Some Objections to Baptism Part 1

Those who oppose the place which the Bible gives to Baptism in the plan of salvation offer several fairly standard objections which they believe in their hearts mitigates against that position. Most often, they will take a Scripture verse or two out of its context and offer that as proof that the rest of the New Testament doesn't really mean what it says on the subject. In this article we will examine, and refute, a few of these objections. I have had these presented to me in personal debate and discussion, as well as online in comments on other articles and going all the way back to the old Usenet newsgroups.

Before we begin I’d like to say a few words about language. I try in most of my articles not to go into the Greek and Hebrew too much. Most folks are not Bible scholars nor educated in those languages and dealing with it too much tends to make people’s eyes glaze over. However in some topics its unavoidable…and this is one such topic. When I’ve had to do it I’ve included reference numbers from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to help…a great Bible study tool available online. I also strictly cover this subject from the Bible since most people who you will discuss this subject with will likely be Sola Scriptura proponents who will not accept the words of the Magisterium or Sacred Tradition.

1. "Where Did Peter Get His 'Good Conscience' From Before Salvation?"

“Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” (1 Peter 3:21)

A lot has been made by some denominationalists of the phrase "the answer of a good conscience toward God" in the KJV translation, saying that a person must be already saved before they can answer with a good conscience. Their whole rejection of Peter's words here (after all, he says that baptism IS part of the plan of salvation when he says that "baptism doth also now save us" even in the KJV) has centered on that phrase. In the original Greek the underlined phrase above uses the word "eperotema" (Strong 1906). This word, translated as "answer" in the KJV, is defined in the Greek Lexicon:

Definition:
1.an enquiry, a question
2. a demand
3. earnestly seeking
4. craving, an intense desire

You will note that none of the choices say "an answer". In fact, they say just the opposite, don't they? What the KJV has translated as "answer of a good conscience toward God" is more accurately "earnestly seeking or craving a good conscience toward God". Now, I know what the response from the denominationalists will be on this... so let's see how other translations handle this phrase:

1.“Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you -- not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience -- through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” (NASB)
2. “and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also--not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” (NIV)
3. “And, corresponding to that figure, the water of baptism now saves you — not the washing off of material defilement, but the craving of a good conscience after God — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” (Weymouth NT in Modern Speech)
4. “Whereunto baptism, being of the like form, now saveth you also: not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but, the examination of a good conscience towards God by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” (Douay-Rheims)

I’m not a big fan of folks saying that some verse should be better translated in a way that agrees with their doctrine….when no translation renders the verse in their favor. However, here it is clear that the better translation of the phrase supported by the majority of translators doesn't give the notion of "a good conscience answering toward God" but rather the seeking OF a good conscience toward God. How? By obeying the command of Jesus and Peter and following the examples set for us in the Book of Acts of all who became Christians in the early church: Repent, confess and be baptized. Only by obedience can we receive this "good conscience" that we seek from God. This is what Peter said and this is what Peter meant!

In the next article we’ll look at another verse where some employ the “better translated as” argument to undermine the words of Peter: Acts 2:38.