Some words are hard to translate. There really is no simple equivalent in the English language.

Consider, for example, the word prosvonit. In Czech and Slovak, this beautiful word means

to call another person's mobile phone, allowing it to ring only once, thus provoking the other

person to return the call, thus savingoking the other person to return the call,

thus saving the caller from having to spend any money.

Honestly, how have the British cope so long without that word?

It's no wonder we lost the empire.

Here's a Greek word that has no simple equivalent in English.

Hillasterion.

It means the appeasement which makes it possible for a just God to forgive

sinners. Because there was no equivalent word in the English language, about 700 years ago we had to

create one, and that word is propitiation. You see it in many modern translations of Romans chapter 3. But now the righteousness

of God has been manifested apart from the law, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ

for all who believe. For there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

and are justified by His grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

whom God put forward as a hylasterion, a propitiation by his blood to be received by faith. So what is a propitiation then? When the Bible

speaks of propitiation, it is talking about the appeasement of God's rightful anger at sin.

Now this can make people bristle.

I thought God was supposed to be loving.

Why would he be angry at anyone's sin?

But is anger really the opposite of love?

If someone were to harm my daughter and I smiled at the attacker and said,

...