WLC 20
Westminster Larger Catechism
Q20. What was the providence of God toward man in the estate in which he was created?
The providence of God toward man in the estate in which he was created, was the placing him in paradise, appointing him to dress it, giving him liberty to eat of the fruit of the earth; putting the creatures under his dominion, and ordaining marriage for his help; affording him communion with himself; instituting the sabbath; entering into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of personal, perfect, and perpetual obedience, of which the tree of life was a pledge; and forbidding to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon the pain of death.
Proof texts
- Gen. 2:8,15-16 — [8] And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. [15] The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. [16] And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden,
- Gen. 1:28 — [28] And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
- Gen. 2:18 — [18] Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”
- Gen. 1:26-29 — [26] Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” [27] So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. [28] And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” [29] And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.
- Gen. 3:8 — [8] And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
- Gen. 2:3 — [3] So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
- Gal. 3:12 — [12] But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.”
- Rom. 10:5 — [5] For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them.
- Gen. 2:9 — [9] And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
- Gen. 2:17 — [17] but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
For discussion
- The Assembly cited Gen. 2:8,15-16 in support of this answer. Read it in context — how does it bear on what is claimed here?
- 10 passages are cited here. Which does the most work, and is anything claimed that the proofs do not obviously carry?
- WSC Q11 treats the same ground. What does it add, and why might it put things differently?
- HC Q26 treats the same ground. What does it add, and why might it put things differently?