Pedeapsa cu moartea și problematica iertării păcatului sfidător deliberat

Abstract

The current study tackles two issues. The first one is the issue of the need for understanding the problem of the inexpiable sin and the application of the death penalty within the OT Israel. The main interest has been the searching for the criteria upon which this penalty was applied. Consequently, we have enquired into the way we could explain the differentiation between sins within the sin spectrum, considering different levels of guilt and moral responsibility, and then we have looked into the OT casuistry for some hints considering the application of the death penalty in the case of the defiant, inexpiable sin. The second issue of this paper is determined by the question regarding the far-reaching implications of the correct understanding of the first one for the field of applied theology: “Have I committed a sin too great for God to forgive?”, ”Am I too bad to be saved?” In the light of these questions one can understand why the stress upon the basis on which the types of sin have been differentiated according to the forgiveness and expiation wrought through OT Sanctuary services.

Keywords

• inadvertent sin
• defiant sin
• death penalty
• expiable/inexpiable