VICARIOUS ATONEMENT (4)
Vicarious Atonement in Greek Prepositions
Anti and Huper

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An atonement is literally "a setting at one" (our modern English word deriving from sixteenth-century "at onement"), to bring together in mutual agreement, with the added idea, in theology, of reconciliation through the vicarious suffering of one on behalf of another. That which is vicarious is "performed or suffered by one person as a substitute for another or to the benefit or advantage of another". This substitute is called a vicar (from the Latin vicarius/ "substitute, deputy"), "a person deputed to perform the function of another". God the Father appointed Christ as a vicar to take man's place, and Christ as man's vicar atoned for man's sin and obtained an eternal redemption for man from God.

Vicarious atonement implies substitution. Substitution is "the gracious act of a sovereign in allowing a person not bound to discharge a service to do so for another who is so bound, or to suffer punishment in the stead and place of a person who is so bound". When the substitute discharges that service or suffers that punishment in the place and stead of another, he has done so vicariously, and the one for whom the substitute acted is freed from his former obligation.

Some proponents of universal atonement, the doctrine that Christ died for all men without exception, declare that limited atonement, the doctrine that Christ died only for a particular people, can not be proven from the Greek New Testament.

They err! One of the foremost proofs in the Greek New Testament of the doctrine of Christ's limited atonement is also one of the foremost proofs of His vicarious atonement. This proof is found in two of the shortest Greek words in the New Testament: the prepositions anti and huper.

We previously observed evidence of Christ's vicarious atonement in the facts that it was typified in the Old Testament sacrifices, and that it was set forth in Isaiah 53. We now observe that it is clearly and indisputably evidenced in the Greek prepositions anti and huper.

I. Anti is the preposition first of "equivalence", then of "exchange" – two equivalent things being exchanged. For example: "An eye for [anti] an eye and a tooth for [anti] a tooth" (Matthew 5:38); "if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of [anti] a fish?" (Luke 11:11).

1. Anti indisputably denotes "substitution" in some passages. For example, Paul writes in his epistle to Philemon (v.13) regarding Philemon's servant Onesimus, "I wished to keep him with me, that on your behalf [anti / "as your substitute"] he might minister to me."

2. Anti indisputably denotes the "vicarious death of Christ" in one text (and its parallel). Jesus declared in Matthew 20:28 (and Mark 10:45) that "the Son of Man ... [came] to give His life a ransom for [anti / "in the place of"] many."

II. Huper often means "in behalf of". For example, John 11:49-51: "And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to them, '... it is expedient for us that one man should die for [huper / "in behalf of"] the people, and not that the whole nation should perish.' Now this he did not say on his own authority; but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for [huper / "in behalf of"] the nation." Caiaphas' meaning was, "If Jesus lives, Israel perishes; if Jesus dies, Israel is saved." But in God's providence - and "not on his own authority" – Caiaphas declared what he did not intend: the gospel that Jesus would die in the place of Jehovah's Israel, as their substitute and for their salvation.

1. Huper indisputably denotes "substitution" in some passages. For example, 2 Corinthians 5:20f: "Now then, we are ambassadors for [huper / "in the place of"] Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for [huper / "in the place of"] us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."

2. Huper denotes both "in the place of" and "for the benefit of" in many texts. In these instances it cannot be confined to but one of these meanings. In using huper instead of anti, writers of Holy Scriptures declare that Christ died not only "in the place of His people", for also "for the benefit of His people". In every occurrence of huper immediately below, you will find in its place its English equivalent, "in the place of and for the benefit of".

i. Luke 22:19f: "This is My body which is given [in the place of and for the benefit of] you; ... This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed [in the place of and for the benefit of] you."

ii. John 10:11, 15: "The good shepherd gives His life [in the place of and for the benefit of] the sheep. ... I lay down My life [in the place of and for the benefit of] the sheep" (contrast the hireling of vv.12f).

iii. John 15:13: "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life [in the place of and for the benefit of] his friends."

iv. Romans 5:6-8: "For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died [in the place of and for the benefit of] the ungodly. For scarcely [in the place of and for the benefit of] a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps [in the place of and for the benefit of] a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died [in the place of and for the benefit of] us."

v. Romans 8:32: "He ... did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up [in the place of and for the benefit of] us all."

vi. 2 Corinthians 5:14f: "if One died [in the place of and for the benefit of] all, then all died; and He died [in the place of and for the benefit of] all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died [in the place of and for the benefit of] them and rose again."

vii. Galatians 2:20: "the Son of God ... loved me and gave Himself [in the place of and for the benefit of] me."

viii. Galatians 3:13: "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse [in the place of and for the benefit of] us."

ix. Ephesians 5:2: "Christ also has loved us and given Himself [in the place of and for the benefit of] us, an offering and a sacrifice to God."

x. Ephesians 5:25: "Christ also loved the church and gave Himself [in the place of and for the benefit of] her."

xi. Titus 2:13f: "our great God and Savior Jesus Christ ... gave Himself [in the place of and for the benefit of] us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works."

xii. Hebrews 2:9: "He, by the grace of God, might taste death [in the place of and for the benefit of] everyone."

xiii. 1 Peter 2:21, 24: "Christ also suffered [in the place of and for the benefit of] us, ... who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree [as our substitute], that we, having died to sins [in Him our substitute], might live for righteousness."

xiv. 1 Peter 3:18: "Christ also suffered once for [peri, not huper] sins, the just [in the place of and for the benefit of] the unjust."

xv. 1 Peter 4:1: "Christ suffered [in the place of and for the benefit of] us in the flesh"

III. Both anti and huper appear in 1 Timothy 2:5f, which indisputably speaks of "substitution": "the Man Christ Jesus ... gave Himself a ransom [antilutron] for [huper] all, to be testified in due time."

1. The Greek word antilutron means "substitute-ransom, what is given in exchange for another as the price of his redemption, ransom". Christ is both this substitute and this ransom. His vicarious death is for all His people, those for whom He is the substitute.

2. The Greek word antilutron here in 1 Timothy 2:5-6 compares to lutron anti in Matthew 20:28 (and the parallel text Mark 10:45), in which text(s) Jesus declared that "the Son of Man ... [came] to give His life a ransom [lutron] for [anti] many." Paul here combines the noun lutron/"ransom" and the preposition anti/"for" into a single word, this being its only occurrence in the New Testament. The meaning here is that Christ the substitute-ransom has completely effected the atonement between God and His people!

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