According to the holy Scriptures, Adam was a picture of the One to come who would undo all of the affects that the first man’s transgressions brought upon mankind and the world:

“Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned—sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the effect of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification.If, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Then as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to acquittal and life for all men.For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man’s obedience many will be made righteous. Law came in, to increase the trespass; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 5:12-21

“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ… Thus it is written, ‘The first man Adam became a living being’; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual which is first but the physical, and then the spiritual.The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven.Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.” 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, 45-49

In this post I will explore some of the ways in which Adam typifies and foreshadows Christ.

ADAM AS THE SON AND IMAGE OF GOD

The sacred writings teach that God created Adam (and mankind in general) in the image and likeness of God, to manifest God’s glory:

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:26-27

“This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.” Genesis 5:1-2 Authorized King James Version (AV)

“For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man.(For man was not made from woman, but woman from man.Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.)That is why a woman ought to have a veil on her head, because of the angels.(Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God.)” 1 Corinthians 11:7-12

Adam is further said to be the son of God:

“the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.” Luke 3:38

BEASTS AND HEAVENLY BEINGS IN THE LIFE OF ADAM

The God-breathed Scriptures further proclaim that both beasts and heavenly creatures were present with Adam before and after his fall from grace:

“So out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper fit for him.” Genesis 2:19-20

“Then the Lord God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever’—therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken.He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” Genesis 3:22-24

WORSHIPING GOD’S IMAGE

According to non-canonical sources, specifically Jewish writings composed before and during the time of Christ, God commanded the angels to worship Adam for being God’s physical image. Satan or the devil refused to do so thinking himself better than Adam since he was created before man, claiming that Adam should be worshiping him instead:

Groaning, the Devil said: “O Adam, all my enmity, jealousy, and resentment is towards you, since on account of you I was expelled and alienated from my glory, which I had in heaven in the midst of the angels. On account of you I was cast out upon the earth.” Adam answered: “What have I done to you? What fault do I have against you? Since you have not been harmed nor injured by us, why do you persecute us?”

The Devil answered: “Adam what are you saying to me? On account of you I was cast out from heaven. When you were formed, I was cast out from the face of God and was sent forth from the company of the angels. When God blew into you the breath of life and your countenance and likeness were made in the image of God, Michael led you and made you worship in the sight of God. The Lord God then said: ‘Behold, Adam, I have made you in our image and likeness.’

Having gone forth Michael called all the angels saying: ‘Worship the image of the Lord God, just as the Lord God has commanded.’ Michael himself worshipped first then he called me and said: ‘Worship the image of God Jehovah.’ I answered: ‘I do not have it within me to worship Adam.’ When Michael compelled me to worship, I said to him: ‘Why do you compel me? I will not worship him who is lower and posterior to me. I am prior to that creature. Before he was made, I had already been made. He ought to worship me.’

Hearing this, other angels who were under me were unwilling to worship him. Michael said: ‘Worship the image of God. If you do not worship, the Lord God will grow angry with you.’ said: ‘If he grows angry with me, I will place my seat above the stars of heaven and I will be like the Most High.’

Then the Lord God grew angry with me and sent me forth with my angels from our glory. On account of you we were expelled from our dwelling into this world and cast out upon the earth. Immediately we were in grief, since we had been despoiled of so much glory, and we grieved to see you in such a great happiness of delights. By a trick I cheated your wife and caused you to be expelled through her from the delights of your happiness, just as I had been expelled from my glory.” (The Latin version of The Life of Adam and Eve, 12:1-3; 13:1-2; 14:1-3; 15:1-3; 16:1-4)

The Armenian version of the Life of Adam and Eve 13:2-14:1 reads:

“When God breathed his spirit into you, you received the likeness of his image. Thereupon, Michael came and made you bow down before God.” (G. Anderson and M. Stone, A Synopsis of the Books of Adam and Eve [Scholars Press, Second Revised Edition 1999], 16E)

And:

“God said to Michael, ‘Behold I have made Adam in the likeness of my image.’ Then Michael summoned all the angels, and God said to them, ‘Come, bow down to god whom I made.’” (Ibid.; emphasis mine)

And here’s the Armenian version of 14:2–15:1:

Michael bowed first. He called me and said “You too, bow down to Adam.” I said, “Go away, Michael! I shall not bow [down] to him who is posterior to me, for I am former. Why is it proper [for me] to bow down to him?” The other angels, too, who were with me, heard this, and my words seemed pleasing to them and they did not prostrate themselves to you, Adam. (Ibid., 16E–17E)

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF FORTY DAYS IN ADAM’S LIFE

Some of these non-canonical writings also attest that Adam was only placed in the garden 40 days after he was created, and spent 40 days in the Jordan river repenting from his sin of eating from the forbidden tree:

In the first week was Adam created, and the rib -his wife: in the second week He showed her unto him: and for this reason the commandment was given to keep in their defilement, for a male seven days, and for a female twice seven days. And after Adam had completed forty days in the land where he had been created, we brought him into the garden of Eden to till and keep it, but his wife they brought in on the eightieth day, and after this she entered into the garden of Eden… And on that day on which Adam went forth from the Garden, he offered as a sweet savour an offering, frankincense, galbanum, and stacte, and spices in the morning with the rising of the sun from the day when he covered his shame. And on that day was closed the mouth of all beasts, and of cattle, and of birds, and of whatever walks, and of whatever moves, so that they could no longer speak: for they had all spoken one with another with one lip and with one tongue.

And He sent out of the Garden of Eden all flesh that was in the Garden of Eden, and all flesh was scattered according to its kinds, and according to its types unto the places which had been created for them. And to Adam alone did He give (the wherewithal) to cover his shame, of all the beasts and cattle. Jubilees 3:8-9, 27-30

Eve said to Adam: “My lord, tell me what is penitence and how long should I perform it, lest perhaps we place on ourselves a labor which we cannot endure, and he not hear our prayers, And the Lord turned his face from us because we did not fulfill what we promise. My lord, how much penitence are you thinking of doing since I brought labor and tribulation upon you.”

Adam said to Eve: “You cannot do as much as I, but do as much so that you might be saved. For I will do forty days of fasting. You, however, arise and go to the Tigris River and take a stone and stand upon it in the water up to your neck in the depth of the river. Let not a word go forth from your mouth since we are unworthy to ask of the Lord for our lips are unclean from the illicit and forbidden tree. Stand in the water of the river for thirty-seven days. I however, will do forty days in the water of the Jordan. Perhaps the Lord will have mercy on us.”…

Hearing this, Adam cried out with a great shout because of the Devil, and said: “O Lord my God, in your hands is my life. Make this adversary of mine be far from me, who seeks to ruin my soul. Give me his glory which he himself lost.” Immediately the Devil no longer appeared to him. Adam truly persevered for forty days standing in penitence in the waters of the Jordan. (The Latin version of The Life of Adam and Eve, 5:1-3; 6:1-2; 17:1-3)

THE TRIUMPH OF THE LAST ADAM

This is where Jesus comes in.

Like Adam, Jesus is the image and glory of God, who is the beloved Son and Heir appointed by God to rule over all creation:

“And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them, and his garments became glistening, intensely white, as no fuller on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Eli′jah with Moses; and they were talking to Jesus. And Peter said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for Moses and one for Eli′jah.’ For he did not know what to say, for they were exceedingly afraid. And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, ‘This is my beloved Son; listen to him.’” Mark 9:2-7

He had still one other, a beloved son; finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ And they took him and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.” Mark 12:6-8  

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father… No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known.” John 1:14, 18  

“You know the word which he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace by Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all),” Acts 10:36

“In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing clearly the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’s sake. For it is the God who said, ‘Light will shine out of darkness,’ who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 4:4-6 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)

“He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent. For in him all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” Colossians 1:13-20

Like Adam, Jesus entered the waters of the Jordan and then spent 40 days and nights in the wilderness, being tested of the devil who even had the audacity to tempt Christ to worship him!

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’But he answered, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”’ Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will give his angels charge of you,” And “On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.”’ Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”’Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; and he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Begone, Satan! for it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.”’ Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him (diekonoun auto).”Matthew 4:1-11

And like Adam, Jesus is depicted as being attended by both beasts and angels:

“In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased.’ The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to him (diekonoun auto).” Mark 1:9-13

The word translated as “ministered,” diakoneó, refers to serving or ministering, especially to a person who serves at tables such as a slave who waits on house guests.

Hence, the angels are depicted as coming to serve Christ:

“And He was in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild animals, and the angels were serving Him.” Mark 1:13 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

In fact, in an inspired text reminiscent of the Jewish apocryphal The Life Adam and Eve, God commands all the angels to worship Christ since he is God’s firstborn/preeminent Son and Heir of all things, who bears the very stamp of God’s own nature:

“In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets; 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding the universe by his word of power. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has obtained is more excellent than theirs. For to what angel did God ever say, ‘Thou art my Son, today I have begotten thee’? Or again, ‘I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son’? And again, when he brings the first-born into the world, he says, ‘Let all God’s angels worship him.’ Of the angels he says, ‘Who makes his angels winds, and his servants flames of fire.’ But of the Son he says, ‘Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever, the righteous scepter is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, thy God, has anointed thee with the oil of gladness beyond thy comrades.’ And, ‘Thou, Lord [the Son], didst found the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of thy hands; they will perish, but thou remainest; they will all grow old like a garment, like a mantle thou wilt roll them up, and they will be changed. But thou art the same, and thy years will never end.’ But to what angel has he ever said, ‘Sit at my right hand till I make thy enemies a stool for thy feet’? Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve, for the sake of those who are to obtain salvation?” Hebrews 1:1-14

It is, thus, clear that the aforementioned passages are depicting Jesus as the new Adam that came to undo the sin of the first man, who was banished from the garden where he dwelt with beasts and other animals in peace and harmony, and whom the heavenly cherubim barred from reentering the garden.

In Christ, the last Adam, both wild beasts and heavenly beings are once again subjected and reconciled to man.

THE CHURCH FATHERS ON JESUS AS THE LAST ADAM

The foregoing helps us appreciate why many of the early church writers viewed Jesus’ temptation as Christ’s undoing of Adam’s failure when the latter was tempted by Satan and succumbed:

Chapter 103. The Pharisees are the bulls: the roaring lion is Herod or the devil

Justin: Then what is next said in the Psalm —’For trouble is near, for there is none to help me. Many calves have compassed me; fat bulls have beset me round. They opened their mouth upon me as a ravening and roaring lion. All my bones are poured out and dispersed like water,’— was likewise a prediction of the events which happened to Him. For on that night when some of your nation, who had been sent by the Pharisees and Scribes, and teachers, came upon Him from the Mount of Olives, those whom Scripture called butting and prematurely destructive calves surrounded Him. And the expression, ‘Fat bulls have beset me round,’ He spoke beforehand of those who acted similarly to the calves, when He was led before your teachers. And the Scripture described them as bulls, since we know that bulls are authors of calves’ existence. As therefore the bulls are the begetters of the calves, so your teachers were the cause why their children went out to the Mount of Olives to take Him and bring Him to them. And the expression, ‘For there is none to help,’ is also indicative of what took place. For there was not even a single man to assist Him as an innocent person. And the expression, ‘They opened their mouth upon me like a roaring lion,’ designates him who was then king of the Jews, and was called Herod, a successor of the Herod who, when Christ was born, slew all the infants in Bethlehem born about the same time, because he imagined that among them He would assuredly be of whom the Magi from Arabia had spoken; for he was ignorant of the will of Him that is stronger than all, how He had commanded Joseph and Mary to take the Child and depart into Egypt, and there to remain until a revelation should again be made to them to return into their own country. And there they did remain until Herod, who slew the infants in Bethlehem, was dead, and Archelaus had succeeded him. And he died before Christ came to the dispensation on the cross which was given Him by His Father. And when Herod succeeded Archelaus, having received the authority which had been allotted to him, Pilate sent to him by way of compliment Jesus bound; and God foreknowing that this would happen, had thus spoken: ‘And they brought Him to the Assyrian, a present to the king.’ Hosea 10:6 Or He meant the devil by the lion roaring against Him: whom Moses calls the serpent, but in Job and Zechariah he is called the devil, and by Jesus is addressed as Satan, showing that a compounded name was acquired by him from the deeds which he performed. For ‘Sata’ in the Jewish and Syrian tongue means apostate; and ‘Nas’ is the word from which he is called by interpretation the serpent, i.e., according to the interpretation of the Hebrew term, from both of which there arises the single word Satanas. For this devil, when [Jesus] went up from the river Jordan, at the time when the voice spoke to Him, ‘You are my Son: this day have I begotten You,’ is recorded in the memoirs of the apostles to have come to Him and tempted Him, even so far as to say to Him, ‘Worship me;’ and Christ answered him, ‘Get behind me, Satan: you shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.’ Matthew 4:9-10 For as he had deceived Adam, so he hoped that he might contrive some mischief against Christ also. Moreover, the statement, ‘All my bones are poured out and dispersed like water; my heart has become like wax, melting in the midst of my belly,’ was a prediction of that which happened to Him on that night when men came out against Him to the Mount of Olives to seize Him. For in the memoirs which I say were drawn up by His apostles and those who followed them, [it is recorded] that His sweat fell down like drops of blood while He was praying, and saying, ‘If it be possible, let this cup pass:’ Luke 22:44, 42 His heart and also His bones trembling; His heart being like wax melting in His belly: in order that we may perceive that the Father wished His Son really to undergo such sufferings for our sakes, and may not say that He, being the Son of God, did not feel what was happening to Him and inflicted on Him. Further, the expression, ‘My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue has cleaved to my throat,’ was a prediction, as I previously remarked, of that silence, when He who convicted all your teachers of being unwise returned no answer at all. (Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, Chapters 89-108)

2. Now the Lord would not have recapitulated in Himself that ancient and primary enmity against the serpent, fulfilling the promise of the Creator (Demiurgi), and performing His command, if He had come from another Father. But as He is one and the same, who formed us at the beginning, and sent His Son at the end, the Lord did perform His command, being made of a woman, by both destroying our adversary, and perfecting man after the image and likeness of God. And for this reason He did not draw the means of confounding him from any other source than from the words of the law, and made use of the Father’s commandment as a help towards the destruction and confusion of the apostate angel. Fasting forty days, like Moses and Elias, He afterwards hungered, first, in order that we may perceive that He was a real and substantial man — for it belongs to a man to suffer hunger when fasting; and secondly, that His opponent might have an opportunity of attacking Him. For as at the beginning it was by means of food that [the enemy] persuaded man, although not suffering hunger, to transgress God’s commandments, so in the end he did not succeed in persuading Him that was an hungered to take that food which proceeded from God. For, when tempting Him, he said, If you be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. Matthew 4:3 But the Lord repulsed him by the commandment of the law, saying, It is written, Man does not live by bread alone. Deuteronomy 8:3 As to those words [of His enemy,] If you be the Son of God, [the Lord] made no remark; but by thus acknowledging His human nature He baffled His adversary, and exhausted the force of his first attack by means of His Father’s word. The corruption of man, therefore, which occurred in paradise by both [of our first parents] eating, was done away with by [the Lord’s] want of food in this world. But he, being thus vanquished by the law, endeavoured again to make an assault by himself quoting a commandment of the law. For, bringing Him to the highest pinnacle of the temple, he said to Him, If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down. For it is written, That God shall give His angels charge concerning you, and in their hands they shall bear you up, lest perchance you dash your foot against a stone; thus concealing a falsehood under the guise of Scripture, as is done by all the heretics. For that was indeed written, [namely], That He has given His angels charge concerning Him; but cast yourself down from hence no Scripture said in reference to Him: this kind of persuasion the devil produced from himself. The Lord therefore confuted him out of the law, when He said, It is written again, You shall not tempt the Lord your God; Deuteronomy 6:16 pointing out by the word contained in the law that which is the duty of man, that he should not tempt God; and in regard to Himself, since He appeared in human form, [declaring] that He would not tempt the Lord his God. The pride of reason, therefore, which was in the serpent, was put to nought by the humility found in the man [Christ], and now twice was the devil conquered from Scripture, when he was detected as advising things contrary to God’s commandment, and was shown to be the enemy of God by [the expression of] his thoughts. He then, having been thus signally defeated, and then, as it were, concentrating his forces, drawing up in order all his available power for falsehood, in the third place showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, Luke 4:6-7 saying, as Luke relates, All these will I give you — for they are delivered to me; and to whom I will, I give them — if you will fall down and worship me. The Lord then, exposing him in his true character, says, Depart, Satan; for it is written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve. Matthew 4:10 He both revealed him by this name, and showed [at the same time] who He Himself was. For the Hebrew word Satan signifies an apostate. And thus, vanquishing him for the third time, He spurned him from Him finally as being conquered out of the law; and there was done away with that infringement of God’s commandment which had occurred in Adam, by means of the precept of the law, which the Son of man observed, who did not transgress the commandment of God. (Against Heresies, Book V, Chapter 21. Christ is the Head of all things already mentioned. It was fitting that He should be sent by the Father, the Creator of all things, to assume human nature, and should be tempted by Satan, that He might fulfil the promises, and carry off a glorious and perfect victory.)

Unless indicated otherwise, scriptural references taken from the Revised Standard Version (RSV) of the Holy Bible.

FURTHER READING

Is Jesus Really Like Adam After All?

Sujood – The Act of Worship Which Allah Shares With His Creatures

The Prostration to Adam — A Quranic Problem ([Part 1], [Part 2])

• Uncategorized