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Redemption and November 16, 2014

12 So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. (Romans 5:12-24)

4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. (Galatians 4:4-7)

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in and things on earth. (Ephesians 1:3-10)

11 May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of

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darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of . (Colossians 1:11-14)

11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. (Hebrews 9:11-12)

REDEEMER, REDEMPTION. Redemption means deliverance from some evil by payment of a price. It is more than simple deliverance. Thus prisoners of war might be released on payment of a price which was called a ‘ransom’ (Gk. lytron). The word-group based on lytron was formed specifically to convey this idea of release on payment of ransom. In this circle of ideas Christ’s death may be regarded as ‘a ransom for many’ (Mk. 10:45). Again, slaves might be released by a process of ransom. In the fictitious purchase by a god the slave would pay the price of his freedom into the temple treasury. Then he would go through the solemn formality of being sold to the god ‘for freedom’. Technically he was still the slave of the god, and some pious obligations might accordingly be laid upon him. But as far as men were concerned he was thenceforth free. Alternatively, the slave might simply pay his master the price. The characteristic thing about either form of release is the payment of the ransom price (lytron). ‘Redemption’ is the name given to the process. Among the Hebrews we may discern a different situation, well illustrated in Ex. 21:28–30. If a man had a dangerous ox he must keep it under restraint. If it got out and gored someone so that he died the law was plain, ‘the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death’. But this is not a case of wilful murder. There is no malice aforethought. Thus, it is provided that a ransom (Heb. kōp̱er) might be ‘laid on him’. He could pay a sum of money and thus redeem his forfeited life. Other usages of redemption in antiquity provide for the redemption of property, etc., but the three we have noticed are the most important. Common to them all is the idea of freedom secured by payment of a price. Outside the Bible the usage is practically unvarying. A few metaphorical passages occur, but these serve only to make clear the basic meaning of the word. The payment of a price for deliverance is the basic and characteristic thing. It is this which makes the concept so useful for the early . Jesus had taught them that ‘everyone who commits is a slave to sin’ (Jn. 8:34). In line with this, Paul can think of himself as ‘carnal, sold under sin’ (Rom. 7:14), sold as under a cruel slave-master. He reminds the Romans that in earlier days they had been ‘slaves of sin’ (Rom. 6:17). From another point of view men were under sentence of death on account of their sin. ‘For the wages of sin is death’ (Rom. 6:23). Sinners are slaves. Sinners are doomed to death. Either way the ancient world would have regarded the situation as crying out for redemption. Failing redemption, the slavery would continue, the sentence of death be carried out. The

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cross of Christ is seen against this background. It is the price paid to release the slaves, to let the condemned go free. What gives the metaphor force is the constant presence of the price-paying idea. But it is precisely this that is disputed by some who think that redemption is no more than another way of of saying ‘deliverance’. The big reason for thinking this is that there are some OT passages where Yahweh is said to have redeemed his people (Ex. 6:6; Ps. 77:14f., etc.), and it is unthinkable that he should pay a price to anyone. But too much is being deduced. The metaphor has not been robbed of its point (cf. the saying ‘he sold his life dearly’). Sometimes in the OT Yahweh is thought of as being so powerful that all the might of the nations is but a puny thing before him. But redemption is not used in such passages. Where redemption occurs there is the thought of effort. Yahweh redeems ‘with a stretched out arm’. He makes known his strength. Because he loves his people he redeems them at cost to himself. His effort is regarded as the ‘price’. This is the whole point of using the redemption terminology. The characteristic NT word for redemption is apolytrōsis, a comparatively rare word elsewhere. It is found ten times in the NT but apparently there are only eight occurrences in all the rest of Gk. literature. This may express the conviction of the early Christians that the redemption wrought in Christ was unique. It does not mean, as some have thought, that they understand redemption simply as ‘deliverance’. For that they use such a word as rhyomai, ‘rescue’. apolytrōsis means deliverance on payment of a price, and that price is the atoning death of the Saviour. When we read of ‘redemption through his blood’ (Eph. 1:7), the blood of Christ is clearly being regarded as the price of redemption. It is not otherwise with Rom. 3:24f., ‘Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through in his blood’ (AV). Here Paul is using three metaphors, those of the law court, and of the sacrifices, and of manumission. Our concern is with the last. Paul envisages a process of freeing, but by the payment of a price, the blood of Christ. Redemption is linked with Christ’s death also in Heb. 9:15. Sometimes, again, we have the mention of price, but not redemption, as in references to being ‘bought with a price’ (1 Cor. 6:19f.; 7:22f.). The basic idea is the same. Christ bought men at the price of his blood. In Gal. 3:13 the price of redemption is given thus: ‘having become a curse for us’. Christ redeemed us by taking our place, by bearing our curse. This points us to the definitely substitutionary idea in redemption, an idea which sometimes receives stress, as in Mk. 10:45 (‘a ransom for many’). Redemption not only looks back to Calvary, but forward to the freedom in which the redeemed stand. ‘You were bought with a price,’ Paul can say, ‘so glorify God in your body’ (1 Cor. 6:20). Precisely because they have been redeemed at such a cost believers must be God’s men. They must show in their lives that they are no longer caught up in the bondage from which they have been released and are exhorted to ‘stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free’ (Gal. 5:1, AV).

3 BIBLIOGRAPHY. LAE, pp. 318ff.; L. Morris, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross , 1965, ch. 1;

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Study Notes

B. B. Warfield, The Person and Work of Christ, ed. S. G. Craig, 1950, ch. 9; O. Procksch, F. Büchsel, in TDNT 4, pp. 328–356; C. Brown et al., in NIDNTT 3, pp. 177–223. 1 L. L. MORRIS.

Redemption. Another important term related to Paul’s understanding of Christ’s work in is “redemption.” Though the uses several words to refer to this idea, the noun Paul used in these letters (apolytrōsis) expresses the idea of being set free from enslavement, while the verb (agorazō; 1 Cor. 6:20; 7:23) reminds readers of the price that was paid for this freedom, namely, Christ’s life. In Romans 3:24 Paul wrote of people being “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Since to be justified means to be declared not guilty by God, the aspect of redemption in view in this verse is the freedom from the penalty of sin that Christ’s death gained for guilty sinners. Later in this letter Paul referred to the hope that Christians have for “the redemption of our bodies” (8:23). Earlier in the passage he had written of a future time when “the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay” (v. 21). For the Christian this “bondage to decay” manifests itself in the mortality of the body. A part of the redemption that Christ achieved was the prospect of an immortal body, “liberated from its bondage to decay.” Paul thus saw Christ’s redemption as an act that had implications for both the present and the future experience of Christians. But though Paul may have viewed the benefits of redemption from different vantage points, he regarded the liberation that Christ gained as a seamless whole since it is rooted in the person of Christ Himself. With this in mind he told the Corinthians that Christ had become redemption for them (1 Cor. 1:30), or stated otherwise, He has become their . In a similar vein Paul also described Christ as a Deliverer. Because Christians are free from the penalty of sin through Christ’s redemption, Paul described Jesus to the Thessalonians as the One “who rescues us from the coming wrath” (1 Thess. 1:10). This same confidence was expressed in the answer to the anguished cry for a redeemed body in the soliloquy of Romans 7:24–25, “Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Finally, it was to this Deliverer that Paul looked for the redemption of his kinsmen in . Paul believed that Jesus Himself was the Deliverer 2 who will come one day from Zion (11:26) to accomplish redemption for Israel.

1 Morris, L. L. (1996). Redeemer, Redemption. In D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, A. R. Millard, J. I. Packer & D. J. Wiseman (Eds.), New Bible dictionary (D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, A. R. Millard, J. I. Packer & D. J. Wiseman, Ed.) (3rd ed.) (1003–1004). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. 2 Zuck, R. B. (1994). A of the New Testament (electronic ed.) (271–272). Chicago: Moody Press.

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REDEEM, REDEMPTION, REDEEMER To pay a price in order to secure the release of something or someone. It connotes the idea of paying what is required in order to liberate from oppression, enslavement, or another type of binding obligation. The redemptive procedure may be legal, commercial, or religious. In the OT two word groups convey the idea of redemption. The verb gaʾal and its cognates mean “to buy back” or “to redeem.” In the book of Ruth (Ruth 2:20), Boaz acts as kinsman-redeemer to secure the freedom of Ruth from poverty and widowhood. Boaz purchases the land of Elimelech and, in so doing, “redeems” Ruth and takes her to be his wife (Ruth 4:1–12). In another account God commands the Prophet Jeremiah to buy family land; he redeems the family estate by paying the redemption price (Jer. 32:6–15). Jeremiah depicts that God will one day redeem Israel from oppression of the Babylonians (Jer. 32:16–44). When gaʾal is used of God, the idea is redemption from bondage or oppression, typically from one’s enemies. In the Exodus account Yahweh declares to Moses: “I am … and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment” (Exod. 6:6 NIV). Some uses of gaʾal and its cognates speak of redemption from oppression by enemies (Pss. 69:18; 72:14; 106:10; 107:2; Isa. 48:20). Gaʾal rarely refers to redemption from sin (Isa. 44:22) or from death (Ps. 103:4; Hos. 13:14). Padah is primarily used with regard to the redemption of persons or of living things. Since God spared the firstborn when the last plague was sent upon Egypt, God required that all firstborn sons or animals be redeemed (Exod. 13:13–15; 34:20; Num. 18:15). If a negligent owner did not properly secure an ox, and the ox gored the child of a neighbor, both ox and owner would be stoned. The father of the slain person could, however, accept a redemption price for the lost child, thereby permitting the owner of the ox to live (Exod. 21:29–30). Padah and its cognates could refer to a general deliverance from trouble or distress (2 Sam. 4:9; 1 Kings 1:29; Ps. 25:22), or they could speak of redemption from sin (Pss. 26:11; 49:7; 103:8; 130:8; Isa. 1:27; 59:20) or from death (Job 4:20; Pss. 44:26; 49:15). The notion of redemption from sin is also implicitly revealed in the OT. The sacrificial system was a constant reminder to the Israelites that a price had to be paid in order to have redemption from their sins. Every offering sacrificed depicted the notion of the price of sin and the need for the price to be paid. Additionally, the Israelites viewed liberation from oppressive circumstances, such as the Babylonian captivity, essentially as redemption from sin, since it was their sin that brought about their captivity (Isa. 40:2). In the NT two word groups convey the concept. The first consists of lutron and its cognates. They mean “to redeem,” “to liberate,” or “to ransom.” The idea of ransom suggests the heart of Jesus’ mission (Mark 10:45). His life and ministry culminated in His sacrificial death. His death served as the ransom to liberate sinners from their enslaved condition. Another word family, agorazein, means “to buy at the market,” or “to redeem.” This group is used several times to express God’s redemptive activity in Christ. For example,

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God’s redemption of fallen humanity is costly (1 Cor. 6:20). Believers are liberated from the enslaving curse of the law (Gal. 3:13, 4:5). God’s redemptive mission among the nations is cause for eschatological worship (Rev. 5:9; 14:3–4). Paul provides the fullest explanation in the NT, connecting the redemptive work of Christ with the legal declaration of the sinner’s pardon () and the appeasement of God’s wrath against sin (propitiation, Rom. 3:24; 1 Cor. 1:30). Paul also interpreted the redeeming activity of Christ from two perspectives. Based on the ransom price paid by Christ’s shed blood, forgiveness can be presently applied to the believer (Eph. 1:7). This redeeming work of Christ also has a future aspect. There will be a final deliverance of the physical body from the present decay and corruption (Rom. 8:23). This final redemptive act will occur at the resurrection of the body. This is not, however, as the first expression of redemption of believers. Rather, the earlier “redeeming” that occurred within the believer will culminate in the final redemption of the body from sin and the grave (Eph. 4:30). See Christ, ; Jesus Christ; ; Reconciliation. 3 Stan Norman

REDEMPTION. †Release from bondage, usually by means of a price paid, though in some instances biblical usage focuses on the aspect of liberation alone.

I.

Heb. pāḏâ and related words are used most often with reference to redemption of the firstborn of humans or animals that, according to law, belonged to God (e.g., Exod. 13:13). Sometimes pāḏâ refers to the ransom given for a forfeited life (e.g., 21:30; 1 Sam. 14:45; cf. Exod. 30:12, kōp̱er). When God himself is the subject of pāḏâ, the Exodus event is usually in view (e.g., Deut. 7:8; 9:26; 2 Sam. 7:23; Ps. 78:42). In these cases the emphasis lies upon God’s powerful act of deliverance rather than on payment of a price. The verb gā˒al and the noun ge˒ullâh are used in reference to the situation in which the closest relative was under obligation to redeem an impoverished family member who had sold himself into slavery (Lev 25:47–49) or to regain possession of family land that had been sold (vv. 25–26, 33; Ruth 4:4, 6). The one who carried out this redemption was the redeemer (gō˒ēl). The redeemer might also deal out vengeance for the death of a family member. Job’s affirmation, “I know that my redeemer lives” (Job 19:25), refers to one who would avenge his shameful death should it come. The larger context for these familial obligations was God’s redemption of his people from slavery in Egypt, and his gift of the

3 Norman, S. (2003). Redeem, Redemption, Redeemer. In C. Brand, C. Draper, A. England, S. Bond, E. R. Clendenen & T. C. Butler (Eds.), Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (C. Brand, C. Draper, A. England, S. Bond, E. R. Clendenen & T. C. Butler, Ed.) (1370–1371). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

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land that was to be theirs in perpetuity. When God is said to be the redeemer, as in Isaiah (e.g., Isa. 41:14; 47:4), the emphasis is placed upon his mighty act of deliverance that will be like the Exodus. Here, as elsewhere, one must be careful to observe the operation of these words in context, for they do not carry a prescribed, unchanging meaning such as “ransom” in every setting.

II. New Testament In the New Testament the concept of redemption is conveyed primarily by words of the Gk. lytro- group (nouns lýtron, lýtrōsis, apolýtrōsis, antílytron; verb lytróomai). These words cannot be assumed to carry the full meaning of the Old Testament redemption laws and customs. In secular Greek the terms implied recompense and could refer to a gift of money offered to a god in a cultic ceremony in order to obtain the freedom of a slave or to a ransom paid for prisoners. This meaning, parallel in many ways with the Hebrew idea of redemption, would also have shaped the understanding of redemption in the Greco-Roman world. Gk. lytro- words are used in Luke for God’s deliverance of Israel (Luke 1:68; 2:38; 24:21) and for the eschatological deliverance awaited by Jesus’ disciples (21:28). Jesus interpreted his death as a “ransom (lýtron) for many” (Mark 10:45); against the background of Isa. 53:10–12 he views his coming death as a substitutionary payment for those who live in bondage to sin and death. These Greek words also refer to the saving significance of Jesus’ death at Titus 2:14; heb 9:12, 15; 1 Pet. 1:18–19. In Paul’s letters apolýtrōsis is used of present redemption from sin through Christ’s death (Rom. 3:24; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14; cf. 1 Cor. 1:30) and of the future aspect of redemption (Eph. 1:14 [RSV takes this as a verbal noun describing the action of God’s people]; 4:30), which may include cosmic redemption (Rom. 8:22–23). This noun is also used at Heb. 11:35 in a secular sense of release (so RSV) from torture. The verb “to buy” (Gk. agorázō) is taken from the language of the marketplace and most often is used literally in the New Testament. In Hellenistic usage the term could refer to the purchase of slaves, a meaning that provided a ready bridge for its use as a term for God’s redemption of Christians (1 Cor. 6:20; 7:23; 2 Pet. 2:1; Rev. 5:9; 14:3). In this case the emphasis is on the change of ownership from one master to another, occasionally linked to the price paid, Christ’s blood (e.g., 5:9). (As later Church Fathers would demonstrate in elaborate theories of atonement, the meaning of the metaphor of redemption becomes strained if the question is asked to whom the price was paid.) The intensive form, exagorázō, is used at Gal. 3:13; 4:5 to speak of redemption in Christ from the curse of or bondage to the law; that the cross is the turning point in redemption is spelled out at 3:13, and implied at 4:4–5. In the New Testament the title “redeemer” is not used of Christ, although the term has proven useful in subsequent theological discussion. The only occurrence of the term in the New Testament is at Acts 7:35 where Stephen refers to Moses as a deliverer (Gk. lýtrōtēs)

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sent by God. Bibliography. I. H. Marshall, “The Development of the Concept of Redemption in the New Testament,” pp. 153–169 in R. J. Banks, ed., Reconciliation and Hope (Grand Rapids: 1974); L. Morris, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids: 1965), pp. 4 11–64; W. Mundle, J. Schneider, and C. Brown, “Redemption,” DNTT 3 (1978): 177–223.

Redemption redemption, a term associated in current English usage with a transaction involving the release of an item (or person) in exchange for some type of payment. This association is not at all foreign to biblical understandings of redemption. The contexts of usage in the OT and the NT, however, add important dimensions that help in grasping the theological implications of the concept. In the OT: In the OT, three different Hebrew roots are used to express the idea of redemption. The first is a technical legal term and is applied to the redemption of inheritance, of family members from servitude or difficulties, of tithes, or of various objects and property (e.g., Lev. 25:25, 47-49; 27:15-20; Ruth 4:1-6; Ps. 72:4, 14; Jer. 32:1-15). Often without great distinction from the first, a second root is used of the redemption of the firstborn among male children (or even of animals) by means of some payment or offering (e.g., Num. 3:45-51; 18:15-16). Where offenses and conflicts are involved, redemption can also be achieved through payment of money (e.g., Exod. 21:8, 30). Specialized usage in cases of the shedding of blood (e.g., Num. 35:12, 19) and of God acting in a redemptive manner toward his people (e.g., Exod. 6:6; 15:13; Deut. 7:8; 1 Chron. 17:21; Pss. 19:14; 25:22; 106:10; Isa. 41:14; 43:1-4; 44:21-23; 24-28; Hos. 13:14) or toward individuals in difficult or life-threatening situations (e.g., Gen. 48:16; 2 Sam. 4:9; Job 19:25; Pss. 26:11; 49:15; 69:18; 103:4) can also be found. These first two Hebrew roots are therefore somewhat synonymous, although the former is favored by certain writers (the authors of some of the psalms and Isa. 40-55, sometimes called Second Isaiah), while the latter is preferred, it would seem, by others (the authors of Deuteronomy and certain other psalms). The specialized theological notion of redemption tends to gravitate around the third root, which is frequently used where God’s relationship to his people as a whole is reestablished or restored after acts of rebellion, disobedience, or infidelity. This third root is often translated as ‘ransom’ (e.g., Ps. 49:7-8; Exod. 21:30) or ‘redeem’ (Ps. 130:8; in Amos 5:12, it is ‘bribe’) and carries the sense of ‘atonement.’ In the NT: This theological sense is the one reflected in Christian traditions and appropriated somewhat differently by NT writers. Here, the center of gravity for the notion is the profound human need for deliverance and freedom in matters of ultimate destiny

4 Myers, A. C. (1987). The Eerdmans Bible dictionary (876–877). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

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and the (e.g., Rom. 5:9; 6:6; 7:6; 8:2; cf. also 1 Cor. 2:6; Gal. 5:4; Heb. 2:14-15). Presupposed is the idea that alienation and bondage (i.e., sin) are endemic to the human condition and have far-reaching consequences. The frame of reference and goal of redemption is the salvation of God’s creation. Here, the Creator becomes the Redeemer of his creatures. The redemption is represented as having been accomplished exclusively in the sacrificial death of Jesus of Nazareth (e.g., Rom. 3:23-25a; 8:23; 1 Cor. 1:30; Eph. 1:7, 14; 4:30; Col. 1:14; Heb. 9:15; 1 Cor. 6:20; 7:23; Gal. 3:13; 4:5; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Rev. 5:9; 14:4). The proclamation of this redemption is based on Jesus’ own reported understanding of the significance of the impending death of the Son of man (Mark 10:45; Matt. 20:28; cf. also Mark 8:31 and parallels), the verification of that understanding in his resurrection from the dead (1 Cor. 15:3-7; 1 Pet. 1:18-21), and the expressed in the phrase ‘on our behalf’ and related formulas of early Christian reflection, missionary preaching, and worship (e.g., Mark 10:45; 1 Tim. 2:6; Titus 2:14; Matt. 26:28; Mark 14:24; 1 Cor. 11:24; also 1 Cor. 15:3-7). While the origins of the notion of redemption in the NT are to be traced to OT theological concepts, it would be a mistake to see the relationship strictly in terms of the history of ideas. In the NT, the starting point is the stark reality of Jesus’ death; to this are added interpretive features from OT traditions (cf. Luke 1:68, 74; 24:21) and from the earliest strata of the traditions about Jesus’ ministry. That writers such as Paul were also influenced by considerations from life in the first century (e.g., human bondage and the manumission of slaves) is extremely likely. See also Assurance; Atonement; Expiation; Forgiveness; 5 Liberty; Pardon; Reconciliation; ; Salvation; Sin; Slavery. J.E.A.

6608 adoption The deliberate action by which a family gives to a person all the privileges of being a member of that family.

6609 adoption, nature of The giving by God of the status and privileges of being his children. God adopts those who believe in him and grants them the benefits of his salvation. A family adopts a child Ge 15:3 See also Ge 48:5; Ex 2:10; Est 2:7

5 Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper’s Bible dictionary (1st ed.) (856–857). San Francisco: Harper & Row.

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God adopts the nation of Israel Dt 14:2 See also Dt 7:7; Isa 63:16; Am 3:1-2; Ro 9:4 God is Israel’s father Jer 31:9 See also Mal 1:6 Israel is God’s son Hos 11:1 See also Dt 14:1 God adopts believers as his children Jn 1:12-13 God is the Father of believers 2Co 6:18 See also Mt 6:9 pp Lk 11:2 Believers are adopted as an outcome of Eph 1:5 Believers are adopted as an outcome of redemption Gal 4:5 Believers are adopted as an outcome of justification Gal 3:24-26 See also Jn 1:12-13 Believers are adopted by grace Eph 1:3-6 See also Eze 16:3-6; Ro 4:16; Eph 1:11 The final adoption of believers will occur at the resurrection Ro 8:23 See also Eph 6 1:13-14; 1Jn 3:2

ADOPTION

I. In the Old Testament Adoption occurs comparatively rarely in the OT. Hebrew possesses no technical term for the practice, and it makes no appearance in the laws of the OT. This situation is probably explained by the existence among the Israelites of several alternatives to the problem of infertile marriage. Polygamy and levirate *MARRIAGE lessened the need for adoption, while the principle of maintaining property within the tribe (Lv. 25:23ff.; Nu. 27:8–11; Je. 32:6ff.) allayed some of the fears of childless parents. Adoption in the OT is considerably illuminated by comparative material from Mesopotamia and Syria. Ancient Near Eastern adoption was a legal act by which a person was brought into a new family relationship, with the full privileges and responsibilities of one who participated in that relationship by birth. Applying this description to the OT, a small number of adoptions can be identified, the majority in Gn. 12–50. A preference for adoption within the family is discernible, and it seems that the OT, in common with ancient

6 Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies. London: Martin Manser.

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Near Eastern texts, included adoption and legitimation alongside adoption within a single umbrella concept, whereas Roman law made clear distinctions between these practices. According to cuneiform legal custom, adoption would have been required for Eliezer to become Abraham’s heir (Gn. 15:3) and for the sons of Hagar, Bilhah and Zilpah to participate in the inheritance of Abraham and (Gn. 16:1–4; 30:1–13; cf. 21:1–10). Although Eliezer’s apparent removal from the inheritance is untypical (Gn. 24:36; 25:5–6), his case is paralleled by an Old Babylonian letter from Larsa (Textes cuniiformes du Louvre 18, 153) which indicates that a man without sons could adopt his own slave. The adoptive status of the concubines’ sons is supported by Sarah’s and Rachel’s declarations, ‘I shall be built up’ (Gn. 16:2; 30:3; cf. RVmg.), and by Rachel’s statement, ‘God has … given me a son’ (Gn. 30:6). Although no evidence exists for Jacob’s adoption by Laban (cf. Gn. 31:3, 18, 30; 32:3ff.), Jacob himself probably adopted Ephraim and Manasseh. The adoption of a grandson also occurred in Ugarit (PRU 3, 70–71). Elsewhere in the OT, Moses (Ex. 2:10) and Esther (Est. 2:7, 15) were almost certainly adopted, probably according to non-Israelite law, though the case of Genubath (1 Ki. 11:20) is more doubtful. An adoption formula seems to occur in Ps. 2:7 (‘you are my son’; cf. Gn. 48:5, ‘your two sons … are mine’). A similar phrase appears in an Elephantine adoption contract (E. G. Kraeling, The Brooklyn Museum Aramaic Papyri, 1953, No. 8), and a negative equivalent also occurs, chiefly in Old Babylonian texts. The OT contains no reference to adoption rites, however, since the custom of ‘bearing upon the knees’ (Gn. 30:3; 50:23; Jb. 3:12) is associated with birth and recognition by the head of the family. Adoption also had a theological aspect. The nation Israel was regarded as God’s son (Is. 1:2f.; Je. 3:19; Ho. 11:1), especially as his first-born (Ex. 4:22; Je. 31:9), and the Davidic king was similarly privileged, though his humanity and accountability were equally emphasized (2 Sa. 7:14; 1 Ch. 28:6f.; Ps. 89:19ff.). It was this divine choice that lay behind Paul’s statement that sonship belonged to the Israelites (Rom. 9:4).

BIBLIOGRAPHY. S. I. Feigin, JBL 50, 1931, pp. 186–200; S. Kardimon, JSS 3, 1958, pp. 123–126; I. Mendelsohn, IEJ 9, 1959, pp. 180–183; J. van Seters, JBL 87, 1968, pp. 401–408. M.J.S.

II. In the New Testament Adoption in the NT has as its background not Roman law, in which its chief aim was to continue the adoptive parent’s line, but Jewish custom, which conferred the benefits of the family on the adoptee. It occurs only in Paul, and is a relationship conferred by God’s act of free grace which redeems those under the law (Gal. 4:5). Its intention and result is a change of status, planned from eternity and mediated by Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:5), from slavery to sonship (Gal. 4:1ff.). The cry ‘Abba! Father!’ (Rom. 8:15 and Gal. 4:6; in the context of adoption) may perhaps be the traditional cry of the adopted slave. The adopted son of God possesses all family rights, including access to the Father (Rom. 8:15) and sharing with

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Christ in the divine inheritance (Rom. 8:17). The presence of the Spirit of God is both the instrument (Rom. 8:14) and the consequence (Gal. 4:6) of this sonship. However complete in status this adoption may be, it has yet to be finally made real in the deliverance of the creation itself from bondage (Rom. 8:21ff.). Adoption is implicit as a relationship of grace in John’s teaching about ‘becoming a son’ (Jn. 1:12; 1 Jn. 3:1–2), in the prodigal’s acceptance into full family rights (Lk. 15:19ff.) and in Jesus’ oft-repeated title of God as Father (Mt. 5:16; 6:9; Lk. 12:32).

BIBLIOGRAPHY. W. H. Rossell, ‘New Testament Adoption—Graeco-Roman or Semitic?’, JBL 71, 1952, pp. 233ff.; D. J. Theron, ‘ ‘Adoption’ in the Pauline Corpus’, EQ 28, 1956, pp. 1ff.; F. Lyall, ‘Roman Law in the Writings of Paul—Adoption’, JBL 88, 1969, pp. 458ff. 7 F.H.P. ADOPTION

GOD MAKES HIS PEOPLE HIS CHILDREN

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law … so that we might receive adoption as children.

GALATIANS 4:4–5 (NRSV)

Paul teaches that the gift of justification (i.e., present acceptance by God as the world’s Judge) brings with it the status of sonship by adoption (i.e., permanent intimacy with God as one’s heavenly Father, Gal. 3:26; 4:4–7). In Paul’s world, adoption was ordinarily of young adult males of good character to become heirs and maintain the family name of the childless rich. Paul, however, proclaims God’s gracious adoption of persons of bad character to become “heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ” (Rom. 8:17). Justification is the basic blessing, on which adoption is founded; adoption is the crowning blessing, to which justification clears the way. Adopted status belongs to all who receive Christ (John 1:12). The adopted status of believers means that in and through Christ God loves them as he loves his only-begotten Son and will share with them all the glory that is Christ’s now (Rom. 8:17, 38–39). Here and now, believers are under God’s fatherly care and discipline (Matt. 6:26; Heb. 12:5–11) and are directed, especially by Jesus, to live their whole lives in light of the knowledge that God is their Father in heaven. They are to pray to him as such (Matt. 6:5–13), imitate him as such (Matt. 5:44–48; 6:12, 14–15; 18:21–35; Eph. 4:32–5:2), and trust him as such (Matt. 6:25–34), thus expressing the filial instinct that the Holy Spirit has implanted in them (Rom. 8:15–17; Gal. 4:6).

7 Millard, A. R. (1996). Adoni­Zedek. In D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, J. I. Packer & D. J. Wiseman (Eds.), New Bible dictionary (D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, J. I. Packer & D. J. Wiseman, Ed.) (3rd ed.) (16). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

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Adoption and regeneration accompany each other as two aspects of the salvation that Christ brings (John 1:12–13), but they are to be distinguished. Adoption is the bestowal of a relationship, while regeneration is the transformation of our moral nature. Yet the link is evident; God wants his children, whom he loves, to bear his character, and takes action 8 accordingly.

Adoption adoption, a NT term that functions in the context of specialized salvation language, usually translated ‘sonship.’ It draws meaning from the theological realities of belonging, connectedness, relationship, and inheritance established by God’s promise to human beings. The frame of reference is that of the family and foundational membership; its affirmations are derived from the ‘sonship’ of Christ, and its scope is inclusive of both men and women. Adopted relationships among humans are found in the OT (e.g., Gen. 15:1-3; Exod. 2:10; Esther 2:7, 15; cf. also the system of levirate marriage, Deut. 25:5-10) and elsewhere in Semitic cultures, but the focal point upon which the NT builds is the declared ‘adoption-sonship’ (‘election’) relationship between God and Israel (e.g., Hos. 11:1; Exod. 4:22). In the NT, Jesus himself is not adopted (see the hymnic christological formulations in Phil. 2:6-11; Col. 1:15-20; also Heb. 1:5-7; cf. also, however, Rom. 1:3-4). By virtue of the mediation of the Son (resurrected Lord) and the Spirit, people become (ingrafted) heirs in ‘sonship’ through faith and are thus enabled to utter ‘Abba, Father’ (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6; cf. Eph. 1:5; Mark 14:36; Luke 11:2; Matt. 6:9). Other probable backgrounds for NT thought on adoption are the manumission and adoption of slaves and other Greco-Roman customs regarding property and birthright (cf. the ‘household tables’ of Col. 3:18-4:1; Eph. 5:21-6:9; 1 Pet. 2:18-3:7; also cf. Philemon). See also Abba; Election; Family, The; Father; Salvation; 9 Slavery; Sons of God, Children of God. J.E.A.

8 Packer, J. I. (1993). Concise theology: A guide to historic Christian beliefs. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House. 9 Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper’s Bible dictionary (1st ed.) (13). San Francisco: Harper & Row.

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