How is it that Paul seeks to “magnify” sin, to “establish” sin in Romans? Luther’s reading of the human situation disallowed the kind of watered-down, attenuated doctrine of original sin that had come to prevail in nominalist schemes of salvation in the late Middle Ages. For example, in his comment on Romans 5:12–14, Luther opposes those theologians who construe original sin as the mere absence of original righteousness. According to this teaching, original sin means that something is missing. It