Where Is the Evidence?
Driscoll treats the Fall as an unmitigated disaster that left humanity only guilty and ruined. He insists that real Christianity views the Fall as the origin of inherited guilt and total depravity – an Augustinian doctrine, not a biblical one. And because Latter-day Saints reject that framework, he concludes we must be “non-Christian.”
But let’s replace the burden of proof:
Where does the Bible say Adam and Eve’s choice was outside God’s purposes?
Where do the apostles teach inherited guilt, rather than inherited mortality and the universal need for Christ?
If the Fall was only catastrophe, why do the scriptures themselves celebrate it as the entry point to discernment and redemption?
To say the Fall was not part of God’s design nearly assumes that Lucifer outwitted not only Adam and Eve, but God Himself. Yet scripture teaches the opposite. Christ was prepared as the Lamb “slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). The Atonement was in place before the Fall ever occurred. The Fall did not surprise God; it was part of His plan.
Until these questions are answered, the charge that the Restoration rewrites Genesis, or disqualifies us as “not Christian” has no footing.
What the Hebrew Actually Says
Genesis 2–3 is explicit that the issue is knowledge, not a random prohibition. Would a loving God keep His children forever in ignorance?
‘ēṣ ha-da‘at ṭov wā-rā‘ עֵץ הַדַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע — “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Gen 2:9, 17; 3:5).
yada‘ ידע — “to know.” This idiom denotes moral maturity and discernment (Deut 1:39; Isa 7:15–16).
The key moment comes in Genesis 3:22, where God declares: “Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil.” This is not a curse, but confirmation that humanity had taken a vital step toward divine likeness.
Without knowledge, obedience is instinct. With knowledge, obedience becomes devotion.
The Bible’s Witness
Genesis 3:22 — God affirms humanity’s growth in knowledge.
Romans 5:12–19 — Adam introduced death, Christ overcomes it. The Fall sets the stage for redemption.
1 Corinthians 15:21–22 — “As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” Mortality comes through Adam, resurrection through Christ.
2 Nephi 2:25 (Restoration scripture that clarifies the biblical pattern) — “Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.”
The Bible presents a pair: Adam and Christ. The Fall created the arena of agency; the Atonement provides the power of transformation.
Early Christian Views
Some early Fathers also saw the Fall not only as ruin but as the beginning of growth.
Irenaeus (c. 130–202 AD) — Humanity was created immature, designed to grow into God’s likeness. Christ’s obedience completes what Adam lacked: “He became what we are, that He might bring us to be even what He is Himself.” (Against Heresies V, Preface).
Theophilus of Antioch (late 2nd century) — Adam and Eve had freedom to choose; the Fall was like a father disciplining a child, painful but instructive. He also taught humanity’s destiny was to share divine attributes, even immortality.
These Fathers emphasized growth, freedom, and eventual glorification, not inherited guilt. The Augustinian idea of original sin — guilt imputed to all humanity — arose centuries later in the 4th–5th century, not in the Bible or earliest Christianity.
Witnesses from the Apocrypha
Apocryphal writings, preserved outside the reach of church councils, independently confirm the same themes. Rediscovered in Armenian, Coptic, Greek, and Syriac manuscripts, they align with both the Bible and the Restoration.
The Life of Adam and Eve — Eve is portrayed not only as beguiled but discerning. She partakes of the fruit to gain knowledge and enable posterity. In some versions, she and Adam rejoice that mortality, though harder, is better than ignorance. This parallels Moses 5:11 and 2 Nephi 2:15–18.
Armenian and Coptic traditions — Adam and Eve accept mortality as necessary and even rejoice that the Fall opened the way to redemption, echoing 2 Nephi 2:25.
The Apocalypse of Baruch and the Ascension of Isaiah — Link the Fall, the Tree of Life, and the Redeemer in striking parallels to Nephi’s visions in 1 Nephi 8 and 11, where the Fall and Atonement are inseparably joined.
These texts, untouched by Catholic scribes, testify to Eve’s wisdom, the necessity of the Fall, and the centrality of Christ’s redemption. If the doctrine of the fortunate Fall makes us “non-Christian,” why do independent ancient texts affirm it too?
The Restoration’s Clarity
Modern revelation transforms the shadowy outline of Genesis into a radiant panorama of God’s plan. What the Bible hints, the Restoration proclaims openly: the Fall was not an accident but a foreordained step in humanity’s eternal progression.
Moses 5:10–11 — Adam rejoices that his eyes are opened; Eve declares that without the Fall, they never would have had children, known good from evil, or known the joy of redemption. The first parents rejoice in God’s wisdom and mercy.
2 Nephi 2 — Lehi explains: “Men are free according to the flesh… they are free to choose liberty and eternal life.” The Fall created agency; the Atonement made exaltation possible.
The Fall and the Atonement are not rivals but twin pillars of the plan of salvation. Without the Fall, there is no family, no agency, no joy. Without Christ, there is no redemption from death or sin. Together, they reveal a God who trusted His children enough to let them grow, and a Savior who lifts them when they fall.
Replacing the Burden of Proof
Questions for Mr. Driscoll:
Where does the Bible teach inherited guilt rather than inherited mortality?
Why does Genesis 3:22 record God saying, “Man is become as one of us, to know good and evil”, if this knowledge was only a curse?
How do you reconcile Paul’s Adam–Christ pairing (Romans 5; 1 Corinthians 15) if the Fall served no role in God’s plan?
Why did Fathers like Irenaeus and Theophilus describe humanity as growing toward God’s likeness, not condemned from birth?
Why do apocryphal texts affirm Eve’s wisdom, rejoicing in mortality, and the Fall as preparation for redemption?
- And most importantly: Why should Bishop Augustine’s 4th-century doctrine of inherited guilt and total depravity be treated as the standard of “biblical Christianity,” when neither the prophets or apostles of the Bible taught it?
Until those questions are answered, the claim that the Latter-day Saint view “rewrites Genesis” collapses. The consistent witness of scripture, early Christianity, and ancient writings affirms the same truth the Restoration makes plain: the Fall was part of God’s design, preparing the way for Christ’s Atonement.