Expiation is the cancellation of sin. Expiation and propitiation are similar, but expiation does not carry the implication of dealing with wrath, of appeasing it through sacrifice. Generally speaking, propitiation cancels sin and deals with God’s wrath. Expiation is simply the cancellation of sin. Jesus was our propitiation (1 John 2:2, 4:10–“atoning sacrifice” in the NIV).

Webster’s 1828 dictionary, “expiation, “the act of atoning for a crime; the act of making satisfaction for an offense, by which the guilt is done away, and the obligation of the offended person to punish the crime is canceled.”