Covenant Reformed News – January 2014 • Volume XIV, Issue 21
This article explains Christ's atonement through the biblical metaphor of ransom, arguing that Jesus paid an infinite price to deliver real captives from bondage to sin, law, death, and Satan. The author emphasizes that the ransom was paid to God the Father as satisfaction for His righteous law, refuting the medieval ransom-to-Satan theory and highlighting Christ's role as both mediator and redeemer.
Christ Our Ransom You know what a ransom is. A ransom is a price paid to effect the deliverance of captives. You have heard of many instances of kidnappers or terrorists seizing people and imprisoning them. Then they demand a ransom: “If you pay us (a specified amount of money), we will release your loved ones.” I Timothy 2:6 states that the Lord Jesus “gave himself a ransom.” Christ’s cross is not merely some figurative or metaphorical ransom; it is a real ransom. There are real captives in...