Divine Justice Explained: God’s Righteous Judgment | John Owen

Описание: Deep Dive into A Dissertation on Divine Justice by John Owen - The Introduction - The Design of the Work - Atheists - The Prolepsis of Divine Justice in General - The Divisions of Justice, according to Aristotle - The Sentiments of the Schoolmen Respecting These - Another Division - Justice Considered Absolutely; Then in Various Respects






John Owen's "A Dissertation on Divine Justice" focuses on the illustrious perfection of God's justice, particularly his vindicatory, or sin-punishing, justice. Owen intends to demonstrate that this specific form of justice is a natural and necessary attribute of God.


He notes that while a few individuals throughout history have denied God's existence, almost no one has genuinely accused God of being unjust. Despairing complaints from historical figures are expressions of human misery rather than true indictments of divine injustice. Innate human reason inherently demands that justice be ascribed to the Divine Being.


To build his argument, Owen reviews traditional definitions of justice. He acknowledges Aristotle's division of universal and particular justice, as well as the schoolmen's application of this framework to God through analogy. However, Owen proposes his own twofold consideration of divine justice. First, justice can be viewed absolutely and in itself. In this sense, it is the universal rectitude and perfection of the divine nature existing before any acts of divine will. Second, justice can be considered in respect to its egress, or exercise, towards specific objects.


The exercises of God's justice are further categorized into free and necessary acts. God's absolute and free egresses occur in words, such as equity in legislation and truth in declarations. Conversely, his necessary egresses occur in actions, specifically in his government and judgments.


This structural framework leads to Owen's primary theological conclusion: vindicatory justice is not merely a conditional choice but is entirely natural to God. Because of his inherent rectitude, once a sin is committed, God's nature dictates that he cannot help but punish it according to the strict rule of his supreme right, wisdom, and truth.






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