The Justice of God: A Fresh Look at the Old Doctrine of Justification by Faith

by James D.G. Dunn

The biblical theme of justification by faith is all too often regarded as a consumer commodity, as a private transaction between God and the individual. The result is that the social dimension is left, often with disastrous consequences, to market forces. / Certain that justification is inseparable from justice, the authors of this book have teamed up to deliver an emphatic restatement of the relational nature of justification and its interaction with communal and social justice. / In Part One James D. G. Dunn critiques Luther's "discovery" of the doctrine of justification by faith, showing how he overlooked the social dimension that is part and parcel of Paul's message. A careful look at Old Testament themes recovers an understanding of justification and justice that has national and social as well as individual outworkings. / In Part Two Alan M. Suggate offers Nazi Germany, militarist Japan, and 1980s Britain as three modern case studies that demonstrate (at times appallingly so) the distorted nature of justice that can result from an inadequate understanding of justification. This analysis clearly shows how a fresh restatement of the interaction of justification and justice could have fruitful consequences for worldwide social justice.

Genres: Theology

96 pages, Paperback

First published July 15, 1994

About the author

James D. G. ("Jimmy") Dunn (born 1939) was for many years the Lightfoot Professor of Divinity in the Department of Theology at the University of Durham. Since his retirement he has been made Emeritus Lightfoot Professor. He is a leading British New Testament scholar, broadly in the Protestant tradition. Dunn is especially associated with the New Perspective on Paul, along with N. T. (Tom) Wright and E. P. Sanders. He is credited with coining this phrase during his 1982 Manson Memorial Lecture.

Dunn has an MA and BD from the University of Glasgow and a PhD and DD from the University of Cambridge. For 2002, Dunn was the President of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, the leading international body for New Testament study. Only three other British scholars had been made President in the preceding 25 years.

In 2005 a festschrift was published dedicated to Dunn, comprising articles by 27 New Testament scholars, examining early Christian communities and their beliefs about the Holy Spirit. (edited by Graham N. Stanton, Bruce W. Longenecker & Stephen Barton (2004). The Holy Spirit and Christian origins: essays in honor of James D. G. Dunn. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. ISBN 0-8028-2822-1.)

Dunn has taken up E. P. Sanders' project of redefining Palestinian Judaism in order to correct the Christian view of Judaism as a religion of works-righteousness. One of the most important differences to Sanders is that Dunn perceives a fundamental coherence and consistency to Paul's thought. He furthermore criticizes Sanders' understanding of the term "justification", arguing that Sanders' understanding suffers from an "individualizing exegesis".

Reviews

[Greg Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chapter two and three in particular are worth checking out if you are interested in the justification "debate".

[Sev-Av Nongo · Rating 5 out of 5]

The authors of this book have teamed up to deliver an emphatic restatement to the rational nature of justification and how it applies to social justice. Christianity does not begin with believing in our might of winning God’s final mark. Rather it begins with the recognition that we can never be successful working our way to Heaven based on our own strength but by the power of God that justifies the unrighteous. God offers to accept the wicked as they are and starts to renew them from that point

[Tomas Adamek · Rating 4 out of 5]

The point is well made and brought home by three compelling case studies. Should be read alongside Porter's critique though, to strike the middle ground.

[Tim Stafford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Proof once again that (some of the) British academics can write. Quite eloquent--a simple but not simplistic summary of some insights that come from growing understandings of Paul and what Luther got wrong. That makes it sound technical, but it's not, it's quite practical.

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good brief introduction to the "new perspective on Paul." Easy to read, and accessible for the non-scholar.

[Dave Pettengill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good intro into the topic of Justification

[Радостин Марчев · Rating 5 out of 5]

Стара, кратка и много леко написана книжка, но с много точни попадения.