Justification Reconsidered: Rethinking A Pauline Theme

This book is launched from serious scholarship but still readable to the average pastor, an abbreviated version of Westerholm’s Perspectives Old and New on Paul: The "Lutheran" Paul and His Critics. It’s well written and humbly presented. Able to summarize large concepts succinctly, it gives place of thought and honor to those with whom Westerholm disagrees, interacting with a large swath of scholarly and important Pauline material that pertains to the gospel. In doing so, it summarizes the thoughts on this topic made by K. Stendhal, E.P. Sanders, H. Raisanen, et al even acknowledges their rightful contribution to Pauline theology while also pointing out where they may have gotten it wrong.As a pastor, given to the study of Romans and passionate about seeing people impacted by the gospel and growing in their faith, this discussion is very important to me.Though I don’t agree with all of Westerholm’s thoughts, his presentation helped me to quickly cover the major points of discussion on Paul’s gospel of justification. For me, reading this book was a wonderful solidifying experience that finished years of studying Paul’s thoughts on the gospel – primarily found within Romans and Galatians – but also bound within countless books written by brilliant, devout Christians, who also wrestled through these two NT letters. For you, this book could equally serve your need in this capacity; however, it could be equally valuable if this is the first time you’re seriously wrestling with this topic. Westerholm’s perspective on Paul’s gospel, which is a traditional one, is summed up in four easily understood pages (95-99), which comprise all of chapter seven: In a Nutshell.I appreciate Christians, among others, like S. Westerholm and N.T. Wright, R. Hays and S. Gathercole: people who write well and who also don’t vilify and belittle those who disagree with them. These men, at times, champion different perspectives of Paul’s thought; however, they all love truth and the Bible, Jesus and his Church and are willing to humbly present their perspective of things.Regardless of your knowledge of Paul’s thoughts on justification or the New or Old Perspective, consider reading this book, especially if you’re interested in growing in your understanding of Paul’s perspective on the gospel found in Romans and Galatians! Short of being able to sit down for a two-hour conversation with Westerholm or another Pauline scholar about Paul’s thought on justification and how others have interpreted him in this area, reading this book is your next best option.For other books I've reviewed, go to my blog site: http://GraceLivedOut.orgYou’ll also find there my ebook, "The Names of God," and be able to get my tract, “15 Principles that Kept Our Marriage Rock Solid.” All for free.My takeaway quotes:1. Quoting from Luther’s Treatise on Good Works, a section of p. 45 reads: “That commandment – ‘Thou shall have no other gods before me’ (Exod 20:3 KJV) – is, in Luther's view, fulfilled only by faith. Luther paraphrases the commandment as follows: ‘Since I alone am God, thou shalt place all thy confidence, trust, and faith in me alone and in no one else.’ He goes on: ‘For you do not have a god if you [just] call him God outwardly with your lips … But [only] if you trust him with your heart and look to him for all good, grace, and favor’ (30), in everything you do and in every situation in life – including times of suffering when God's goodness and favor are hidden behind what appears to be his anger (28). Such ‘faith and confidence’ can be found only when it ‘spring[s] up and flow[s] from the blood and wounds and death of Christ. If you see in these that God is so kindly disposed to you that he even gives his own Son for you, then your heart in turn must grow sweet and disposed toward God. And in this way your confidence must grow out of pure good will and love – God’s toward you, yours toward God’ (38).”2. From chapter seven, In a Nutshell: “Paul had a number of ways of speaking of the salvation and transformation made possible through Christ; justification was but one. To confine one's attention to Paul's justification texts is to miss important dimensions of his thought; the same is true, of course, if one overlooks or distorts what Paul has to say in these texts.” (p. 96) “The picture of salvation that proved useful in writing to the Galatians became the focus of Paul's summary of the Gospel in the opening chapters of Romans. People do not do what they ought, and for that reason are subject to God's judgment and ‘wrath’ (Rom 1:18–32). It is perfectly in order to remind them of the good they ought to do, and the law of Moses served that purpose (2:17–18). Were people to do it, God would find them righteous (2:13). But for people who have proved constitutionally unable and unwilling to do what they ought (and such are all human beings [3:10–18]), the law can only serve to bring about recognition of sin; it cannot serve as a path to righteousness: ‘by works of the law no flash will be justified; for through the law comes the knowledge of sin’ (3:20). The verse is no attack on the Jewish ‘legalism’ – as though those who set out to do what they all must be ‘legalists.’ Its denial that the law's requirements can serve as the path to righteousness is based rather on a more radical perception of human sinfulness than that held by most Jews. As a result, Paul sees the only righteousness available to sinful human beings to be that given as a gift of God's grace, ‘apart from works’ (3:24; 4:2, 6; 5:17) – distinguishing grace from works in a way other Jews felt no need to do." (pp. 97–98) “[T]he doctrine of justification means that God declares sinners righteous, apart from righteous deeds, when they believe in Jesus Christ. Those so made righteous represent the new humanity, the people of God's new creation (Rom 5:17–19).” (p. 99)

Westerholm has written a defense of the traditional Reformed view of justification--contra Dunn, Wright, et al.As such, this is a good little summary of traditional teaching, helpful in its interaction with modern perspectives.Nonetheless, this book breaks no new ground. To some that is as it should be. But to those who believe the Lutheran/Reformed view has led to the Evangelical church's nominal faith and powerless regeneration, this book just strums the same old themes. We may be grateful that Westerholm rejects the clearly deficient New Perspective on Paul, but we wish he would give more thought to why that perspective is so attractive to so many today. Something has clearly gone wrong, yet Westerholm keeps prescribing the same old medicine. Perhaps he's right. I, however, would find his defense of tradition more convincing if he demonstrated a recognition of the real problems the New Perspective on Paul seeks to resolve. The new perspective isn't correct, but neither is a head-in-the-sand insistence that there's nothing wrong with the classic Protestant view of justification and faith.

I read this book almost two years ago but just happened to notice that I never reviewed it. My memory doesn't allow me to recall the specifics but I can tell you my experience with the book. I bought it because I had encountered a Hebrew Roots Messianic Jew in my church and I was having a difficult time understanding his perspective. At the time, I knew nothing of the New Perpectices on Paul. After several months of reading through the literature and teaching guides this Hebrew Roots person had given me, I needed some help countering his arguments. I was unaware that this was a conversation that the church had been having for quite some time. I don't remember how or why I chose Justification Reconsidered, but it was one of many books I purchased in order to beef up my knowledge. It ended up being the only one I read. It provided the overview and historical context I needed to help frame my understanding of these "New Perspectives" that I was encountering. He touched on all the major points of contention that I needed help clarifying in my interaction with this guy at church. I recommend this book for students of theology for its treatment of Justification, but also for anyone involved in the church who wants to deepen their understanding, and prepare themselves for challenges to the church's historical positions regarding salvation and Christian living. As I write this, I am becoming aware of how little I retained so it will probably be placed back in the stack to be read or at least reviewed once more!

Westerholm does an excellent job at showing the complete biblical picture of righteousness, and consequently how much of what's written about in the New Perspective falls short. In other words, righteousness is about more than "covenant faithfulness" in the Bible, but about doing what one ought to do.

It doesn’t engage with a lot of the new perspective. He engages with E. P. Sanders but that’s about it.

Westerholm surveys recent authors who have contributed changing views of justification. He interacts lucidly and charitably, arguing for a traditional understanding of justification that centers upon the remission of personal guilty. The book is a good introduction to the topic for pastors, seminarians, and other informed Christians.

Brilliant, insightful, truthful, rigorous. Better than I hoped.

Really good book. Lots about 1 century Judaism. Seems like a fair book.

Stephen Westerholm, "Justification Reconsidered: Rethinking a PaulineTheme", Eerdmans (Grand Rapids: Michigan), 2013.This is a superbly written and important treatment of the Apostle Paul'steaching on "justification". Westerholm writes with wonderful economyof words, clarity of thought, and gentle wit. This is a slim book ofonly 99 pages. It contains a few footnotes (on the same page as they arereferenced on), and a Scripture index.Westerholm defends an "old perspective" or "Reformed" understanding ofjustification, and he does so primarily using exegetical argumentsconcerning Paul's teaching. His arguments interact with various "newperspective" readings, including Stendahl's, Dunn's and Wright's, andin a very short chapter he introduces and provides an initial yethelpful critique of Campbell's attack on what Campbell calls"justification theory". Westerholm's book is primarily a positivetreatment of what Paul teaches about the justification of believers,and this book can be used as an introduction to this subject. However,it does so while making a number of pointed and telling remarks againstthe dogmas of "new perspective on Paul" scholarship.The chapters of Westerholm's book are as follows:1. The Peril of Modernizing Paul2. A Jewish Doctrine?3. Are "Sinners" all that Sinful?4. Justified by Faith5. Not by Works of the Law6. Justification and Justification Theory7. In a NutshellChapter 1 contains a rapid positive overview of Paul's teaching onsoteriology, and on justification in particular. Stendahl's argument thatjustification is not to do with salvation, for unlike Martin Luther,Paul did not have an introspective conscience worried about hissalvation, and hence his teaching on justification was not concernedwith addressing the problem of finding a gracious God. Westerholm'sprincipal point is that it was objective judgement that Paul'sdoctrine addressed, not subjective worries about judgement, and henceStendahl's argument is beside the point.Chapter 2 addresses E.P. Sanders's arguments that Judaism had acovenantal nomistic pattern, which recognised grace in theestablishment of the covenant, and hence was not "legalistic", andhence, Paul's teaching on justification could not be contrasting agracious justification with the Jewish legalistic one. Westerholm'sprincipal point is that there is a vast difference between salvationby grace + works (in covenantal nomism), and salvation by grace thatexcludes works (in Paul). In other words, Paul's concept of grace ismore profound and rigorous.Chapter 3 addresses Paul understanding of how profoundly sinful humanbeings are, and argues that the inability of the Jews (along with therest of the human race) to earn a declaration of being righteousbecause they actually are righteous, is what necessitates God to useanother basis in the gospel for declaring them righteous - ajustification not based on works.Chapter 4 addresses what righteousness and justification means - andshows from numerous biblical texts that N.T. Wright's idea that to bedeclared righteous means to be declared to be in God's covenantcommunity simply cannot be right. Westerholm notes how justificationis conditional on faith and not on works, and argues that this doesnot mean that faith has been turned into a work and made the ground onwhich God's declaration is based.Chapter 5 addresses James D.G. Dunn's position that in certain Paulinetexts "the works of the law" means the boundary markerlaws. Westerholm argues instead that they are all the righteous deedsthat the Mosaic law requires. Westerholm is critical of the way thatLuther immediately jumps from "works of the Law" to "all moral works",but recognises that this is indeed a corollary that follows fromPaul's teaching about the "works of the Mosaic law" not justifying(because of the sinfulness of human beings, and their inability toplease God in that way).In chapter 6, Westerholm provides a brief introduction to, andcritique of Douglas A. Campbell's arguments against what he calls"justification theory" in his massive "The Deliverance of God".Westerholm's points are: a) contra Campbell, we do not have to choosebetween a just God (who acts in justification), and a good God (whoacts to save) - Paul sees the Law as both good and just; furthermorehe sees God's goodness and justice at work in justification too; andb) justification by faith is not justification on easier terms, asCampbell portrays "justification theory" - rather faith is itself agift from God, called into being by the proclamation of the gospel.The final paragraph of Westerholm's book helpfully summarises the mainpoints he makes. Having re-articulated an old perspective understandingof justification, he writes:"In spite of recent challenges, I believe that such an understandingof Paul's doctrine of justification does better justice to the Paulinetexts. It cannot be dismissed by the claim that the ancients were notconcerned to find a gracious God (how could they not be, in face ofpending divine judgment); or that it wrongly casts first century Jewsas legalists (its target is rather the sinfulness of all humanbeings); or that non-Christian Jews, too, depended on divine grace (ofcourse they did, but without Paul's need to distinguish grace fromworks); or that "righteousness" means "membership in the covenant"(never did, never will) and the expression "works of the law" refersto boundary markers of the Jewish people (it refers to all the"righteous" deeds required by the law as its path torighteousness)."He goes on in the paragraph to note a couple of good points thatmodern scholars have made about justification, and then reaffirms thatnevertheless, the meaning of justification is that "God declaressinners righteous apart from righteous deeds, when they believe inJesus Christ."In summary, this is an excellent book - important, sound, andwell-written. It could work as an introduction to Paul's teaching onjustification, but its real merit lies in the way it shows numerousinadequacies in the "New Perspective" position that some scholars haveargued and adopted. As Simon Gathercole observes in his review, it"throws down the gauntlet to the New Perspectivists." He then asks"How will they respond?" One can only hope it will be as brief, witty,exegetical, and as free of caricatures of its opponents as this little bookmanages.

All fine.

This is a brief but weighty argument against the New Perspective take on justification in Paul. But I also thought it identified the many positives that have come from the NPP, and the result is a careful, thorough, and thoroughly readable argument from the scriptures.