"It will never do to plead sin as an excuse for sin, or to attempt to justify sinful acts by pleading that we have an evil heart. This instead of being a valid apology, is the very ground of our condemnation"
About this Quote
No escape hatch is being offered here - only a trapdoor. Archibald Alexander, a leading early American Presbyterian voice, is policing a familiar rhetorical move: admitting depravity as if the admission itself cancels responsibility. In a tradition that takes original sin seriously, "I have an evil heart" can sound like humility. Alexander flips it into an indictment. If sin is real, then using sinfulness as your defense is like pleading arson as a reason you had to set the fire.
The intent is pastoral and prosecutorial at once. Pastoral, because he’s trying to block a kind of spiritual fatalism: the believer who shrugs, indulges, and then baptizes the indulgence with a doctrine. Prosecutorial, because he insists the doctrine cuts the other way. An evil heart isn’t an alibi; it’s evidence. The phrasing "never do" has the tone of courtroom pragmatism, not mystical musing - as if he’s warning, Don’t try that argument before a judge who understands the law.
The subtext is a disciplinary shot across the bow at cheap grace. Alexander is defending a moral economy where confession isn’t performance and theology can’t be weaponized to lower the bar. In the revival-scarred early 19th century, with debates over human agency, conversion, and "backsliding" simmering, he’s drawing a bright line: doctrines about corruption are meant to drive repentance and vigilance, not provide cover. The harshness is the point. He wants the listener to feel that self-knowledge increases accountability, not dissolves it.
The intent is pastoral and prosecutorial at once. Pastoral, because he’s trying to block a kind of spiritual fatalism: the believer who shrugs, indulges, and then baptizes the indulgence with a doctrine. Prosecutorial, because he insists the doctrine cuts the other way. An evil heart isn’t an alibi; it’s evidence. The phrasing "never do" has the tone of courtroom pragmatism, not mystical musing - as if he’s warning, Don’t try that argument before a judge who understands the law.
The subtext is a disciplinary shot across the bow at cheap grace. Alexander is defending a moral economy where confession isn’t performance and theology can’t be weaponized to lower the bar. In the revival-scarred early 19th century, with debates over human agency, conversion, and "backsliding" simmering, he’s drawing a bright line: doctrines about corruption are meant to drive repentance and vigilance, not provide cover. The harshness is the point. He wants the listener to feel that self-knowledge increases accountability, not dissolves it.
Quote Details
| Topic | Ethics & Morality |
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