What is propitiation according to the bible?

Propitiation is a rich theological word which is at the heart of the gospel. Seldom do we use propitiation in our day to day conversation with others. A good understanding of the biblical term will help you to comprehend the meaning of the message of the gospel. Let us look at some of the places in the bible where propitiation appears. In the book of Romans, it is written: Whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed (Romans 3; 25).

In the book of 1 John: And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world (1 John 2; 2).

''In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins'' (1 John 4; 10).

And in the book of Hebrews: Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people (Hebrews 2; 17).

What is propitiation?

Propitiation is the act of appeasing the wrath of a deity, in order to be reconciled to him. Propitiation conveys the idea of appeasement and reconciliation. The bible reveals that God is holy and we are not. The bible tells us that the entire human race have sinned against God (Romans 3; 23). We have violated God's holy laws, and we deserve nothing, but death. God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7; 11) his wrath abideth upon us (John 3; 36). We deserve to spend eternity in hell as a just punishment for our sins, for the wages of sin is death (Romans 6; 23). God's wrath against us must be satisfied, it must be propitiated, his wrath must be placated, lest there will be no hope for us.

No amount of good works we performed, propitiated his righteous wrath against us. Some one might argue that the sacrifices offered under the law satisfied God's wrath. In the tabernacle, there were two courts, namely the holy place and the most holy place (Hebrews 9; 2-3). In the most holy place was where the ark of the covenant was situated. The ark of the covenant was a little box which contained the tables of the covenant (Hebrews 9; 4). On the top of the ark of the covenant was the mercy seat overlaid with pure gold, with two cherubim's at both ends of the mercy seat, with their wings spread upwards, covering the mercy seat and with their faces turned towards the mercy seat. 

On the day of "Yom Kippur" , ''Yom'' means "day" and ''Kippur'' means, " atonement" which means that on the day of atonement which happens once every year, only the high Priest was mandated to enter within the veil into the most holy place. When he enters within the veil into the most holy place, he carries the blood of dead animals and sprinkles it on the mercy seat, and God manifests his presence over the mercy seat, and the sins of the people were temporarily forgiven. All those blood sacrifices offered year by year were impossible to propitiate God's wrath and for their sins to be forgiven once and for all time. Those animal sacrifices could never placate the wrath of God against sin, but pictured the only sacrifice which could appease God's wrath against sin. 

Those sacrifices were prophetic symbol which pointed to the only sacrifice which could pacify God's wrath and also wash away our sins. In the ark of the covenant was the tables of covenant. It was kept there to serve as a reminder of how we have violated God's laws. God is holy and just, every violation to his law must be punished, lest he will be unjust. The offender must be punished or another person can be punished in his or her behalf. How can God mete out punishment and still be gracious towards the offender? How can justice and mercy be reconciled? How can God pour out his indignation against sin, and still justify us? These are deep theological questions which is at the heart of the gospel. Many people view God as a God of love, but fails to recognize that he is also a just God who will by no means suffer sin to go unpunished.

Jesus Christ is our propitiation 

As I wrote afore that there was nothing we could do, no amount of good deeds was enough to placate God's wrath against us. The only sacrifice that can propitiate God's wrath was the sacrifice he himself provided, it was the sacrifice of his own Son Jesus Christ. An excellent author wrote this, ''The doctrine of propitiation is precisely this that God loved the objects of his wrath so much that he gave his own Son to the end that He by his blood should make provision for the removal of his wrath'' (John Murray).  Paul wrote by the Spirit: Whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed (Romans 3; 25). The Greek word for "propitiation" in this text is "Hilasterion" and it means the "Lid of the ark in the temple which is the "mercy seat". It was on the mercy seat that God's wrath was to be satisfied. God in the fulness of time, set forth Christ as our Mercy seat, his atoning sacrifice alone propitiated God's wrath against sinners.

Jesus Christ was oppressed and afflicted, he was wounded for our transgressions and was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon him and by his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53; 5). Peter wrote concerning how Jesus placated God's wrath against us in these words: And He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed (1 Peter 2; 24). 

Jesus bore the just punishment of our sins in his own self, so God's justice can be satisfied. In the words of Paul: He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5; 21). Jesus was made sin, because God imputed our sins into his body, he exhausted the wrath of God against sin in his own self. The death of Christ alone in our place satisfied the wrath of God against us. Propitiation is not something man can do, it is something which only God can do. God propitiated his own wrath by the death of Christ in our place. Jesus sacrifice was acceptable to him, it was the only sacrifice which took his wrath away from us. His justice was fully satisfied in the death of Christ in our place. 

All the sins of his people committed prior to the coming of Christ, and our sins were all punished in the body of Christ. Our sins are expiated and God's wrath have been propitiated through the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ. The crucifixion of Christ is the proof of how much God hates sin and will not suffer sin to go unpunished. Once you trust in Christ for salvation, your sins are not only forgiven but God's wrath is taken away from you, for he is the propitiation for our sins. I love what Burk Parsons wrote, "God is holy, he requires propitiation for his wrath against us for our sin against him. And because God is love, He propitiated his wrath against us in Jesus Christ who took our sins and nailed it to the cross". But whoever rejects the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ will have to pay for their own sins, by spending eternity in the lake of fire. God bless you 

A thought to ponder 🤔 

God propitiated his own wrath by the death of Christ in our place

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