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  • From: "Bill Ross" <wross AT farmerstel.com>
  • To: "Corpus-paul" <corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: RE: HILASTERION
  • Date: Wed, 31 Mar 1999 22:00:17 -0600


{Jim}
but the whole concept of the "hilasterion" is that of expiation and not
propitiation. It is an act of carrying away and not one of appeasing an
angry God who has to eat the sacrifice to survive.

{Bill}
* "carrying away sin" is not a foreign concept to Hebrews because there was
a "scape goat" in the OT, but much more common and more central to both the
OT and the NT is the concept of the shedding of the blood of an innocent

* God's just wrath against sin and sinners is also a universal Biblical
theme

* Nothing was said about God eating sacrifices to survive, either on this
list or in the context of OT or NT sacrifices

My view, which I have presented here since Post #1 is that:

* in God's great love and grace, He was willing to forgive sin
* He promised to count faith as righteousness
* He set forth His Son as a vindication to public justice for His
forbearance

His wrath against sin is His public duty as Judge of all the earth.

Forgiveness of sins is a gracious act on His part.

{Jim}
wow- i had no idea i was using an authoritarian tone. i certainly wasn't at
any rate. i was simply stating the case as i see it.

{Bill}
Sorry, Jim, ya came off kinda strong. :-) Forget I mentioned it.

{Jim}
the very idea of propitiation is utterly foreign to hebrew theology- not to
mention Paul's own theology.

{Bill}
The word "HILASTERION" is the word used in the LXX 22 times to translate
KIPPORETH, or "cover."

The only other NT example is Heb 9:5:

Heb 9:
5 And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the **mercyseat**; of which
we cannot now speak particularly.

What was this "mercyseat" or "cover?" It was a *place* where men found a
gracious God meeting with a suppliant, contrite high priest, offering
innocent blood. Everything in the OT was cleansed by blood. Without the
shedding of blood there was no remission of sins. Innocent blood. Is this
pagan? Or is it Judeo-Christian? If we imagine that the blood "bought God
off" then we have a pagan image. If we see God forbearing in mercy and
remitting the sins of those of faith (which He is just to do because of the
sacrifice of Christ on the behalf of the sins of the world), we have
justification by faith.

The word "HILASTERION" is a cognate with "HILASKOMAI" meaning to secure the
happiness and good will of (propitate), and "HILASKOMOS" which was a sin
offering that repaired a broken relationship (propitiation).

So our relationship with God is repaired and God is "happy to see us"
because our sins are not imputed because of faith.

{Bill}
>If it is "mercy-seat," then Christ's blood is the atonement thereon;
>If it is "propitiation," then Christ is the satisfaction of the public
sense
>of justice;
>If it is "expiation" [which I personally find weak], then Christ is the
>basis of our forgiveness.

{Jim}
it is in fact the latter choice, which you deem the weakest, that is most in
line with the overall thinking of paul, and for that matter, the author of
hebrews and the various writers of the catholic epistles. take a look at
Bultmann's Theology of the NT. Further, see Adolf Schlatter's "Der Glaube
im NT". Likewise, take a look at Kasemann's "Romans". Finally, read Jurgen
Becker's "Paul".

{Bill}
In your own words:

* did Paul have the lid of the ark of the covenant in mind when he penned
Romans 3:25?
* did he have a concept of the shedding of innocent blood in mind?
* did he have the concept of justifying God to forgive sins on the basis of
faith in mind?





  • RE: HILASTERION, Bill Ross, 03/31/1999

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