Tim Maas Supporter Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

The creation was subjected to "frustration" (also translated as "curse", "futility" or "vanity") as a consequence of humanity's fall into sin. God spoke of the effects of this condition when He told Eve in Genesis 3:16 that her pain in childbearing would be greatly multiplied, and when He told Adam in Genesis 3:17-19 that he would have to toil to make the earth bring forth food for him (instead of yielding only thorns and thistles); and that edible food would be produced only through arduous effort (the sweat of Adam's brow) until, finally, Adam would die (which, from a human standpoint, might be considered the ultimate "frustration").

However, at the same time (and as also noted by Paul in the passage cited in the question), God provided humanity with hope in Genesis 3:15 through the first promise of a Savior, who would ultimately make possible, through His sinless life, redeeming death, and resurrection, the ultimate restoration of the creation that Adam's sin had caused to be cursed.

July 24 2019 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jeffrey Johnson Supporter

Why was creation subjected to frustration? (Romans 8:20–21)
"20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God."

According to Romans 8:20–21, creation was subjected to frustration (or "futility") by God as a consequence of Adam's sin, not because of its own actions. This, in turn, placed creation under a "bondage to decay," transforming it from its original, perfect state into a temporary, broken state, designed to ultimately reflect on and await the coming redemption and liberation of humanity. 

The frustration serves as a direct, physical consequence of the fall of humanity (Genesis 3:17-19).

God subjected creation in "hope," meaning the brokenness is not permanent, but rather a temporary state aimed at the future renewal of all things (Revelation 21:5).

Creation's current state of "groaning" is a direct result of being subjected to this, which points forward to the eventual release from this bondage when the children of God are fully revealed.

It was a divine decree following Adam's disobedience in Genesis 3. Because man, the intended ruler of creation, fell into sin, the realm under his dominion was also cursed with decay and death.

Futility: Or “emptiness; vanity; frustration.” The same Greek word is used in the Septuagint to render the Hebrew word heʹvel (literally referring to a transitory "breath" or "vapour"). This Hebrew word appears more than 35 times in the book of Ecclesiastes in such expressions as "the greatest futility" and "everything is futile." (Ec 1:2; 2:17; 3:19; 12:8) Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, sometimes used this term to parallel the expression "a chasing after the wind." (Ec 1:14; 2:11) In the context of Ro 8:20, Paul describes a striving without attaining a goal or purpose. However, the hope here is that God will deliver humanity from the "futility" to which creation has been subjected until now.​—Ro 8:21.

The Greek term rendered "corruption" denotes "decay; deterioration; destruction." This "enslavement to corruption" is the result of sin, producing bodily imperfection, ageing, disease, and death.

It was only when Adam sinned that he became enslaved to corruption and its deteriorating effects. He passed this enslavement on to all his offspring, the human race. (Ro 5:12) 

Dr Mary Sykes Wylie wrote, "Wars, natural disasters, industrial catastrophes, highway carnage, crime, terrorism, sexual abuse, rape, domestic violence—all make trauma a horrible and daily leitmotif of the 20th century.” "He, the Christian apostle Paul, realistically summed up the human experience: 'All creation keeps on groaning together and being in pain.'"—Romans 8:22.

What the Christian apostle Paul wrote over 1,900 years ago has even more force today: "All creation keeps on groaning together and being in pain together until now."​—Romans 8:22.

1 day ago • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report