Why did Adam and Eve sin?

The short answer to why Adam and Eve sinned is found in Ecclesiastes 7:29, “God made people to do what is right. But people have chosen their own way to do things” (EASY). Adam and Eve sinned because they chose their own way to live rather than trusting God. That simple choice, spurred on by the deceiver, led to huge consequences.

The book of Genesis invites us to witness the Creator God forging our world and everything in it, from light (Genesis 1:3) to humans (Genesis 1:26–30). Humans were the apex of His creation, made in His image and called to be caretakers of His world. As the psalmist proclaimed, “The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind” (Psalm 115:16). In addition to caring for the world, we were made to remain in communion with God, trusting His ways and obeying Him. But a communion of love and obedience must involve a choice, which God gave Adam and Eve: “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die’” (Genesis 2:16).

Many have wondered why God placed that tree in the garden, allowed the temptation by the serpent, and permitted the fall of Adam and Eve. While Scripture does not give definite answers, we get clues from God’s revealed attributes. A God who is just, holy, and loving will have a standard, yet He will also give His creation the choice to obey out of love, not compulsion. Furthermore, because God is sovereign and wise, we can reasonably conclude that His complex plan would include considerations of every possible risk, option, and setback, including the rejection of His intelligent creations. Thus, while Adam and Eve’s sin may not have been the only path for humans in God’s blueprint, it did not take God by surprise. Considering God’s plan as complex and multifaceted can help explain how God’s sovereignty can coexist with man’s free will and why Adam was responsible for his sin.

God gave Adam and Eve a choice: would they trust in God’s definition of right and wrong, or would they prefer to set their own definitions? Would they continue in loving dependence on their Creator, or would they declare themselves independent of Him? The devil, who had already chosen the latter option for himself, convinced Adam and Eve to doubt God’s wisdom and seize autonomy (Genesis 3:1–7). Why did they sin? Eve was deceived into taking the fruit, but Adam willfully followed her actions into sin (1 Timothy 2:14).

The consequences followed swiftly. Because of their disobedience, humans became separated from God. The communion was broken (Genesis 3:8). The birthing process became painful, relationships turned to conflict, and the entire creation came under God’s curse (Genesis 3:10–19; cf. Romans 8:20–22). Death entered the world (Romans 5:12).

Even as the first couple sorrowed in the brokenness of their sin, God planted the seeds of redemption. Speaking to the serpent in Genesis 3:15, God said, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Adam and Eve’s sin was grave, but it did not deter God’s plans from coming to fulfillment.