Abstract
Jonathan Edwards' doctrine of atonement has recently become a source of interest amongst some contemporary systematic theologians. This article sets out to redress two longstanding and historically strident claims regarding Edwards' doctrine of the nature of atonement: first, that Edwards espoused an Anselmic satisfaction theory of atonement; second, that Edwards also laid the theological foundation for the moral government theory of atonement, popularized in nineteenth-century America by those of his intellectual tradition. In this article, I lay out the conceptual core of both Anselm's satisfaction theory and the moral government theory of atonement. I argue that the claims noted above lack the explanatory resources needed to account accurately for Edwards' understanding of the nature of the atonement.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 46-67 |
Number of pages | 22 |
Journal | International Journal of Systematic Theology |
Volume | 17 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2015 |
Externally published | Yes |