Goel

In the Old Testament, the law of the goel was “If your brother becomes poor, and sells part of his property, then his next of kin shall come and redeem what his brother has sold” Lev 25:25Goel is the Hebrew word for the redeemer, from geula, redemption. Ruth followed Naomi to Israel. “Where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God; where you die I will die, and there will I be buried” Ruth 1:1617.

This pledge, together with her marriage to Boaz under the Levirate law, brought her into the promised land of Israel Ruth 4:910. The witnesses confirmed it: “Then all the people who were at the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel” Ruth 4:11.

Our Father created our first parents in the state of original justice. The original sin led to the Fall of Adam. But our Father’s mercy Deut 4:31 never changes Mal 3:6. As one consequence of the Fall, our Father told Adam that a son of “the virgin” would come to help him and his descendants Gen 3:15. Then he drove our first parents out of paradise Gen 3:2324. Isaiah’s prophecy of Mary used the word ha’almah, “the virgin” Is 7:14, to connect “the virgin” with both his promise of redemption Gen 3:15 and its fulfillment Lk 23:43.

The Son of God, our goel, “Canceled the bond which stood against us with its legal demands; this he set aside, nailing it to the cross,” Col 2:14 so that we could enter the promised kingdom of heaven where we will see our Adonai our Father, Yeshua our shepherd, Ruakh our guide, Mary our Mother, and all the communion of saints, our brothers and sisters Mt 12:50.

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