A Naked Bible reader, Bryan Hodge, asked permission to post his thoughts on the Adam issue (it picks up on my previous post about ‘adam with or without the definite article). They are below. I presume that reader comments will be answered by him. Once again, the...
Romans 5:12 Series
Taking Genesis 1-3 at Face Value: Is it Compatible with Recent Genome Research?
[Addendum 7/27/2012: I hope readers will have a look at the comments on this post when they are done reading the post. There are some good, coherent questions asked. I hope readers will see that these questions only *appear* problematic *since* they are asked from the...
The Evolution of Adam: Additional Thoughts
[NOTE / UPDATE: 6/6/2020 – I was recently informed that BioLogos deleted that article mentioned below by Dennis Venema because the science in it was deemed indefensible. For details on that, click here .] A few weeks ago I had offered some thoughts on a review...
Romans 5:12 and Universalism: Applying My Take on Romans 5:12 to the Problem
I’m actually surprised at how brief this one turned out to be! (I’m sure you all are as well). Here’s the passage: 12 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...
A Side Note on “Corporate Solidarity”
Forgot to push the button on this last night. I recently had a good exchange with a Naked Bible reader via email and wanted to share my thoughts on the notion of how “corporate solidarity” (CS) fails to answer my objections to the traditional view of...
Paul, Original Sin, and Rabbinic Theology
I’ve had a request for the two articles on the idea of “original sin” and rabbinic material. Here they are: S. Porter, “The Pauline Concept of Original Sin in Light of the Rabbinic Background,” Tyndale Bulletin 41:1 (1990): 3-30 Kister,...
Adam’s Sin and Old Testament Theology
In my last post about contextualizing the OT in light of the ancient Near Eastern culture of the OT writers, I was reminded again of the striking absence of Adam’s sin in OT theology. Other than Genesis 3 and then Genesis 4-5, where Adam is mentioned with...
A Brief Note on Contextualizing the Bible (Especially OT)
One of the responders accuse me of being extrabiblical in my approach to Romans 5:12. Actually, I’m being explicitly biblical, since I refuse to de-contextualize the Bible in favor of rendering interpretations that are comfortable, or that are European,...
Romans 5:12 and the Fate of the Unborn, Infants, and Other Human Beings Who Cannot Believe From Birth
Thanks for your patience with this thread. I hope you see that what follows is another “theological payoff” to the view I’m articulating. Not only do I think this view of Romans 5:12 simultaneously upholds a real “original sin” in Eden,...
Some Brief Thoughts on the “Sin Nature” and Reader Follow-Up
I decided I’d post a few quick thoughts on these items before the post on what happens to babies and other innocents. I promise, this is the last post on this part of the topic, unless I get an answer to its final sentence. I’m still getting replies that...
Back to Romans 5:12 — Replies to Reader Comments
Here we go again – same format as before. COMM: Spiritual death is a Biblical truth that you have not considered in your rejection of original sin… MSH: First, I haven’t rejected original sin. There was an original sin. That’s plain from the...
Romans 5:12, Part 4
I’ve decided to respond to replies first before plowing ahead with the next installment of Romans 5:12. What follows are comments drawn from replies (COMM) and my response (MSH) or clarification. I’m only sticking to the germane material. That is, a lot of...
More on Romans 5:12 (Part 3)
Well, time to get back to Romans 5:12 and the “imputation” or “transmission” of Adam’s guilt to the human race. If you missed the previous post, I deny that Romans 5:12 teaches that Adam’s guilt was what was transmitted to humanity...
Romans 5:12 – What It Says and What It Doesn’t Say, Part 2
Time to get back to Romans 5:12. My first complaint about the misuse of this passage concerned how creationists (of the literal, 24 hr. day variety) use this verse to argue against the possibility of ANY death before the Fall. This in turn is used to argue against the...
Romans 5:12 – What It Says and What It Doesn’t Say (Part 1)
Okay, I can’t contain myself any longer. Along with the canon posts, which I’ll continue, I have to start in on Romans 5:12. This verse is on my short list of most abused and misunderstood texts in the Bible. I’m going to start with an egregious...