A short post today to clarify what might be a point of confusion in Romans 5. In verse 18, Paul writes: "Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men" (ESV). The words "all men" might be a little confusing. The first bit of of confusion might be found in the term "men." Reading that word, some might wonder aren't women included in salvation? Why only men? The answer is found in first century usage of the word man. In Paul's time, the word man was used as a shorthand to include both men and women. As Paul says in Galatians 3, God does not discriminate between men and women when offering salvation though Jesus.
It is not just the word "men" that can be confusing though. The word "all" also might generate some questions. Is Paul preaching universal salvation here? Is he saying that every individual who ever lived will be made righteous through Jesus? All will find eternal life; none will find hell? At first glance it seems that way. After all, all means all. But it seems clear from the rest of Scripture that not everyone will be saved. Jesus spoke of separating the sheep from the goats and of people being sent to the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. He also said that the road to destruction was wide, suggesting that more are headed to destruction than not. So how can Paul say all are saved? The mystery is solved if we understand that Paul is not using the word all to refer to every individual but to instead to every nationality. Paul means all types of people will be saved. Individuals from every nationality will come to Jesus. This was a radical thought for a Pharisaical Jew like Paul. He grew up believing that very few if any Gentiles would receive God's approval. And the only way for a Gentile to get that approval was to convert to Judaism and submit to the Old Testament Law. Paul never imagined that God would open the door to salvation to the Gentiles. But through Jesus, He did. And so Paul preached that "all" (Gentiles not just Jews) would be saved.
Every Letter, Every Pen Stroke (Matthew 5:18)
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