The Dispensation of Innocence

The first dispensation begins when God creates mankind and places him in a garden in Eden, Genesis 2:8. Its title comes from the characteristics of the dispensation. Humans are in a state of being innocent, not knowing good (that which is beneficial) or evil (that which causes calamity).

Adam is given instruction by God concerning the standard by which he and those of the household are to live.

And Yahweh Elohim commanded unto Adam saying, “From every tree of the garden eating you will eat, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil do not eat from it because in the day you eat from it dying you will die.”, Genesis 2:17

Failure of the Dispensation

Adam chose to knowingly disobey God by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

And the woman saw that the tree was good to eat and that it was desirable to the eyes, and a tree of delight to make wise, then she took from its fruit and she ate and she gave also to the man with her and he ate, Genesis 3:6

And Adam was not deceived, but the woman was thoroughly deceived having come to be in a transgression, 1 Timothy 2:14

The Result of Failure

• The woman will have to work hard and now will have pain in child birth and her desire will be unto her husband.
• The man will have to work hard to cultivate the earth for food.
• Adam’s nature becomes bent due to his determination to disobey God.
• Adam and Eve die spiritually – they are separated from God in their spirit.
• Adam passes on his likeness and image to his offspring.

Unto the woman He said, “to cause to multiply I will multiply your toil and your conception, in pain you will bear sons and your longing will be unto your husband and he will rule over you”, Genesis 3:16

And to Adam He said, “Because you listened to the voice of your wife and you ate from the tree which I commanded you saying do not to eat from it, the ground is cursed on your account. In toil you will eat all [the] days of your life, Genesis 1:17

And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years and he bore in his likeness, his image and called his name Seth, Genesis 5:3

Spiritual Death – But not as the trespass, thus also is the gracious gift. For since by the trespass of the one [man] the many died, how much more the grace from God and the gift¹ by grace by the one man Jesus Christ abounds unto the many, Romans 5:15

Physical Death – Because of this, just as through one man the sin entered the world and through the sin the death, also thus unto all men the death passed, on the basis that all sinned, Romans 5:12

1. Gift of righteousness