Shimba Theological Institute
By Dr. Maxwell Shimba
Title: An Academic and Theological Debate on the Adam–Moses Encounter in Sahih al-Bukhari 6614
Introduction
One of the most puzzling hadiths recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari (6614) presents an alleged dialogue between Prophet Adam and Prophet Moses. According to this narration, Adam and Moses were engaged in an argument in which Moses blamed Adam for causing humanity to be expelled from Paradise. Adam, in response, claimed that his sin was predestined forty years before his creation, thereby refuting Moses three times.
This account raises profound theological, logical, and philosophical questions—especially when examined through the lens of divine justice, prophetic infallibility, and the nature of human responsibility. From a scholarly and academic perspective, this narration challenges both the coherence of Islamic predestination (qadar) and the moral consistency of divine judgment as presented in the Qur’an and Hadith literature.
Text of the Hadith (Sahih al-Bukhari 6614)
“Adam and Moses argued with each other. Moses said to Adam, ‘You are Adam whose mistake expelled you from Paradise and caused mankind to come down to the earth.’
Adam said to him, ‘You are Moses whom Allah selected as His messenger and as one to whom He spoke directly. Yet you blame me for something which Allah had decreed for me before He created me?’
So Adam confuted Moses three times.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 8, Book 77, Hadith 6614).
Central Theological Questions
1. How did Adam know he was destined to error forty years before his creation?
If Adam was not yet created, how could he have knowledge of divine decrees that predated his own existence? Islamic theology teaches that Adam was created as the first human being and received consciousness after being given life. Therefore, it is inconsistent to attribute to him awareness of events or decrees made before his existence.
This leads to a crucial theological question: Was Adam’s knowledge revealed to him post-creation, or is this a constructed narrative to justify human sin through divine determinism?
2. When did time, days, and years begin in Islamic cosmology?
The hadith mentions “forty years” before Adam’s creation. But within Islamic teachings, time itself was created by Allah. If Adam’s error was decreed forty years before creation, this implies a measure of “years” before the creation of time—an internal contradiction.
From a Biblical and Christian theological perspective, time began with creation itself (Genesis 1:1). In the Bible, Adam began to age after his disobedience (Genesis 3:17–19), linking mortality directly to sin. Yet the hadith introduces a pre-creation chronology that has no coherent theological foundation.
3. Why would Allah create Adam to err and then judge him?
If Adam’s sin was predetermined, then judgment becomes morally problematic. How can divine justice hold Adam responsible for an act he was created to commit?
This introduces a moral paradox in Islamic theology: if Allah decreed Adam’s fall, then Adam is innocent of moral failure. Conversely, if Adam acted freely, then divine predestination (qadar) cannot be absolute.
Thus, the question remains: Is divine justice compatible with a pre-decreed sin?
Extended Critical Questions
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If Adam’s sin was written forty years before his creation, then does human repentance have any real meaning, or is it an illusion under divine predetermination?
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Does this hadith indirectly absolve Adam of moral responsibility, thereby nullifying the Islamic doctrine of tawbah (repentance)?
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How can a prophetic figure like Moses, who spoke directly with Allah, be “defeated” three times by Adam in a theological argument that contradicts divine justice?
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If Allah decreed Adam’s sin, did He also decree Satan’s rebellion? And if so, can Satan justifiably claim innocence under the same logic?
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Why does this hadith suggest debate and conflict between prophets, contradicting the Qur’anic portrayal of prophets as harmonious servants of Allah’s will (Qur’an 6:84–90)?
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Is this narration metaphorical or literal? If metaphorical, what divine purpose does it serve? If literal, how can two prophets from vastly different eras converse—does this suggest a temporal collapse that defies known cosmology?
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If Adam was aware of divine decrees before his creation, was he coexistent with Allah’s knowledge? Would that not imply an eternal consciousness in Adam, thereby contradicting tawhid (Islamic monotheism)?
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Why is Adam portrayed as “winning” an argument based on predestination, which seemingly undermines the moral accountability of all humankind?
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Does this hadith support fatalism rather than free will? If so, how can Islam maintain moral order and divine justice?
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Why is this narration not found in the Torah or the Bible, which describe Adam’s sin as an act of free disobedience rather than divine compulsion?
Biblical Contrast
In Biblical theology, Adam’s transgression was not decreed but resulted from the free choice to disobey God’s command (Genesis 3:6–7). Divine justice in Scripture is based on responsibility, not predestination. Romans 5:12–19 explains that through one man’s disobedience, sin entered the world, yet redemption through Christ restores what was lost.
In contrast, the hadith narrative undermines accountability by implying that Adam had no choice—thus making divine judgment appear arbitrary and unjust.
Conclusion
The Adam–Moses debate in Sahih al-Bukhari 6614 raises serious philosophical and theological inconsistencies when examined critically. It challenges the nature of free will, divine justice, and prophetic harmony within Islamic belief. If Adam’s sin was decreed before creation, then sin, repentance, and divine judgment lose their moral and logical coherence.
From a Biblical-theological standpoint, this hadith seems to transfer responsibility for human sin from man to God—a notion that conflicts with the scriptural portrayal of a just and holy Creator who grants humanity true moral agency.
The question thus remains: Was Adam truly responsible for his sin—or was he merely fulfilling a divine script written before time began?
By Dr. Maxwell Shimba
Shimba Theological Institute – Department of Comparative Theology and Apologetics
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