Belgic Confession, Article 21: The Atonement
This excerpt from the Belgic Confession's Article 21 presents the Reformed understanding of Christ's atoning work, emphasizing His role as eternal high priest who satisfied God's wrath through His sacrificial death on the cross. The article grounds the doctrine of atonement in Scripture and affirms that Christ's once-for-all sacrifice is the sole means of reconciliation with God and the basis for the justification of believers. This foundational confessional text is essential for understanding classical Reformed soteriology and the theological heritage of Protestant Reformed churches.
Article 21: The Atonement We believe that Jesus Christ is a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek—made such by an oath—and that he presented himself in our name before his Father, to appease his Father’s wrath with full satisfactionby offering himselfon the tree of the crossand pouring out his precious bloodfor the cleansing of our sins, as the prophets had predicted.For it is written that “the punishment that made us whole” was placed on the Son of God and that “by his...