Humanity 2.0: The Two Adams
Introduction: The Great Exchange
We come now to a passage that is the very backbone of systematic theology. If you want to understand the gospel, not just as a sentimental feeling in your heart, but as a robust, world-altering, history-defining reality, you must come to grips with Romans 5. What Paul does here is lay out the logic of our ruin and the logic of our redemption. He shows us that humanity is not a loose collection of disconnected individuals, each making their own way to heaven or hell. No, humanity is divided into two families, two nations, two representative heads. You are either in Adam or you are in Christ. There is no third option.
The modern mind, steeped as it is in a radical individualism, finds this doctrine of federal headship offensive. We want to be the captains of our own souls, the masters of our own fate. We want to believe that we are judged based on our own performance, our own choices, our own merits. The problem with this is that if you insist on standing before God as an individual, you will be damned as an individual. The very principle that seems to offer you freedom, your autonomy, is the very principle that will condemn you. For if you are judged on your own record, your own record is one of sin and rebellion.
But the gospel reveals a different economy, a covenantal economy. God deals with humanity through representatives. This is what the word "federal" means; it comes from the Latin word for covenant, foedus. God established a covenant with Adam, and Adam was the federal head of the entire human race. When he sinned, he sinned for all of us. We were in him, covenantally. His disobedience was our disobedience. His fall was our fall. This is the bad news. But you cannot have the good news without it. Because just as we were ruined by the disobedience of one man, we are saved by the obedience of another. Jesus Christ is the second Adam, the last Adam, the federal head of a new humanity. And just as Adam's sin was imputed to us, so Christ's perfect righteousness is imputed to those who are in Him by faith.
This is the great exchange, the central transaction of the gospel. Paul is going to lay out a series of profound contrasts: one man's transgression versus one man's gracious gift; condemnation versus justification; death versus life; sin reigning versus grace reigning. We must pay close attention, because this is the architecture of our salvation.
The Text
Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned, for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the trespass of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. But the gracious gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the gracious gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were appointed sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be appointed righteous. Now the Law came in so that the transgression would increase, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
(Romans 5:12-21 LSB)
The Reign of Death by the First Adam (vv. 12-14)
Paul begins by establishing the universal problem of sin and death, tracing it back to its single source.
"Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned, " (Romans 5:12 LSB)
The logic is simple and devastating. One man, Adam, acted as the gateway. Through his single act of disobedience, two invaders entered the world: sin, and its consequence, death. Sin is the disease; death is the symptom. And this death sentence "spread to all men." Why? "Because all sinned." Now, when did all sin? The Pelagians and their modern individualist descendants want to say that we all die because we all individually sin, following Adam's bad example. But that is not what Paul is arguing. The verb tense indicates that we all sinned in Adam. When Adam reached for the fruit, so did I. When he was banished from the garden, so was I. He was our representative, and his act was our act. This is the doctrine of original sin. We are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. We are born with a corrupt nature, "bad to the bone before we have any bones."
Paul then anticipates an objection. What about the time between Adam and the giving of the Mosaic Law? If there was no explicit law, how could people be guilty of sin?
"for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the trespass of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come." (Romans 5:13-14 LSB)
Paul's point here is subtle but crucial. He says that sin was certainly in the world before Moses. Cain murdered Abel, the world of Noah was filled with violence, and Sodom was a cesspool of depravity. But, he says, sin is not "imputed" or formally charged to one's account in the absence of a specific law. So how do we know they were still under condemnation? The proof is in the pudding: "Nevertheless death reigned." Death is the evidence. People died. Babies died. They died even though they had not personally violated a specific, revealed command in the way Adam did. Adam was given a direct, positive command: "Do not eat." Those between him and Moses were not. Yet they died. This proves that they were under the condemnation of Adam's original sin. Their death was the proof of their guilt in him.
And then Paul drops the bombshell that sets up the rest of the chapter: Adam "is a type of Him who was to come." Adam was a figure, a pattern, a foreshadowing of Jesus Christ. This is the key. The way Adam relates to humanity in condemnation is the same pattern by which Christ relates to His people in salvation. Adam is a federal head who brings death; Christ is a federal head who brings life.
The Reign of Grace by the Second Adam (vv. 15-17)
Now Paul begins to draw the parallel, but he is careful to show that the gift in Christ is not just a simple reversal, but an overwhelming, super-abundant victory.
"But the gracious gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many." (Romans 5:15 LSB)
The parallel is there, but so is a glorious asymmetry. The gift is not "like" the transgression in its power or scope. Yes, one man's sin brought death to the many. But "much more" did grace abound through the one Man, Jesus Christ. The word "abound" means to overflow, to be present in superabundance. The remedy is far more powerful than the disease. The grace of God in Christ is not a mere patch-up job; it is a tidal wave of life that swallows up the ocean of death.
He continues this "much more" theme in the next verses.
"And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the gracious gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:16-17 LSB)
Here is another point of contrast. Adam's one sin was enough to condemn the entire world. The judgment was swift and total. But the gift in Christ is even more remarkable. It did not just deal with that one original, imputed sin. The gracious gift arose from many transgressions. Christ's work is sufficient to cover not only our guilt in Adam but also all the actual sins we have ever committed in thought, word, and deed. One sin plunged us into ruin; the grace of Christ rescues us from a mountain of ruin.
And look at the outcome. Through Adam, death reigned. Death was the tyrant king. But through Christ, something astonishing happens. Those who receive this "abundance of grace" and the "gift of righteousness" do not just escape death. They "reign in life." We are moved from being the subjects of a tyrant to being kings ourselves. We are co-heirs with Christ, seated with Him in the heavenly places. This is not mere survival; this is enthronement.
The Two Acts and Their Consequences (vv. 18-19)
Paul now summarizes the parallel with stark clarity.
"So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were appointed sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be appointed righteous." (Romans 5:18-19 LSB)
This is the doctrine of imputation in its clearest form. Two acts, two men, two destinies. Adam's one transgression brought condemnation to "all men" who are in him. Christ's one "act of righteousness", His entire life of perfect obedience, culminating in His death on the cross, brought "justification of life" to "all men" who are in Him. The "all men" in the second half of the verse is parallel to the "all men" in the first half. It refers to all of humanity represented by their respective heads. All in Adam are condemned; all in Christ are justified.
Verse 19 makes it even more explicit. Through Adam's disobedience, the "many" were "appointed sinners." This is a legal, forensic declaration. We were constituted as sinners before God because of our union with Adam. In the exact same way, through Christ's obedience, the "many" will be "appointed righteous." This is justification. It is not that we are made inherently righteous in ourselves. It is that we are legally declared righteous. God imputes Christ's perfect obedience to our account. He looks at us and sees the righteousness of His Son. This is the heart of the gospel. We are not saved by our obedience, but by His.
The Role of the Law and the Triumph of Grace (vv. 20-21)
Paul concludes with a final, magnificent flourish, explaining the purpose of the Law and the ultimate reign of grace.
"Now the Law came in so that the transgression would increase, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more," (Romans 5:20 LSB)
This seems counter-intuitive. Why would God introduce the Law if its effect was to make sin increase? The Law acts like a magnifying glass. It did not create sin, but it revealed sin for what it was. It defined the boundaries clearly so that our straying over them would be undeniable. It stirred up our rebellious nature, making our sin more conscious, more deliberate, and therefore more obviously sinful. The Law was given to show us the depth of our disease, to stop our mouths, and to make us utterly dependent on a cure from outside ourselves. It was meant to drive us to despair of our own righteousness so that we would flee to Christ.
And this is where the gospel shines brightest. "Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more." The greater the diagnosis of sin, the more glorious the power of grace. God's grace is not a limited resource that gets used up by our sin. It is an infinite, overflowing fountain. The more sin is revealed, the more grace is displayed in conquering it. God is not afraid of our sin. He is not overwhelmed by it. He uses the revelation of its full horror to showcase the even greater glory of His grace.
The final verse is the grand conclusion of the entire chapter.
"so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 5:21 LSB)
Here we have two rival kingdoms, two competing reigns. The first kingdom is that of Sin. Sin is the king, and its prime minister is Death. It is a brutal, tyrannical reign. But a new kingdom has been established. In this new kingdom, Grace is the king. And Grace does not reign through lawlessness or sentimentality. Grace reigns "through righteousness." This is the righteousness of Christ, imputed to us and then imparted to us. The result of this reign is not death, but "eternal life." And it is all accomplished "through Jesus Christ our Lord."
This is the story of the world. It is the story of two Adams. In the first Adam, we have disobedience, sin, condemnation, and death. In the second Adam, we have obedience, righteousness, justification, and life. You are in one of these two men. You are under one of these two reigns. There is no middle ground, no neutral territory. The question is not whether you will be represented, but who your representative is. Will you stand in the failure of the first Adam, or will you stand in the triumph of the Second?