Reference: Adam
American
1. The progenitor and representative head of our race; formed of the dust of the ground, and made a living soul by the Creator's breath. He was the last work of the creation, and received dominion over all that the earth contained. That he might not be alone, God provided Eve as a helpmeet for him, and she became his wife. Marriage is thus a divine institution, first in order of time, as well as of importance and blessedness to mankind. Adam was made a perfect man-complete in every physical, mental, and spiritual endowment; and placed in the Garden of Eden on probation, holy and happy, but liable to sin. From this estate he fell by breaking the express command of God, through the temptations of Satan and the compliance of Eve; and thus brought the curse upon himself and all his posterity. Sovereign grace interposed; a Savior was revealed, and the full execution of the curse stayed; but Adam was banished from Eden and its tree of life, and reduced to a life of painful toil. His happiness was farther imbittered by witnessing the fruits of his fall in his posterity. Cain his first born son, and Abel the second, born in the likeness of their fallen parents, were ere long last to them-the one slain, and the other a fugitive. They probably had many other sons and daughters, but the name of Seth alone is given. Adam lived to the age of nine hundred and thirty years, and saw the earth rapidly peopled by his descendants; but "the wickedness of man was great upon the earth." At the time of his death, Lamech, the father of Noah, was fifty-six years of age; and being in the line of those who "walked with God," had probably heard the early history of the race from the lips of the penitent Adam.
The curse pronounced on man includes not only physical labor and toil on a barren and thorny earth, and the physical dissolution of the body, but also the exposure of the soul, the nobler part, to "everlasting death." In that very day he should lose the moral image of his Maker, and become subject not only to physical death, but also to God's eternal wrath and curse, which is death in the highest sense of the word, and is the doom which has fallen upon all his race. Such is the view of the apostle Paul; who everywhere contrasts the death introduced into the world through Adam, with the life which is procured for our race through Jesus Christ, Ro 5. This life is spiritual; and the death, in its highest sense, is also spiritual. So far as the penalty is temporal and physical, no man is or can be exempt from it; but to remove the spiritual and eternal punishment, Christ has died; and he who comes to him in penitence and faith will avoid the threatened death, and enter into life eternal, both of the body and the soul.
The Redeemer is called "the second Adam," 1Co 15:45, as being the head of his spiritual seed, and the source of righteousness and life to all believers, as the first Adam was the sorrow of sin and death to all his seed.
2. A city near the Jordan, towards the sea of Tiberias, at some distance from which the waters of the Jordan were heaped up for the passage of the Jews, Jos 3:16.
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Easton
red, a Babylonian word, the generic name for man, having the same meaning in the Hebrew and the Assyrian languages. It was the name given to the first man, whose creation, fall, and subsequent history and that of his descendants are detailed in the first book of Moses (Ge 1:27-ch. 5). "God created man [Heb., Adam] in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them."
Adam was absolutely the first man whom God created. He was formed out of the dust of the earth (and hence his name), and God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and gave him dominion over all the lower creatures (Ge 1:26; 2:7). He was placed after his creation in the Garden of Eden, to cultivate it, and to enjoy its fruits under this one prohibition: "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 first recorded act of Adam was his giving names to the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, which God brought to him for this end. Thereafter the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon him, and while in an unconscious state took one of his ribs, and closed up his flesh again; and of this rib he made a woman, whom he presented to him when he awoke. Adam received her as his wife, and said, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." He called her Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Being induced by the tempter in the form of a serpent to eat the forbidden fruit, Eve persuaded Adam, and he also did eat. Thus man fell, and brought upon himself and his posterity all the sad consequences of his transgression. The narrative of the Fall comprehends in it the great promise of a Deliverer (Ge 3:15), the "first gospel" message to man. They were expelled from Eden, and at the east of the garden God placed a flame, which turned every way, to prevent access to the tree of life (Ge 3). How long they were in Paradise is matter of mere conjecture.
Shortly after their expulsion Eve brought forth her first-born, and called him Cain. Although we have the names of only three of Adam's sons, viz., Cain, Abel, and Seth, yet it is obvious that he had several sons and daughters (Ge 5:4). He died aged 930 years.
Adam and Eve were the progenitors of the whole human race. Evidences of varied kinds are abundant in proving the unity of the human race. The investigations of science, altogether independent of historical evidence, lead to the conclusion that God "hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth" (Ac 17:26. Comp. Ro 5:12; 1Co 15:22-49).
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Hastings
The derivation is doubtful. The most plausible is that which connects it with the Assyrian ad
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Morish
Adam. Ad'am
A town near the Jordan, named only in Jos 3:16, which should read "a heap very far off, by or at Adam, the city that is beside Zaretan." The waters of death were heaped at Adam as if to teach the death of the first man at the passage of the Jordan. Adam is identified with ed Damieh, 32 7' N, 35 33' E. If this is correct, the waters were piled up some 20 miles from where the Israelites crossed. See JORDAN.
Adam, Ad'am the Last.
In contrast to the first man, Adam, who was made a living soul, the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ, was a life-giving Spirit: the first was natural; the second spiritual: the first man was of the earth, earthy; the second Man was out of heaven. 1Co 15:45-47. Everything committed to man having failed in Adam, Christ as last Adam becomes the head of a new and redeemed race. He is the last Adam because there will be no other: every man must come under one of these two headships: the first Adam, man; or the last Adam, Christ: cf. 1Co 15:22; Ps 8:3-9; Heb 2:6-9.
Adam. Ad'am
The first man. The name is supposed to be derived from Adamah, 'earth, or red earth,' agreeing with the fact that "the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, Ge 2:7. He differed from all other creatures, because God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, by which man became a living soul. He differed also in being made after the image and likeness of God: he was God's representative on earth, and to him was given dominion over all other living things, and he gave them names. He was placed in the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it, showing that occupation was a good thing for man even in innocence. God said also that it was not good for man to be alone, so He caused him to sleep, took from him a rib, and of this 'builded' a woman. Adam called her Isha for she was taken out of Ish, man: the two being a type of Christ and the church, in the closest union: cf. Eph 5:31-32.
Adam and Eve were permitted to eat of all the trees of the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil: of the which if they ate, in the same day they should die. Eve, being beguiled by Satan, ate of that tree; and at her suggestion, though not deceived as Eve was, Adam also took of it. Their eyes were at once opened, they knew they were naked, and hid themselves from God. They were transgressors, had fallen from their state of innocence, and acquired a conscience, and with it the sense of their own evil and guilt. When questioned by God, Adam laid the blame on Eve, ungratefully saying, "the woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat." The ground was then cursed for Adam's sake: in sorrow he should eat of it all his life: thorns and thistles should be produced, and in the sweat of his face he should eat bread.
God made for Adam and Eve coats of skins and clothed them, foreshadowing the need for a vicarious sacrifice, and the righteousness that could only come to them through death. They were driven from the garden, and Cherubim with a flaming sword prevented them re-entering, lest they should eat of the tree of life and live for ever in their sin. Adam did not beget a son until after his fall: hence all mankind are alike fallen creatures. Ac 17:26; Ro 5:18-19; 1Co 15:22. Adam lived 930 years and begat sons and daughters. We have no details of the life of Adam as a fallen man. Viewed typically as head of a race he stands in marked contrast to Christ, the last Adam.
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Smith
Ad'am
(red earth), the name given in Scripture to the first man. It apparently has reference to the ground from which he was formed, which is called in Hebrew Adamah. The idea of redness of color seems to be inherent in either word. The creation of man was the work of the sixth day--the last and crowning act of creation. Adam was created (not born) a perfect man in body and spirit, but as innocent and completely inexperienced as a child. The man Adam was placed in a garden which the Lord God had planted "eastward in Eden," for the purpose of dressing it and keeping it. [EDEN] Adam was permitted to eat of the fruit of every tree in the garden but one, which was called ("the tree of the knowledge of good and evil," because it was the test of Adam's obedience. By it Adam could know good and evil int he divine way, through obedience; thus knowing good by experience in resisting temptation and forming a strong and holy character, while he knew evil only by observation and inference. Or he could "know good and evil," in Satan's way, be experiencing the evil and knowing good only by contrast. -ED.) The prohibition to taste the fruit of this tree was enforced by the menace of death. There was also another tree which was called "the tree of life." While Adam was in the garden of Eden, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air were brought to him to be named. After this the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon him, and took one of his ribs from him, which he fashioned into a woman and brought her to the man. At this time they were both described as being naked without the consciousness of shame. By the subtlety of the serpent the woman who was given to be with Adam was beguiled into a violation of the one command which had been imposed upon them. She took of the fruit of the forbidden tree and gave it to her husband. The propriety of its name was immediately shown in the results which followed; self-consciousness was the first-fruits of sin their eyes were opened and they knew that they were naked. Though the curse of Adam's rebellion of necessity fell upon him, yet the very prohibition to eat of the tree of life after his transgression was probably a manifestation of divine mercy, because the greatest malediction of all would have been to have the gift of indestructible life super-added to a state of wretchedness and sin. The divine mercy was also shown in the promise of a deliverer given at the very promise of a deliverer given at the very time the curse was imposed,
See Eden
and opening a door of hope to Paradise, regained for him and his descendants. Adam is stated to have lived 930 years. His sons mentioned in Scripture are Cain, Abel and Seth; it is implied, however, that he had others.
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Watsons
ADAM, the name given to man in general, both male and female, in the Hebrew Scriptures, Ge 1:26-27; 5:1-2; 11:5; Jos 14:15; 2Sa 7:19; Ec 3:21; Jer 32:20; Ho 6:7; Zec 13:7: in all which places mankind is understood; but particularly it is the name of the first man and father of the human race, created by God himself out of the dust of the earth. Josephus thinks that he was called Adam by reason of the reddish colour of the earth out of which he was formed, for Adam in Hebrew signifies red. God having made man out of the dust of the earth, breathed into him the breath of life, and gave him dominion over all the creatures of this world, Ge 1:26-27; 2:7. He created him after his own image and resemblance; and having blessed him, he placed him in a delicious garden, in Eden, that he might cultivate it, and feed upon its fruits, Ge 2:8; but under the following injunction: "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 thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die." The first thing that Adam did after his introduction into paradise, was to give names to all the beasts and birds which presented themselves before him, Ge 2:19-20.
But man was without a fellow creature of his own species; wherefore God said, "It is not good for man to be alone; I will make him a help meet for him." And the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and while he slept, he took one of his ribs, "and closed up the flesh instead thereof;" and of that substance which he took from man made he a woman, whom he presented to him. Then said Adam, "This is now bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man," Ge 2:21, &c.
The woman was seduced by the tempter; and she seduced her husband to eat of the forbidden fruit. When called to judgment for this transgression before God, Adam attempted to cast the blame upon his wife, and the woman upon the serpent tempter. But God declared them all guilty, and punished the serpent by degradation; the woman by painful childbearing and subjection; and the man by agricultural labour and toil; of which punishments every day witnesses the fulfilment. As their natural passions now became irregular, and their exposure to accidents was great, God made a covering of skins for Adam and for his wife; and expelled them from the garden, to the country without; placing at the east of the garden cherubims and a flaming sword, which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life. It is not known how long Adam and his wife continued in paradise: some say, many years; others, not many days; others, not many hours. Adam called his wife's name Eve, which signifies "the mother of all living." Shortly after, Eve brought forth Cain, Ge 4:1-2. It is believed that she had a girl at the time, and that, generally, she had twins. The Scriptures notice only three sons of Adam: Cain, Abel, and Seth; and omits daughters; except that Moses tells us, "Adam beast sons and daughters;" no doubt many. He died, aged nine hundred and thirty, B.C. 3074.
Upon this history, so interesting to all Adam's descendants, some remarks may be offered.
1. It is disputed whether the name Adam is derived from red earth. Sir W. Jones thinks it may be from Adim, which in Sanscrit signifies, the first. The Persians, however, denominate him Adamah, which signifies, according to Sale, red earth. The term for woman is Aisha. the feminine of Aish, man, and signifies, therefore, maness, or female man.
2. The manner in which the creation of Adam is narrated indicates something peculiar and eminent in the being to be formed. Among the heavenly bodies the earth, and above all the various productions of its surface, vegetable and animal, however perfect in their kinds, and beautiful and excellent in their respective natures, not one being was found to whom the rest could minister instruction; inspire with moral delight; or lead up to the Creator himself. There was, properly speaking, no intellectual being; none to whom the whole frame and furniture of material nature could minister knowledge; no one who could employ upon them the generalizing faculty, and make them the basis of inductive knowledge. If, then, it was not wholly for himself that the world was created by God; and if angels were not so immediately connected with this system, as to lead us to suppose that it was made for them; a rational inhabitant was obviously still wanting to complete the work, and to constitute a perfect whole. The formation of such a being was marked, therefore, by a manner of proceeding which serves to impress us with a sense of the greatness of the work. Not that it could be a matter of more difficulty to Omnipotence to create man than any thine beside; but principally, it is probable, because he was to be the lord of the whole and therefore himself accountable to the original proprietor; and was to be the subject of another species of government, a moral administration; and to be constituted an image of the intellectual and moral perfections, and of the immortality of the common Maker. Everything therefore, as to man's creation, is given in a solemn and deliberative form, and contains also an intimation of a Trinity of Persons in the Godhead, all equally possessed of creative power, and therefore Divine, to each of whom man was to stand in relations the most sacred and intimate: