The Confession of the Faith of the Germans

For the hebrew word which Isaiah doth use in this place, betokeneth sacrifice for sin / which sacrifice in the law did betoken that there was a certain host or sacrifice to come, which should make satisfaction for our since / and should reconcile god / to the end that men should know, that not for our own righteousness, but for the merits of another, that is to wit of Jesus Christ, god is willing to be reconciled to us. Paul expoundeth the same hebrew word to signify or betoken sin in the viii. chapter to the Romans, saying, By sin he condemned sin, that is to say, •e punished sin by the host or sacrifice offered for sin.¹ The signification and strength of the word may be more easily perceived by the manners of the gentiles, which we see to have been taken of the words of the fathers not rightly understanded. Latin men did call piaculū,² ⟨image 180⟩that host or sacrifice which was offered in great calamities, to pacify the wrath of god, when god seemed to be exceedingly angry / and sometime they made sacrifice with mans blood, because peradventure they had her•e that the sacrificing of a man should in time cumming appease god to all mankind. The Greeks have called them in some place Catharmata / and in some place Peripsemata. Isaiah therefore and Paul do understand, that Christ was made an oblation or sacrifice, such as latin men do call Piaculum / that by his merits, and not by ours, god should be reconciled. Let this therefore remain and abide in the cause, that only the death of Christ is the very true propitiatory sacrifice. For those levitical propitiatory sacrifices were called so only to signify the very propitiatory sacrifice that was to come. And therefore by a certain similitude and likeness they were satisfactions redeeming the justice of the law, lest they which had offended should be excluded from that common weal. But these said sacrifices ought to cease after that the gospel was ones revealed and brought to light. And because they ought to cease at the time of the revelation of the gospel, they were not very propitiations, sith the gospel was therefore promised to give and show propitiation.

For the hebrue worde whiche Esaie dothe vse in this place, betokenith sacrifice for syn / whiche sacrifice ī the lawe dyd betoken that there was a certayne hoste or sacrifice to come, whiche shulde make satisfaction for our synnes / and shulde recōcile god / to the ende that men shulde knowe, that nat for our owne ryghtuousnes, but for the merites of another, that is to wete of Iesu Christe, god is wyllyng to be reconciled to vs. Paule expoundeth the same hebrue worde to signifie or betoken synne in the viii. chapitre to the Romaynes, sayenge, By synne he condempned synne, that is to saye, e punyshed synne by the hoste or sacrifice offred for synne.