4.8 The Serpent's Deception and the Hope of Adam's Salvation: Haer. 3.23.1–8
Reading Genesis From Creation To Incarnation 4.8
The Serpent's Deception and the Hope of Adam's Salvation:
Haer. 3.23.1–8 At this point in his work, Irenaeus has built the structure of his theology of recapitulation through a series of chiasms.89 Beginning in Haer. 3.18.2–3.18.7 he outlines the necessity of the incarnation against the Valentinians. Then, in Haer. 3.19.1–21.9 he argues for the complete divinity and humanity of Christ against the Ebionites. These two chiasms build up to the final chiasm in Haer. 3: Haer. 3.23.1–8.90 The recognition that the incarnation was necessary
(Haer. 3.18.2–3.18.7) coupled with the conviction that Christ was both fully human and divine (Haer. 3.19.1-Haer. 3.21.9) results in the logical conclusion that humanity, which is recapitulated in the person of Christ, finally participates in salvation, thereby overturning the effects of Adam's disobedience
(Haer. 3.23.1–8). Moreover, while Haer. 3.22.1–4 concerns the Pauline analogy between Adam as the formation from the dust and Christ's virgin birth, Haer.
3.23.1–8 is oriented around the contrary nature of Adam's disobedience and Christ's obedience. The chiasm in Haer. 3.23.1–8 is the natural theological and structural climax of Irenaeus' theology of recapitulation and polemical argument in Haer. 3.
The centerpiece of the chiasm is Adam's contrition before God in relation to Cain's insolence, which becomes a convenient paradigm for Irenaeus' distinction between the soteriological standing of the faithful and his opponents.
Alluding to this section in particular, Steenberg suggests that if recapitulation is understood as a "coherent doctrine," it was necessary that the Word of God, the image after whom Adam was formed, become physical.91 However, in Irenaeus' doctrine of recapitulation it was also necessary, as this chiasm demonstrates, that the work of Christ overturn the effects of Adam's disobedience and destroy sin, death, and the devil. From beginning to end, this chiasm is a cleverly constructed tapestry of texts that reveals the real sophistication of Irenaeus' intertextuality. He applies several different reading strategies including various typological relationships, illustrative application, and verbal associations.
89 A eariler version of this section was published separately as Stephen O. Presley, "The Lost
Sheep who is Found: Irenaeus' Intertextual Reading of Genesis 3 in Adversus Haereses
3.23.1–8," StuPat 51 (2011): 47–59.
90 Donovan identifies the previous two chiasms (Haer. 3.18.2–3.18.7 and Haer. 3.19.1–21.9), but not the one located here in Haer. 3.23.1–8. Donovan, One Right Reading?, 83–5.
91 Steenberg, Irenaeus, 136.
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4.8.1
Gen 1–3 in the Chiasm of Haer. 3.23.1–8 Turning to the chiasm itself, Haer. 3.23.1–8 contains a web of textual allusions oriented by the events of Gen 3 and, in particular, the disobedience of Adam and Eve in Gen 3:5. Although Irenaeus is clearly interpreting the whole narrative of Gen 3, he does not cite every text and his reading intentionally alters the flow of the original. He also links a variety of other scripture references with his reading of Gen 3 as he reinterprets these passages in light of his theological polemic. Below is an overview of the main themes in each segment of the chiasm, along with the scriptural allusions present in each paragraph:
A. Haer. 3.23.1: The Serpent's deception and the hope of Adam's salvation (Gen 1:26, Gen 3:5, Matt 12:29, Luke 15:4–7,92 Luke 19:10, Ac 1:7,
1 Cor 15:47, Eph 1:5, 9, 2 Tim 1:10)
B. Haer. 3.23.2: Adam requires salvation (Gen 1:26; Matt 12:29)93
C. Haer. 3.23.3: God curses Adam, Eve, and the Serpent (Gen 3:14, Gen 3:16, Gen 3:17–19, Matt 25:41)
D. Haer. 3.23.4: Cain's insolence (Gen 4:7–8, Gen 4:9, Gen 4:11, Matt 23:35)
D′. Haer. 3.23.5: Adam's humility (Gen 3:8, Gen 3:7, Gen 3:10, Gen 3:21, Gen 3:13, Prov 1:7)94
C′. Haer. 3.23.6: God's compassion in Adam's expulsion:
Gen 3:23–24, Rom 6:2, 10)
B′. Haer. 3.23.7: The protoevangelium fulfilled in Christ (Gen 3:15, Psalm 90(91):13, Luke 10:19, Rom 5:12, 17, 1 Cor 15:26, 1 Cor
15:54–55, Gal 3:16, Gal 3:19, Rev 20:2/12:9) A′. Haer. 3.23.8: Tatian and the continuation of the Serpent's deception
(Gen 3:5, Luke 15:4–7, 1 Cor 15:22, Rom 5:20) Every paragraph contains allusions to Gen 3 (or Gen 4 in the case of Haer.
3.23.4) and, although certain texts are rearranged in an unconventional manner, there is an obvious appreciation for the general chronological structure of the events alongside a Christological and typological reinterpretation of the whole narrative of Adam and Eve's disobedience and expulsion from paradise.
Having established the Christological basis for recapitulation in the previous section (Haer. 3.19.1-Haer. 3.22.4) the arrangement takes on a more anthropological turn. He begins with deception of the serpent (Gen 3:5), followed by a 92 Cf. Matt 18:12–14.
93 Cf. Luke 11:21–22.
94 Cf. Prov 9:10 and Psalm 110(111):10.
Reading Genesis From Creation To Incarnation discussion of the need for salvation for the one created in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26). Then he discusses the curses (Gen 3:14,16–19), Cain's response (Gen 4:7–11), Adam's response (Gen 3:7–13,21), the preparation for salvation in the expulsion (Gen 3:23–24), the prophesy of salvation in the protoevangelium (Gen 3:15), and the ongoing deception of the serpent in the form of Tatian and his disciples (Gen 3:5).
Summarizing the relationship between the corresponding sections, parallel allusions to Gen 3:5 in A and A′, frame the chiasm as a whole. Not only does this passage reflect Satan's deception in paradise, but also the teaching of Tatian, a contemporary to Irenaeus that was a disciple of Justin until his death.
Afterwards Tatian is said to have defected from the church and adopted elements of the Gnostic myth. The sections of B and B′ describe the means of salvation for the one created in the image and likeness of God in Gen 1:26, which is predicted in the protoevangelium of Gen 3:15 cited in B′. This structural connection between B and B′ theologically unites the passages of Gen 1:26 and Gen 3:15 in Irenaeus' concept of salvation and ultimate triumph over the activity of Satan. Adam received the prophecy of salvation in Gen 3:15, so although the one created in the image and likeness of God is now destined to death, he has the promise that he will be vivified once again when the Son of God destroys death and restores the imago Dei. The sections of C and C′ concern the cursing of Adam, Eve, and the serpent in Gen 3:14, Gen 3:16, and Gen 3:17–19 and Adam and Eve's expulsion from paradise in Gen 3:23–24. Irenaeus notes that the curse was not against Adam personally but against the ground. Instead the fullness of the curse fell upon the serpent.95 This is why Irenaeus comments on the curses in reverse order. He begins with Adam in Gen 3:17–19, then Eve, and then the serpent in Gen 3:14. He also believes that God acted compassionately when he drove Adam out of paradise so that he might receive salvation.
The centerpiece of the chiasm is the comparison of Cain and Adam in D and D′, which casts the murderous actions of Cain in Gen 4:7–8, Gen 4:9, and Gen
4:11 as the inversion of Adam's humbling actions in Gen 3:8, Gen 3:7, Gen 3:10, Gen 3:21, and Gen 3:13. This section reflects the focal point of Irenaeus' argument and his reading of Gen 3:5. Irenaeus implores the faithful to withstand the deceptions of the heretics, who are obstinate like Cain, and instead choose to humble themselves before God as Adam and Eve in paradise. In doing so, the faithful will find salvation from Christ who overcomes the power of the serpent. This imagery of conquering the serpent in the opening and concluding paragraphs of the chiasm utilizes the imagery of lost sheep in Luke 15:47 alongside Gen 3:5 to illustrate how the work of Christ overturns the deception of the 95 Cf. Epid 16.
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serpent and restores the lost humanity back to God. This summary, however, only scratches the surface of the more subtle nuances of Irenaeus' intertextual reading of Gen 3. Below we provide a closer evaluation of each individual section and the textual and theological interrelationships he fashions throughout
Haer. 3.23.1–8.
4.8.2
The Serpent's Deception and the Hope of Adam's Salvation (A):
Haer. 3.23.1 (Gen 1:26, Gen 3:5) Irenaeus begins with the assertion that in order for humankind to have salvation, God must redeem Adam, who was the original creation from the dust.
His argument, therefore, demonstrates a theological clustering of texts that are bound by common vocabulary and the imagery of Christ's restoration and recapitulation of Adam's disobedience.96 The bookends of the chiasm (A and A′) allude to the activity of the serpent that deceived Adam and Eve in paradise (Gen 3:5). The Bishop of Lyons reminds the reader that this one who was deceived is the same one who was created in the image and likeness of God
(Gen 1:26), but through the tantalizing propositions of serpent, Adam became a "vessel in his [Satan's] possession" (enim possessionis eius vas, cf. Matt 12:29).
The humanity lost in Adam is, for Irenaeus, the lost sheep of Luke 15:4–7.
Responding to Adam's predicament, the Lord has come to seek out and save lost humanity (Luke 19:10). He separates out the two verbs of Luke 19:10 (requirentem, ἀναζητο̄υντα; saluare, σω̄σαι) and replaces the imagery of "that which was lost" (τὸ ἀπολωλός) with the language of God's "handiwork" (plasma) that is fashioned in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26). However, this soteriological recovery was not the work of the Lord alone. The power (Acts 1:7) and will (Eph 1:5, 9) of God the Father so precisely arranged the divine economy to ensure the Word of God would successfully reverse the effects of Adam's disobedience. Irenaeus even draws the logical conclusion that if humankind, who had been created by God to live, were not restored to life then Satan would have prevailed over the will of God. Like the imagery of the lost sheep, the strong man is Satan who has captured the "vessel" (uasa) of humankind and subjected them to the power of death (Matt 12:29). There is no question that God was patient in the recovery of Adam, but recapitulation of Adam was fully realized when at last the "second man" (secundum hominem, 1 Cor 15:47) bound up the strong man who had ensnared Adam and spoiled his goods (Matt 12:29).
He even parallels the spoiling of goods with the "emptying of death" (euacuauit mortem, κατήργήσε τὸν θάνατον) in 2 Tim 1:10. Although the first Adam (1Cor
15:47) became a vessel in the possession of Satan when the serpent deceived 96 Haer. 3.19.3 also combines Gen 2:7, Luke 15:4, and Eph 4:9 to draw a similar conclusion.
Reading Genesis From Creation To Incarnation the first couple under the pretext of becoming gods (Gen 3:5), the second
Adam bound up Satan and restored the humankind to life.
4.8.3
Adam Requires Salvation (B): Haer. 3.23.2 (Gen 1:26) Given that Adam is the first-formed human person created in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26), by logical extension all humanity derives its form and substance from Adam's formation. Although he does not name Tatian in this context, his polemic against him is evident. Since Adam is God's original creation, it is only fitting and just that the extant of the Lord's salvific work, contra Tatian, should extend all the way back to the beginning. Irenaeus rejects the notion that some of Adam's progeny would find salvation, but not Adam himself. As an illustration he uses the example of a subjugating, hostile force, borrowing from Matt 12:29. It would be simply unjust, Irenaeus reasons, if the liberators freed only the children from captivity and not their fathers who were first enslaved. In the same way God, who is neither powerless nor unjust, would not release the children of Adam and not Adam himself.97 Therefore,
Adam and all his posterity require salvation.
4.8.4
God Curses Adam, Eve and the Serpent (C): Haer. 3.23.3
(Gen 2:7, Gen 3:5, Gen 3:14, Gen 3:16, Gen 3:17–19) The third section of the chiasm concerns the cursing of Adam, Eve, and the serpent. Even though Adam transgressed the commands of God (Gen 3:5),
Irenaeus points out that technically God did not curse Adam personally (Gen 3:17–19), but the earth that God had used to form Adam (Gen 2:7). For the reason, Adam must work the ground and ultimately return to the substance from which he was formed (Gen 3:19). Implicit in this allusion to Adam's curse is the penalty of death for Adam's disobedience against God's command in Gen 2:16–17. He also mentions Eve in passing who receives punishment for her disobedience (Gen 3:16). However, his primary purpose is to convey that Satan will receive the full measure of God's retribution when he is cast into the eternal fire (Matt 25:41). By reversing the literary pattern of the curses, he accentuates that the fullness of the curse fell upon the serpent. In addition, the common language of "accursed" (κατηραμενοι) links Gen 3:14 and Matt 25:41.98
Alluding to this intertextual relationship, Irenaeus even concludes the curse of Gen 3:14 indicates the eternal fire was not originally prepared for Adam, but for the one who led him astray and those who follow him.99
97 Haer. 3.23.2.
98 Haer. 3.23.3.
99 Haer. 3.23.3.
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4.8.5
Cain's Insolence (D): Haer. 3.23.4 (Gen 3:1–5, Gen 4:7–8, Gen 4:9, Gen 4:11) The centerpiece of the chiasm (D and D′) is the typological contrast of the murderous actions of Cain in Gen 4:7–9 and Gen 4:11, with the humbling actions of Adam in Gen 3:7–8, Gen 3:10, Gen 3:21, and Gen 3:13. Satan's condemnation in the conclusion of Haer. 3.23.3 is liked with the discussion of Cain who, according to Irenaeus, did not make "an equitable division" (recte diuisisset) of his sacrifice, but instead was controlled by envy and malice believing "he could domineer over him" (posse dominari eius). Irenaeus links Cain's desire to "domineer" (dominari) over his brother Abel with the serpent deception in paradise (Gen 3:1–5). The actions of Cain are a manifestation of his state of mind that escalates into his contemptuous response to God, saying,
"am I my brother's keeper?" (numquid custos fratris mei sum ego?, Gen 4:9). His retort is both "insolent" (audaciter) and "irreverent" (irreuerenter) and exposes the height of Cain's arrogance. He actually believes, Irenaeus infers, that he could "refute" ( frustrari) the God who created all things. He views the act of insolence toward God an even greater sin than the murder of Abel, because it manifests Cain's arrogant state of mind. Therefore, Irenaeus envisions Cain as a type of the serpent whose actions manifest the motivations of the serpent.100
4.8.6
Adam's Humility (D′): Haer. 3.23.5 (Gen 3:7–8, Gen 3:9–11, Gen 3:21) Whereas Cain was murderous and insolent, Adam's actions were "in every way contrary" (omnia in contrarium). Adam, Irenaeus comments, was seized by fear in Gen 3:7–8 and felt unworthy to appear before God in the midst of his disobedience. While Cain (and the serpent) believed he could challenge God, Adam was overcome with the fear of God (Prov 1:7). He concealed himself in shame and refused to speak with God (Gen 3:8). Moreover, while Cain was obstinate,
Adam showed himself repentant when he girded himself with the fig leave in Gen 3:7. Irenaeus suggests that Adam specifically chose this leaf because the irritation of the plant reflects the gravity of his offense.101 Kugel and Greer suggest that Irenaeus reads Adam's shame as a "necessary stage in the human education and growth."102 Adam loses his "child-like" state and cultivates a "lustful
100 In a general sense, this parallelism points to the centrality of martyrdom in Irenaeus' thought and his emphasis on the martyr as the perfected Christian. See: Real Tremblay,
"Le martyre selon saint Irénée de Lyon," StudMor 16 (1978): 167–189, 177; Behr, Asceticism,
78–9.
101 Haer. 3.23.5.
102 Kugel and Greer, Early Biblical Interpretation, 167–68.
Reading Genesis From Creation To Incarnation propensity of the flesh."103 However, the reference to Prov 1:7 and the act of covering themselves with fig leaves, as Behr suggests, is a self-imposed penitential act whereby Adam denied himself God's gift of growth and increase.
Steenberg goes so far as to characterize the nature of the post-transgression economy as oriented toward repentance.104 The comparison with Cain and the broader chiastic framework enhances Steenberg's thesis by linking the opposing actions of Cain and Adam to behaviors of the heretics. Irenaeus reads
Adam's contrition in relationship to the rebellion of Cain (and the serpent's).
Whereas God curses Cain and the serpent, according to Irenaeus, God responds to Adam's humility with mercy by removing the fig leaves and covering him with "garments of skins" (tunicas pellicias, Gen 3:21).105 The Valentinians, as Irenaeus has shown, use this text to illustrate the final stage of human formation as the sensible element of the human form.106 Behr argues that the garments of skin simply refer to the life of Adam and Eve in apostasy, so for Irenaeus there is no special allegorical meaning in the garments.107
Irenaeus also avoids any extended reflection upon this passage and does not mention it elsewhere. Thus, Irenaeus responds the Valentinian interpretation of this passage by merely reading the text within the narratival context of Adam's disobedience.108 Irenaeus also points out that though God sought after and interrogated Adam and Eve (Gen 3:9–11), there was no need to interrogate the serpent because God already knew he was the primary instigator of the ordeal.109 God detested the serpent for his actions and, for this reason, the full retribution of God fell upon him. On the other hand, God showed a propensity for compassion toward Adam.110
4.8.7
God's Compassion in Adam's Expulsion (C′): Haer. 3.23.6
(Gen 2:9, Gen 3:19, Gen 3:23–24) In Haer. 3.23.6, Irenaeus continues his discussion of God's mercy upon Adam and characterizes his expulsion from paradise in Gen 3:23–24 and his dissolution of the flesh in Gen 3:19 as an act of compassion. He rejects the Gnostic suggestion that this expulsion was related to the knowledge Adam gained from 103 Haer. 3.23.5. Behr, Asceticism, 119.
104 Steenberg, Irenaeus, 180.
105 Haer. 3.23.5.
106 Haer. 1.5.5.
107 Behr, Asceticism, 119.
108 Haer. 1.5.5. Cf. Haer. 1.18.2.
109 Haer. 3.23.5.
110 Haer. 3.23.5.
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eating of the tree. The tree of life, not the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil, garners Irenaeus attention. God removed him from the tree of life because
God desired that humankind not remain forever in a state of sin. He links the "tree of life" (lignum uitae, Gen 2:9) and the one who "lives to God" (uiuere
Deo, Rom 6:10) to argue that to be in the presence of the tree of life is to have life. God removes the first couple from the tree of life and erects a boundary to sin in death, because sin is destroyed in death when the flesh dissolves back into the earth (Gen 3:19) and sin ceases (Rom 6:7).111 Behr notes here the "pedagogical aspect" of death in Irenaeus' thought that casts Adam's subjection to death as an act of mercy.112 While the positive evaluation of death is found in other patristic writers, the pedagogical aspect of death is peculiar to Irenaeus.
In the framework of the chiasm, even though God curses the first couple in Gen 3:14–16 and they are expelled from paradise and subject to death, all of these acts mercifully prepare Adam and Eve to receive life once again.
4.8.8
The Protoevangelium Fulfilled in Christ (B′): Haer. 3.23.7 (Gen 3:15) Before God mercifully expelled Adam and Eve from paradise, God supplied them with the prophecy of salvation in Gen 3:15. The description of enmity between the serpent and the seed characterizes the nature of the postlapsarian economy. The opening lines of Haer. 3.23.7 convey intertextual relationships between Gen 3:15, Luke 10:19, and Gal 3:16,19 united by the language of "serpent," (serpentem) "enemy," (inimici) "seed," (semen) and the verb "tread upon" (calcare).113 Irenaeus' allusion to Gen 3:15a is a simplified version of the initial two parallel statements in the Septuagint, and he converts the future tense "will put" (θήσω) into a perfect tense "has put" (posuit).114 For Irenaeus, the prophecy of Gen 3:15 has been fulfilled, in part, though the first advent of Christ. The parallel clauses of Gen 3:15b: "He will bruise your head and you will strike his heel" (LXX: αὐτος σὺ τηρἠσει κεφαλὴν, καὶ σὺ τηρήσεις αύτου πτέρναν) in Irenaeus' reading are infused with the Christological imagery of Luke 10:19 and Gal 3:16,19. Referring to Christ, he converts the future tense of "he/you will bruise" (τηρἠσει, τηρήσεις) in Gen 3:15b LXX to the present passive "he is bitten"
(mordetur) and "he has the power to tread upon" (potente calcare). This is the influence of Luke 10:19 that connects the authority of Christ over the power of Satan through the parallel imagery of "serpent" (serpentem) and "enemy"
(inimici). The economic poles of the struggles between the seed and the 111 Haer. 3.23.6. Cf. Theophilus, Ad. Auto 2.26.
112 Behr, Asceticism, 52.
113 Haer. 3.23.7.
114 Haer. 3.23.7.
Reading Genesis From Creation To Incarnation serpent in Gen 3:15 and Luke 10:19 suggests, for Irenaeus, the struggle has persisted throughout salvation history. He speaks of the serpent's activity as "impeding the steps of humankind" (interpediente ingressus hominis) which offers a theological interpretation of "bruising his heel" (τηρήσεις αύτου πτέρναν) in Gen 3:15. The deception of the serpent that began in paradise continues to inhibit the progression of salvation history and aims to make God's creatures disobedient toward their Creator.115
The mutual enmity between the serpent and the seed lasts until the appointed seed comes who has the power to overcome the enemy (Gal 3:16).
This interpretation envisions Gal 3:19 and an implied allusion to Gal 3:16 as the fulfillment of the second clause of Gen 3:15b. For Irenaeus, the seed of Gal
3:19 is, alluding to prophecy of Gen 3:15, "predestined to tread upon his head"
(praedestinatum calcare caput eius) which also links the infinitive ' "to tread upon" (calcare) drawn from Luke 10:19.116 The added allusion to Gen 3:16 also identifies the parallels between prophecy given to Eve and the child who was
"born of Mary" ( fuit partus Mariae).117 Therefore, the way Irenaeus weaves Gen 3:15, Luke 10:19, Gal 3:19, and Gal 3:16, exposes the conflation of texts through his theological hermeneutic. We have seen in Haer. 3.23.2 that Adam, who was created in the image and likeness of God, requires salvation and Irenaeus balances this assertion with the fulfillment of Satan's demise in Gen 3:15.
Finally, the concluding portion of Haer. 3.23.7 presents a string of theological, narratival, and linguistic intertextual connections to confirm the fulfillment of Gen 3:15 in Christ. This series of intertextual allusions includes:
Psalm 90(91):13, Rom 5:12, 17, Rev 12:9/20:2, Luke 10:19–20, 1 Cor 15:26 and 1 Cor
15:54–55. This network of scriptures are textual buttresses for Irenaeus' theological connections between the protoevangelium and the Christ event. First, he depicts sin's activity in anthropomorphic imagery as overpowering and subjecting humankind to death (Rom 5:12,17). In relation to this imagery, he interprets the prophecy of Psalm 90(91):13, "you will tread upon the asp and basilisk" (Super aspidem er basiliscum ambulabis), as the destruction of the sin and death inflicted by the serpent in paradise. He makes this connection explicit when he links the "dragon" (draconem) in Psalm 90(91):13 with the Antichrist, or "dragon that old serpent" (draconem illum serpentem uetustum)
115 A similar concept is expressed in Haer. 3.23.6, where God is said to have compassion
"gradually" (sensim) upon humankind. This impeding the growth must be an echo of the growth and increase of humanity in Gen 1:28.
116 Haer. 3.23.7.
117 Although other passages may be influencing this title the connections to Gal 3:19 and Gen
3:15 support this allusion to Gal 3:16. cf. Matt 1:16, 20; Luke 2:5.
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of Rev 12:9/20:2. Though the fulfillment of Gen 3:15 and Psalm 90(91):13, the Antichrist-dragon-serpent that originally inflicted sin and death upon Adam is finally subject to the "power of humankind" (subiciens potestati hominis) in the person of Christ and "trodden down" (adligans, Luke 10:19). This act of treading upon the serpent's head in Gen 3:15, Psalm 90(91):13, and Luke 10:19 is fully realized in Rev 12:9/20:2, where the serpent of old is put down and cast away.
The implication of Christ's work is that death has been destroyed and humankind has been liberated from the power of the serpent that subdued Adam and Eve in the Garden (1 Cor 15:26, 54–55). The destruction of death in 1 Cor 15:26,
54–55 is the consummative fulfillment of Gen 3:15 and the essential description of the salvation of humankind. For Irenaeus, Adam's "salvation is death's destruction" (enim salus euacuatio est mortis). This section brings resolution to the human need for salvation mentioned in the corresponding section of the chiasm and the exposes the complexities of his intertextual reading of Gen 3.
The whole section is contingent upon Gen 3:15, which according to Irenaeus lays the groundwork for the understanding of the work of Christ and the overcoming of sin, death, and the devil.
4.8.9
Tatian and the Continuation of the Serpent's Deception (A′):
Haer. 3.23.8 (Gen 3:1–6, Gen 3:15) In his closing section, Irenaeus returns again to his polemical argument.
According to Irenaeus, Tatian is promoting the teaching that Adam himself is excluded from salvation. Summarizing Tatian's views, Petersen writes, "The key to Tatian's system is gnosis, 'knowledge' " . . . although Adam had knowledge of God, he—through freewill—rejected it.'118 As a result, Adam chose to reject the knowledge of God and is excluded from salvation, but those who desire to grasp the true knowledge of God may find salvation in Gnosis. Irenaeus responds to this train of thought by arguing that if Adam is not saved then all of Adam's posterity remains in a state of perdition. For Irenaeus, on the other hand, the lost sheep of humanity who had sinned through disobedience are found in the person of Christ (Luke 15:4–7). Irenaeus' response to Tatian is not merely a competing interpretations of Gen 3, but a competing system of interpretation built upon various intertextual connections. Through his intricate web of allusions, Irenaeus demonstrates how the power of God has prevailed over the serpent (Rom 5:20).
The closing lines of Haer. 3.23.8 contain a final allusion to Gen 3:5, which knits together the whole structure of the chiasm (A and A′) and parallels the activity of the serpent with the activity of Tatian and his disciples. Irenaeus
118 Petersen, "Tatian the Assyrian," 151.
Reading Genesis From Creation To Incarnation identifies those who promote the doctrines of Tatian as contemporary manifestations of the serpent's deceptive activity. As the serpent led Adam and Eve astray by means of deception and falsehood, Tatian and his disciples reveal themselves as "patrons of the serpent and of death" (aduocatos se serpentis et mortis ostendunt).119 However, just as the serpent "accomplished nothing"
(nihil profecit) when he persuaded Adam and Eve to sin in Gen 3:5, Tatian and his disciples accomplish nothing in their exclusion of Adam's salvation.120 In this reading, Irenaeus dramatizes the text in a way that reapplies the narrative of Adam's disobedience in Gen 3:1–6 to the struggles of his own community.
Just as Adam and Eve stood beneath the tree in paradise and gave way to the temptations the serpent, so also do the faithful stand before the doctrines of Tatian and must choose to endure the intellectual enticements. For Irenaeus, the true knowledge of God is found in the work of Christ who has fulfilled the prophecy of Gen 3:15 and enabled the salvation of humankind. The faithful should also learn from Adam's mistake and, rather than becoming obstinate like Cain (who also manifests the attitude of the serpent) model Adam's contrition before God.121
4.8.10 Summary of Irenaeus' Reading of Gen 1–3 in Haer. 3.23.1–8 In conclusion, this section is one of the most developed examples of Irenaeus' intertextual reading of Gen 1–3. The chiasm of Haer. 3.23.1–8 centers on his reading of the events in Gen 3 and functions as the climax of Irenaeus' recapitulation argument spanning Haer. 3.18.2–3.22.4. The Incarnation and recapitulation of all things in Christ affects the salvation of humankind and the destruction of sin, death, and the devil. Irenaeus' reading of Gen 3 alters the chronology of the original narrative in order to demonstrate his theological and Christological application of the events. The entire chiasm is framed with the activity of the serpent in the narrative of Gen 3:1–5 and the corresponding teachings in the doctrines of Tatian (A and A′).122 Following Adam's disobedience, both he and his posterity require salvation. This is prophesied in Gen 3:15 and fulfilled in the person of Christ (B and B′).123 Though Adam,
Eve, and the serpent were subject to God's curses, the full measure of his retribution fell upon the serpent and Adam and Eve were expelled from paradise in 119 Haer. 3.28.8.
120 Haer. 3.28.8.
121 Haer. 3.23.4–5.
122 Haer. 3.23.1,8.
123 Haer. 3.23.2, 7.