In comparison with the defects and impurity of the world, he is the perfectly pure and spotless One. Holiness is also a transitive attribute of God. Holiness is that attribute in God by which in all his relations to moral beings he maintains and realizes his ethical perfection. It is therefore directed not merely to the conquest and eradication of sin, but to the creation and perfection of the highest good and the kingdom of God. Thus, it has been affirmed that God may be merciful but he must be just.
Mercy is therefore optional, but justice is necessitated.
Holiness and love have also been related to each other as distinct attributes of God, but yet not as implying conflict or requiring reconciliation. God's action in redemption thus equally expresses both qualities, and each of these is as fundamental as the other. The reason for this is not far to seek. It is an anachronism in the doctrine of the atonement to set holiness over against love, as having to be satisfied ere love can come to expression. On the other hand, to express the divine purpose of love to set This document is from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library at Calvin College.