For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
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Cornelius a Lapide
AD 1637
For God sent not, &c. He confirms and intensifies the assertion of the infinite love of God to men, as proved by Christ"s being crucified. For God might justly have sent His Son into the world to destroy it for its great wickedness. For this was what His justice demanded, but the infinite love of God overcame justice in that it bestowed the highest blessing upon the world, which deserved the utmost extremity of punishment, in giving it salvation through Him.
Observe: the expression judge the world, as it is in the Vulgate, means to condemn, and destroy it in hell. It is opposed to the word saved. Hence S. Augustine observes that this was the end of Christ"s Incarnation, that all men might be saved, and that He earnestly desired and willed this. Wherefore it is of themselves, through their own fault, and not Christ"s, that many of them will be damned.
He that believeth . . . is not judged, shall not be condemned, but saved. But he that believeth not is judged, i.e, is condemned alread...
Having plainly called Himself the Son of God the Father, He thought not good to leave the word without witness, but brings forward proof from the quality, so to say, of the things themselves, making the hearers more steadfast unto faith. For I was not sent, saith He, like the law-expounder Moses, condemning the world by the law, nor introducing the commandment unto conviction of sin, nor do I perform a servile ministry, but I introduce loving-kindness befitting the Master: I free the embondaged, as Son and Heir of the Father, I transform the law that condemneth into grace that justifieth, I release from sin him that is holden with the cords of his transgressions, I am come to save the world, not to condemn it. For it was right, it was right, saith He, that Moses, as a servant, should be a minister of the law that condemns, but that I as Son and God should free the whole world from the curse of the law and, by exceedingness of lovingkindness, should heal the infirmity of the world. If t...
1. Many of the more careless sort of persons, using the lovingkindness of God to increase the magnitude of their sins and the excess of their disregard, speak in this way, There is no hell, there is no future punishment, God forgives us all sins. To stop whose mouths a wise man says, Say not, His mercy is great, He will be pacified for the multitude of my sins; for mercy and wrath come from Him, and His indignation rests upon sinners Sirach 5:6: and again, As His mercy is great, so is His correction also. Sirach 16:12 Where then, says one, is His lovingkindness, if we shall receive for our sins according to our deserts? That we shall indeed receive according to our deserts, hear both the Prophet and Paul declare; one says, You shall render to every man according to his work Psalm 62:12, Septuagint; the other, Who will render to every man according to his work. Romans 2:6 And yet we may see that even so the lovingkindness of God is great; in dividing our existence into two periods, th...
He that believeth on Him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God."
