ga'al

[Gary K]

ga'al is an OT Hebrew word that is used to define/describe the law given through Moses to the Israelites so that if an Israelite ran into financial trouble and had to sell their children, wife, themselves or their land their closest relative could buy them back out of slavery and/or get the land out of hock for them.

[*StrongsHebrew*]
1350 ga'al gaw-al' a primitive root, to redeem (according to the Oriental law of kinship), i.e. to be the next of kin (and as such to buy back a relative's property, marry his widow, etc.):--X in any wise, X at all, avenger, deliver, (do, perform the part of near, next) kinsfolk(-man), purchase, ransom, redeem(-er), revenger.

23 ¶The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.*n4 24 And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land. 25 ¶If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold. 26 And if the man have none to redeem it, and himself be able to redeem it;*n5 27 Then let him count the years of the sale thereof, and restore the overplus unto the man to whom he sold it; that he may return unto his possession. 28 But if he be not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him that hath bought it until the year of jubile: and in the jubile it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession.

I did a study on this about a decade ago and this concept is found in both the OT and the NT. Jesus taught it, and so did John, Paul and Mark. Wherever the word redeemer is found, 18 times, in the OT it has been translated from ga'al and is a reference to the Jesus. At that time I had a total of 220+ texts, if I remember correctly so this is a well documented concept in scripture. In fact, it is the legal basis for the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus on the cross as God never does anything for which there is no legal basis.

This is a long study as it is tied conceptually to subjects like firstborn, dominion and the cities of refuge so I will be using a lot of scripture to tie all this together from the OT and the NT.

 

[Gary K]

Now here are some scriptures from the NT showing the same context.

Here a the Greek word translated as redeemed.

[*StrongsGreek*]
3085 lutrosis loo'-tro-sis from 3084; a ransoming (figuratively):--+ redeemed, redemption. see GREEK for 3084

Luke 24: 21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.

Revelation 14: 4 These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

Here is more usage from this concept using a different Greek word.

[*StrongsGreek*]
59 agorazo ag-or-ad'-zo from 58; properly, to go to market, i.e. (by implication) to purchase; specially, to redeem:--buy, redeem. see GREEK for 58

1Corinthians 7: 23 Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men.

2Peter 2: 1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

There is another concept too. It's that we have been sold under sin found in both OT and NT.

20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord.

Galatians 7: 14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.

 

[Gary K]

Now comes some on dominion.

[*StrongsHebrew*]
7287 radah raw-daw' a primitive root; to tread down, i.e. subjugate; specifically, to crumble off:--(come to, make to) have dominion, prevail against, reign, (bear, make to) rule,(-r, over), take.

How did we come to have rulership over the earth and who now has it?

Genesis 1: 26 ¶And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

John 14: 30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

We lost the dominion of this world when Adam sinned. And we lost it to the devil. He claimed the dominion of this world after Adam fell to him. It's why Jesus said the following.

John 8: 34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.

 

[Gary K]

Now let's move on to a word study of redemption.

In the OT it is translated from gullah.

[*StrongsHebrew*]
1353 gullah gheh-ool-law' feminine passive participle of 1350; redemption (including the right and the object); by implication, relationship:--kindred, redeem, redemption, right. see HEBREW for 01350
]box] 9 He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name. [/box]
In the NT it is translated from apolutrosis.

[*StrongsGreek*]
629 apolutrosis ap-ol-oo'-tro-sis from a compound of 575 and 3083; (the act) ransom in full, i.e. (figuratively) riddance, or (specially) Christian salvation:--deliverance, redemption. see GREEK for 575 see GREEK for 3083

1Corinthians 1: 30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

Interestingly enough the word righteousness is translated from the following.

[*StrongsGreek*]
1343 dikaiosune dik-ah-yos-oo'-nay from 1342; equity (of character or act); specially (Christian) justification:--righteousness. see GREEK for 1342

The word sanctification comes from the following.

[*StrongsGreek*]
38 hagiasmos hag-ee-as-mos' from 37; properly, purification, i.e. (the state) purity; concretely (by Hebraism) a purifier:--holiness, sanctification. see GREEK for 37

So Jesus ransomed us so that we might have equity of character and so we might be pure.

 

[Gary K]

Now we will step into the concept of inheritance.

Deuteronomy 33: 4 Moses commanded us a law, even the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob.

God identifies with His people as He calls their land His inheritance.

18 And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double; because they have defiled my land, they have filled mine inheritance with the carcases of their detestable and abominable things.

This draws in the statement on Israel being His firstborn son.

Exodus 4: 22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:

It is called primogeniture when the firstborn son inherits the largest share of the father's wealth.

Exodus 12: 29 ¶And it came to pass, that at midnight the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.*n8

Notice that God's angel killed not only the firstborn of all the Egyptians but the firstborn of all their livestock too. This will become an important point later on in this study.

 

[Gary K]

So now let's dig into the relationshio between ga'al and Jesus.

Job 19: 25 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

Psalm 19: 14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.*n8

Psalm 78: 35 And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer.

Isaiah 43: 14 ¶Thus saith the Lord, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their nobles, and the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships.*n4

Isaiah 49: 7 Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.*n5

Isaiah 54: 5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.*n1

There are a lot more prophetic verses but this is enough to demonstrate the truth.

 

[Gary K]

Let;s look at more usage of ga'al from the OT and see how the patriarchs and prophets viewed salvation.

Genesis 48: 16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.*n2

6 Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments:

14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the Lord, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.*n10

22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.

 

[Gary K]

So how did Paul view salvation?

Galatians 3: 13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

The word translated here as redeemed from Greek means:

[*StrongsGreek*]
1805 exagorazo ex-ag-or-ad'-zo from 1537 and 59; to buy up, i.e. ransom; figuratively, to rescue from loss (improve opportunity):--redeem. see GREEK for 1537 see GREEK for 59

Galatiand 4: 5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

 

[Gary K]

Now notice that Paul brings in the concept of inheritance which we see in the OT,

16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

The word inherit comes from a Greek word meaning the following.

[*StrongsGreek*]
2816 kleronomeo klay-ron-om-eh'-o from 2818; to be an heir to (literally or figuratively):--be heir, (obtain by) inherit(-ance). see GREEK for 2818

So Paul agrees with the OT on both the concepts of inheritance and and the concepts of being redeemed as well as the concept of being sold to do sin.

 

[Gary K]

So far in this study we see that both old and new covenants agree on the concepts of the legal basis for salvation. No difference between them.

 

[Gary K]

The idea behind to redeem is to ransom as they are synonyms. The scriptures use them interchangeably. Here are a bunch of times scripture uses the word ransom.

Exodus 30: 12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.*n7 13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs an half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord.

Psalm 49: 6 They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; 7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: 8 (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever

Isiah 49: 10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Matthew 20: 28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

5 1Timothy 2: For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

 

[fzappa13]

The idea behind to redeem is to ransom as they are synonyms. The scriptures use them interchangeably. Here are a bunch of times scripture uses the word ransom.

Exodus 30: 12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.*n7 13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs an half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord.

Psalm 49: 6 They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; 7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: 8 (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever

Isiah 49: 10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Matthew 20: 28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

5 1Timothy 2: For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

Are you going to summate or was that supposed to be self evident?

 

[Gary K]

Are you going to summate or was that supposed to be self evident?

To me it is self evident. To me this thread shows that the Jew and the Gentile are all saved exactly the same way. No matter what covenant we are under we have all been purchased by Jesus on the cross. The best description of how this worked is found in the OT in the book of Ruth in the story of Ruth, Naomi and Boaz. That book was included in scripture so we could have this object lesson of the plan of salvation.

 

[fzappa13]

On behalf of my self and possibly one or more others ... thanks for that. Looking forward to a thread about the afore mentioned gals.

 

[Gary K]

On behalf of my self and possibly one or more others ... thanks for that. Looking forward to a thread about the afore mentioned gals.

If you want one start it.

Another thing that I forgot to mention is that this must be a form of a law that exists in heaven adapted to our world of sin for ir is the legal basis for Jesus' substitutionary death for us. If it wasn't an eternally existing law there the devil would call God out on being unfair at the time of the judgment.

 

[fzappa13]

If you want one start it.

Another thing that I forgot to mention is that this must be a form of a law that exists in heaven adapted to our world of sin for ir is the legal basis for Jesus' substitutionary death for us. If it wasn't an eternally existing law there the devil would call God out on being unfair at the time of the judgment.

Well, he is called "the accuser or the brethren". Evidently that's one of the duties of his office. Reviewing this thread it reminded me of the value of chasing words and phrases across the Bible. Interesting things reveal themselves when you take the time to do it.

 

[Gary K]

Well, he is called "the accuser or the brethren". Evidently that's one of the duties of his office. Reviewing this thread it reminded me of the value of chasing words and phrases across the Bible. Interesting things reveal themselves when you take the time to do it.

Yeah, Bible study is very interesting. I believe it expands our minds as we are coming in contact with God's infinite mind when we prayerfully study it.

 

[fzappa13]

Yeah, Bible study is very interesting. I believe it expands our minds as we are coming in contact with God's infinite mind when we prayerfully study it.

It's one of the reasons I showed back up here after such a long hiatus. The hour grows short and I felt the need to brush up. You can do that all by yourself and I have but, you know the word "metal sharpens metal."

 

[Clete]

To me it is self evident. To me this thread shows that the Jew and the Gentile are all saved exactly the same way. No matter what covenant we are under we have all been purchased by Jesus on the cross. The best description of how this worked is found in the OT in the book of Ruth in the story of Ruth, Naomi and Boaz. That book was included in scripture so we could have this object lesson of the plan of salvation.

Are you saying that Moses believed and confessed with his mouth that God died for his sins and rose from the dead?

or

Are you saying that we, like Moses, don't have to know anything about, much less acknowledge and confess, that God died for our sins and rose from the dead?

 

[Clete]

Yeah, Bible study is very interesting. I believe it expands our minds as we are coming in contact with God's infinite mind when we prayerfully study it.

So now understanding spiritual things is done with the mind?