Bible Encyclopedia: Propitiation

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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

PROPITIATION

pro-pish-i-a'-shun:

1. Terms and Meaning:

The word is Latin and brings into its English use the atmosphere of heathen rites for winning the favor, or averting the anger, of the gods. In the Old Testament it represents a number of Hebrew words-ten, including derivatives-which are sufficiently discussed under ATONEMENT (which see), of which propitiation is one aspect. It represents in Septuagint the Greek stems hilask- (hile-), and katallag-, with derivatives; in the New Testament only the latter, and is rarely used. Propitiation needs to be studied in connection with reconciliation, which is used frequently in some of the most strategic sentences of the New Testament, especially in the newer versions In Hebrews 2:17, the English Revised Version and the American Standard Revised Version have both changed "reconciliation" of the King James Version to "propitiation," to make it correspond with the Old Testament use in connection with the sacrifice on the DAY OF ATONEMENT (which see). Luke 18:13 ("God, be thou merciful (margin "be propitiated") to me the sinner" (the American Standard Revised Version margin)); Hebrews 8:12 (quoted from the Septuagint); and Matthew 16:22 (an idiomatic asseveration like English "mercy on us") will help in getting at the usage in the New Testament. In Septuagint hilasterion is the term for the "mercy-seat" or "lid of the ark" of the covenant which was sprinkled with blood on the Day of Atonement. It is employed in exactly this sense in Hebrews 9:5, where later versions have in the margin "the propitiatory."

Elsewhere in the New Testament this form is found only in Romans 3:25, and it is here that difficulty and difference are found extensively in interpreting. Greek fathers generally and prominent modern scholars understand Paul here to say that God appointed Christ Jesus to be the "mercy-seat" for sinners. The reference, while primarily to the Jewish ceremonial in tabernacle and temple, would not depend upon this reference for its comprehension, for the idea was general in religious thought, that some place and means had to be provided for securing friendly meeting with the Deity, offended by man's sin. In Hebrews particularly, as elsewhere generally, Jesus Christ is presented as priest and sacrifice. Many modern writers (compare Sanday and Headlam), therefore, object that to make Him the "mercy-seat" here complicates the figure still further, and so would understand hilasterion as "expiatory sacrifice." While this is not impossible, it is better to take the word in the usual sense of "mercy-seat." It is not necessary to complicate the illustration by bringing in the idea of priest at all here, since Paul does not do so; mercy-seat and sacrifice are both in Christ. hilasmos, is found in the New Testament only in 1 John 2:2; John 4:10. Here the idea is active grace, or mercy, or friendliness. The teaching corresponds exactly with that in Romans. "Jesus Christ the righteous" is our "Advocate (margin "Helper") with the Father," because He is active mercy concerning (peri) our sins and those of the whole world. Or (Romans 4:10), God "loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for (active mercy concerning) our sins." This last passage is parallel with Romans 3:25, the one dealing with the abstract theory, and so Christ is set forward as a "mercy-seat," the other dealing with experience of grace, and so Christ is the mercy of God in concrete expression.

2. Theological Implication:

The basal idea in Hebrew terms is that of covering what is offensive, so restoring friendship, or causing to be kindly disposed. The Greek terms lack the physical reference to covering but introduce the idea of friendliness where antagonism would be natural; hence, graciousness. Naturally, therefore, the idea of expiation entered into the concept. It is especially to be noted that all provisions for this friendly relation as between God and offending man find their initiation and provision in God and are under His direction, but involve the active response of man. All heathen and unworthy conceptions are removed from the Christian notion of propitiation by the fact that God Himself proposed, or "set forth," Christ as the "mercy-seat," and that this is the supreme expression of ultimate love. God had all the while been merciful, friendly, "passing over" man's sins with no apparently adequate, or just, ground for doing so. Now in the blood of Christ sin is condemned and expiated, and God is able to establish and maintain His character for righteousness, while He continues and extends His dealing in gracious love with sinners who exercise faith in Jesus. The propitiation originates with God, not to appease Himself, but to justify Himself in His uniform kindness to men deserving harshness. Compare also as to reconciliation, as in Romans 5:1-11 2 Corinthians 5:18;.

See also JOHANNINE THEOLOGY, V, 2.

LITERATURE.

Besides the comms., the literature is the same as for ATONEMENT, to recent works on which add Stalker, The Atonement; Workman, At Onement, or Reconciliation with God; Moberly, in Foundations, Christian Belief in Terms of Modern Thought.

William Owen Carver

Greek

2434. hilasmos -- propitiation
... propitiation. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: hilasmos Phonetic
Spelling: (hil-as-mos') Short Definition: a propitiation, atoning sacrifice ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2434.htm - 7k

2433. hilaskomai -- to be propitious, make propitiation for
... to be propitious, make propitiation for. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration:
hilaskomai Phonetic Spelling: (hil-as'-kom-ahee) Short Definition: I have mercy ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2433.htm - 7k

2435. hilasterion -- propitiatory
... Short Definition: a sin offering, covering Definition: (a) a sin offering, by which
the wrath of the deity shall be appeased; a means of propitiation, (b) the ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2435.htm - 7k

4266. proginomai -- to happen before
... in Ro 3:25). Ro 3:25,26: " 25 Whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation
in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4266.htm - 7k

448. anileos -- without mercy.
... 448 (from 1 , "without" and 2436 , "propitious, appeased") -- properly, without
propitiation (divine appeasement), ie without the mercy of God's -loyalty ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/448.htm - 6k

Strong's Hebrew

3722a. kaphar -- to cover over, pacify, make propitiation
... 3722, 3722a. kaphar. 3722b . to cover over, pacify, make propitiation.
Transliteration: kaphar Short Definition: atonement. Word ...
/hebrew/3722a.htm - 6k

3722. kaphar -- to cover over, pacify, make propitiation
... 3721, 3722. kaphar. 3722a . to cover over, pacify, make propitiation.
Transliteration: kaphar Phonetic Spelling: (kaw-far') Short Definition: appease. ...
/hebrew/3722.htm - 5k

Library

Christ as Paraclete, as Propitiation, and as the Power of God.
... Book I. 38. Christ as Paraclete, as Propitiation, and as the Power of God.
But none of the names we have mentioned expresses His ...
/.../origen/origens commentary on the gospel of john/38 christ as paraclete as.htm

"And He is the Propitiation,"
... Sermon XXVII. "And he is the propitiation,". 1 John 2:2.""And he is the
propitiation," &c. Here is the strength of Christ's plea ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xxvii and he is.htm

Appendix 4 1 John 2:2
... We have therefore decided to give it a detailed examination and exposition. "And
He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/pink/the sovereignty of god/appendix 4 1 john 2 2.htm

Psalm CXXX.
... 3. But wherefore is there hope? "For there is propitiation with Thee"
(ver.4). And what is this propitiation, except sacrifice? ...
/.../augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm cxxx.htm

Faith
... I begin with the first, faith in Jesus Christ. Whom God has set forth to
be a propitiation through faith in his blood.' Romans 3:25. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/watson/the ten commandments/4 1 faith.htm

That the Obscenities of those Plays which the Romans Consecrated ...
... This propitiation of such divinities,"a propitiation so wanton, so impure, so immodest,
so wicked, so filthy, whose actors the innate and praiseworthy virtue ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 27 that the obscenities of.htm

The Whole of that in which we Appear Before God, Justifies Us. But ...
... for the act of a judge, is either purely the imputation of righteousness, bestowed,
through mercy from the throne of grace in Christ the Propitiation, on a ...
/.../arminius/the works of james arminius vol 1/article xxv v the whole.htm

The Title "Word" is to be Interpreted by the Same Method as the ...
... Father, as thus: [4568] "And if any one sin, we have a Paraclete with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous," and he adds that He is a propitiation for our ...
/.../origen/origens commentary on the gospel of john/23 the title word is.htm

The Message and Its Practical Results
... And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2. And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but ...
/.../expositions of holy scripture ephesians peter/the message and its practical.htm

Book ii. Jerome Answers the Second, Third, and Fourth Propositions ...
... But if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
and he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also ...
/.../jerome/the principal works of st jerome/book ii jerome answers the.htm

Easton's Bible Dictionary

That by which God is rendered propitious, i.e., by which it becomes consistent with his character and government to pardon and bless the sinner. The propitiation does not procure his love or make him loving; it only renders it consistent for him to execise his love towards sinners.

In Romans 3:25 and Hebrews 9:5 (A.V., "mercy-seat") the Greek word hilasterion is used. It is the word employed by the LXX. translators in Exodus 25:17 and elsewhere as the equivalent for the Hebrew kapporeth, which means "covering," and is used of the lid of the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:21; 30:6). This Greek word (hilasterion) came to denote not only the mercy-seat or lid of the ark, but also propitation or reconciliation by blood. On the great day of atonement the high priest carried the blood of the sacrifice he offered for all the people within the veil and sprinkled with it the "mercy-seat," and so made propitiation.

In 1 John 2:2; 4:10, Christ is called the "propitiation for our sins." Here a different Greek word is used (hilasmos). Christ is "the propitiation," because by his becoming our substitute and assuming our obligations he expiated our guilt, covered it, by the vicarious punishment which he endured. (Comp. Hebrews 2:17, where the expression "make reconciliation" of the A.V. is more correctly in the R.V. "make propitiation.")

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) The act of appeasing the wrath and conciliating the favor of an offended person; the act of making propitious.

2. (n.) That which propitiates; atonement or atoning sacrifice; specifically, the influence or effects of the death of Christ in appeasing the divine justice, and conciliating the divine favor.

Topical Bible Verses

1 John 2:2
And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our's only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
Topicalbible.org

1 John 4:10
Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
Topicalbible.org

Romans 3:25
Whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Topicalbible.org

Thesaurus

Propitiation (4 Occurrences)
... The propitiation does not procure his love or make him loving; it only renders
it consistent for him to execise his love towards sinners. ...
/p/propitiation.htm - 15k

Reconciliation (11 Occurrences)
... reconciliation" represents the Greek hilaskomai, and is better rendered in the Revised
Version (British and American) by "to make propitiation.") The making ...
/r/reconciliation.htm - 30k

Reconcile (10 Occurrences)
... reconciliation" represents the Greek hilaskomai, and is better rendered in the Revised
Version (British and American) by "to make propitiation.") The making ...
/r/reconcile.htm - 29k

Mercyseat (1 Occurrence)
... and His people. See ATONEMENT; ATONEMENT, DAY OF; PROPITIATION; ARK OF THE
COVENANT. In Romans 3:25, Jesus is said to be set forth ...
/m/mercyseat.htm - 9k

Mercy-seat (23 Occurrences)
... and His people. See ATONEMENT; ATONEMENT, DAY OF; PROPITIATION; ARK OF THE
COVENANT. In Romans 3:25, Jesus is said to be set forth ...
/m/mercy-seat.htm - 16k

Mediation
... He alone can enter the Holy of Holies, and that alone once a year, on the Day of
Atonement, when he makes propitiation not only for himself and the priesthood ...
/m/mediation.htm - 38k

Mediator (7 Occurrences)
... He alone can enter the Holy of Holies, and that alone once a year, on the Day of
Atonement, when he makes propitiation not only for himself and the priesthood ...
/m/mediator.htm - 42k

Expiation (9 Occurrences)
... (see PROPITIATION.). Noah Webster's Dictionary. ... It will be sufficient to refer
to ATONEMENT; SACRIFICE; PROPITIATION. Multi-Version Concordance ...
/e/expiation.htm - 11k

Propitious (12 Occurrences)

/p/propitious.htm - 11k

Johannine
... Christ 2. In the First Epistle (1) A Divine Teacher (2) Other Aspects 3. The Person
of the Spirit His Deity Implied V. DOCTRINE OF SIN AND PROPITIATION 1. Sin 2 ...
/j/johannine.htm - 38k

Bible Concordance

Propitiation (4 Occurrences)

Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
(KJV ASV WBS NAS)

Hebrews 2:17 Wherefore it behooved him in all things to be made like unto his brethren, that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
(ASV DBY YLT NAS)

1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our's only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
(KJV ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS)

1 John 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
(KJV ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS)

Subtopics

Propitiantion

Propitiation

Propitiation: (Expiation, Sin-Offering))

Propitiation: Propitiatory

Related Terms

Reconciliation (11 Occurrences)

Reconcile (10 Occurrences)

Mercyseat (1 Occurrence)

Mercy-seat (23 Occurrences)

Mediation

Mediator (7 Occurrences)