Bible Questions and Answers

Is the fall of man recorded in any books of the Bible other than Genesis? For that matter, why is Hell not recorded in the Old Testament?

The fall of man as a result of the disobedience of Adam and Eve is recorded in Genesis 2 and 3.

Genesis 2:17 "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

Genesis 3:6,17 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.... 17 Then to Adam He said, "Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: "Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. 18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. 19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return."

Jesus Christ is a descendent of Adam through his mother Mary. Her genealogy is recorded by Luke in Luke 3:38.

Paul writes to the Ecclesia at Rome:

Romans 5:12-19 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinne…. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. 17 For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) 18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

And to the Ecclesia at Corinth:

1 Corinthians 15:20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming.

And to Timothy:

1 Timothy 2:13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.

Here we are given the information that, unlike Eve, Adam was not deceived by the serpent’s reasoning, but ate knowing that he would be condemned to death. We might reasonably suppose that he had to choose between his wife and God and made the decision to go with her. In doing this he brought sin and death upon himself and his offspring.

God fathered a Son, Jesus Christ, who by his perfect obedience, and the sacrifice of his life to make atonement for our sins, has made possible a way of escape from the sentence of eternal death brought upon mankind by Adam’s disobedience. God assured us of this by raising Jesus from the dead.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

To obtain this salvation we must understand, believe and obey the Gospel preached by Jesus and his apostles.

HELL: Hell does appear in the Old Testament in the King James Version. It is a poor translation of the Hebrew ‘sheol’ which means grave. The same word is translated ‘grave’ 31 times and ‘hell’ 31 times. It is the equivalent of the Greek ’hades’ which is translated ‘grave’ once, and ‘hell’ 10 times in the KJV New Testament.

The equivalence is seen in a quotation:

Psalms 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (sheol); neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

Acts 2:27 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (hades), neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

The other word translated ‘hell’ in the New Testament is ‘gehenna’ which is a place outside Jerusalem where rubbish was burned.

None of the words apply to the pagan belief of ‘hell’ as a place where ‘immortal souls’ are subjected to eternal fiery torments. There is no record of the existence of such a place in the Old Testament.

Souls are not immortal and the punishment for sin is death, not eternal torment. A death in which we corrupt back into the dust from which we are made.

Ezekiel 18:4 Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.

May I suggest that you read: ‘Your Share in God’s Promises (please click on the title)

And Heaven and Hell (please click on the title)

I hope you find this helpful.

God bless,
Glenn