Redemptive History and the Fourfold Estate

Excerpt by jhg @ http://www.inlightofthegospel.org

the fourfold estate of man.

Although there is a common misconception that God will return things back to the “pre-fallen” state, the Bible actually teaches that the final state of things (the New Creation) is better than the “pre-fallen” state. In the history of theology, the fourfold estate has been described in this way:

• Innocence—posse peccare aut non peccare (possible to sin or not to sin)

In the beginning, when God created Adam, he placed him in a state where it was possible to sin or not to sin. Some call this the state of “Innocence.” In Reformed circles it is also called the “covenant of works” or the “Adamic administration.”

• Fall—non posse non peccare (not possible not to sin)

Once Adam chose to sin, he brought the human race into the second state: the fall. In this state, it is not possible not to sin. We are born sinners and we actually sin (cf. Romans 3:10-12). On our own without God’s grace, we cannot not sin. This state begins in Genesis 3 and continues through Revelation (or to be more precise, the second coming of Christ).

• Grace—posse peccare aut non peccare (possible not to sin)

Alongside the fall, we can enter into a state of grace. God does not leave Adam and the human race in their sin, but promises them redemption in Genesis 3:15 (which continues through Revelation as well). Grace brings us into a state where it possible not to sin for the first time.

• Glory—non posse peccare (not possible to sin)

The last state is one of glory, which begins with the arrival of the New Heavens and New Earth. In this state, it is no longer possible to sin at all. There will be no more sin and no more death there.

On the chart [see Fourfold Estate], the first estate (The Garden) is completely separated from the others. It will never be known again. The second state (The Fall) crosses over the third state (Grace or Redemption), which brings about the tension of sin and righteousness for believers. The last state, the New Heavens and New Earth, cross over redemption as well due to the work of Christ upon the cross. The cross is the point at which Heaven intrudes into redemption with a note of finality (in contrast to the Temple, which was foreshadowing the work of the cross). This is often called the already/not yet structure of New Testament eschatology.

For a more thorough explanation of the fourfold estate, read Thomas Boston’s Human Nature in Its Fourfold Estate and Philip Graham Ryken’s work Thomas Boston as Preacher of the Fourfold Estate.