Monday, July 20, 2015

Does Paul's use of υπερ necessitate Penal Substitution?

There are various considerations which weigh against the interpretation of υπερ as αντι (“instead of”) in [2 Cor 5:14-15] . . . [one such example] is the Pauline addition of the aorist passive participle εγερθεντι at the end of verse 15. Using the ινα clause to express purpose rather than result, Paul notes that Christ died for all so that they might no longer live for themselves but for him who died and was raised for them (αλλα τω υπερ αυτων αποθανοντι και εγερθεντι). According to J. Bernard, the substitutional rendering of υπερ is “excluded by the fact that in the phrase υπερ αυτων αποθανοντι και εγερθεντι, υπερ αυτων  is governed by both participles” . . . [I]f the participle is not related to the phrase τω υπερ αυτων, then “the flow of the sentence is broken, leaving us with a translation ‘he died for them and rose’ (for his own benefit). This breaks up the logic of Paul’s argument.” Since it is more natural to see both participles as being associated with τω υπερ αυτων so that Paul’s argument remains intact, the idea of substitution must be absent. (Daniel G. Powers, Salvation through Participation: An Examination of the Notion of the Believers’ Corporate Unity with Christ in Early Christian Soteriology [Leuven: Peeters, 2001], 62, 63).

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