Sin the the Book of Genesis

[Leah71]

.

 

[golgotha61]

Hello,


I have some questions about my observations regarding the aspect of sin as it is first encountered in Genesis. I will be quoting the KJV version just because I like the sound of the old English not for any other reasons than that.


In Genesis 3:10-13

“And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

I cannot help but notice that Adam and Eve do not ask for forgiveness. Adam seems to try and throw Eve 'under the bus' (to use a very un-Biblical phrase) and even go so far as to suggest it was God's fault for giving Eve to him in the first place (“The woman thou gavest to be with me”).


Eve even tries to dodge her culpability by saying serpent tricked her. Guess it is the first case of “The Devil made me do it.”


Later in Genesis 4:3-9


"And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

“And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?”

Here Cain seems to premeditate Abel's murder then when confronted by God about the murder he deny it by not truthfully answering God's question. Something Adam and Eve didn't do overtly. Once again I can't help but note the lack of asking for forgiveness.


Given what can be witnessed in nearly every criminal trial I think anyone has a hard time is making an intelligent argument that Humans are “good by nature”. Change the names a few minor details and the two stories in Genesis are played out everyday in the media.


It that an accurate or a not too inaccurate view? What is the Christian view regarding this? If my views/observations are off base please let me know.

I think that you did well in your assessment of human sin nature. Indeed, humans are not "good by nature" but instead are sinful by nature; sin-nature, that is. The reason for the lack of petitioning for forgiveness in these narratives is the fact that the Bible does not record a method for covering sin by virtue of substitutionary death until The Mosaic/Sinaitic covenant.

 

[seashale76]

I'm really terrible at explaining things, but I'm going to try to explain the Orthodox Christian view.

Sin means 'to miss the mark.' So, to sin is to keep oneself separated from God. Sin can be voluntary or involuntary and can be achieved with our knowledge or our ignorance. Some things are obvious sins. Others, not so much. Sin is personal in nature and you will find no definitive list of what is or isn't a sin. You can be sure that anything which causes a person to 'miss the mark' is a sin. We don't inherit original sin, just the consequence of it, which is death. In Orthodoxy, we don't refer to it as original sin, but ancestral sin.

Adam and Eve were created to commune with God and attain theosis (salvation)- as while they were created without sin they were not created in a state of theosis. To go against what they were told by their Creator was a choice they had and did make- the consequence being that sickness and death entered the world. God wanted to ensure our free-will to choose Him. Interestingly, it is a pious opinion in Orthodoxy that even if Adam and Eve had not sinned, and death had not entered the world- that Christ still would have come in the flesh in order to help us attain theosis. "God became man, so that man can become like God." (That is not a statement that we become gods. It is becoming by grace what God is by nature- not becoming God in essence but participating in His energies.)

Plus, it wasn't too late for Adam and Eve- even then. In the icon of the Resurrection- Christ is depicted trampling the gates of Hades and lifting Adam and Eve from their graves. Christ defeated sin and death and preached to those in hell/hades/sheol/the grave. Like Adam, we are dead in our sins, but through Christ (the New Adam) we are brought to life. (We don't adhere to a penal substitionary atonement model in Orthodox Christianity, but rather the Christus Victor view.)

The Resurrection is an event that is outside of our notions of time and space. God loves us all so much that He was going to make certain that we have a way to salvation. We are literally given every chance to repent and commune with God as we were created to do. The events in the Old Testament were to ensure that Israel- God's chosen vehicle- survived to secure His worship and the birth of Christ (the godman).

In the Christian view, everyone sins. This doesn't mean that we are born depraved though. The Church is the ultimate hospital and Christ is the Great Physician. To a Christian, we live out our lives in the Church, and must daily make a decision to take up our cross and follow Christ. The Church is there to help us turn from our sins. A person who perseveres to the end in this will attain theosis/salvation. Our struggle with sin is something with which everyone must contend.

 

[Leah71]

.

 

[faroukfarouk]

I'm really terrible at explaining things, but I'm going to try to explain the Orthodox Christian view.

Sin means 'to miss the mark.' So, to sin is to keep oneself separated from God. Sin can be voluntary or involuntary and can be achieved with our knowledge or our ignorance. Some things are obvious sins. Others, not so much. Sin is personal in nature and you will find no definitive list of what is or isn't a sin. You can be sure that anything which causes a person to 'miss the mark' is a sin. We don't inherit original sin, just the consequence of it, which is death. In Orthodoxy, we don't refer to it as original sin, but ancestral sin.

Adam and Eve were created to commune with God and attain theosis (salvation)- as while they were created without sin they were not created in a state of theosis. To go against what they were told by their Creator was a choice they had and did make- the consequence being that sickness and death entered the world. God wanted to ensure our free-will to choose Him. Interestingly, it is a pious opinion in Orthodoxy that even if Adam and Eve had not sinned, and death had not entered the world- that Christ still would have come in the flesh in order to help us attain theosis. "God became man, so that man can become like God." (That is not a statement that we become gods. It is becoming by grace what God is by nature- not becoming God in essence but participating in His energies.)

Plus, it wasn't too late for Adam and Eve- even then. In the icon of the Resurrection- Christ is depicted trampling the gates of Hades and lifting Adam and Eve from their graves. Christ defeated sin and death and preached to those in hell/hades/sheol/the grave. Like Adam, we are dead in our sins, but through Christ (the New Adam) we are brought to life. (We don't adhere to a penal substitionary atonement model in Orthodox Christianity, but rather the Christus Victor view.)

The Resurrection is an event that is outside of our notions of time and space. God loves us all so much that He was going to make certain that we have a way to salvation. We are literally given every chance to repent and commune with God as we were created to do. The events in the Old Testament were to ensure that Israel- God's chosen vehicle- survived to secure His worship and the birth of Christ (the godman).

In the Christian view, everyone sins. This doesn't mean that we are born depraved though. The Church is the ultimate hospital and Christ is the Great Physician. To a Christian, we live out our lives in the Church, and must daily make a decision to take up our cross and follow Christ. The Church is there to help us turn from our sins. A person who perseveres to the end in this will attain theosis/salvation. Our struggle with sin is something with which everyone must contend.

'Fallen short' in Romans 3.23 also means 'missed the mark'. Thank the Lord for the sinless Savior Who endured the Cross for sinners!

 

[seashale76]

Here's a few things I could find.
http://www.antiochian.org/content/theosis-partaking-divine-nature
http://orthodoxwiki.org/Theosis
http://www.myriobiblos.gr/texts/english/Russell_partakers.html
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/arbible/conversations/topics/25368
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/arbible/conversations/topics/41842
http://www.affcrit.com/archives/ac_02_02.html
http://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PDFs/37/37-3/JETS_37-3_365-379_Clendenin.pdf
http://www.amazon.com/The-Orthodox-Understanding-Salvation-22Theosis-22/dp/0980020743

 

[Leah71]

.

 

[oi_antz]

I notice that everyone who thinks their sin is justified will not ask forgiveness. Yet, that countenance is fallen and one is hiding from God demonstrates their conscience convicts them of sin. So even though a person knows it is sin, if they don't understand why, or if their understanding contests their conscience's ruling, they will not accept that they are doing sin. Their spirit is inflicted all the same, for not doing what they know to be right.

 

[graceandpeace]

Hello,


I have some questions about my observations regarding the aspect of sin as it is first encountered in Genesis. I will be quoting the KJV version just because I like the sound of the old English not for any other reasons than that.


In Genesis 3:10-13

“And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

I cannot help but notice that Adam and Eve do not ask for forgiveness. Adam seems to try and throw Eve 'under the bus' (to use a very un-Biblical phrase) and even go so far as to suggest it was God's fault for giving Eve to him in the first place (“The woman thou gavest to be with me”).


Eve even tries to dodge her culpability by saying serpent tricked her. Guess it is the first case of “The Devil made me do it.”


Later in Genesis 4:3-9


"And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

“And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?”

Here Cain seems to premeditate Abel's murder then when confronted by God about the murder he deny it by not truthfully answering God's question. Something Adam and Eve didn't do overtly. Once again I can't help but note the lack of asking for forgiveness.


Given what can be witnessed in nearly every criminal trial I think anyone has a hard time is making an intelligent argument that Humans are “good by nature”. Change the names a few minor details and the two stories in Genesis are played out everyday in the media.


It that an accurate or a not too inaccurate view? What is the Christian view regarding this? If my views/observations are off base please let me know.

I'm in the Episcopal Church rather than the Orthodox Church, but I agree with much of what seashale wrote.

One thing to consider with the early Genesis accounts at least prior to Abraham is that much of the stories are myths, or otherwise not entirely historical. They give us theological information & pre-Israel background, to help us understand why things are as they are & who God is. Indeed in much of the Old Testament there is overlap between myth/history/prose.

In the first Genesis creation story, one thing we learn is that God made everything good. The cosmos, the earth, the animals...good. Human beings...also good & specifically made in God's image. So, I don't think of human beings as being "born in sin" but would suggest that sin is more like a sickness, or an invader. Sin "lurks at the door," as God tells Cain in the Genesis tale, which to me again suggests that it is something not inherent to how we were created, but something that nonetheless affects us & can overtake us.

For Christians, Jesus is God's response to sin. He is the one who sets us free from
sin & its consequence, death. We believe that when we trust in him, follow him, we grow into his likeness - for he is the perfect image of God. Our hope is that God will finally set all things right - no more sin or death, as Christ's response is fully realized for human beings, for the whole creation. All things will be redeemed.

 

[Hospes]

Hello,


I have some questions about my observations regarding the aspect of sin as it is first encountered in Genesis. I will be quoting the KJV version just because I like the sound of the old English not for any other reasons than that.


In Genesis 3:10-13

“And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

I cannot help but notice that Adam and Eve do not ask for forgiveness. Adam seems to try and throw Eve 'under the bus' (to use a very un-Biblical phrase) and even go so far as to suggest it was God's fault for giving Eve to him in the first place (“The woman thou gavest to be with me”).


Eve even tries to dodge her culpability by saying serpent tricked her. Guess it is the first case of “The Devil made me do it.”


Later in Genesis 4:3-9


"And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

“And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?”

Here Cain seems to premeditate Abel's murder then when confronted by God about the murder he deny it by not truthfully answering God's question. Something Adam and Eve didn't do overtly. Once again I can't help but note the lack of asking for forgiveness.


Given what can be witnessed in nearly every criminal trial I think anyone has a hard time is making an intelligent argument that Humans are “good by nature”. Change the names a few minor details and the two stories in Genesis are played out everyday in the media.


It that an accurate or a not too inaccurate view? What is the Christian view regarding this? If my views/observations are off base please let me know.

I think you did well in your observations. There are two things to which I'd draw your attention: the futile attempt Adam and Eve made of covering their shame using fig leaves and God's giving them skins to wear. I believe the killing of animals to hide shame pointed forward to the Jewish practice of sacrifice and ultimately to Jesus himself shedding his own blood for the cleansing of my sin and removing my shame. (In the story, there are also some profound links made between sin and shame and hiding that explains dynamics I find in myself and others.)

 

[paul1149]

I cannot help but notice that Adam and Eve do not ask for forgiveness.

he deny it by not truthfully answering God's question. Something Adam and Eve didn't do overtly. Once again I can't help but note the lack of asking for forgiveness.

Yes to both. There seems to be a progressive decline of character. Each had been warned ahead of time. Yet despite the lack of repentance, in each case God does not wipe them off the face of the earth. Instead, He makes special provision to preserve their lives, and at the Fall He uses the occasion for the Bible's first prophecy, alluding to His eventual permanent remedy for the problem of the fallen human condition:

I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”​

This points to the Lord Jesus, who would become the seed of woman, and who after death on the cross would rise up and defeat satan decisively.

 

[dcalling]

Leah,

Those are great observations indeed! When I first read the Bible, I noticed none of those minor details, and yet those details are very important.

When our Pastor first point out the first one. He didn't point out that Adam/Eve didn't seek forgiveness, what he point out is how when God first made Eve, Adam said she is "flesh and bone" of him, and yet when he sin, he said "The woman you made", so basically place the blame on Eve and God

All those pretty much show human nature.