Thursday, April 23, 2020

George Smeaton (1814-1889) on 1 Timothy 3:16 and δικαιοω Having a Transformative Meaning



And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified (δικαιοω) in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. (1 Tim 3:16)

This verse is a very important one, as it shows that, even when δικαιοω is used in a declarative sense, there is also a transformational meaning behind it (after all, Jesus was transformed from dead the resurrected, not merely declared such), and there is no hint of a mere forensic declaration based on an imputation of an alien righteousness. For a discussion, including a response to John Calvin’s (lame) attempt to get around the importance of this, see:


19th century Reformed theologian, George Smeaton (1814-1889) wrote the following about this text, and how δικαιοω has a transformative meaning:

Of all the explanations that have been attempted of this expression, only two deserve attention. The one is, that He had proclaimed Himself the Son of God, and been put to death as a blasphemer, and that He was now raised up by His own divine nature, and justified in all that He claimed to be. The other interpretation, which I prefer is, that He was put to death under the charge of our imputed guilt, as our Surety, but justified by the Holy Spirit when He rose. (George Smeaton, The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit [London: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1958], 84-85)

While teaching the anti-biblical and blasphemous doctrine of imputed righteousness (see Response to a Recent Attempt to Defend Imputed Righteousness), Smeaton, by agreeing that Jesus being “justified” by the Spirit is tied into his resurrection, holds to not just a declarative interpretation, but a transformative interpretation of δικαιοω, too.