Letter 339

To Hypatius the Overseer [ephoros, an inspecting official]. The apostle Paul does not write "He who has died has been justified from sin" [Romans 6:7] because he thinks that all who have died have been justified; for in that case all the impious and lawless would indeed receive justification upon departing this life. Rather, he writes it because every person who no longer looks upon sin, on account of having ceased from base activity, since he seems to have been put to death as regards wicked deeds, this person is with good reason no longer designated a sinner but righteous. Understand, then, what has been written in this way: that he who has died to sin, inasmuch as he no longer practices it, has been justified.

Οὐχ ὅτι πάντας τοὺς θανόντας δεδικαιῶσθαι οἰόμενος ὁ ἀπόστολος Παῦλος γράφει, ὅτι «Ὁ ἀποθανὼν δεδικαίωται ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας·» ὄντως γὰρ ἂν ἅπαντες ἀσεβεῖς, καὶ παράνομοι δεδικαιῶσθαι δέξουσιν ἐξελθόντες τοῦ βίου· ἀλλ’ ὅτι πᾶς ἄνθρωπος μηκέτι ὁρῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, διὰ τὸ παύσασθαι τῆς φαύλης ἐνεργείας, ὡς δοκῶν νενεκρῶσθαι ταῖς πονηραῖς πράξεσιν, οὗτος οὐκέτι ἁμαρτωλός, ἀλλὰ δίκαιος εὐλόγως χρηματίζει. Οὕτως τοΐνυν νόησον τὸ γεγραμμένον, ὅτι Ὁ ἀποθανὼν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἐπειδήπερ μηκέτι πράττει αὐτήν, δεδικαίωται.