Dear Editor,
In his review of the Christian Standard Bible (en February), Vernon Wilkins bemoans the replacement of “propitiation” by “atonement”.
Like many, he has missed a key fact: the human authors of the New Testament knew that the Greek words traditionally rendered “propitiation” and “mercy seat” were those that the Septuagint used to translate the Hebrew words that Tyndale rendered as “atonement” and “mercy seat”. Using similar expressions in New Testament translations fulfils the intention of the original by pointing the (modern English-speaking) reader to the Old Testament scriptures which inform our understanding of the New.
The first English New Testament to use the word “propitiation” was the 1582 Rheims-Douay translation of the Vulgate, which slavishly anglicised the Latin to outdo even the ESV by using “propitiation” five times; sadly, King James’ hatred of the Geneva Bible appears to have led his translators to follow the Rheims-Douay. Nevertheless, despite the enormous influence of the KJV, “propitiation” never became embedded in the English language while Tyndale’s “atonement” became a major theological term and resonated in the minds of our best hymn-writers: I can’t count the number of hymns I know that use the word; I can’t think of a single one which uses “propitiation”.
The use of “propitiation” in Bible translations has become a shibboleth, but would its advocates really like to see all Tyndale’s (far from literal) “atonements” and “mercy seats” replaced with “propitiations” and “propitiatory lids”?
Yours sincerely,
Andrew J. Proud
Bristol
Response
April 2025
Dear Editor,
In his letter (April en), Andrew Proud quite rightly points out that the use of “propitiation” in hymns is rare. For many years, our church used Gadsby’s Selection. I found one hymn in there which uses the term: hymn 130 by Joseph Hart. Praising the character and offices of Jesus Christ, verse two reads:
He is the Son to free,
The Bishop he to bless,
The full Propitiation he,
The Lord our Righteousness,
His body’s glorious Head,
Our Advocate that pleads,
Our Priest that prayed, atoned and bled,
And ever intercedes.
For some years now we have used Psalms and Hymns of Reformed Worship. I could not find “propitiation”, but hymn 674 comes close with “propitious” in verse 4.
By influence of the Light divine,
Let your own light to others shine;
Reflect all Heaven’s propitious rays
In ardent love and cheerful praise.
Composed by Thomas Ken, the last verse is familiar to us all;
Praise God from Whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him, all creatures here below,
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host,
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Yours sincerely,
Matthew Aldridge
Pastor – Westoning Baptist Church
May 2025
Dear Editor,
In his letter (en March 2025), Andrew Proud bemoans my bemoaning of the CSB’s replacement of ‘propitiation’ by ‘atonement’. I protest! I bemoaned not! I am a great fan of the word ‘atonement’, and have a zillion times explained Tyndale’s invention of the term in my own Bible teaching, and its meaning.
William Tyndale is my greatest-Christian-hero of all time. My point was perplexity that the CSB used "mercy seat" – an equally obscure term as propitiation to most lay folk – instead of atonement on that one occasion. So, I fully agree with Andrew’s point, except for his interpretation of the review! The ESV is not my favourite Bible translation, except for study purposes sometimes. The NIV used to be my favourite, at least for reading, but the CSB is now.
Yours sincerely,
Vernon Wilkins
By email
July 2025
Dear Editor,
May I offer to Vernon Wilkins my apologies for misunderstanding his review of the CSB and my thanks for correcting me.
I have met so many people who object to Bible translations which do not use the word “propitiation” that I assumed that his mere statement of fact implied a criticism. I am delighted to learn that this was not the case.
Yours sincerely,
Andrew J Proud
By email
