Fall, The

The original disobedience of Adam and Eve and the results of this disobedience, as depicted in Gen. 3. According to the story found there, the serpent deceived the woman into eating the fruit of the forbidden tree, that is, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and she, in turn, gave the fruit to the man. Thus, human sin is rooted in the desire to “be like God,” to usurp God’s rightful place as Creator, and for humans to have life revolve around themselves and their own desires. Because of the Fall, the positive relationship the humans had with God was broken, and all evil and tragedy in the created order is explained as a result of this rebellion and disobedience. In the NT, Paul alludes to this story of the Fall, setting up a parallel between the “first Adam” and Christ as the “last Adam” (Rom 5:12-21; 1Cor 15:21-22; 1Cor 15:45-49).