Noun built from the same root as hilastērion. A means of atonement. The translation decision to render it propitiation imports the Reformed framework into the English text.
The full definition
Hilasmos is a Greek noun built on the same root as hilastērion — the verb hilaskomai, to purify, to atone, to make propitious. Where hilastērion points to a specific place (the mercy seat), hilasmos points to the means. It shows up in 1 John 2:2 ("He is the hilasmos for our sins") and 1 John 4:10. Most English Bibles translate it "propitiation," which drags the Reformed wrath-absorption framework into the text. Better translations (NRSV, NET, 1984 NIV) render it "atoning sacrifice," which is closer to what the word actually does.
The Greek does not demand "propitiation." That meaning was imported by translators committed to a specific theological framework. In the Septuagint, the word family around hilaskomai maps to the kaf-peh-resh root in Hebrew — covering, atonement, cleansing. Yochanan is not saying Yeshua turned away God's anger. Yochanan is saying Yeshua is the means of purification, and not only for us, but for the whole world. The image is the altar. The image is the kapporet. The image is the door re-opened. It is not the judge's gavel coming down.
Key passages
- 1 John 2:2
- 1 John 4:10
- Leviticus 25:9 (LXX)
- Numbers 5:8 (LXX)