Adam

The Adam-Christ correspondence appears from the first year of The Watchtower. In 1879 the first Adam was contrasted with Christ as the second Adam, with the first natural and the antitype spiritual. In 1880 this was stated explicitly as 'Adam is a type of Christ' and Adam's life and deep sleep were mapped to Christ's human life and death. By 1907 redeemed mankind was described as becoming the family of the second Adam, and in 1910 the correspondence was refined: Christ corresponds to Adam specifically as the new father or life-giver of the race, rather than in his role as Redeemer. Rutherford-era publications in 1918, 1926 and 1929 retained this scheme, including the Adam-Eve / Christ-Church parallel and the restoration of Adam's offspring through the second Adam. Under Knorr the identification remained stable: in 1944 and 1949 Jesus was the last Adam made a life-giving spirit, and in 1967 the title was explained by his resemblance to the first man Adam. Under Franz the same interpretation continued in 1977 and 1980, with emphasis on Christ becoming father to Adam's offspring and giving his perfect human life as their ransom. No verified reversal or abandonment of the identification was found through 1980.