Original Sin
The Christian doctrine that Adam and Eve's first sin is inherited by all humanity, and the Old Testament account it rests on.
The concept of Original Sin centers on the event where Adam and Eve (peace be upon them) ate the forbidden fruit — the first sin committed by mankind. In Christian doctrine, this sin extends across generations, such that all human beings are born sinners.
The temptation by the serpent
The first sin is depicted in the following verses, where Eve is tempted by the serpent:
וְהַנָּחָשׁ֙ הָיָ֣ה עָר֔וּם מִכֹּל֙ חַיַּ֣ת הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשָׂ֖ה יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהִ֑ים “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, 'Did God say, you shall not eat from any tree in the garden?'... But the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.' So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes... she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked.”
Passed down to the fourth generation
The following verse is used to justify why the original sin is understood to propagate across generations of mankind:
לֹא־תִשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֥֣ה לָהֶ֖ם֮ וְלֹ֣א תָעָבְדֵ֑ם֒ כִּ֣י אָנֹכִ֞י יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ אֵ֣ל קַנָּ֔א “You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and fourth generation of those who reject me.”
For a Muslim response to the idea that one person’s sin can be inherited or transferred to others, see Sin in Christian Thought.