Wesley Corpus

According to your sense of it, it comes upon none. For if it means, “the discharging men from the consequences of Adam’s sin; and if the only consequences of that sin are sorrow, labour, and death;” it is manifest, no man upon earth is justified to this day. But you go on: “As justification to life comes upon all men.” No; not in the proper scripture sense of justifica tion. That term is never once in the Bible used for the resurrection, no more than for heaven or hell. It may be proper here, once for all, to observe, that what St. Paul says of abounding grace is simply this: (1.) The condemnation came by “one offence” only; the acquittal is from “many offences.” (2.) They who receive this shall enjoy a far higher blessing by Christ than they lost by Adam. In both these respects, the consequences of Christ’s death abound over the consequences of Adam’s sin. And this whole blessing by Christ is termed, in the 18th verse, “jus tification;” in the 19th, “being made righteous.” “Further, the phrase, “being made righteous, as well as ‘being made sinners, is a Hebrew way of speaking.” (Page 49.) I do not allow that: Both the phrases, caëla Taofia. 8ucatow, or aplapto\ot, are pure and good Greek. That, therefore, there is any Hebraism at all in these expressions, cannot be admitted without proof. If, then, the same He brew word does signify to “make righteous,” and to “acquit in judgment,” it does not follow that the Greek word here translated, “made righteous,” means only “being acquitted.” You yourself say the contrary.