Representation

Representation, sometimes called federal headship, is the biblical principle that certain individuals act on behalf of everyone united to them, so that what the representative does determines the standing of those he represents. This is not a legal fiction imposed on Scripture from outside; it is how the Bible itself explains why one man’s sin could plunge the whole human race into ruin, and why one man’s obedience could secure salvation for everyone who belongs to him.

How does Adam represent the whole human race?

Paul lays out this principle directly: “as through one man’s disobedience the many were appointed sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be appointed righteous” (Romans 5:19). Adam did not sin merely as a private individual whose fault stayed contained to himself. He sinned as the appointed head of the human race, so that his disobedience is credited to everyone descended from him. This is why Paul can say plainly, “as in Adam all die” (1 Corinthians 15:22): the connection between Adam’s fall and universal human death is not that everyone happens to imitate Adam’s sin, but that Adam’s sin is the whole race’s sin by representation.

How is Christ our representative?

Paul sets Christ against Adam as the second and greater representative head: “even so through the obedience of the One the many will be appointed righteous” (Romans 5:19), and, “so also in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). Just as Adam’s disobedience is credited to those he represents, Christ’s obedience is credited to those united to him by faith. This is the same principle of representation working in the opposite direction, and it is the reason justification can rest entirely on what Christ has done rather than on what the believer has done. The articles below trace this theme through several key passages.