The Fall of Man

The Fall of Man to Sin

Published on May, 2024

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. He then formed Adam from the dust of the ground and breathed life into him. He placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, where he was given dominion over all the animals. However, God saw that Adam was lonely, so he created Eve from one of Adam's ribs to be his companion.

God gave Adam and Eve only one command: they could eat from any tree in the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God warned them that if they ate from that tree, they would surely die.

One day, while Eve was near the forbidden tree, a serpent approached her and tempted her to eat the fruit. The serpent deceived Eve, telling her that if she ate the fruit, she would be like God, knowing good and evil. Eve succumbed to the temptation and ate the fruit. She also gave some to Adam, who was with her, and he ate it too.

As soon as they ate the fruit, their eyes were opened, and they realized they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. When God came to the garden, Adam and Eve hid from Him because they were ashamed.

God, knowing what they had done, asked Adam why he had eaten from the tree. Adam blamed Eve, and Eve blamed the serpent. As a consequence of their disobedience, God cursed the serpent, declaring that it would crawl on its belly and that there would be enmity between it and humanity. 

To Adam, God said, "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow, you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."

Then, God banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, placing cherubim and a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life, so they could not eat from it and live forever in their fallen state. Adam and Eve had to leave the paradise they had known and face the harshness of the world outside the garden.

What may happen when the Spirit and the Soul separate from the Physical body at death?