self-justification vs exculpation

self-justification and exculpation both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
self-justification	Yes	No	No	No
exculpation	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, self-justification and exculpation are synonyms defined as:

self-justification and exculpation: a defense of some offensive behavior or some failure to keep a promise etc.

Other synonyms of self-justification include alibi, excuse.

self-justification (noun)	exculpation (noun)
a defense of some offensive behavior or some failure to keep a promise etc.	the act of freeing from guilt or blame
	a defense of some offensive behavior or some failure to keep a promise etc.