We shall begin our first Bible study with the three following verses of Scripture

Romans 5:12—“WHEREFORE, AS BY ONE MAN SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD, AND DEATH BY SIN: AND SO DEATH PASSED UPON ALL MEN, FOR THAT ALL HAVE SINNED.”

I Corinthians 15:47—“THE FIRST MAN IS OF THE EARTH, EARTHY; THE SECOND MAN IS (THE LORD) FROM HEAVEN.”

Romans 5:21—“THAT AS SIN HATH REIGNED UNTO DEATH, EVEN SO MIGHT GRACE REIGN THROUGH RIGHTEOUSNESS UNTO ETERNAL LIFE BY JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.”

The Bible is the Word of the Living God. We offer neither defense nor apology for this statement. Holy men were moved by the Holy Spirit to give us the Holy Scriptures. Even the Holy Scriptures given to Israel before the birth of Jesus Christ will make one wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus. II Timothy 3:15:

“Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He (Christ) expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” Luke 21:27.

Moses was God’s human author chosen to write the first book of the Bible, Genesis, as well as the four books following Genesis. These five books are called the Books of Moses. They are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

Moses was born about 1570 B.C., or about 2430 A.H. (year of man). Moses was 40 years old when he left Egypt the first time. Moses was 80 years old when he went back to Egypt with Aaron to deliver the Children of Israel from Pharaoh and Egypt.

Moses was about 80 years old when Jehovah gave the law to Israel at Mount Sinai. “The law entered that the offense might abound.” Romans 5:20. The offense entered with the disobedience of Adam, the first man, in the Garden of Eden, about 2510 years before the law entered. “Christ appeared once in the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” Hebrews 9:26. “Through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins.” Acts 13:38. Therefore,

By Adam is the entrance of sin

By Moses is the knowledge of sin

By Jesus Christ is the forgiveness of sins.

Moses lived 80 years before the law was given. He led the Children of Israel for 40 years in the wilderness. He died at the age of 120 years. The record of his death is found in Deuteronomy, chapter 34. For some reason the devil contended for the body of Moses. Jude 9. Moses appeared with Christ on the Mount of transfiguration about 31 A.D. Matthew 17:3.

If Moses lived 80 years before “the law was added,” Moses lived in two dispensations. Galatians 3:19. With the law, Judaism or the religion of the Jews was added. Hebrews 9:10. Moses died about 1450 B. C.

John, one of the Twelve, that apostle whom Jesus loved, wrote the last book of the Bible, The Revelation of Jesus Christ. He died about 95 A.D. So we note that the years between the death of the writer of Genesis and the writer of Revelation were 1545.

We are giving herewith the record of the birth and death of eleven men who lived before the flood. We state the year A.H., the year of man. This record is found in the fifth chapter of Genesis. In Genesis 7:6 we learn that Noah was 600 years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. In Genesis 9:28 we learn that he lived 350 years after the flood. We will observe from the record below that he was born in 1056 A.H. Therefore, Noah died in the year 2006 A.H. 350 years after the flood, which occurred in 1656 A.H.; or about 2344 B.C. According to Genesis 11:10 and 11, Shem died in the year 2158 A.H..

We will notice from this record that Lamech, the ninth from Adam, was born 56 years before Adam died. Therefore, there were nine generations living at one time. Also, we learn that Shem was born 93 years before Lamech died.

We may also learn by studying the eleventh chapter of Genesis that Shem lived 502 years after the flood, through eight or ten generations. Shem was still alive when God made His covenant with Abraham.

As Noah lived 600 years before the flood and 350 years after the flood surely they could have taught their posterity the history of God’s dealings with the human race from the creation of the first man to the flood.

Therefore, apart from inspiration or revelation, Moses could have had sufficient data and reliable information to write the Bible record covering the 2550 years before his death.

The Book of Genesis is the book of beginnings. The first statement in book that reads—“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” With this statement we should read Hebrews 11:3 which we quote:

“Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”

In His original creation of the heavens and the earth God created out of nothing.

There are five different Hebrew words translated “God”. The word used in the first verse of the Bible is Elohim. It is the plural of Eloah. We quote John 1:1 and 1:10:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

“He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not.”

We also quote Genesis 1:26 and 27:

“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.”

In the light of these four verses we may be sure that Christ is included in the Elohim. We would call your attention also to Colossians 1:15 to 17. There we learn that Christ is before all things and that by Him all things consist; that by Him and for Him all things were created.

Under our heading we quoted I Corinthians 15:47—“The first man is of the earth, earthy; the second Man is (the Lord) from heaven.”

ADAM AND CHRIST

The Bible is the story of two men, the first Adam and the last Adam. I Corinthians 15:45. According to the record found in the first chapter of the Gospel of John, the Second Man was the Word with God. He declared that He had glory with the Father before the world was—John 17:5. We have shown from the Scriptures that all things were created by Christ and for Christ. Therefore, before He became the Second Man He created the first man.

After the first man sinned God promised to send the Second Man. This promise is recorded in Genesis 3:14 and 15. The Second Man is to be the Redeemer, the Seed of the woman. When the Redeemer came 4000 years after He was promised, the record is that He was a partaker of flesh and blood that He might, through death, destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil—Hebrews 2:14.

So it is interesting to note that 4000 years after the Second Man created the first man, He became the Seed of the woman, Mary the virgin, who descended from the first man Adam. Christ, in addition to His Divine nature took upon Himself a human nature that man, in addition to his human nature, might receive a divine nature—II Peter 1:3.

We read in II Corinthians 5:17:

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, there is a new creation.”

According to Galatians 6:15, this is God’s imperative. In Ephesians 2:10 we learn that the redeemed man is created in Christ Jesus. In Ephesians 4:24 and Colossians 3:10 we learn that the new man in the believer is created in righteousness and true holiness, after the image of Him that created him.

In closing this lesson we ask you to read Romans 5:12 to 20 and learn that unrighteousness and death are reigning in the world because of the disobedience of the first man; and that righteousness and life have been made available for unrighteous men who are dead in trespasses and sins by the obedience of the Second Man.

Because Adam partook of the fruit of the tree, Christ had to taste death on the tree.

Because Adam hid from God behind the tree, Christ had to be hidden from God on the tree.

Because Adam was driven from the Garden of Eden, Christ had to go in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Because Adam was disobedient unto death, Christ had to become obedient unto death.

Because Adam brought the curse; Christ bore the curse.

Because Adam brought the thorns, Christ wore the thorns.

Paradise was lost by Adam. It will be restored by Christ.

For more articles by Pastor J. C. O'Hair, visit the J. C. O'Hair Online Library.