Freeman says, “Somewhere in history, a story was started that when Adam took the first bite of the ‘apple’ and tried to swallow it, the piece of forbidden fruit stuck in his throat because he felt so guilty. So ever since then the slight projection at the front of the throat formed by the largest cartilage of the larynx, which is usually more prominent in men than in women, has been called the ‘Adam’s apple.’”[1] According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, “The etrog is also called ‘Adam’s apple,’ or ‘paradise apple.’ …the etrog is suggested as having been the forbidden fruit of which Adam and Eve ate in the Garden of Eden.”[2]
Well, Genesis 3:6 concludes with the solemn words, “…and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.” Mark Twain said, “Adam was human; he didn’t want the apple for the apple’s sake; he wanted it because it was forbidden.” Well, regardless of what Adam wanted, he ate of the fruit and as Smith observes, “The sin did not stick in his throat; it went deeper down into the very springs of his being. The heart is deceitful. It is still the belief of many that a man may have a good heart and a bad life.” But it feels that the character of the heart will determine the character of one’s life. It won’t determine the length of his life, his status in this world, or the size of his bank account but in God’s eyes it is the true measure of success. Jeremiah 17:9 teaches that “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick…” Proverbs 4:23 says “Out of the heart are the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23).[3] This is why Jeremiah and Ezekiel promise those who come to faith in Jesus, the New Covenant will get a “new heart.”
Paul seems to suggest that Adam’s sin was somewhat different from Eve’s sin. He writes in 1 Timothy 2:13-14, “For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.” Many commentators seem to use this passage to reduce women to something less than men. This is especially true of older commentators. But, I think Shedd is more accurate. He says, “This implies that Adam did not believe the tempter’s assertion that a good would follow the eating of the forbidden fruit and that death would not be the consequence. According to St. Paul, Adam was seduced by his affection for Eve rather than deceived by the lie of Satan. He fell with his eyes wide open to the fact that if he ate he would die.”[4] Culver takes this understanding and connects it with Christ’s love for the church. He writes, “it has been argued that he ate the fruit out of immense love for her, being unable to think of going on in integrity without her. Many sermons have argued thus and compared Adam’s love for lost Eve with God’s (Christ’s) love for lost humanity even to the point of death in each case.”[5] These sermons have at their heart the phrase in Romans 5:14 which says that “Adam… was a figure of him who was to come.” This was obviously referring to Jesus.
[1] Freeman, James M., and Harold J. Chadwick. 1998. Manners & Customs of the Bible. North Brunswick, NJ: Bridge-Logos Publishers.
[2] Singer, Isidore, ed. 1901–1906. In The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, 12 Volumes, 5:262. New York; London: Funk & Wagnalls.
[3] Smith, James, and Robert Lee. 1971. Handfuls on Purpose for Christian Workers and Bible Students, Series I–XIII. Five-volume edition. Vol. 1. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[4] Shedd, William Greenough Thayer. 2003. Dogmatic Theology. Edited by Alan W. Gomes. 3rd ed. Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Pub.
[5] Culver, Robert Duncan. 2005. Systematic Theology: Biblical and Historical. Ross-shire, UK: Mentor.