Chapter 48 [XLI.]—How the Term “All” Is to Be Understood.

His opponents adduced the passage, “All have sinned,”128    Rom. iii. 23. and he met their statement founded on this with the remark that “the apostle was manifestly speaking of the then existing generation, that is, the Jews and the Gentiles;” but surely the passage which I have quoted, “By one man sin entered the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men; in which all have sinned,”129    Rom. v. 12. embraces in its terms the generations both of old and of modern times, both ourselves and our posterity. He adduces also this passage, whence he would prove that we ought not to understand all without exception, when “all” is used:—“As by the offence of one,” he says, “upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of One, upon all men unto justification of life.”130    Rom. v. 18. “There can be no doubt,” he says, “that not all men are sanctified by the righteousness of Christ, but only those who are willing to obey Him, and have been cleansed in the washing of His baptism.” Well, but he does not prove what he wants by this quotation. For as the clause, “By the offence of one, upon all men to condemnation,” is so worded that not one is omitted in its sense, so in the corresponding clause, “By the righteousness of One, upon all men unto justification of life,” no one is omitted in its sense,—not, indeed, because all men have faith and are washed in His baptism, but because no man is justified unless he believes in Christ and is cleansed by His baptism. The term “all” is therefore used in a way which shows that no one whatever can be supposed able to be saved by any other means than through Christ Himself. For if in a city there be appointed but one instructor, we are most correct in saying: That man teaches all in that place; not meaning, indeed, that all who live in the city take lessons of him, but that no one is instructed unless taught by him. In like manner no one is justified unless Christ has justified him.131    Compare De Peccatorum Meritis et Remissione, i. 55.

CAPUT XLI.

48. Omnes quomodo accipiendum, in verbis Apostoli, de quibus movetur quaestio. Quod autem sibi opposuit ab eis dici, contra quos loquitur, Omnes enim peccaverunt (Id., III, 23): manifestum est quod de his dicebat Apostolus qui tunc erant, hoc est, de Judaeis et Gentibus. Sed plane illud quod commemoravi, Per unum hominem peccatum intravit in mundum, et per peccatum mors; et ita in omnes homines pertransiit, in quo omnes peccaverunt; et antiquos et recentiores, et nos et posteros nostros sententia ista complectitur. Ponit etiam illud testimonium, unde probet cum dicuntur omnes, non semper omnes omnino nullo praetermisso intelligi oportere. «Sicut per unius,» inquit, «delictum in omnes homines in condemnationem; sic et per unius justitiam in omnes homines in justificationem vitae.» Cum per Christi, inquit, justitiam, non omnes, sed eos tantum qui illi obedire voluerunt, et Baptismi ejus ablutione purgati sunt, sanctificatos esse non dubium sit. Non plane isto testimonio probat quod vult. Nam sicut dictum est, Sicut per unius delictum in omnes homines in condemnationem, ut nullus praetermitteretur: sic et in eo quod dictum est, per unius justitiam in omnes homines in justificationem vitae (Id. V, 18), nullus praetermissus est: non quia omnes in eum credunt et Baptismo ejus abluuntur, sed quia nemo justificatur nisi in eum 0271 credat et Baptismo ejus abluatur. Itaque omnes dictum est, ne aliquo modo alio praeter ipsum quisquam salvus fieri posse credatur. Sicut enim uno litterarum magistro in civitate constituto, rectissime dicimus, Omnes iste hic litteras docet; non quia omnes cives litteras diseunt, sed quia nemo discit, nisi quem ille docuerit: sic nemo justificatur, nisi quem justificaverit Christus.