Adam

Adam (4004 - 3074 BC) was the first man, the father of all mankind. He was created on the sixth day of creation from the soil of the ground ("Adamah" in the Hebrew). Created in the "likeness" of God, he was brought to the Garden of Eden which had been prepared for him. There he was shown innumerable plant life and given instruction about one particular tree, in the "midst of the garden" with instructions not to eat of its fruit. Before the day was out, many animals were brought to him for their ritual "naming." This was apparently done to build his young vocabulary as language was introduced into the world. Among the animals, though, no creature had been provided that matched his kind. Awaking from a deep sleep, he was introduced to a female of his species that had been formed from tissue from his own rib cage.

Adam's primary task was to cultivate the garden and thus provide for his mate. He had also been told to have sexual relations with her in order to perpetuate the species. With the woman, Adam would face a test and fail, resulting in expulsion from the garden. After that, life was harder, but over the course of time -- over a very long life -- the race flourished. Adam and his wife, who he named Eve (Khavah) would have at least seven children. Those named in the Bible are three sons: Cain, Abel and Seth.

Generations were figured from the birth of prominent children in the long-lived antediluvian population, so the mentioned generations of that period of time averaged over 150 years. Adam lived into the ninth of ten listed generations in Genesis, dying in the 930th year after creation in the life of Lamech, father of Noah.

Early Life
See main article: Fall of Man.

Like the cherubim, Adam was directly created by God. According to the record, this was in the fall of 4004 BC. His body was formed from the clay which had formed the substance of all other land animals. Awakened by the breath of God, he had an apparent age of a mature male of the human species. Unlike the other animals, his mate had not yet been created.

He was placed in a paradise called Eden that had been prepared for him. There he would find all manner of plants and ample water. He had fruit, berries, nuts and green leafy vegetables of every sort as well as ample sunshine to nourish him. The weather was perfect, so there was no need for clothing. Everything looked good, but he did not have a mate like the other animals.

Before he would meet the woman, he was given a command concerning a particular tree. Out of all the trees available for food, this one was forbidden to him on penalty of death. The day being almost spent, he fell asleep, only to awaken before nightfall to meet the woman he would later name Eve. They were told to mate and have children. The woman found out about the forbidden tree and the two rested on the seventh day of creation (their second day).

The woman apparently got along well with the animals in the garden, for one of them, an animal called a serpent, was able to talk to her without alarming her. What this animal had to say, though, was perplexing. It claimed that the Creator had lied, and that death would not result from eating from the forbidden tree. Falling for this story, and convincing Adam to go along, resulted in a change to them that "opened their eyes" to the fact that their nakedness brought shame.

Disobedience showed a lack of faith in the Creator, and brought death to them and all of the world's animals after that time. The garden, though, was where the tree of life was. This tree would have allowed the death that had begun to be interrupted indefinitely. And so, the couple was expelled, but not without provision of clothing to cover their shame. They had attempted using plant leaves, but animal skins -- the first death in the world -- were provided as a better alternative.

Family
Adam and Eve were married by the very act of their introduction to each other on the sixth day of creation. Having been instructed to mate, their early attempts failed most probably because Eve was not yet ovulating. This came soon after the fall, though, and produced their first son, named Cain. This name, as it came down to his descendants, was literally Qayin, a spear. However, when his mother named him she was thinking of the verb 'qanah," to acquire. However, "Qayin" has endured throughout history. Soon afterwards, the second son was born, named Abel, or Habel, meaning "breath" or "vapor." No reason is given to this name, though it may have been prophetic even as Cain's name was.

One hundred thirty years later, after Cain had killed Abel, Eve gave birth to another son, who she names Seth, meaning "appointed" due to his being a replacement for Abel. Seth's son would be named Enos, meaning "man," as a new line of mankind began. From then on mankind would be divided into two clans, though the two clans would intermarry quite a bit in the coming centuries.

Adam would live to see seven more generations born in his lifetime. The greatest of these that he would meet would be Enoch, a godly prophet would later disappear from the earth into the presence of God. He would also live to see Methuselah, Enoch's son.

Death and Legacy
At the time of his death Adam was the oldest man ever to have been alive. At the chronological age of 930, he had the apparent age of around 960, an age only surpassed by Jered (962) and his grandson Methuselah (969).

From great beginnings, Adam found that trusting the Creator became harder as he faced the hardship of a world outside of the garden. However, with fiery swords guarding the entrance, he had to make do the best he could. Horticulture and husbandry proved hard work, but food and clothing were well within the capabilities. Worship of the Creator, though, languished until the days of his grandson, Enos. After that, a gradual decline began and an eventual co-mingling with his son Cain's tribes brought a world that was in stark contrast to what he had known before Abel's murder. In his latter years he would hear his descendant Enoch preach that judgement was coming.

A little over a thousand years after his death, God would covenant with a Semite named Abram to assure a godly line to bring a redeemer to mankind -- Jesus of Nazareth -- in fulfillment to the promise made through the curse on the serpent at the fall. That line would be narrowed to a royal family whose first progenitor was David of the tribe of Judah.

About 3000 years after his death, the apostle Paul would refer to Adam as the representative head of the human race - the first man - in contrast with the representative head of a new race of spiritual children of the "last Adam" - Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ (Messiah). Paul's point was that because Adam sinned, everyone after him would die. On the other hand, with Jesus as the representative, those "born again" would live.