Adam

Overview

• Testament: Old
• Role: First man, first human, progenitor of humanity
• Family: Son of God (created directly), father of Cain, Abel, Seth, husband of Eve
• Key Books: Genesis

Biography

Adam was the first human being, created directly by God from the dust of the ground with the breath of life (Genesis 2:7). His name means “man” or “ground” in Hebrew. God placed him in the Garden of Eden to tend and keep it, giving him dominion over all creation and only one prohibition — not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

After the Fall of Man, Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden. Despite the consequences of sin, God clothed Adam and Eve in animal skins — the first act of atonement. Adam lived 930 years, the longest of the pre-flood patriarchs after Methuselah.

Key Events

• Creation — Formed from dust, given life by God’s breath
• Fall of Man — Ate the forbidden fruit, brought sin into the world
• Expulsion from the Garden of Eden
• Birth of Cain, Abel, and Seth

Relationships

• Eve — Wife, created from his rib as “bone of my bones”
• Cain — Firstborn son, killed Abel
• Abel — Second son, murdered by Cain
• Seth — Third son, born after Abel’s death, ancestor of the covenant line

Important Verses

• “Then the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” — Genesis 2:7
• “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, 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
• “And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son, and called his name Seth: For, said she, God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.” — Genesis 4:25

Cross-References

• Romans 5:12-19 — Adam as type of Christ (one man’s sin vs. one man’s righteousness)
• 1 Corinthians 15:22,45 — “In Adam all die” vs. “In Christ shall all be made alive”
• Luke 3:38 — Genealogy traces back to “Adam, the son of God”
• 1 Timothy 2:13-14 — Adam created first, Eve deceived