Well, according to Calvin, Adam sinned by the express will of God.
Yes, God ordained it. That is, He left Adam and Eve alone knowing what was going to happen. But it was Adam and Eve who did the sinning. When the serpent was deceiving Eve, God just watched (in HD :). He didn't interfere to set her straight (which He absolutely DID do in many other OT examples, such as Abraham with Issac). The same happened when Eve came to Adam. I mean, it wasn't like God was taking a nap or something. :)
Thanks for the quotes from Calvin. He's got it exactly right. :)
God not only foresaw that Adam would fall, but also ordained that he should.Man's action in sinning, therefore, was not conditional but determined. That is, there was nothing in man having to do with unconditioned volition that was the cause of sin for which he bore the moral responsibility. Man's sin, therefore, was the expression or outworking of the will of God. He could no more not sin than water could choose to be not wet. Man's sin was as caused as his nature as man was caused and, according to Calvin, the cause of both, the responsible agent of both, was God. The reason? "...because the Lord saw good."
(Calvins Inst., b. 3, c. 23, sec. 7.)
...[Adam] fell not only by the permission, but also by the appointment, of God.
(Calvin Responsio ad Calumnias Nebulonis cujusdam ad Articulum primum.)
He sinned because God so ordained, because the Lord saw good.
(Calvins Inst., b. 3, c. 24, sec. 8.)