More than any other subject I love to read books about the atonement. Upon thinking of such books I pray my heart always be tenderly and freshly affected by such teaching. I beg that I retain much of the truth presented, that it become the fondest treasure to me, and I never forsake it. In My Place Condemned He Stood is such a book, a book of solid teaching from a solid teacher whom it is great to figuratively sit under and learn from. Still I struggle with commending it to the average layman. The best two chapters (of 4 total) can be found within J.I. Packer’s Knowing God and A Quest for Godliness. These are great classics; everyone should read Knowing God, and if you have any interest in the Puritans A Quest for Godliness is a great introductory work.
Outside these two chapters it is fun to read Duncan, Mohler, Dever, and Mahaney’s brief introductory thoughts for those who are fans or theirs, but the reason why I would most recommend buying it even if you have the two previously mentioned books is Ligon Duncan’s annotated bibliography of books on the cross in the back. Wondering what your next read on the cross should be, this is the place to go (and like Mahaney I think you should read at least 1 new book on the atonement [to you] and reread a great old one every year).
And this is righteous anger – the right reaction of moral perfection in the Creator toward moral perversity in the creature. So far from the manifestation of God’s wrath in punishing sin being morally doubtful, the thing that would be morally doubtful would be for him not to show his wrath in this way. God is not just – that is, he does not act in the way that is right, he does not do what is proper to a judge – unless he inflicts upon all sin and wrongdoing the penalty it deserves.
We who have believed have died – painlessly and invisibly, we might say – in solidarity with him because he died, painfully and publicly, in substitution for us.
No Other Boast 