Christians can probably quote some Bible verses about how Christ has redeemed us. Otherwise, we don’t use “redeem” much anymore these days. When we do use it, it has two basic meanings.

It used to be that we could take books of stamps to a redemption center and exchange them for a toaster. That is, we redeemed the toaster by presenting the stamps. We can still redeem something we’ve taken to a pawn shop. And we talk about redeeming a coupon, although we don’t say we redeem our discount by presenting the coupon.

Or second, when we fail somehow, we can do something to redeem ourselves.

The first of these meanings approaches the meaning of redemption in the Bible. But a pawn ticket or book of stamps has no value in and of itself. Jesus, our kinsman-redeemer, bought us with his blood. That fact demonstrates how much he values us and desires us.

The kinsman-redeemer under the law

The first occurrence of “redeem” in the Bible comes in Exodus 6:6, where God promises to redeem Israel from Egypt. And when the Israelites finally escaped, Moses acknowledged in Exodus 15:13 that God had redeemed the people.

The law of Moses gives people a role in redemption. The word for “redeem” in both verses cited above means specifically a kinsman (close relative) who had certain obligations. Leviticus 25:23-55 sets out the law of the kinsman-redeemer in detail.

Sometimes, for various reasons, someone would get into debt and have to sell their land to a stranger. Or in case of a more drastic debt, sell himself into servitude. In that case, the kinsman-redeemer had a duty to settle the debt and return the land and independence to his relative. Redemption, then, kept the land in the family.

If someone was murdered, the kinsman-redeemer had to avenge the death.

And if a married man died without heir, the kinsman-redeemer married the widow. Her sons by him would be counted as the heirs of the dead man and not his own.

A picture of a kinsman-redeemer in the book of Ruth

The book of Ruth ends with a description of the kinsman-redeemer’s duties. A couple named Elimelech and Naomi had left the town of Bethlehem during a famine and moved to Moab. Elimelech and both of their sons died there and Naomi returned to Bethlehem. Ruth, one of her daughters in law, moved to Bethlehem with her.

Ruth supported the two of them by gleaning fields that belonged to Boaz, who, as it turned out, was a relative of Elimelech. But Elimelech had no posterity. A kinsman-redeemer would have to buy his property for Naomi’s sake and marry Ruth for Elimelech’s. Boaz was willing, but he wasn’t the closest relative.

So Ruth 4 shows Boaz explaining the situation to the closest relative. That man didn’t want to marry Ruth because it would complicate his own estate. With that, Boaz agreed to serve as kinsman-redeemer.

God as redeemer in the Old Testament

The book of Ruth provides the best illustration of the meaning of redemption in the Bible before Christ.

The whole concept of the kinsman-redeemer portrays God’s actions toward the human race (which, in Genesis 5:2, he named Adam). Adam had a nice piece of property, the Garden of Eden. He foolishly forfeited it to the serpent, who deceived him. (I know, I know. The Bible says the woman was deceived and the man wasn’t, but God’s name for both of them is Adam.)

Not only did Adam lose his land to the serpent, but his choice to obey the serpent instead of God also made the serpent the god of this world. Adam, in other words, went from God’s special assistant to the slave of sin.

Oh, and Adam died.

Adam’s predicament called for a kinsman-redeemer to restore his land and freedom and to avenge his death. Here are just a few scriptures (NASB 1995) that describe God as redeemer:

Old Testament scriptures about God as redeemer

. . . but because the Lord loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the Lord brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of [a]slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Deuteronomy 7:8

But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead; he will surely take me to himself. Psalm 49:15

For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand,

Who says to you, ‘Do not fear, I will help you.’
Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you people of Israel;
I will help you,” declares the Lord, “and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 41:13-14

Fear not, for you will not be put to shame;
And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced;
But you will forget the shame of your youth,
And no longer remember the disgrace of your widowhood.
For your husband is your Maker,
Whose name is the Lord of armies;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
Who is called the God of all the earth. Isaiah 54:4-5

This is what the Lord of armies says:
“The sons of Israel are oppressed,
And the sons of Judah as well;

And all who took them captive have held them firmly,
They have refused to let them go.
Their Redeemer is strong, the Lord of armies is His name;
He will vigorously plead their case
So that He may bring rest to their land,
But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon. Jeremiah 50:33-34

I know that my redeemer lives,
and that in the end he will stand on the earth.
And after my skin has been destroyed,
yet in my flesh I will see God. Job 19:25-26

Jesus as redeemer

As the story of Boaz and his relative makes clear, redemption in the Bible has a cost for the redeemer. As soon as Adam fell, God started a plan of redemption that ultimately required the blood of Christ as payment.

But notice one important difference between Jesus as redeemer and the provisions for kinsman-redeemer in the law of Moses:

The kinsman paid the price for the land to the owner who had possession. God sacrificed his son but did not pay the devil. After all, the devil stole the property. He received nothing when God executed his plan to redeem Adam from hell.

Jesus paid his blood to his Father. The Apostle’s Creed says he descended into hell. There, he seized back what the devil had stolen from God.

The New Testament translates two different Greek words as “hell.” Hades corresponds with the Hebrew sheol and simply means the place of the dead. Gehenna transliterates the Hinnom Valley.

Starting in the days of Solomon, worshipers of Canaanite gods sacrificed babies in that valley and defiled it. No longer fit for anyone to live or grow crops there, it became like a landfill––Jerusalem’s trash heap.

Therefore, a good illustration of redemption from Gehenna might be all the piles of trash we put out to the curb. Maybe someone takes out a broken chair. Or maybe even a perfectly good chair they no longer want. Sometimes other people see value in it and pick it up before the trash truck comes to carry it off. Some people even systematically patrol the streets to look for treasures.

We can think of Jesus as a trash picker seeking people to rescue from the landfill.

New Testament scriptures about Jesus as redeemer

The following selection of scriptures do not all use “redeem” or its derivatives. Ransom and purchase convey the same idea.

. . . whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. Matthew 20:27-28

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people. Luke 1:68

There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting from fear and the expectation of the things that are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. Luke 21:25-28

For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only that, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons and daughters, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, through perseverance we wait eagerly for it. Romans 8:22-25

He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. . . Ephesians 1:5-8

And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the scroll and to break its seals; for You were slaughtered, and You purchased people for God with Your blood from every tribe, language, people, and nation. . .” Revelation 5:9

Notice that both passages from Paul’s epistles mention redemption and adoption together. At great cost to himself, Jesus redeems us when we seem to have no value and are fit only for Gehenna. Then he makes us part of his family.

No other picture of redemption—trash picker, kinsman-redeemer, or even God redeeming Israel from Egypt or Babylon quite captures the fullness either of his sacrifice, accomplishment, or astounding love.