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Adam in the New Testament: Mere Teaching Model or First Historical Man?
One challenge to biblical authority is our understanding of Adam. Freshly translated, this acknowledged modern classic defends the historic church position that all human beings descend from Adam as the first human being.
96 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 1976
4 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
About the author
Richard B. Gaffin Jr.
35 books24 followersRichard B. Gaffin, Jr. is a Calvinist theologian, Presbyterian minister, and was the Charles Krahe Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1999 to 2008. He became the Professor Emeritus, Biblical and Systematic Theology in 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 24, 2014
Versteeg shows clearly that the New Testament writers thought Adam was a historical man standing at the beginning of the human race. He looks at Romans 5, I Corinthians 15, Luke 3, I Timothy 2, and Jude. These are the only places Adam is mentioned in the NT. In all these passages Adam is treated as a historical figure, not an idea. He does a good job showing why a rejection of the historical Adam leads to a twisting of the Biblical view of sin, Christ, and Christ's work. Gaffin's forward is excellent. The book is only 67 pages, but well worth the buy if you are interested in this subject.
November 26, 2012
Clear and concise study on the New Testaments use of the person of Adam. Versteeg shows that the New Testament, and a Biblical framework of redemptive history demands a historical Adam. Richard Gaffin's forward is a bombshell into the current debate involving Peter Enns.
September 30, 2012
I heard, a few years ago, that Genesis chapter one was allegorical, and that Adam wasn't real. And also, UFO's existed and God used evolution to bring about the earth. All at the Aldersgate Convention, an annual event held by the Methodist Churches of Singapore. I remember feeling very disturbed by the speaker and my suspicions were confirmed by the pastor.
If only I had known of Creation Ministries at that time. Or if only I had read Adam in the New Testament. This book is the perfect answer towards the whole "Adam did not exist" theory (although it says nothing about UFOs).
Adam in the New Testament is a short, translated book looking at whether Adam is a mere teaching model (and hence just allegory) or a historical figure. There are many who claim that whether Adam actually existed has no bearing on Christianity. I happen to think that they're wrong. As the introduction puts it, one of the biggest implications is that it results in
"a radically altered understanding of sin, particularly of the origin and nature of human depravity and the corresponding abandonment of any meaningful notion of the guilt of sin. This changed view of sin, in turn, results in a substantially changed notion of salvation. Eclipsed or even denied is Christ's death as a substitutionary atonement that propitiates God's just and holy wrath on sin and removes its guilt. And these shifted perceptions of sin and salvation are inevitably followed by a significantly different assessment of the Savior. Stressed is Christ's humanity, especially the exemplary aspects of his person and work (he is the "ideal man" realised within the constraints of the evolutionary process), an emphasis that minimises or even denies his deity."
If you still don't think this is significant, you seriously need to re-consider why you're still a Christian and what you believe in.
The book first explains the concept of the "Teaching Model" and then goes on to examine Romans 5:12-21, the verses that are central to this concept. After this, it examines other New Testament data and then rabbinic references to Adam. Lastly, the book sums up the arguments and its consequences.
If it sounds heavy going, it's not. Even though the original text is looked at, it's written in an understandably style and can be understood by anyone. It's also fairly short at under a hundred pages. In short, this is a book that should be on your bookshelf. We are commanded to love God with all our heart, soul and mind, and this book helps us understand that
"Whoever divorces the work of redemption from the framework in which it stands in Scripture no longer allows the Word to function as the norm that determines everything."
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review.
First posted at Inside the mind of a Bibliophile
If only I had known of Creation Ministries at that time. Or if only I had read Adam in the New Testament. This book is the perfect answer towards the whole "Adam did not exist" theory (although it says nothing about UFOs).
Adam in the New Testament is a short, translated book looking at whether Adam is a mere teaching model (and hence just allegory) or a historical figure. There are many who claim that whether Adam actually existed has no bearing on Christianity. I happen to think that they're wrong. As the introduction puts it, one of the biggest implications is that it results in
"a radically altered understanding of sin, particularly of the origin and nature of human depravity and the corresponding abandonment of any meaningful notion of the guilt of sin. This changed view of sin, in turn, results in a substantially changed notion of salvation. Eclipsed or even denied is Christ's death as a substitutionary atonement that propitiates God's just and holy wrath on sin and removes its guilt. And these shifted perceptions of sin and salvation are inevitably followed by a significantly different assessment of the Savior. Stressed is Christ's humanity, especially the exemplary aspects of his person and work (he is the "ideal man" realised within the constraints of the evolutionary process), an emphasis that minimises or even denies his deity."
If you still don't think this is significant, you seriously need to re-consider why you're still a Christian and what you believe in.
The book first explains the concept of the "Teaching Model" and then goes on to examine Romans 5:12-21, the verses that are central to this concept. After this, it examines other New Testament data and then rabbinic references to Adam. Lastly, the book sums up the arguments and its consequences.
If it sounds heavy going, it's not. Even though the original text is looked at, it's written in an understandably style and can be understood by anyone. It's also fairly short at under a hundred pages. In short, this is a book that should be on your bookshelf. We are commanded to love God with all our heart, soul and mind, and this book helps us understand that
"Whoever divorces the work of redemption from the framework in which it stands in Scripture no longer allows the Word to function as the norm that determines everything."
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review.
First posted at Inside the mind of a Bibliophile
February 10, 2020
This is an excellent exposition of the relevant text in the Bible that show the importance of the historical nature of Adam. It takes a close look at the relevant texts. Then it looks at some of the secondary texts. Then it shows how we cannot try to distance ourselves from Paul by saying he only knew a certain amount because of his level of knowledge. Finally, it shows the consequences of not viewing Adam as a historical person, which is no less than the breakdown of the entire history and work of Christ. As the book concludes by saying:
"To be occupied with the question of how Scripture speaks about Adam is thus anything but an insignificant problem of detail. As the first historical man and head of humanity, Adam is not mentioned merely in passing in the New Testament. The redemptive-historical correlation between Adam and Christ determines the framework in which—particularly for Paul—the redemptive work of Christ has its place. That work of redemption can no longer be confessed according to the meaning of Scripture, if it is divorced from the framework in which it stands there. Whoever divorces the work of redemption from the framework in which it stands in Scripture no longer allows the Word to function as the norm that determines everything. There has been no temptation through the centuries to which theology has been more exposed than this temptation. There is no danger that theology has more to fear than this danger."
"To be occupied with the question of how Scripture speaks about Adam is thus anything but an insignificant problem of detail. As the first historical man and head of humanity, Adam is not mentioned merely in passing in the New Testament. The redemptive-historical correlation between Adam and Christ determines the framework in which—particularly for Paul—the redemptive work of Christ has its place. That work of redemption can no longer be confessed according to the meaning of Scripture, if it is divorced from the framework in which it stands there. Whoever divorces the work of redemption from the framework in which it stands in Scripture no longer allows the Word to function as the norm that determines everything. There has been no temptation through the centuries to which theology has been more exposed than this temptation. There is no danger that theology has more to fear than this danger."
September 5, 2012
Dr. Gaffin has translated and made available "Adam in the New Testament," translated from Veersteeg's original and published by P&R Publishing.
Dr. Gaffin's primary interest is in preserving not only the historic understanding of a corporeal, real Adam in historical redemption narrative, but also expressing the various ways in which belief in a real Adam impacts New Testament texts. The reality of Adam is essential to a covenantal relationship with God and His community.
Especially insightful is his succinctly worded explanation of the nature of typology as not standing or falling by itself, but central to that "historical analogy" is the redemptive plan of God. Typology outside of the redemptive plan substantially lacks any bearing beyond the coincidence of historical occurrences. Understood in this manner, typology then is an essential element of a God-given covenant and provides a redemptive-historical framework for the ability of the community to trust in the continuity and fulfillment of God's promises.
Behind and underneath this understanding is the necessity of a real Adam as the appropriate foundation for an understanding of the "one and the many" (One's sins imputed to the many) concept as applied to original sin and the anti-type of the One's satisfaction of the wrath of God for the many. It is no "historical fiction," that both events (Adam's fall and Christ's resurrection) are both historically actual and must be understood as such in order for us to trust in the covenant promises of salvation.
As wonderfully worded as I thought Gaffin's work is, the repeated use of the turn of the phrase "correctly points out" was distracting. When citing other authorities, the author might say "Ridderbos rightly says" or "Lammens is correct" or "Barth is correct" or "Berkouwer rightly says...". This affirmation of other works is repeated so much in a very short span of pages that I began to lose focus on the assertions the author was advocating.
Other than the excessive "correctly" editorial quirk, I found the content excellently put forth with a maximum effort on precise editorial work, a wide selection of scholarly interaction and a very good representation of those with whom the author disagrees.
Dr. Gaffin's primary interest is in preserving not only the historic understanding of a corporeal, real Adam in historical redemption narrative, but also expressing the various ways in which belief in a real Adam impacts New Testament texts. The reality of Adam is essential to a covenantal relationship with God and His community.
Especially insightful is his succinctly worded explanation of the nature of typology as not standing or falling by itself, but central to that "historical analogy" is the redemptive plan of God. Typology outside of the redemptive plan substantially lacks any bearing beyond the coincidence of historical occurrences. Understood in this manner, typology then is an essential element of a God-given covenant and provides a redemptive-historical framework for the ability of the community to trust in the continuity and fulfillment of God's promises.
Behind and underneath this understanding is the necessity of a real Adam as the appropriate foundation for an understanding of the "one and the many" (One's sins imputed to the many) concept as applied to original sin and the anti-type of the One's satisfaction of the wrath of God for the many. It is no "historical fiction," that both events (Adam's fall and Christ's resurrection) are both historically actual and must be understood as such in order for us to trust in the covenant promises of salvation.
As wonderfully worded as I thought Gaffin's work is, the repeated use of the turn of the phrase "correctly points out" was distracting. When citing other authorities, the author might say "Ridderbos rightly says" or "Lammens is correct" or "Barth is correct" or "Berkouwer rightly says...". This affirmation of other works is repeated so much in a very short span of pages that I began to lose focus on the assertions the author was advocating.
Other than the excessive "correctly" editorial quirk, I found the content excellently put forth with a maximum effort on precise editorial work, a wide selection of scholarly interaction and a very good representation of those with whom the author disagrees.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 24, 2016
This is a very short but important book by J.P. Versteeg, translated from the Dutch by Richard B. Gaffin. The foreword summarizes the basic argument: "...if it is not true that all human beings descend from Adam as the first human being, then the entire history of redemption documented in Scripture unravels." This strong statement should provide enough motivation to read this book and clarify your thoughts on Adam, biblical interpretation, and evolution in general. The chapters discuss: (1) Adam as a "teaching model" versus human being; (2) NT references to Adam (primarily Rom 5:12-21); (3) rabbinic references; (4) NT authorial intention versus significance for today; and (5) consequences of holding an ahistorical view of Adam. This is a lot to cover in such a short book, but Versteeg writes concisely and places the discussion of Adam's historicity within the broader contexts of hermeneutics, evolution, and Christology. This book dovetails nicely with Murray's classic The Imputation of Adam's Sin. Highly recommended.
July 4, 2013
Greg Beale has commented that this little book is the best defense of a historical Adam based on the evidence from the New Testament. I would agree. Gaffin has done the church a great service by translating this work from Dutch into English. Gaffin's preface alone is worth the price of admission; he interacts with Peter Enns' book on the evolution of Adam and points the reader to pertinent sections of the book for more information.
May 31, 2016
Glad to have this book in English. Together with Gaffin's intro this book is an excellent response to Enns and the like.
July 21, 2016
Short but very helpful. I'll be keeping this as a reference for the issue.
September 4, 2023
Bulletproof theologising.
September 20, 2013
Worth the price just to read Richard Gaffin's excellent Forward from 2012.
October 6, 2018
Although this was a very thorough and well thought out defense of Adam as a historical figure, it was also rather dry and difficult to follow. A great argument if you're looking for a position on the topic, just don't expect it to be exciting.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews