The one man through whom sin entered the world is not immediately named (reserved till v. 14). The same procedure is followed with the other man to be considered: he is called a man before he is named (v. 15). Except for two nontheological references (Luke 3:38; Jude 14), every mention of Adam in the NT comes from the pen of Paul. In 1 Timothy 2:14 he makes the point that Adam, unlike Eve, was not deceived, but sinned deliberately. In 1 Corinthians 15, as in the Romans passage, he institutes a comparison between the first and the last Adam, but confines the treatment to the issue of death and resurrection, even though sin is dealt with somewhat incidentally (vv. 17, 56), whereas in Romans 5 both sin and death are named immediately and are woven into the texture of the argument throughout. In the earlier letter Paul makes the significant statement "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive" (1Cor 15:22) in line with Romans 5:12. Paul has already referred to the inevitable connection between sin and death in the only previous mention of death in Romans (1:32) exclusive of the death of Christ (5:10). But here in v. 12 he pictures sin and death as entering the world through one man, with the result that death permeated the whole of mankind. It was the opening in the dike that led to the inundation, the poison that entered at one point and penetrated every unit of man's corporate life.
If Paul had stopped with the observation that death came to all men because all sinned, we would be left with the impression that all sinned and deserved death because they followed the example of Adam. But subsequent statements in the passage make it abundantly clear that the connection between Adam's sin and death and what has befallen the race is far closer than that. Paul can say that the many died because of "the trespass of the one man" (v. 15). Clearly the gist of his teaching is that just as mankind has become involved in sin and death through Adam, it has the remedy of righteousness and life only ill Christ.
What, then, is the precise relation of Adam in his fall to those who come after him? Paul does not say, unless he provides the information in the last clause of the verse. NIV uses the word "because," which is certainly the meaning of eph' ho in 2 Corinthians 5:4 and probably also in Philippians 3:12. The Vulgate rendering of the Greek is in quo which could be understood as meaning "in which" (i.e., death) or "in whom" (i.e., Adam). The former does not make sense and the latter is so far removed from the antecedent ("man") as to be dubious, though this was Augustine's conclusion.
Now if the correct translation is "because all sinned," why did not Paul go on and say specifically that all sinned in the first man? That he could have done so seems clear from v. 19: "For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous." Was it the sudden breaking off to follow another line of thought (vv. 13, 14) that prevented the full statement? Or was it his reluctance to gloss over human responsibility, which he had already established in terms of universal sin and guilt (3:23)? Experience demonstrates that despite the inheritance of a sinful nature from Adam, people are convicted of guilt for the sins resulting from it-the sins they themselves commit. Conscience is a factor in human life and the Holy Spirit does convict of sin (John 16:8). Perhaps, then, as some hold, while the emphasis on original sin is primary in the light of the passage as a whole, there is a hint that personal choice and personal sin are not entirely excluded (cf. "many trespasses" in v. 16).
That we could have sinned in Adam may seem strange and unnatural to the mind of Western man. Nevertheless, it is congenial to biblical teaching on the solidarity of mankind. When Adam sinned, the race sinned because the race was in him. To put it boldly, Adam was the race. What he did, his descendants, who were still in him, did also. This principle is utilized in Hebrews 7:9, 10, "One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor."
If one is still troubled by the seeming injustice of being born with a sinful nature because of what the father of the race did and being held accountable for the sins that result from that disability, he should weigh carefully the significance of reconciliation as stated by Paul: "... that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them" (2Cor 5:19). The sins committed, that owe their original impetus to the sin of the first man, are not reckoned against those who have committed them provided they put their trust in Christ crucified and risen. God takes their sins and gives them his righteousness. Would we not agree that this is more than a fair exchange?
Unfortunately, these consequences affect not only ourselve, but our spouses, children, families, friends and society as a whole.
