Lesson #12—God’s Covenant with Adam

Shorter Catechism Q & A #12

Q. What special act of providence did God exercise toward man in the estate wherein he was created?

A. When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of perfect obedience; forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon the pain of death.

Memorize Q & A—Exposition

Redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, our eyes are opened by the Spirit that we may know that we are in a covenant relationship with our Creator: “For God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth” (Ps. 74:12); “Salvation” [yeshuah] pointing us to Christ who is our Savior.

What does it mean?

1. The Covenant: “And the Lord commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2:16–17).
   a. What two things are commanded in the covenant with Adam?
   b. What is Adam not to eat and what is the meaning of good and evil?
   c. What will be the result of not obeying the command of God?
2. What is the meaning of death? Look up Romans 5:12–14, 10:5; Luke 10:25–28. [What is the relationship between the Law and sin?]

What is our practice?

How does the keeping of, or the breaking of, the commands of God affect our life in our homes and society?

Quotes for thought and discussion:

“Wherein doth temporal, spiritual, and eternal death consist? 1. Temporal death doth consist in the separation of the soul from the body; this man was liable unto in the day that he did eat of the forbidden fruit, and not before. 2. Spiritual death doth consist in the separation of the soul from God, and the loss of God’s image; this death seized upon man in the moment of his first sin. 3. Eternal death doth consist in the exclusion of man from the comfortable and beatifical presence of God in glory forever, together with the immediate impressions of God’s wrath, effectual most horrible anguish in the soul, and in the extreme tortures in every part of the body, eternally in hell.” (Thomas Vincent)

For God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth: Psalm 74:12

“Here, then, the faithful call to remembrance the proofs of God’s mercy and working, by which he certified, through a continued series of ages, that he was the King and Protector of the people whom he had chosen. By this example we are taught, that as it is not enough to pray with the lips unless we also pray in faith, we ought always to remember the benefits by which God has given a confirmation of his fatherly love towards us, and should regard them as so many testimonies of his electing love.” (John Calvin, Psalms Commentary)

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