Mark 16:16 He that believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believes not shall be damned. It must not be forgotten that there is a broad distinction between a penalty and a consequence, as those terms are commonly understood. When Christ said, "He that believeth not shall be damned," He announced a consequence. He did not threaten a penalty in the usual acceptation of the term. A consequence is the direct and inevitable result of certain processes, partaking of their very nature, and inseparable from them; but a penalty may possibly be something different, something arbitrarily superadded, regardless of adaptation or measure. Being chilled is a consequence of exposure to cold air, but being flogged for such exposure is a penalty. Eternal punishment is the consequence of rejecting the gospel, not a penalty (in the low sense of revenge) attached to a crime. (J. Parker, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.WEB: He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned. |
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