MENU

DIVINE RIGHTEOUSNESS AND FORGIVENESS: THE OLD TESTAMENT BACKGROUND OF HILASTēRION IN ROMANS 3:25

by MICHAEL C. MULDER in Vol. 7 No. 2 / Oct 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35285/ucc7.2.2021.art3



We start with an analysis of the term righteousness of God in Romans 3:21–26. The righteousness as a gift to believers (genitive of source, verses 21–22) is founded on the righteousness that characterizes his being (subjective genitive, verses 24–25). However, God’s righteousness should not always be interpreted as God’s covenantal faithfulness. For the apostle, divine righteousness brings salvation and leads to judgment, as it does in the Old Testament. There the hilastērion, the ark cover, brings these attributes together. After investigating the background, we describe Paul’s use of the image (Rom 3:25) with the help of Jewish sources. In Christ, divine justice and mercy come together in this image. Finally, we ask to whom it applies.

Keywords
(Day Of) Atonement, Forgiveness, Jewish Sources, Mercy Seat, Propitiation, Romans 3, Righteousness Of God, Hilastērion, Reconciliation, Sacrifice
Download PDF Downloaded 184 times.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.


Back to Article List Download Journal

Other Articles in
Vol. 7 No. 2 / Oct 2021

Guest Editorial: Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, 1851–1921 by PAUL HELM
Overcoming the World: Bavinck on Faith and Knowledge by HENK VAN DEN BELT
How Did God Hate Esau (Malachi 1:2–3)? by RON BERGEY
Divine Righteousness and Forgiveness: The Old Testament Background of Hilastērion in Romans 3:25 by MICHAEL C. MULDER
New England Election Sermons: A Model for a Public Pulpit by TIMON CLINE
Judgment and Mercy: Spurgeon’s Preaching of Hell by JEREMY WALKER
Böhl on Justification and Regeneration: Some Implications for Preaching and Pastoring by MEINE VELDMAN
Preaching and Definitive Sanctification by MICHAEL CHRIST
Spiritual Disciplines for Holiness in the Life of a Minister by JOEL R. BEEKE
Preaching to All of the Heart by A. CRAIG TROXEL
The Priority of Preaching in the Church’s Global Mission by JOHN CURRIE
The Stigmatization of HIV/AIDS Victims in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Gospel by PHILLIPUS J. BUYS
The Challenge of Communicating Christ in Melanesian Culture by RYAN DEJONGE
Interview with Timothy J. Keller by PETER A. LILLBACK
Edmund P. Clowney’s Triangle of Typology in Preaching and Biblical Theology by VERN S. POYTHRESS
Book Review: John Calvin. Crucified and Risen: Sermons on the Death, Resurrection and Ascension of Christ. by PAUL WELLS
Book Review: David J. Hesselgrave and Leanna Davis. We Evangelicals and Our Mission: How We Got to Where We Are and How to Get to Where We Should Be Going. by ARJAN DE VISSER
Book Review: Matthew D. Kim and Daniel L. Wong. Finding Our Voice: A Vision for Asian North American Preaching by STEVEN S. JO
Book Review: Robert Letham. Systematic Theology. by ARNOLD HUIJGEN