"He is the propitiation for our sins...also for the sins of the whole world." I John 2:2.

Much more at:
The Cause of God and Truth
by John Gill, D.D.
SECTION LVII, pg.162.

"And he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only,
but also for the sins of the whole world. - 1 John 2:2

"A very considerable argument for the universal extent of Christ’s death is thought to arise from this passage of scripture, as well as from all those which represent Christ as the Savior of the world; and it is observed, that whereas these scriptures are all, save one, in the writing of St. John, the sense which the world beareth in St. John’s gospel and epistles, must be esteemed., in reason, the proper import of the word..."

"3. This phrase in the writings of the apostle John, is used in a restrained sense,
and does not extend to every individual of human nature,
that has been, is, or shall be in the world, as it should be proved it does,
to conclude an argument from it in favor of universal redemption.

"Now it is used but in one place besides the text under consideration,
when it designs men, in all his writings, and that is in 1 John 5:19.

"And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness;

"where the whole world lying in wickedness, is manifestly distinguished from the saints,
who are of God, and belong not to the world;

"and consequently the whole world is not to be understood of all the individuals in it.

"And it is easy to observe the like distinction in the text before us;

"for the sins of the whole world are opposed to our sins,
the sins of the apostle, and others to whom he joins himself;

"who therefore belonged not to, nor were a part of the whole world,
for whose sins Christ was a propitiation, as for theirs.

"That the whole world, for whom Christ is a propitiation,
cannot intend every man and woman that, has been, is, or shall be in the world,
appears from his being their propitiation;

"for whose sins he is a propitiation, their, sins are atoned for and pardoned,
and their person: justified from all sin, and so shall certainly be glorified;

"which is not true of the whole world, taken in the large sense contended for.

"Besides, Christ is set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood (Rom. 3:25).

"The benefit of his propitiatory sacrifice is only received and enjoyed through faith;

"so that in the event, it appears that Christ is a propitiation only for believers,
a character which does not agree with all mankind.

"Add to this, that for whom Christ is a propitiation, he is also an advocate (v. 1),

"My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.
And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous:"

"but he is not an advocate for every individual in the world;

"yea, there is a world he will not pray for, and consequently is no propitiation for.

"Once more, the design of the apostle in these words,
is to comfort his little children, who might fall into sin through weakness
and inadvertency, with the advocacy and propitiatory sacrifice of Christ;

"but what comfort would it yield to a distressed mind,
to be told that Christ was a propitiation, not only for the sins of the apostles,
and other saints, but for the sins of every individual in the world,
even of those that are in hell?

"Would it not be natural for persons in such circumstances,
to argue rather against than for themselves; and conclude,
that inasmuch as persons might be damned,
notwithstanding Christ’s propitiatory sacrifice,
that this might and would be their case?

"But,

4. "For a better understanding of the sense of this text, it should be observed,
that the apostle John was a Jew, and writes to Jews, as Dr. Whitby himself observes,
and them chiefly, if not altogether, who were distinguished from the Gentiles,
commonly called the world: now, says the apostle,

"He is a propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, the sins of us Jews,
but also for the sins of the whole world, the Gentiles."

"Nothing is more common in the Jewish writings,
than to call the Gentiles aml[, the world; and ~lw[ lk, the whole world;

"and ~lw[x twmwa, the nations of the world;

"hence the apostle Paul calls them ko,smoj, the world, in Romans 11:12, 15.

"Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world,
and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles;
how much more their fulness?"

"For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world,
what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?

(Alan's note:
Paul here above, in Romans 11:12, 15,
EQUATES 'the world' with 'the Gentiles'.)

"It was a controversy agitated among the Jewish doctors,
whether when the Messiah comes, the Gentiles, the world,
should have any benefit from him;

"the majority was exceeding large on the negative of the question,
and determined they should not;

"only some few, as old Simeon and others, knew that he should be a light
to lighten the Gentiles, as well as the glory of the people of Israel.

"The rest concluded, that the most severe judgments
and dreadful calamities would befall them;

"yea, that they should be cast into hell in the room of the Israelites.

"This notion John the Baptist, Christ, and his apostles, purposely oppose,
and is the true reason for the use of this phrase in the Scriptures
which speak of Christ’s redemption.

"Thus John the Baptist, when he pointed out the Messiah to the Jews,
represents him as "the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world",
the Gentiles as well as the Jews;

"for by the blood of this Lamb, men are redeemed to God,
out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.

"When our Lord was discoursing with Nicodemus, one of their Rabbins,
he lets him know that "God so loved the world", the Gentiles,
contrary to their rabbinical notions, "that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever of them that believeth on him, should not perish",
as they had concluded every one of them should;

"but have everlasting life": and that God sent not his Son into the world,
to conform the world, the Gentiles, as they imagined,
but that the world, the Gentiles, through him might be saved.

"When the Samaritans believed in Christ,
they declared him to the Savior of the world, the Gentiles,
and so of themselves, who were accounted by the Jews as Heathens;

"Christ sets forth himself as the bread of life, preferable to the manna,
among other things, from its extensive virtue to the world, the Gentiles:
and here the apostle John says, that Christ was not only the propitiation
for the sins of the Jews, but for the sins of the whole world, the Gentiles.

SO, WHEN WE READ THE BIBLE,
WE MUST READ THE WORDS
TO MEAN WHAT THEY DID TO THE AUTHOR, GOD.

In these passages, in context, the word 'world' must be understood
to be expressing 'the world', known to them, as 'the Gentile world'.

John 1:29; "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith,
Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."

3:16,17; "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

17 "For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world;
but that the world through him might be saved."

4:42; "And said unto the woman, Now we believe,
not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves,
and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world."

6:33; "For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven,
and giveth life unto the world."

1 John 2:2; "And he is the propitiation for our sins:
and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."