Alastair's Adversaria - The Fall Without St Paul

Episode Date: October 14, 2025

The following was first published on the Anchored Argosy: https://argosy.substack.com/i/174118154/the-fall-without-st-paul. Follow my Substack, the Anchored Argosy at https://argosy.substack.com/. See my latest podcasts at https://adversariapodcast.com/. If you have enjoyed my videos and podcasts, please tell your friends. If you are interested in supporting my videos and podcasts and my research more generally, please consider supporting my work on Patreon (www.patreon.com/zugzwanged), using my PayPal account (bit.ly/2RLaUcB), or by buying books for my research on Amazon (www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/3…3O?ref_=wl_share). You can also listen to the audio of these episodes on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/alastairs-adversaria/id1416351035.

The following reflection is entitled The Fall Without St. Paul. It was first published on the Anchored Argosy. In Romans chapter 5 verses 12 to 19, the Apostle Paul writes of the redemptive work of Christ. Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned, for 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 sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was the 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 by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ, abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man's sin, For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification.

For 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. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life, for all men. Whereas by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience, the many will be made righteous. While focused upon the once-for-all work of Christ, within this and texts like 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verses 21 to 22, the sin of Adam in the garden is

presented as an event of decisive and definitive significance for the entire human race. These texts have provided the chief basis for the doctrine of the fall in Christian theology. While humanity was created upright, enjoying fellowship with God and the continuing gift of life, mankind sinned in Adam and fell from that state. We are all removed from God's special presence, do not enjoy the same preservation in life, are subject to futility, pain and toil, and will return to the dust and death. Besides this, our nature, as we inherit it from Adam, is corrupt and fallen, inclined towards evil. Adam's sin is also typically understood to have introduced a broader disorder and corruption into the world, Adam's sin and the judgment upon it admitting the powers of sin and death,

under which the whole creation labours in bondage, as we see in Romans chapter 8, verses 20 and 21. All human beings are implicated in Adam's sin. we all share in his alienation from God, in the death he brought, and the guilt of his sin belongs to humanity more generally, not merely Adam as an individual. Every person, even before they sin personally, is born in sin, alienated from God with a nature inclined to sin and sharing in humanity's fall from innocence in Adam. The doctrine of original sin, and of the fall more generally, is a prominent and important one within Christian theology. Original sin became highly load-bearing, especially in Western theology, as Augustine of Hippo and others used it to address Pelagianism and connected it to such things as the practice of infant baptism. The doctrine has also typically played a critical role in Theodicy, accounting for the origin

of evil within a good creation. The prominence of the fall in Western theology became even more pronounced with the thoroughgoing Augustinianism of the Protestant Reformation, with John Calvin and other reformers foregrounding totaled depravity in their theologies, the corruption of all human faculties and actions by sin, no part of our nature being immune to its damage. The Reformation's radical Augustinianism was perhaps most evident in its teaching

concerning the unfreedom of the fallen will. Original sin and the fall more generally have preoccupied the Western Christian imagination, a fact evidenced in such things as the popularity of the theme in Western art. However, reading the Old Testament, one could reasonably wonder whether the fall is given the same significance within it. Beyond the record of the original event, and apart from a small handful of texts, some of more debatable import, for instance, Psalm 51 verse 5, Ecclesiastes 7 verse 29,

and Josea chapter 6 verse 7, it might seem that it does not make much of an appearance. It might also be illuminating to consider the ways that the fall has been handled in other traditions, perhaps especially among Jews and Eastern Orthodox Christians, who, while following many of the same texts, have ended up in different places. The fall is addressed in a first-century apocryphal Jewish text like Second Esdras, and you laid upon him one commandment of yours, but he transgressed it, and immediately you appointed death for him and for his descendants. From him there sprang nations and tribes, peoples and clans without number. Second Esdras, chapter three, verse seven. O Adam, what have you done? For though it was you who sinned, the fall was not yours alone, but ours also who are your descendants.

Second Ezrus, chapter 7, verse 48. Yet beyond a few such atypical texts, the doctrine and event of the fall have not been given the same profile in Jewish theology and readings of Scripture. The differences between Western and Eastern Orthodox accounts of the fall are not so pronounced, but still noticeable and noteworthy, in consequence, of the influence of Augustinian theology in the West and the greater formative influence of debates about various perceived iterations of Pelagianism, the doctrine tends to be more central in theological frameworks in the West. Further, as forensic categories of thought

generally have a lesser and participatory categories are greater salience in Orthodox theology, the questions of guilt that shaped the West's account and use of the doctrine of original sin were less influential. Such differences and divergences are worthy of consideration, not least because they can help us to identify the more specific forces, figures, debates, ideas and sources that have shaped our theologies. In particular, the marginality of a doctrine of the

fall in much Jewish thought raises similar questions to those raised by the seeming absence of a strong account of the fall in the Old Testament. Divergences from Eastern Orthodox Christians might raise different ones. For instance, how might our account of man's plight differ had Augustine been less influential in the West, or if death rather than guilt were a more controlling concept, or if a Pauline theological framework idiom and set of concerns were less dominant, and say, Johanai ones more so. In my theological reflection, I will often mentally bracket certain parts of scripture, in order better to consider the distinct voices and concerns of other parts, or perhaps by such temporary imaginative exclusion, better to perceive the contribution made by specific

texts and authors. Before considering the question of the seemingly low profile of a doctrine of the fall in the Old Testament, we should probably begin by noting the fact that, were one to remove the epistles more generally, or just the Pauline epistles more particularly, and especially Romans and 1st Corinthians, from consideration, we might not find so pronounced doctrines of the fall in the New Testament either, at least not those aspects that tend to be accented in typical doctrines. Indeed, where the fall is alluded to outside of the Pauline epistles in the New Testament, it is the part of the devil as the antagonist, as liar, deceiver, murderer, accuser and tyrant that might be most foregrounded. Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same

things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery, Hebrews chapter 2 verses 14 and 15 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil for the devil has been sinning from the beginning the reason the son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil 1 John chapter 3 verse 8

And the great dragon was thrown down That ancient serpent who is called the devil and Satan The deceiver of the whole world He was thrown down to earth And his angels were thrown down with him Revelation chapter 12 verse 9. In places like John chapter 8 and 1 John chapter 3, we also see the way the themes of opposing seed, the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent, are connected to this emphasis upon the part played by the serpent. The absence of the figure of the serpent or Satan in Romans chapter 5 or 1 Corinthians chapter 15, although C. 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verses 2 and 3, might result in this dimension of the full narrative being underplayed in Western theology,

for which these two Pauline texts have been definitive. As noted above, Paul's account of Adam's sin in Romans chapter 5 and 1 Corinthians chapter 15 chiefly functions as the foil for his account of Christ's redemption. Christ's act, like Adam's sin, is a decisive act with consequences for all associated with him. It could be noted that these are not the only texts of such a character in Paul. One might argue that Adam is the implicit foil of Philippians chapter 2 verses 3 to 11. Christ's obedience to the point of death on the cross being contrasted with Adam's attempt to grasp equality with God. As we see in verse 6 of Philippians chapter 2, this should be read in connection with Genesis.

is chapter 3 verse 5. In Philippians chapter 2, Christ is the paradigm of faithful humanity and his self-giving death the model for all to follow, which Paul himself imitates in chapter 3 verses 3 to 11, charging the Philippians to imitate him in chapter 3 verse 17. Viewed in terms of such a text, it is the fall as the establishment for participatory pattern of behavior through a decisive act of rebellion, answered by the establishment for participatory pattern of blessing. faithfulness through a decisive act of obedience with which it is placed in sharpest relief. We might also consider whether such a reading of Philippians Chapter 2 could illuminate neglected facets of Romans Chapter 5. Elsewhere in the Pauline corpus, the fall is treated in a way that,

rather than focusing upon Adam as the representative head of all human beings, differentiates between the parts played by Adam and Eve within it, and the consequences is faced by men and women respectively. In Paul's treatment in 1 Timothy chapter 2, he argues that Adam was not deceived, while Eve was, then alludes to the judgment upon the woman in Genesis chapter 3, as he teaches that Christian women will be saved through childbearing in verse 15, likely a reference to the blessing of women in this and perhaps also their participation in the greater redemptive historical childbearing.

In the context, Eve's deception is also related to Adam's negligence, in his office as guardian of the garden and implicitly of his wife. This gives far more significance to the particular details of the narrative than typical accounts tend to. In 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verses 2 and 3, the fall is presented as an assault upon the bride. For Paul, such dimensions of the meaning of the fall are not occluded by his emphasis elsewhere upon the decisive impact of Adam's sin upon all humanity. outside of the epistolatory material of the New Testament. Themes from Eden, the fall, and its aftermath,

might be felt in the background of accounts such as the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness, images such as the crown of thorns or the brood of vipers, seed of the serpent, parables such as the parables of the wheat and the tears, episodes such as the massacre of the innocence, Herod playing the role of the satanic antagonist, who seeks to kill the seed of the woman. Jesus' description of living water proceeding from him and of his flesh that one can eat and live forever, or the revelation of the risen Christ to Mary Magdalene in the garden.

Such themes and motifs are subtler than the more direct teaching of the epistles. Within them, we might also see the event of the fall in a rather unfamiliar light, with lesser-considered facets of it prominent, while familiar facets lying more in shadow. For instance, our focus upon the universality of sin and death because of the fall, might dull our alertness to the importance of the theme of the opposition of two seeds in history in association with it beyond the narrow application of this to Christ. We should note that Paul's treatment of the fall in the epistles is not independent of the Old Testament witness. Quite the opposite. Paul presents his teaching as reflection upon the Old Testament narrative.

One of the benefits of bracketing the teaching of the Old Testament, and the epistles in particular, is that we can revisit the Old Testament and see whether closer attention reveals some of the things that Paul saw in it. Without such attention, we can fall into the error of treating Paul's teaching as if it were just direct independent revelation, rather than the inspired commentary and argumentation that it is. Truly to understand Paul, we need to be able to articulate and emulate the underlying movements of sound thought, logic, interpretation, and rhetoric that produce the text of his epistles. Likewise, when we read the Old Testament attentively on its own terms, fruitful conversations between it and the New Testament

treatments of it can be opened up, and those New Testament treatments will not be misunderstood as comprehensive accounts of the meaning of the events upon which they reflect. This only being a short reflection, rather than a longer paper or a book, I will gesture at a few elements of the fall and its meaning that I think might come into clearer view, were we to consider the Old Testament witness on its own terms. I leave further reflection. as a thought exercise for listeners, and perhaps as a matter I might return to in the future. First, the events of the Garden in Genesis chapter 2 and 3 really set the scene for the understanding of man's standing before God. A world without sin and death, where man dwelt in a paradigmatic

sanctuary, has been succeeded by a world of the curse and alienation. Adam's sin was not merely for himself, but in consequence of it, all his descendants are exiled from the garden. The questions underlying the entire biblical narrative are set in Genesis chapter 1 to 3, how can humanity be restored to the presence of God and the human vocation fulfilled? Things such as the tabernacle and temple are presented as forms of return to the garden, a way having been opened up through sacrifice. Second, understood in a narrative frame, the imputation of Adam's sin to his descendants depends less upon some arcane legal framework, whereby he is the individual who covenantally represents the host of humanity, and more upon the simple fact that he is our father. We inherit his standing,

share his fallen nature, and live according to the pattern of rebellion that he first set. Human beings are not created as detached individuals, but we belong to solidarities, suffering the consequences of, sharing in the responsibility of, and living according to the pattern of their actions. More particularly, Adam's sin does not function as an abstract act of an individual, the guilt of which is attributed to other detached individuals. Rather, Adam is the father of all humanity, and so we inherit his standing and his nature. Abel and Kane are born in a state of exile from the garden, cut off from the tree of life, from their parents form a communion with God,

and are subject to death. Adam's failure to guard the garden from the serpent was recapitulated in his son Kane's failure to guard the garden of his heart from sin, the beast crouching at its door, chapter 4 verses 6 to 7. We might consider the way King Jeroboam is repeatedly presented as the one who made Israel to sin in first and second kings. Jeroboam founded the Northern Kingdom of Israel in a way that made idolatry integral to its identity in life and set a pattern in which his descendants consistently warped. Jeroboam's sin had enduring consequences for his descendants and for the nation that he founded.

However, these consequences cannot be separated from the pattern of sin that he established and which they followed. Third, the Old Testament presents the sin of Adam as something that develops, intensifies, and radiates out, as I've written elsewhere. We are prone to narrate the coming of sin as a binary matter. Once humanity was at peace and in communion with God, and then it disobeyed the law concerning the tree, came under the rule of death and was alienated from God. There is a truth in this telling, but it can miss the fact that Genesis 1 to 11 describe a gradual and progressive intensification of the grip of sin upon the world, the fall of Adam only being the decisive and seminal first stage.

The sin of Adam is followed by events such as the fall of Cain, the fall of the sons of God, and the fall of mankind at Babel. Each of these sins occurs in a particular realm and context and has its own significance and consequence. In each of these sins we see a new stage in the unraveling of humanity begun by Adam's sin. They continue the story of Adam's fall, but as they develop beyond it, they shouldn't just be subsumed under it. The sin of Adam and Eve in eating of the tree is followed by the fratricide of Cain,

who leaves the presence of the Lord and founds a city in the name of his son. Cain's line go on to form a culture based upon violence and bloodshed, typified by the vengeful Lamaic. Genesis chapter 4, verses 16 to 24. The first sin of Adam and Eve, like ink, dropped onto a piece of paper, spreads out until we begin to see the institutionalization of evil. in Cain and his offspring. By the time of the flood, the entire fabric of human society, its institutions, members, practices and ideologies were so compromised and corrupted that the thoughts and intents of men's

hearts are described as being only evil continually. Sin comes into the world through Adam, as Paul argues in Romans 5 verse 12. However, in the account of Genesis, while decisive in setting the path for his descendants. Adam's sin is just the beginning of a narrative of sin's intensification and spread. Sin reaches a height before the flood, leading to the cutting off of all flesh, sparing only Noah and his family. While the fundamental corruption of humanity continues, Genesis chapter 8, verse 21, note chapter 6 verse 5, its growth was curtailed. This narrative of the spreading and intensification of the sin that came into the world through Adam underlines the fact that it is not a story of innocent parties being judged on account of another sin. Rather, Adam set the solidarity of humanity

out on the path of sin, and many of his descendants continued and exacerbated his sin, suffering more intense judgments as a result. While Adam's sin resulted in mankind being subject to death, the flood was a more final sentence on the antediluvian humanity, and humanity after the flood had greatly shortened lifespans, humanity's subjection to death being increased. While Adam and Eve were exile from the Garden of Eden, Cain suffered a further exile being cut off from the wider land of Eden. At the flood, a far more intensely rebellious humanity was cut off from the entire world. Fourth, throughout Genesis, there is an unfolding conflict between two seeds, between the righteous and the wicked. This is a complex conflict, and the righteous are clearly not without sin.

Nonetheless, while all humanity is under sin, the enmity between the two seeds, the conflict between them, and the awaited victory of the seed of the woman has a prominence that tempers such themes of universal sinfulness. This conflict also accentuates the part played by the serpent as the antagonist, which tends to be downplayed in the counts of the fall that have developed chiefly under the influence of Romans chapter 5 and 1 Corinthians chapter 15. The fall is occasioned in large part by a revolution in the heavens and God's victory over the false gods and powers is required to reverse it. Fifth, as I explore in detail elsewhere, the narrative pattern of the fall is repeatedly recapitulated in the narratives of the Old Testament. The sons of God and the daughters of men in Genesis

Chapter 6, Abraham, Sarai and Hagar in Genesis chapter 16, Jacob and Esau in Genesis chapter 25, the story of the golden calf and Exodus chapter 32, and several others. The pattern of the fall is also inverted on several occasions, most notably as women deceived tyrants. For instance, at the of Exodus the serpent figure, Pharaoh, and his seed, the Egyptian soldiers, are seeking to destroy the woman and her seed, the Hebrew women, the midwives, the baby boys, and Moses most especially. The story of the fall establishes themes that pervade the wider text of the Old Testament. Six, the fall and its consequences play out, not merely between God and humanity, but in relationships between humanity and the earth, between men and women, between different parties of humanity,

between parents and children, between human beings in their own bodies, both male and female, and between human beings and their own wills, as we find ourselves partly bound by patterns of behaviour that we deplore. The judgments that follow the fall are not merely the judgment of death or that of expulsion from God's presence, but include the frustration of the man's labour, the resistance of the earth to his efforts, attention introduced in the woman's relationship with her husband, and increased difficulty of her childbearing, in conflict with the soul. serpent. Seventh, many reading the event of the fall in light of Paul's claim of death coming into the world through Adam's sin have imagined a radical transformation of the entire animal

creation through the introduction of predation, or even more radically, the whole cosmos through the introduction of entropy. While Adam's sin is seen to result in a disharmony between man and creation more generally, a resistance of the creation to human efforts at cultivation, and perhaps offers such thin grounds for speculation about fallen spiritual power. shaping the animal creation. Genesis says nothing about the profound transformation imagined by many. Augustine Aquinas and others have suggested that animal death is not in view in Paul's statements and that it could have pre-existed the fall, although we might imagine that as the creation was made resistant to human efforts to tame it and demonic forces spread their rule within it,

the processes of predation became crueler. Eighth, in places such as the book of Leviticus, themes of death and its impurity and spread of corruption are, prominent. Paul's theological reflection on the flesh in his epistles traces similar realities to the rituals of the sacrificial system. Were we to stop bracketing, Paul's teaching in places like Romans 5, having considered this Old Testament treatment of the fall, my sense is that Paul's teaching might make more sense to us. Some measure of people's discomfort with the teaching might be relieved, especially as a fuller sense of Adam's descendants' natural solidarity with him, inheritance of his standing and nature, following of his pattern, and intensification of his sin,

were appreciated. Romans Chapter 5 could be read in the light of a much fuller account of the fall. We would appreciate that in that passage Paul only touches upon certain aspects of it. Many of the more abstract theological concepts that frame the doctrine of the fall could also be grounded in a broader narrative, leaving Adam's sin considered in isolation, less load-bearing for explaining the human plight. Thank you very much for listening. This and other such reflections are found over on the anchored Argosy. If you'd like to support my work here there and elsewhere,

you can do so using Patreon and PayPal accounts below. God bless.