In Ephesians 1:7 Paul wrote, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.” Paul emphasizes redemption in this verse, but we might miss something critically important if we’re not paying attention. Christ redeems those who are “in Him.” Just like the other blessings in this chapter, redemption doesn’t belong to a group God arbitrarily selected. Instead, God chose everyone who is in Christ. And those in Christ are those who have chosen to obey the Gospel and place their trust in Jesus.
But what exactly is this idea of redemption? What does the word actually mean? Like other “churchy” words, we hear it in sermons and Bible studies all the time—so much that we might not stop to ask what it really is.
What is redemption?
The word redemption comes from the Greek apolutrōsis. Greek dictionaries define it as: “to release or set free, with the implied analogy to the process of freeing a slave — ‘to set free, to liberate, to deliver, liberation, deliverance.’”1 In other words, redemption is essentially a rescue. A fairly simple concept that tends to be obscured by repetition. There’s even a term for that: semantic satiation. This refers to a psychological phenomenon where a word or phrase, through repetition, loses its meaning or impact. The word becomes a mere sound, detached from its deeper significance, often because familiarity breeds an assumption of understanding rather than genuine clarity.
Redemption in everyday life
Redemption, in everyday life, shows up in small and familiar ways. Think of a vending machine: you insert a few coins, press a button, and the machine releases a can of Coke. That’s redemption in miniature—a transaction that results in something being set free. It’s a simple exchange, but the logic aligns with the original sense of the word. We pay a price, and that liberates something.
This same word appears again in phrases like “redeeming a coupon,” but here the connection grows thinner. The stakes are lower, the meaning diluted. Originally, redemption carried the weight of release or rescue—something or someone set free from bondage or debt. But when we redeem a coupon, the process becomes more transactional, more routine. Instead of liberation, the word now signifies a discount, a piece of paper for a product. In this context, “redeem” becomes shorthand, a word stripped of its deeper, more profound connotations. People reduce the language of deliverance to the language of commerce.
Biblical examples of redemption
One of the clearest biblical examples of redemption is the Exodus, where God frees the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. In this narrative, God hears the cries of His people and acts decisively to deliver them from Pharaoh’s oppressive rule. Through a series of miracles, including the parting of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:21-22), God redeems the Israelites, setting them free to journey to the Promised Land. This act of redemption is not just a rescue; it is a dramatic display of God’s power and faithfulness. As God tells Moses in Exodus 6:6, “I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.” The Exodus becomes the foundation story of the Jewish nation, forever tying redemption to the idea of freedom from bondage.
Another example of redemption in the Old Testament is found in the law of land redemption in Leviticus. If a person fell into poverty and had to sell their ancestral land, they, or a close relative, had the right to redeem it. Leviticus 25:25 says: “If your brother becomes impoverished and sells some of his property, his nearest of kin may come and redeem what his brother has sold.” This kinsman redeemer would buy back the land, restoring it to the family. This law wasn’t just about financial transactions; it was about preserving the dignity and heritage of the individual. Redemption here meant more than ownership. It symbolized the restoration of what they had lost, a return to what was rightfully theirs, and a way to safeguard the family’s identity.
Redemption in Christ
Christ has redeemed those who are in Him. What does this mean exactly? Redemption means Christ freed us from eternal death. Sin’s penalty is eternal separation from God (Romans 6:23). Through His death and resurrection, Jesus paid the price for our sins. This act reconciles us to God and grants eternal life. Redemption is liberation from sin’s guilt and penalty, made possible through Christ’s sacrifice. He has rescued us from the punishment that we deserved and replaced it with eternal life.
What was the price Jesus paid, and to whom was it paid? Paul says our redemption was “through his blood” (Eph 1:7). “Blood” is probably not meant literally, but as an idiom expressing that it was Jesus’s death that redeemed us. The price of our redemption was Jesus’s life. However, the best word to explain how this release occurred may not be “price.”
Who did Jesus pay a ransom to?
This redemption, or ransom (mentioned in Mt 20:28, Mk 10:45, 1 Tim 2:6), was not a price paid to the devil as the Ransom Theory of Atonement says. On this, Witherington comments:
“Paul says nothing of a ransom paid to Satan, as God owes Satan nothing. Christ is redeeming the lost persons from the bondage of sin by paying the price for that sin for them.”2
In the New Testament, the “blood of Christ” represents His life given up through His violent death and sacrifice. In Ephesians, when it says “through His blood,” it uses a metaphor from sacrifice, not to suggest a literal cost, but to show how Christ’s death is the means of redemption. This doesn’t mean the “blood” is a ransom price paid to anyone, but rather that it symbolizes the costly nature of our salvation. Christ’s sacrificial death is the key event that secures our redemption.3
The term “ransom” in the New Testament symbolizes Christ’s sacrificial death to free us from sin, not a literal transaction with Satan. The New Testament authors used it metaphorically, like a ransom, to express how Christ’s death liberates us from the bondage of sin. It’s similar to how a ransom frees someone from captivity. However, it wasn’t a direct payment to Satan, but rather a means of securing our redemption through Christ’s sacrifice.
Freedom in Christ
In conclusion, redemption is a powerful act of liberation Christ achieved for those in Him. Through His death and resurrection, He freed us from eternal death. Just as the Exodus and the kinsman redeemer laws illustrate freedom, Christ’s sacrifice offers ultimate deliverance. His blood, His life given for ours, secures our redemption. This redemption is not a transaction, but a divine rescue that grants us eternal life.
References
- Louw & Nida, s.v. “λυτρόομαι λύτρωσις ἀπολύτρωσις,” 488.
- Witherington III, Ben. The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on the Captivity Epistles (p. 235). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition.
- Andrew T. Lincoln, Ephesians, vol. 42 of Word Biblical Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1990), 28.