While purchase is universal, redemption, when in application to persons, is special. It applies to a special class—those who by faith receive Christ as their Saviour.
An illustration or two might help us to understand the difference between these two things. Suppose you see a caged dog captive to a cruel master. You often go by that pitiful sight and see a cruel man beating and mistreating his dog. Out of compassion for that dog you think to yourself, “I wonder if I could buy that dog, so that it would be delivered from that cruel master?” So, one day you drive your car to that man’s place and ask him if he would sell his dog. The man is agreeable to it, and states his price, and you pay him the amount. You buy the dog and the cage as well. So, you put the dog in his cage in your vehicle and drive off. Now what has happened to the dog? He has been purchased; he has a new master. There has been a change of ownership, but there has not been a change of condition—he is still captive in that cage. But when you get home and open the cage, and the dog gets out And runs around, then there is a change of condition—he’s set free! This is the thought in redemption; it implies being liberated.
Another illustration of the slave market would teach the same truth. Suppose you lived way back then, and saw a slave bound and for sale on the market. You had pity on that person and bought him, and he is delivered to you with his chain. He has a new master, but not a new condition—he is still a slave! This would illustrate being bought. But suppose you had no intention of keeping him as a slave; so out of pity, you freed him from his bondage. This would illustrate redemption—being bought and set free.
To use an Old Testament type, we would point to the story of Israel being redeemed out of Egypt. As you know, they were under the cruel taskmasters of Pharaoh (Ex. 1:1111Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses. (Exodus 1:11)). The Lord had compassion on them and promised to set them free (Ex. 3:7-8; 6:67And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 8And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. (Exodus 3:7‑8)
6Wherefore 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: (Exodus 6:6)). And when the Lord delivered them from Egypt, the people joyfully owned that He had “purchased” them, and also that He had “redeemed” them (Ex. 15:13, 1613Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. (Exodus 15:13)
16Fear and dread shall fall upon them; by the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O Lord, till the people pass over, which thou hast purchased. (Exodus 15:16)).
In Luke 24, when two disciples went down the road to Emmaus, the Lord went with them. And they said to Him: “We trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel” (Luke 24:2121But 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. (Luke 24:21)). Here again the word redeemed has the thought of being set free from bondage. In this case, it was the nation of Israel being set free from the Roman yoke that was on them. See also Hosea 13:1414I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. (Hosea 13:14); Micah 4:1010Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; there shalt thou be delivered; there the Lord shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies. (Micah 4:10); Psalm 25:2222Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles. (Psalm 25:22) for more examples.
As mentioned earlier, my concern is that we are in danger of slipping into using these terms without knowing their true meaning. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard Sunday School teachers and evangelists say that “redeemed” means to be “bought.” Scripture distinguishes these things, and we should too. Now I know that evangelists and Sunday School teachers have some liberty to generalize in their comments in their efforts to reach souls. A. C. Brown used to say, “Don’t clip the wings of the evangelist!” So, I don’t want to do that here, but just to point out that while you may have heard these terms used synonymously, it doesn’t mean that they are. An evangelist may have liberty in his meetings to cross over on some terms as he entreats souls, but we do not have that liberty in the Bible readings where we are enjoined to maintain sound doctrine (1 Tim. 4:66If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained. (1 Timothy 4:6); Titus 1:99Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers. (Titus 1:9)). If we don’t attend the Bible readings regularly where these things are taught, and only get our teaching from the Sunday School and gospel meetings, we are going to be sadly deficient in our understanding of the truth.
Another example of misusing these terms is in a hymn that we sing that says, “He has redeemed us from hell by His blood” (#21 AP – L. F. hymnbook). “Saved” would have been a better word to use instead of “redeemed,” because it means that we are preserved from getting into hell. All know that if a person gets into hell, he or she will never be bought back and set free from that awful place! I’m not trying to pick on the hymn writer, but I mention it for our learning and the necessity of distinguishing these terms. I realize that there is a certain amount of poetic license that hymn writers have, and we happily sing those hymns with what the authors surely had in mind—though they might occasionally stray from doctrinal accuracy. It just goes to prove that we shouldn’t take our doctrine from our hymnology. I am thankful that, for the most part, the hymns in the Little Flock hymnbook are Scripturally sound.