The Bible teaches that Jesus was an exact equivalent of Adam, Adam sinned willfully and so did the race in him, according to 1 Tim. 2:14, compared with Rom. 5:12-14. Jesus died to overcome all the effects of Adam’s wilful sin; and Adam’s wilful sin made him and the race in his loins wilful sinners before Divine Justice. Thus the whole race became guilty of Adam’s wilful sin; and God so regards them. Jesus died for this wilful sin of Adam and Adam’s race. Adam’s debt to Divine Justice was a perfect human body, life, right to life, and life-rights; and these are exactly what Jesus gave up in laying down the ransom. Since nobody else but Adam had these four perfect things, these four perfect things that Jesus gave up to be a corresponding price must have been given up for Adam.
Divine Justice requires an exact equivalent for a debt; and the only person apart from Jesus who had a perfect human body, life, life-rights and right to life was Adam. Consequently, in giving the ransom, Adam was the only one for whom the equivalent price could be given directly by Jesus. As a matter of fact, if Adam was not considered as to be redeemed, God could not have asked for a perfect human being to be a corresponding price; for Jesus is not an equivalent of the imperfect race, considered apart from Adam. Thus there would not have been an equivalent price furnished for the fallen race, unless the fallen race is considered a part of Adam, as in his loins, redeemed in Adam; for one perfect human being is not the corresponding price for billions of imperfect human beings considered in themselves alone. It is only as these billions of imperfect human beings are considered as having been perfect in the loins of perfect Adam that God could have required a perfect human being as the corresponding price, in whose loins was a perfect race. This, therefore, proves Adam was the direct subject of the ransom. The rest of the race was only indirectly involved in the ransom, because they were in Adam’s loins, and for them Jesus gave an unborn perfect race in His loins.
In Heb. 2:7, 9 Adam and Jesus are presented as the only two men crowned with glory and honor, i.e., perfect in the image and likeness of God; and thus Jesus is shown to be an exact equivalent of Adam; and he thus gave Himself to “taste death for every man.” Adam was a member of the human race, and thus was included in Jesus’ ransom, for 1 Tim. 2:5, 6 tells us that Jesus died for “all,” hence for every member of the human race. According to Heb. 2:7-9, Adam was the only one crowned with glory and honor for whom Jesus as another crowned with glory and honor could directly die. It will be noticed that v. 8 shows us that the rest of the human race are not crowned with glory and honor, which, therefore, means that Jesus was an equivalent of Adam and, therefore, ransomed Adam and the race as it was in Adam’s loins. The two passages above explained directly involve the ransom as centered in Adam; and it is on the basis of Jesus’ having provided the ransom for Adam that Paul gives us the contrast between Adam’s effects on the race and Jesus’ effects on the race, in 1 Cor. 15:21, 22, and in Rom. 5:15-19.
Jesus’ ability to undo the consequences of Adam’s sin for the world, as these two passages show, is based on the fact that He before Divine Justice makes good for Adam’s wilful sin and the race’s participation in it while in Adam’s loins. Therefore, the ransom must involve Adam. If it did not, there would be no possibility of removing the effects of his sin before Divine Justice, as these effects involve the race. It should, therefore, be repeated, that Jesus’ sacrifice atones for Adam’s wilful sin and the share the race had in it; as it also atones for all of the effects that come from that wilful sin upon Adam and Adam’s race, the weaknesses and ignorance resulting therefrom.
It is, therefore, a mere sophism to say that our Lord’s death is only for the cancellation of sins of weakness and ignorance. It is true it does effect the cancellation of our sins of weakness and ignorance; but it also cancels the guilt of Adam’s wilful sin, as that guilt involved him and us; and, therefore, Jesus’ ransom is to undo Adam’s wilfulness and the race’s wilfulness in that sin. If Jesus’ death does not atone for Adam’s wilful sin, because of its wilfulness, then it does not atone for the race’s share in that wilful sin, because of its wilfulness; hence we would not be redeemed from the sentence upon that wilful sin as participants in it by virtue of our being in Adam’s loins when he sinned wilfully; and hence, however much our sins of weakness and ignorance would be atoned for by Jesus’ death, we would have no deliverance from the original sentence upon Adam and his race for his wilful sin. Hence the pertinent error makes salvation impossible. To deny that Jesus ransoms Adam is to directly deny the most fundamental part of the ransom—it’s being the corresponding price for Adam. ’51-22; ’66-39; ’86-66
Divine Justice requires an exact equivalent for a debt; and the only person apart from Jesus who had a perfect human body, life, life-rights and right to life was Adam. Consequently, in giving the ransom, Adam was the only one for whom the equivalent price could be given directly by Jesus. As a matter of fact, if Adam was not considered as to be redeemed, God could not have asked for a perfect human being to be a corresponding price; for Jesus is not an equivalent of the imperfect race, considered apart from Adam. Thus there would not have been an equivalent price furnished for the fallen race, unless the fallen race is considered a part of Adam, as in his loins, redeemed in Adam; for one perfect human being is not the corresponding price for billions of imperfect human beings considered in themselves alone. It is only as these billions of imperfect human beings are considered as having been perfect in the loins of perfect Adam that God could have required a perfect human being as the corresponding price, in whose loins was a perfect race. This, therefore, proves Adam was the direct subject of the ransom. The rest of the race was only indirectly involved in the ransom, because they were in Adam’s loins, and for them Jesus gave an unborn perfect race in His loins.
In Heb. 2:7, 9 Adam and Jesus are presented as the only two men crowned with glory and honor, i.e., perfect in the image and likeness of God; and thus Jesus is shown to be an exact equivalent of Adam; and he thus gave Himself to “taste death for every man.” Adam was a member of the human race, and thus was included in Jesus’ ransom, for 1 Tim. 2:5, 6 tells us that Jesus died for “all,” hence for every member of the human race. According to Heb. 2:7-9, Adam was the only one crowned with glory and honor for whom Jesus as another crowned with glory and honor could directly die. It will be noticed that v. 8 shows us that the rest of the human race are not crowned with glory and honor, which, therefore, means that Jesus was an equivalent of Adam and, therefore, ransomed Adam and the race as it was in Adam’s loins. The two passages above explained directly involve the ransom as centered in Adam; and it is on the basis of Jesus’ having provided the ransom for Adam that Paul gives us the contrast between Adam’s effects on the race and Jesus’ effects on the race, in 1 Cor. 15:21, 22, and in Rom. 5:15-19.
Jesus’ ability to undo the consequences of Adam’s sin for the world, as these two passages show, is based on the fact that He before Divine Justice makes good for Adam’s wilful sin and the race’s participation in it while in Adam’s loins. Therefore, the ransom must involve Adam. If it did not, there would be no possibility of removing the effects of his sin before Divine Justice, as these effects involve the race. It should, therefore, be repeated, that Jesus’ sacrifice atones for Adam’s wilful sin and the share the race had in it; as it also atones for all of the effects that come from that wilful sin upon Adam and Adam’s race, the weaknesses and ignorance resulting therefrom.
It is, therefore, a mere sophism to say that our Lord’s death is only for the cancellation of sins of weakness and ignorance. It is true it does effect the cancellation of our sins of weakness and ignorance; but it also cancels the guilt of Adam’s wilful sin, as that guilt involved him and us; and, therefore, Jesus’ ransom is to undo Adam’s wilfulness and the race’s wilfulness in that sin. If Jesus’ death does not atone for Adam’s wilful sin, because of its wilfulness, then it does not atone for the race’s share in that wilful sin, because of its wilfulness; hence we would not be redeemed from the sentence upon that wilful sin as participants in it by virtue of our being in Adam’s loins when he sinned wilfully; and hence, however much our sins of weakness and ignorance would be atoned for by Jesus’ death, we would have no deliverance from the original sentence upon Adam and his race for his wilful sin. Hence the pertinent error makes salvation impossible. To deny that Jesus ransoms Adam is to directly deny the most fundamental part of the ransom—it’s being the corresponding price for Adam. ’51-22; ’66-39; ’86-66
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