Obj. 7. But it is said, Ez. 18:20,
that the son shall not bear the iniquity of the Father; therefore it is unjust
that posterity should endure punishment for the Sin of Adam. Ans. The son shall
not, indeed, bear the iniquity of the father, nor make satisfaction for his
transgression, if he does not approve of it, nor imitate it, but condemns and
avoids it. But we justly suffer on account of the sin of Adam: 1. Because all
of us approve of, and follow his transgression. 2. Because the offence of Adam
is also ours; for we were all in Adam when he sinned, as the Apostle testifies:
“We have all sinned in him” (Rom. 5:12). 3. Because the entire nature of Adam
became guilty; and as we have proceeded from his very substance,--being, as it
were, a part of him,-we must also necessarily be guilty ourselves. 4. Because
Adam had received the gifts of God upon the condition that he would also import
them unto us, if he retained them; or lose them for us also, if he lost them.
Hence, it is, that when Adam lost these gifts, he did not merely lose them for
himself, but also for his posterity. (The Commentary of Zacharias Ursinus: On
the Heidelberg Catechism—The Protestant Christian Doctrines, Dating to 1563 [trans.
G. W. Williard; Pantianos Classics, 1888], 63)
