Featured 5 Biblical Corrections to Penal Substitution

1) The Problem/Solution Narrative:

According to penal substitution, the central problem with humanity is that we deserve wrath, and the central solution is that we avoid it because Jesus suffers this wrath in our place. Problem: deserving wrath / Solution: avoiding wrath

But in the Bible, sin is a much greater problem than the punishment it incurs. Sin is destruction against the self, against others, and against the world. Even if God never lifted a finger to punish sin, sin itself would still plunge sinners into destruction and misery. The Bible takes God and sin more seriously than penal substitution. In the Bible, the central problem is that humanity is dead in sin, and the central solution is that we are raised to new life in Christ (see Ephesians 2:1-10). Problem: dead in sin / Solution: resurrection in Christ.

2) The Justice or Injustice of Jesus’ Death

According to penal substitution, Jesus suffers death on the cross justly, or deservedly, as a guilty party. Justice is satisfied in the death of Christ as the retributive demands of God’s law are carried out on Jesus in place of humanity.

But in the Bible, Jesus suffers death on the cross unjustly as a perfectly innocent party. Justice is satisfied in the resurrection as the reversal of Jesus’ unjust death on the cross, and the fulfillment of God’s covenantal promises.

3) The Priority of Retribution and Restitution

According to penal substitution, the main priority of justice for atonement is retribution for the guilty.

But in the Bible, the main priority of justice for atonement is restitution for damages done to the innocent. Jesus’ death is not unique in that he dies (we all die and are in fact already dead in sin), but that he alone dies unjustly as an innocent party, and thus merits the restitution (reversal) of all the sin and death he suffered.

4) The Debt that Jesus Pays

According to penal substitution, Jesus pays the debt of punishment on behalf of humanity when he dies.

But in the Bible, there is no such thing as a “debt of punishment” that humanity owes to God. Humanity deserves punishment, but it is not something paid to God as a debt. “The wages of sin is death”—wages and debts are exact opposites. Death is earned, not owed. What Jesus pays in his life and in his death is our debt of love and obedience.

5) Substitution vs Union:

According to penal substitution, Jesus dies instead of humanity. Jesus dies "in our place" and "as our substitute" and "he suffered so we won’t have to" and “he died the death we should have died.”

But in the Bible, Jesus dies with humanity. Jesus says, “take up your cross and follow me.” Jesus dies the death we are called to die.

 

Thanks for your response.

1) Penal (as in penalty) substitution is the idea that, to quote a popular hymn, “On that cross as Jesus died, the wrath of God was satisfied.” On the cross “God gave himself in the person of his Son to suffer instead of us the death, punishment and curse due to fallen humanity as the penalty for sin.” (Steve Jeffery, Michael Ovey, Andrew Sach, Pierced for our Transgressions (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2007), 21.) Penal substitution requires at least two things (1) that Jesus’ death is just, or deserved, that is, to satisfy the wrath of God, to satisfy the retributive demands of God’s justice, and (2) that Jesus dies in our place, as our substitute, taking the punishment upon himself so we won't have to suffer it.

2) These are biblical corrections, as opposed to philosophical or practical critiques of penal substitution.

 

Romans 6:23 says “the wages of sin is death.” John Stott, in defending penal substitution, cites this verse as evidence that Jesus “paid sin’s wage” on our behalf. (John Stott, The Cross of Christ, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2006), 270.) But anyone who has ever had a job knows this makes no sense. Wages are not something that we pay; wages are something we earn. If you think this distinction does not matter, then go ahead and ask your employer to change the word “wages” to “debts” on your paychecks from now on and see how it works out. Owing and earning are opposite sides of the economic metaphor. Thus, we do not owe death to God. We earn death for our sin. I’ve heard some preachers today quote the popular Tom Hanks movie “The Green Mile” when a character says, “We each owe a death, there are no exceptions.” But that is just not what the Bible says. The Bible says we have all earned death. And we all justly receive the death we have earned when we suffer our sin’s consequences in this life and finally when we physically die. Our suffering and physical death is not a payment to God for our sin, and does not atone for our sin. Our atonement is in this: Jesus has voluntarily interceded to receive the wages of our sin along with us by suffering and dying on the cross. But he, being without sin, has received these wages undeservedly and unjustly by the hands of sinners. Justice therefore demands that these wages be taken back, and that Jesus’ suffering and death be undone, reversed, hence Jesus’ resurrection.

The Bible never mentions any such thing as a debt of punishment, yet according to penal substitution, the payment of humanity’s debt of punishment is a (the?) central meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross. penal substitution is thus formulated to fulfill a priority of justice that simply does not exist.

 

Ransom means payment. The original post affirms Jesus pays to free us from bondage. The disagreement is over what is being paid. In the Bible, Jesus pays our debt of obedience. According to penal substitution, Jesus pays our debt of punishment (but there is no such thing as a debt of punishment).

 

1) There is no law forbidding God from commanding all men to wear kilts every Tuesday, but there is no evidence for that in Scripture, nor would that make any sense for Him to do so. Same with "punishing Himself for the ones He loves."

2) Jesus' death is different than ours, yes. We are still called to participate in His death. That Christ died an expiatory death is insufficient to prove penal substitution.

3) Christ is martyr and Redeemer. Were he not a martyr (rather THE martyr, for he is the only one who truly died unjustly as an innocent party), he would not be Redeemer.