2 Corinthians 5:21 Explained: Jesus Did NOT Become Sin For Us.
Verse
2 Corinthians 5:21
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Their Argument:
"This verse clearly tells us that Jesus became a sinner for us. This is proof that he took our past, present, and future sins and paid for them on the cross."
Our Response:
This is a passage of scripture that is highly debated among scholars. In this article, we will be presenting the arguments for why this passage does not mean that Jesus became a sinner.
1. The Original Text.
In 2 Corinthians 5:21, the words "to be", are not in the original text and the word "sin" can also be translated as "sin offering". (The New Living Translation and Berean Annotated Bible use this translation) If this is the correct translation, the verse would read:
"For our sake he made him a sin offering who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."
But is this the correct way of reading the passage? I believe the next few arguments point to this being the case.
2. Jesus Christ was a pure offering without sin in Him.
1 John 3:4-5
Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
1 Peter 1:18-19
Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
Hebrews 9:13-14
For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Ephesians 5:2
and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
All of these passages point to Jesus Christ being a sinless, fragrant offering to God. There was no sin in Him and He was a lamb without blemish or spot. He was not a sinner taking our place but a sin offering that washes away our sins.
3. Righteousness and sin are not transferable.
Let's first look at the Old Testament's view on this.
Ezekiel 18:20-24
The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself. “But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness that he has done he shall live. Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? But when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice and does the same abominations that the wicked person does, shall he live? None of the righteous deeds that he has done shall be remembered; for the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has committed, for them he shall die.
Here we see that righteousness and sin are attached to what you do. If you choose a life of sin, you will die. If you choose to do what is right and obey God, your former sins will be forgotten, making you righteous. However, if after becoming righteous, you go back to your sins, your righteousness is forgotten and you will be held accountable for your sins.
No one was seen righteous by God while still remaining a sinner. There was no "hiding" under another's righteousness. Your actions are directly related to your moral status.
Now let's look at the New Testament:
1 John 3:7-8
Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
Galatians 6:7-8 and Galatians 5:19-24
Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Romans 6:16
Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
You cannot be righteous unless you are doing what is right. If you are committing sin, you are a slave to sin and of the devil. You will reap what you sow. If you think you can continue to sin till the day you die because you are hiding under the righteousness of Christ, think again.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.
Romans 2:13-16
For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:10
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
There is no one standing before the judge "in your place." You will not sneak into heaven with a righteousness that's not your own, nor enter illegally without meeting the requirements. It will be you and the deeds that you've done before the judge. Jesus can wash away your former sins, but you must continue from that point forward in obedience, serving Him and not sin.
4. If Jesus took our place, he couldn't have risen from the grave 3 days later.
Matthew 25:46
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
We deserve eternal punishment for our sins. If Jesus takes my place he must be eternally punished, either through conscious torment or annihilation. (We can save the hell debate for another article) This is a huge problem for those who believe in the Jesus paid it all theory. God lowering the punishment that Jesus has to suffer just because "He's my Son" would be unjust. Suffering on a cross for a few hours is not what I deserve, it's eternal punishment.
5. Forgiveness doesn't exist if Jesus has to "pay my fine."
If you owe me $100 and I decide to forgive your debt, you don't have to pay me back. However, if I demand that you pay me back the $100 and someone steps in and pays what you owe, the debt hasn't been forgiven; it has been paid. Forgiveness waives the demand for payment, whereas substitution satisfies it.
If Jesus is our substitute and pays our fine, then we are not forgiven of our sins. Which is a big problem as the bible mentions throughout that forgiveness happens.
Ephesians 1:7
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Colossians 2:13-14
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
This means Jesus couldn't have become a sinner in our place. The cross provides forgiveness and cleansing but not substitution or payment. Jesus cancels our debt of sin by forgiving us NOT by paying for it himself as a substitute.
Conclusion:
For all these reasons, it is not reasonable to believe that Jesus became sin for us, but that he became a sin offering. Translating the passage this way aligns with the rest of scripture and basic logic. At the end of the day, forgiveness is offered for those who will stop sinning. He who does what is right is righteous and he who sins is of the devil. You are a slave to whom you obey.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.
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