The first man, the last man

In the New Testament the actions of Adam and Jesus are compared the one against the other. Looking at the details of this pairing can be very enlightening in regard to understanding who Adam was. Here's an example:

'Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.' 1 Corinthians 15 v 45

Before we go any further there's a ground rule for the discussion that follows, and that is:

The sense in which Adam is the first man must be the same as the sense in which Jesus is the last - its all part of the same argument.

Okay, well I must admit I find it hard to say exactly how Jesus is the 'last'. One thing that is obvious is that he is not the 'last' in terms of the line of human history. The testimony of two thousand years of babies born proves that! Likewise it must follow that we cannot use this passage to insist on Adam being the 'first' in the line of human history.

So what does it mean? At the moment my favourite suggestion is that Jesus was the last man in the duration of the reign of sin. (Here I'm picking up ideas from Romans 5). Jesus defeated sin, so after him it was finished.

But for this to be acceptable we still need to check it back against the ground rule. Does the principle still hold true when we apply it to Adam? Well yes it does. It follows neatly that, as Jesus was the last man, so Adam was the first man in the line of the reign of sin.

Finally, as an added bonus, this whole suggestion runs nicely in continuity with the earlier part of the chapter:

'For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.' v 21, 22