Martin Luther Taught Limited Atonement

At least when he gave his lectures on Romans, Martin Luther taught limited atonement:

“God will have all men to be saved” (1 Timothy 2:4), and he gave his Son for us men, and he created man for the sake of eternal life. And likewise: Everything is there for man’s sake and he is there for God’s sake in order that he may enjoy him, etc. But this objection [to God’s sovereignty in salvation] and others like it can just as easily be refuted as the first one: because all these sayings must be understood only with respect to the elect [emphasis in original], as the apostle says in 2 Timothy 2:10, “All for the elect.” Christ did not die for absolutely all, for he says: “This is my blood which is shed for you” (Luke 22:20) and “for many” (Mark 14:24)–he did not say: for all–“to the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28). [Martin Luther, Lectures on Romans, translated and edited by Wilhelm Pauck (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1961), 252.]

In this teaching, Luther was following a stream of the Augustinian tradition, emphasizing the sovereignty of God in salvation and the effective work of Christ upon the cross.

While limited atonement is an important doctrine, in my book, The Life, Teaching, and Legacy of Martin Luther, I focus on doctrines that
Luther himself identified as most central to his teaching: the bondage of the will to sin, the theology of the Cross, and justification by faith alone.

You can buy the book at the following link: https://www.amazon.com/Life-Teaching-Legacy-Martin-Luther/dp/1490819967 .