Question 13: The Fall

Question 13: Did our first parents continue in the estate wherein they were created?

Answer: Our first parents, being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God.

This great tragedy is recorded in Genesis 3:6-13. "So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you? And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Our catechism question makes a few basic observations about this sad event. First, Adam and Eve did it of their own free will. Although they were tempted, they were not coerced, nor were they forced to do anything that they did not want to do. Second, it was a fall from the state of innocence. Their new fallen state is dramatically illustrated by the guilt and shame which is immediately attached to their nakedness. Finally, their action was sin. God pointed this out directly with his question, "Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" In one act of freedom, Adam and Eve plunged the world into sin and misery.

Human freedom is a glorious gift, a part of what it means to be in the image of God. However, it has been corrupted as an avenue for sin, and is only restored to its proper place through Christ. Have you learned by faith to exercise your freedom for the glory of God instead of the ruin of yourself and others?

Reference: Explanation of the Shorter Catechism by Thomas Vincent