Cap. 3 Obj. 5: Universal satisfaction would punish the same sins twice — so how can justice stand?

Obj. 5. If Christ's death is a benefit applicable to all and each by God's ordination, then it must be said that Christ satisfied for the sins of the whole human race. But this cannot be defended without meantime undermining Divine justice: for the reason of justice does not suffer the same sin to be punished twice. Grant then that Christ's death is the lytron by which satisfaction was made to God for the sins of the human race — how can these human beings still be summoned by God's justice for the same sins and tormented with eternal punishments?

Sol. As to the Major, we judge its consequence can safely be conceded. For that Christ satisfied for the sins of the human race, or of all human beings, the orthodox Fathers boldly assert. So Eusebius, Demonstration of the Gospel, book 1, in the preface: It was fitting that the Lamb of God offer himself a victim for the remaining kindred lambs and for the whole human race. So Nazianzen: Christ is the sacrifice of the whole world, an expiation never to die, Oration 2 on Easter. So finally (to omit the rest) Cyril, Catechesis 13. The same manner of speaking our Anglican Church everywhere uses in the Articles of Religion, Articles 15 and 31, and elsewhere. Indeed even those who most strive to restrict this death of Christ speak thus. We cited earlier the testimony of the reverend Pareus, Heidelberg theologian, who freely confesses in the Judgment exhibited to the Synod of Dort that the cause and matter of Christ's passion was the sense or endurance of the wrath of God, stirred up by the sin not of some human beings but of the universal human race. A little later: the universality of sin and of the wrath of God against it, endured by Christ, is affirmed. Nor should this seem dissonant, since this universal redemption, satisfaction, or expiation accomplished by Christ's death imports nothing else than that a universal cause of salvation has been established and granted to the human race by Divine ordination, by whose benefit all and each can enjoy, through the faith required by the Gospel. We therefore call Christ the Redeemer of the world, and teach that he satisfied for the sins not of some human beings but of the whole world — not because, this price being paid for the sins of this race, all and each are immediately to be freed from captivity and death, but because by the virtue of this price paid all and each can and ought to be freed from death, and in fact are to be freed, according to the tenor of the Gospel pact, that is, if they repent and believe in this Redeemer. As to what is further urged — that it is against justice to accept satisfaction or a lytron for the sins of the universal human race, and yet not free all from the punishments of their sins, but adjudge many to eternal torments notwithstanding this satisfaction — to this I answer: This would indeed be most iniquitous if we had paid this price to God from our own, or if our Surety Jesus Christ had so offered his blood to God as a satisfactory price for the redemption of the human race that, no other condition intervening, all human beings would by the very fact of the oblation be immediately absolved, or if God himself had covenanted with the dying Christ that he willed to pour faith into all and each and to give all else that looks to the infallible application of this sacrifice offered for the human race. But since God himself arranged that this price from his own be paid to himself, it was in his power to attach conditions — which being fulfilled, this death would be fruitful to any human being; not being fulfilled, it would help no human being at all. No injury therefore is done to those human beings who are punished by God after the lytron for the sins of the human race has been accepted, because they themselves exhibited nothing to God in satisfaction for their sins, nor fulfilled that condition without which God was unwilling that this satisfactory price should turn to the good of any singular person. Further, neither should this be judged injurious to Christ the Mediator: for he so willed to die for all, and to number the price of redemption to the Father for all, that meanwhile he willed not all and each in any way whatever, but all and each as soon as they believed in him, to be absolved from the guilt of their sins. Finally Christ, offering himself in sacrifice to God the Father for expiating the world's sins, yet submitted to the Father's good pleasure the free distribution and application of his merits, and no pact was entered between Father and Son by which God is bound to effect that this death of Christ, which by God's ordination is applicable to all under the condition of faith, become applied to all through the gift of faith. We must not therefore deny that Christ's oblation once made is a perfect satisfaction for the sins not of some human beings only but of all — yet so that he who is said simply to have died for all conditionally promises from his death remission of sins and salvation, and will perform it, only to believers. Let us illustrate all this by a likeness: Think of countless human beings cast into prison by some King for an enormous debt, or condemned to death for the crime of high treason; and the King himself procuring that his son wipe out this whole debt to the last farthing, or put himself as guilty for those traitors and endure the punishments owed by all — yet with this law promulgated by both: that none is to be absolved or freed except those alone who will acknowledge this King's Son as their lawful Lord and serve him. These things being so established, I ask: if those are not freed who persist disobedient and rebellious against the King's son, is the crime of injustice incurred because after this lytron paid their debts are nonetheless exacted from many, or after the punishments endured by the son vengeance is nevertheless taken on these rebels? By no means: because the payment of a just price and the enduring of due punishments was indeed ordained to obtain remission for anyone under the condition of obedience, and not otherwise. I will not add more: it will be easy to accommodate all this to our present purpose.