More Thoughts on Penal Substitution 2

Last updated on: April 18, 2006 at 5:03 am by Scot McKnight

More Thoughts on Penal Substitution 2 2006-04-18T05:03:32-05:00 Scot McKnight

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I’ve suggested that the use of “penal substitution” is being used to carry too much weight in the atonement wars going on today. What I’m arguing for, and will in my book, is that we need a bigger and better category to express what we believe. So, today: Why I think penal substitution as a categorical term for a theory for the atonement is not enough:

Now let’s look at what is said when one says “My theory of the atonement is penal substitution.” Or, to test a person, to ask, “Do you believe in penal substitution?” I’ve been asked this numerous times; no one has ever asked me if I believe in the ransom theory. Ever. No one has ever asked me if I believe in a representative theory of atonement, either. What is about these two terms “penal” and “substitution”?
Here is what one is saying by using those terms: the atonement takes place at the cross; the cross is the place where God vented his wrath against sin; the cross is the place where God in Christ assumed the punishment for sin; the cross is the place where Christ substituted for my sins; the cross is the place where Christ was punished for the sins of the world (or, if you so think, the elect). The use of these terms suggests that it is stating atonement takes place on the cross (no resurrection, no Pentecost) and that is fundamentally about propitiating the wrath of God against sin. To clarify — I’m not suggesting for one second that those who believe in penal substitution do not think there is saving significance in the resurrection or in Pentecost; I’m suggesting the terms being used do not naturally convey those events as well. I’ve rarely heard anyone speak of a “vicarious” or “substitutionary” resurrection — though I think orthodoxy believes in such.
It is, in other words, this set of terms deals with not just substitution, but a restricted kind of substitution: a penal kind of substitution. This is too narrow, I am suggesting, to carry the load of what we (who are orthodox) believe occurs in the atonement.
For most who adopt this theory there is assumed a double imputation — of our sins to Christ and of Christ’s righteousness (perfect obedience to the Torah/will of God) to us. Because there is inherent to this theory a double imputation, it will not be fair to the view to argue that it is only about retributive justice or about punitive justice, which is exactly what critics of penal substitution as an adequate model for atonement often do, and they do so because the terms being used are “penal” and “substitution.” The critics are mistaken in this criticism when it comes to the best thinkers who speak of penal substitution, like John Stott or Leon Morris or JI Packer, whose study long ago is still the best. But, there is an inadequacy in restricting ourselves to this set of terms for framing what the atonement is all about.
I’m persuaded that the penal substitution folks are not listening to this point, and it is an important point that needs to be heard: many are hung up as much by the framing of the theory in these two words (“penal” as modifying “substitution”) as they are by some repulsive sense that God’s punishing of his Son somehow can take care of another’s problem or that the Father’s wrath results in sanctioning violence.
So, I’d like to get an audience on this one point at least: Do we understand what a theory looks like when we describe it with just these, and only these, two terms? It looks like it is about nothing but a substitution that was entirely penal. It looks like retributive justice only. It looks like atonement is nothing more than God venting his wrath; it looks like nothing more than God’s retribution against sin. That is what it looks like — at least to many. And, if we embrace those terms and we want to make our theory clear, then I am asking us to use terms that make our whole theory clear. I am asking we find a nice comprehensive term for all we believe occurred in the atoning work of God.
To me, restricting ourselves to “penal substitution” is like restricting one’s view of ecclesiology to one’s theory of authority, and one could imagine other such analogies being used.
I’m working alongside many other emerging thinkers and some of them have a lot of issues when it comes to penal substitution, but many of them are reacting to a bad image and to bad explanations and to an inadequate theory that is fostered by the overuse of the terms “penal substitution.” I’m with them in this. We all need to use our terms more carefully. If you ask some of us if we believe in penal substitution, and you make it sound like that is the whole theory, you are likely to get a non-commital response rather than a denial. (Some deny it, to be sure.)
So let’s also think together about how an “image” speaks: if these are the two terms we bandy about when we talk about what we believe, and I used to do this myself, then we are creating an image of atonement as something that settles justice [God’s just retribution against sin] — the image, as it is often used, is not being used to say something positive about the atonement, even though I know full well that many who use these terms do have in mind many other good things. Like forgiveness and reconciliation and justification and a lot of other good things.
Let me ask if the image conveyed by penal substitution excites those good things? I don’t think it does.
Now let’s also admit that our churches are filled with folks who have embraced the gospel that Jesus died for my sins (understood in terms of guilt) and that in so believing or accepting that gospel the problem has been taken care of — and they need not get any further than that. I am suggesting that a reduced gospel emerges from a reduced atonement theory.
What I want to say is not that this theory is wrong, dead-wrong, or anything like that for any theory of the atonement must deal with the issue of God’s just justice with respect to sin; what I want to say is that the atonement is so much more than this. And, if it is so much more than this, then it follows that using “penal substitution” as our guiding term is inadequate and misleads others. At the least, it does not provide enough information to explain what one really believes occurs in the atonement.
But, I’ll say more so it is clear how I think about these terms as a defining instrument for our theory of atonement: because this is the category used by so many, it defines atonement into its category and actually damages the other biblical images for what God does in his atoning work. Using this category leads us to think of atonement in just these terms, and before long we have no room for the other theories. In other words, we need to give some value to what is called the “linguistic turn.” If we use this category, we turn atonement into this theory.
Tell-tale evidence for this is to ask someone to construct an “evangelistic” method in light of ransom theory and see what you get: I’m willing to contend that 90% of those who do this will end up by turning ransom theory (which is a theory about liberation and justice) into penal substitution. I could go on. I’ve seen very few penal types who could describe Anselm’s satisfaction theory without turning satisfaction into penal substitution. (And they are not the same.) What I’m saying here is that penal substitution, when used as the sole defining instrument, will inevitably shape how we see everything else.
For goodness sake, let’s use all the images for atonement so the story will become grander that we can imagine! The atonement, friends, is a banquet, and we need to sample each course as it comes along.
BTW: For the sensitive ones about this expression “atonement wars.” The penal substitution types are fighting for penal substitution; some feminists, with others, contend penal subst is divine child abuse; some Abelardians think all this talk about violence is theologically erroneous; some social justice types think anything more than ransom as justice-establishment misses the whole point. There’s a lot of chat about this nowadays.

Atonement

Previous Post

April 18, 2006

Easter Service

Next Post

April 18, 2006 50 Free Praying with the Church

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Acts of the Apostles Adam Advent Anabaptism Angels Anglican Apologetics Atonement Baptism BCP Prayers Bible Biblical Studies Birds Blogging Bloglossary Bonhoeffer Books Calvinism Christianity Church Church History Coffee Colossians Commentary Recs Conversion Creation Creeds Culture Death Ecclesiastes Economics Education Embracing Grace Emergent Emerging Movement Eschatology Essays Ethics Eucharist Evangelicalism Family Fasting Fathers Fellowship of Differents Footsteps Tour Fun and Whimsical Gospel Grace Happiness Heaven Hell Holy Spirit Irenaeus James Jesus Jesus Creed Job Justification Kingdom of God Law Lectures Lent Liberalism Love and Marriage Mabanteneni Manhood Mary Miracles Missio Alliance MissioLife Missional Missional Jesus Movies and Film New Perspective Northern Seminary OneLife Origins Project Orthodox Parables Pastor's Spouse Pastoring and Leading Pastoring and Preaching Patristics Paul Paul-John Tour Pharisees Pietism Political Theology Prayer and Formation Preaching Problems for Faith Psalm 119 Psalms Public Issues Purgatory Religions Resurrection Revelation Romans Rule of JCreed Science and Faith Sermon on the Mount Sports Ten Commandments Theology Third Way Top Ten Lists Translations Uncategorized Universalism University Ministry Way Out Weekly Meanderings Wisdom Women and Ministry Work Worship Writing & Blogging Youth Ministry

Select a Month July 2021 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 0000

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Psalm is often read at funerals: "Even though I walk through the valley..."?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Psalm 137 Psalm 51 Psalm 23 Psalm 90