If the rituals of sacrificial atonement concern propitiating God’s wrath, then we would reasonably expect the object of the rituals (i.e., the recipient of action) to be God. That is, if the purpose of atoning sacrifice is to appease God, then the action of the ritual would be directed toward God. Therefore, if the textual evidence shows otherwise, that the sacrificial rituals are directed toward any object other than God, then sacrificial atonement does not concern propitiation.