(6) God-consciousness or innocence Genesis 2:25Genesis 3:7, 10.

(7) The power to do good and refuse evil Genesis 6:5-7Ephesians 2:1-10.

(8) God’s perfect image and likeness Philippians 3:20-21.

(9) Control of soul passions and spirit faculties Ephesians 2:1-10Galatians 5:19-22.

(10) The right to the Tree of Life Genesis 3:22-24.

(11) An eternal home and paradise Genesis 2:15Genesis 3:22-24.

(12) The fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:22-23.

(13) God’s glory and self-respect Romans 3:23.

(14) Righteousness and true holiness Ephesians 4:22-24.

(15) Freedom from disease, sorrow, hardships, and sufferings Genesis 3:16-19.

(16) Many other benefits too numerous to mention, such as God’s help, power, grace, and every blessing that is restored to man through redemption.

Man lost all these and instead received knowledge and experience, a new master (the devil), condemnation, loss of his soul, an inferior position in the Earth, and cooperation with evil spirits, power to do evil, death, pain, sorrow, sickness, sin, self-gratification, unclean habits and lusts, unbelief, separation from God, hardships, sufferings, Hell, eternal damnation, and many other curses too numerous to mention—which we all have experienced, more or less.

He was set upon by the most powerful and subtle of spirit rebels, who caused him to Fall and corrupt himself and his posterity and come under the control of stronger rebels than he himself ever was after the Fall. These evil spirit forces are so deep-seated in man’s body, soul, and spirit that they seem to be a part of his creative makeup, but they are not. They have control of him as long as he voluntarily remains in sin and rebellion against God.

Man, in the Fall and by subjection to these evil spirit-forces, became depraved, polluted, and corrupt in his nature; “his understanding was darkened” Ephesians 4:182 Corinthians 4:4Romans 1:21-32; “his conscience defiled” Hebrews 10:22; “his will made obstinate and rebellious” Isaiah 28:14Romans 8:7; “his affections became carnal and sensual” Ephesians 2:1-3; “his thoughts evil continually” Genesis 6:5; “his heart full of abominations” Jeremiah 17:9Matthew 15:19; and all his posterity with all their faculties were constituted sinful by nature and children of the devil by life and practice John 8:441 John 3:8-10Ephesians 2:1-32 Corinthians 4:4Romans 5:12-21Psalms 51:5.

VIII. The Judgment of God upon Fallen Man

Judgment always follows failure and sin in every dispensation. In this one, God’s will had been made known and the penalty for disobedience revealed before man sinned. To be just, it was necessary for God to keep His Word and teach the new free moral agents that He was just and righteous in all His dealings, including His exercise of government. He had to teach man that His Word was true and was to be taken literally and obeyed. To be lenient would have caused others to rebel and then to expect more and more leniency. If God had started a program like this there would have been no end to rebellion. It never could have been put down without God’s showing Himself to be a respecter of persons. Sin had to be judged and man had to be taught that it does not pay to rebel against God, to do those things that are not for the best good of his being and for the highest good of the universe. The judgment of God was fivefold:

1. 1 The Curse upon the Serpent Genesis 3:14-15

The serpent was cursed because he was the first to yield to Satan to cause the fall of man. The devil was too wise to begin with the very head of creation. Instead, He began with the highest of the animal creation, whom Josephus says lived with Adam and Eve before the Fall. Whether this is true or not, it is clear that he was capable of such subtle work. He made a league with Lucifer and started opposition to God’s Word, which has been Satan’s sphere of activity ever since.

The serpent was cursed above all creatures and was to go upon his belly and eat dust all of his days Isaiah 65:25. He was deprived of walking upright and of his speech, and became a poisonous, loathsome creature, despised of man whom he had betrayed and deceived 2 Corinthians 11:31 Timothy 2:14. That the serpent was not the personal devil, but merely a tool of the devil and a creature of the field which God had made is proven by the following points:

(1) This is what is plainly stated in Gen. 3:1: “Now the serpent was more subtle [impudent] than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.” Satan is a fallen angel, as we have seen, and not a beast of the field. The devil does not crawl upon his belly, as is true of a literal serpent.

(2) No statement in Scripture ever teaches that Satan as an angel can turn into a literal serpent or any other beast.

(3) The curse upon the serpent continues upon literal snakes even in the Millennium when they are removed from all other animals Isaiah 65:25. If a literal serpent was not involved in the fall of man, why should it be cursed above all other creatures?

(4) The Hebrew word for “serpent” is nachash, which means a literal snake. It is always used of a literal snake except in Isa. 27:1, where it is clear that no literal snake is referred to. Following our principle of taking the Bible literally whenever possible, we naturally conclude that the word nachash in Gen. 3 refers to a literal snake, just as it does in every other place except one. In both Testaments when the literal meaning is not to be understood it is always clear, or it is explained that a literal serpent is not meant Isaiah 27:1Revelation 12:9Revelation 20:2.

(5) The language of Gen. 3 is literal, not symbolical, as is Rev. 12:3-17, where the serpent is explained as a symbol of Satan. Suppose we substitute the word “devil” in every place the word “serpent” is used in literal passages as Gen. 3; Exod. 4:3; 7:9-15; etc., and note the results. Thus there is no excuse for believing that the serpent of Gen. 3 was the devil in person.

(6) Eve was acquainted with the literal serpent in the Garden, but she knew nothing of the devil; so if a strange person had appeared to her she would have been afraid to converse with him. We conclude that the serpent was literal and that Eve was well acquainted with him and had talked with him on other occasions.

1. 1 The Curse upon Satan Genesis 3:15

As we have seen in Lesson Seven, Point IV, there are passages of Scripture where we must recognize the law of double reference. That is, two things or persons are addressed in the same passage—a visible one and an invisible one. In Gen. 3:15 we have the first occurrence of the law of double reference. The serpent is the visible one addressed, but also Satan, the invisible plotter of man’s Fall, is addressed. The seed of the serpent refers to natural snakes, the descendants of the original serpent, and to the ungodly men who are children of the devil John 8:441 John 3:8-10. There is a natural enmity between man and natural serpents as well as there is between the godly and the ungodly John 15:18Galatians 4:291 John 3:12.

The seed of the woman refers to the natural descendants of Eve and to one seed in particular—Christ. There is a natural enmity between the natural seed of the snake and the natural seed of the woman, and between Satan and man, but the meaning goes further than this. This is the first prophecy of the coming of Christ as the Redeemer who would actually defeat Satan, the invisible person addressed. Paul spoke of the particular seed of the woman referred to, which is Christ Galatians 3:16Galatians 4:4. The Scripture was fulfilled completely when Christ defeated Satan on the cross Colossians 2:14-17.

Thus, the curse upon Satan was that he would be defeated by Christ, the seed of the woman, and that his dominion of Adam’s creation would be destroyed. Christ bruised the serpent’s head on Calvary Galatians 3:13Colossians 2:14-17, but the final action of Christ in putting down Satan and ridding the Earth of all rebellion is yet future. At Christ’s second advent Satan will be defeated and cast into the abyss for 1,000 years. Then he will be liberated to deceive the nations for a short season, and after that he will be put into the Lake of Fire forever, and all rebels will be destroyed on the Earth Revelation 19:11–201 Corinthians 15:24-28.

1. 1 The Curse upon the Woman Genesis 3:16

The woman was the second of the earth-creatures to be cursed because she was the second to yield to sin and the devil. After getting the serpent to yield to him the devil was determined to get the woman to sin and through her to get the man to rebel against God. Eve listened to the serpent and began to doubt God’s Word, and this doubt led to open transgression of the law, as we have discussed under Point VII, above. The curse upon the woman was, “I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” Before the Fall she was equal with the man, and childbirth was to be a pleasure without pain, but now she must be ruled by the man and have multiplied sorrow and conception. Now man is the recognized head of the woman and should be her spiritual advisor as well as ruling the whole household 1 Corinthians 11:1-161 Corinthians 14:34Ephesians 5:21-33Colossians 3:181 Timothy 2:11-151 Peter 3:1-6.

1. 1 The Curse upon the Man Genesis 3:17-19

The man was the third of the earth-creatures to be cursed because he was the third to yield to sin and the devil. Both the serpent and the woman were factors in causing the head of creation to sin. God began His conversation with the rightful ruler of the Earth and worked down, tracing the guilt, while the devil began with the beast of the field and worked up in causing rebellion. Adam implied blame on the Creator, as well as his wife, when he said, “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat” Genesis 3:12, and, we might add, man has been placing blame on the woman ever since. In other words he says, “God, if you had not given me the woman, I would not have sinned.” The woman laid the blame upon the serpent Genesis 3:13, but the serpent did not lay the blame upon anybody. In this respect beasts have higher principles than fallen man, who is always placing the blame of any wrong doing upon someone else. When it comes to taking credit for some good deed, man generally wants the credit. Very few will be meek enough to give credit to the other fellow when he is due the praise.

The curse upon the man was: “Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” Genesis 3:17-19. Man was driven out of Paradise and kept from the Tree of Life. He was doomed to die and to pay the full penalty for the broken law.

Man’s Penalty Discussed

We have often been asked the questions, “Why did God permit man to Fall?” and “Why did not God destroy Satan before he caused man to Fall?” These are not the important questions to ask. The more important ones are: Why did man choose to sin? Why would he have chosen the wrong thing instead of the right when it was more natural to do right before the Fall? What could God do about it since He had created man a free moral agent who had to be tested to see if he would choose right over wrong? How could God have done otherwise after making man free to choose and after placing him on probation to test him? How could God have tested man otherwise? How could God be just in making man free to choose for himself and then restrict the exercise of free choice?

Many revealing questions could be asked, but these are enough to cause one to see that it was best for all concerned for man to go through a period of probation to see whether he could be trusted with eternal matters, without any fear of some future rebellion. (See Lesson One, Point VIII, for a full discussion of the reasons for God’s dispensational dealings.)

The penalty for man was death: “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” On a right understanding of this penalty lies the basis for a true understanding of many fundamental doctrines of Scripture, such as God’s love and justice, eternal punishment, necessity of the new birth, immortality, and others. These will be discussed in due time in other lessons, but many questions concerning them will automatically clear up when we get a right understanding of the penalty for sin. The penalty was not spiritual or physical, but eternal death, as proven by the following points:

(1) The phrase “In the day” means a literal day and not 1,000 years as some teach. Regardless of what one could say about it, if this is what God said then this is what He meant, and this is what really happened. When we accept plain statements of God as truth and study all the Scriptures on the question it will always be discovered that God means exactly what He says.

The Hebrew word for “day” is yom, meaning a literal day when not used with qualifying words such as “the day of vengeance” Proverbs 6:36; “the day of prosperity” Ecclesiastes 7:14; or “the day of temptation” Psalms 95:8; etc. The phrase “in the day” appears 84 times and never means 1,000 years, as can be seen if one will look up the passages where it is used. Suppose we give it that meaning in Gen. 3:5; 31:40; 35:3; Exod. 32:34; Lev. 6:5, 20; 7:35; 14:2, 57; etc. It can be seen that such a theory is ridiculous. The fact that Adam died physically in 1,000 years proves nothing as far as proving that “in the day” means 1,000 years. In 1 Ki. 2:37-46 we have the Hebrew beyom translated “on the day,” and this is exactly the same expression in Gen. 2:17. Suppose we interpret “on the day” as some do “in the day.” We would have the idea that in the 1,000 years that Shimei crossed the brook Kidron David would surely kill him. We all know that neither David nor Shimei lived 1,000 years, so the same argument could not be used here and should not be used of Adam. Adam died eternal death the very day he ate of the tree. He did not die physically that day, so the death penalty could not have been physical death. It has to be either spiritual or eternal death that God had in mind. It was eternal death, as we shall see.

(2) If physical death would have been the only penalty, then the penalty for sin would be paid at physical death and all who die physically would be free from sin and would go immediately to Heaven, because the penalty would be paid and they would not be guilty any longer. This would not be a penalty, but a reward. If this were true, then there could be no such thing as redemption, for all die physically. That the penalty goes beyond physical death is clear from the fact that some who die physically go to Heaven at death and some go to Hell, as we shall see in Lesson Thirty-seven.

(3) The penalty could not be spiritual death only because spiritual death is the state of sin into which all sinners go when they become sinful. This state of sin is spoken of as being “dead in trespasses and sins” Ephesians 2:1-9Colossians 2:13. If spiritual death or the state of man in sin was the death penalty, this would make God the author of sin, for if the state of sin in which men commit many sins is the penalty, then God made all men commit many sins to pay for the one sin of eating the forbidden fruit. God would then be the author of many sins to pay for the one sin. This would also free man from the guilt of sin after he has committed many sins to pay the penalty for committing the one sin. In other words, all men will be saved because they are guiltless after they have committed many sins, to pay the penalty of the one sin. After living in the state of sin man would go immediately to Heaven and no one would go to Hell. The penalty must be something beyond physical and spiritual death, for some go to Heaven after they have gone through these deaths and still others go to Hell.

(4) The penalty, therefore, must be eternal (or endless) death or separation from God. Death, as we have seen in Point VII, 7, above, is separation from the purpose for which a person was made. Physical death is the separation of the inner man from the outer man, the body James 2:26, and spiritual death is the separation of the soul from God by sin Isaiah 59:2; so if either one of these deaths were the penalty for the sin, the penalty would be paid when spiritual and physical death has been experienced and God could not hold men guilty any longer, because the penalty would have been paid. Eternal death is eternal separation from God and as some go to Hell forever regardless of spiritual and physical death, the penalty could not be these two deaths. It must be that eternal death is the penalty for this reason.

Some men object to endless death or separation from God and eternal torment on the grounds that it is too long and because of its proportion to the time spent committing sin in this life, but it must be remembered that in civil governments one sin incurs the penalty of a broken law. The length of time spent in committing sin has nothing to do with the length of time one must suffer the guilt and punishment. It is the design or intent of the sin committed that constitutes the moral aspect of the action and not the length of time taken to commit it. It is not the number of sins and the time used in committing them, but the guilt of the sin that deserves endless punishment.

Why should not God condemn eternally the guilt that is eternally incurred by committing sin against His eternal Being, plan, and universe? The higher the ruler, the greater the moral obligation to render obedience to him, and the greater the sin and guilt incurred. An attempt to murder a king or some great sovereign that is loved and respected by millions would certainly be punished more severely and quickly than an attempt to murder some insignificant and despised man of his realm. So it is with God. A sin against Him is the greatest sin possible because it is sin against the Supreme Sovereign of all Creation and the eternal good of the universe. The sin against the eternal plan of God produces infinite and endless guilt if unrestrained, so it cannot be considered a trifle. As the highest and eternal good of the universe is affected by the sin, the guilt must be of infinite nature and of endless duration.

Obligation to God is unlimited, so the guilt must of necessity be unlimited. To deny that the guilt of sin is boundless is as bad as to deny the guilt of sin altogether. If the highest well-being of God and the universe is the foundation of moral obligation, then the value of those interests is infinite. It follows that the law is infinitely unjust if its penalty is not endless.

Any law, to be just, must be in accord with the nature of the sin committed, and the penalty of the broken law must be equal to the importance of the law. Either God has no law that is just and eternal, or its penalty must be endless, as the sin against the eternal law affects endless things. A lesser penalty would not exhibit the high motives to secure obedience to the highest good of all. The tendency to perpetuate sin and rebellion against the eternal and highest good of all further proves that the sinfulness of the wicked is eternal, hence, the need of endless punishment for eternal wickedness. Since the sinner is an eternal rebel and he is not obeying the eternal law for the everlasting good of the eternal plan, and since he incurs eternal penalties for eternally breaking the law, the punishment must likewise be eternal.

Upon these grounds the Bible never hesitates to contrast the eternal punishment of the eternal wicked for eternal disobedience as being equal in length to the eternal bliss of the eternal righteous for eternal obedience Psalms 9:17Isaiah 66:22-24Matthew 25:41, 46Revelation 14:9-12Revelation 19:20Revelation 20:10-15Revelation 21:8.

If one will stop and consider that no man has to go to Hell and no free moral agent is forced to do one thing against his will, it is clear that if anyone goes to Hell he goes there because he chooses to. If he chooses not to go there, then he will accept Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. Since it is left up to each individual whether he wants to be saved or lost, whether he wants endless punishment or endless bliss, there is no room for any accusation against God. If man did not have freedom of choice in the matter and if God had not made a way for all men to escape Hell, then there would be grounds for complaint concerning God’s Universal Plan for Creation. As it is now, there can be no legitimate reason for blaming God for even one lost soul.

(5) Many Scriptures teach that eternal death or separation is the penalty for sin. Physical death is the result of spiritual death, and spiritual death is the result of sin which deserves eternal death. Men are now dead in sin and the penalty of the broken law has not yet been fully paid and will not be until men enter into eternal punishment, and that fact proves that eternal death is the penalty. Such statements as: “The soul that sinneth [while in the state of sin] it shall die” Ezekiel 18:4; “broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction” Matthew 7:13-14; “the wages of sin is death” Romans 6:23; “shall of the flesh reap corruption” Galatians 6:7-8; and many others that are spoken to men who are already spiritually dead, prove that the future death that is to be reaped and experienced is eternal death. All men outside of Christ are spiritually dead Ephesians 2:1-9Ephesians 5:141 Timothy 5:6, yet they are still alive physically. All men are now eternally dead or eternally separated from God, should they continue this way until the final end when there will be no chance of being redeemed from eternal death. Redemption alone will cancel the death penalty. Should a man die physically without redemption, he remains forever separated from God, and this is the future death referred to in the above quoted passages.

No man’s eternal death is considered certain until he is finally past all cancellation of the death penalty at the time of physical death. Then he has no more chance of salvation, for “after this [is] the judgment” Hebrews 9:27. That the second death is the Lake of Fire and not physical or spiritual death proves that the penalty must be eternal death Revelation 2:11Revelation 19:20Revelation 20:10-15Revelation 21:8. The man who is born-again becomes dead to sin and spiritually alive, yet he must die physically up to the time of the rapture, when death is cancelled for some. He is alive forever, so he escapes death by the cancellation of the death penalty through Christ John 3:1-18John 5:24Romans 6:1-23. The new birth is absolutely necessary in order to escape the penalty for sin. (See Supplement Two on the new birth and how to get it.)

1. 1 The Curse upon the Earth Genesis 3:17-19

The curse upon the ground was the final curse pronounced. It was to produce thorns, thistles, weeds, briars, and be more or less a wilderness, making it hard for man to make a living. It was to receive again the bodies of the new rebels which were to go back to dust again Genesis 3:19Ecclesiastes 3:19-20Ecclesiastes 12:7 until the resurrection and the judgment 1 Corinthians 15:21-23Revelation 20:4-15Daniel 12:2John 5:28-29. Thus the Earth enters its second curse and its second sinful career. It will remain cursed until the Millennium, when the desert shall again blossom like a rose (Isa. 35). At the end of the Millennium the Earth will be purified by fire and made new, wherein dwelleth righteousness 2 Peter 3:10-13.

Thus the whole creation is cursed and is under bondage until the final restitution of all things and until the Earth is rid of all sin and rebels 1 Corinthians 15:24-28Romans 8:19-23Hebrews 12:25-28Revelation 19:11–20Revelation 21:1-22. The whole curse affected all Earth creations and even angels. The curse on Satan affected the fallen angels and evil spirits; the curse on the serpent, the animal kingdom; the curse on man and woman, the whole of their posterity; and the curse on the Earth, the material creation.

IX. God’s Provision of Redemption Genesis 3:15-21

Immediately after the fall of man, God’s mercy was made manifest. He promised a redeemer and revealed that He would be born of a woman without natural generation and that He would defeat Satan and restore man’s dominion. Through the coming seed of the woman, Adam and all his posterity could look for freedom from Satan, the new master of man and his dominion. This was taught man by the prophecy of Gen. 3:15 and demonstrated in type by the shedding of the blood of animals and the clothing of man with the skins of the animals Genesis 3:21. By the slaying of this animal God showed Adam and Eve the terribleness of their sin and the penalty and that without the shedding of blood there could be no remission of sin Hebrews 9:22. From then on through the rest of the Bible, until the first coming of Christ, man shed blood as a token of his faith in the coming redeemer, who was to shed His own blood to atone for sin and restore man’s dominion Matthew 26:28Acts 20:28Ephesians 1:71 John 1:7-9Revelation 1:5Revelation 5:8-10.