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place not, only in the line of David, but in the genealogy of David's greater Son
(Matt. 1: 5).
When we remember that the Scriptural Redeemer must be a kinsman and an Israelite,
and also that the Redeemer of Israel is set forth as Israel's Lord and God (cf. Isa. 41: 14;
43: 14; 44: 6, 24, &100:) we are confronted with a problem which can only be solved in
the light of the person of Christ as "God manifest in the flesh".
We must defer examination of Eph. 1: 14 to the next article, but we believe the
extreme importance of the subject more than justifies this long digression.
No.28 The Muniment Room (1: 3 - 14).
The Threefold Charter of the Church.
The Witness of the Spirit (1: 12 - 14).
The Purchased Possession.
pp. 225 - 228
With the background provided by the Old Testament type of the Kinsman Redeemer,
we can approach the exposition of the words "the redemption of the purchased
possession" with a fuller sense of its importance, and with a better sense of equipment for
the task. We must not forget, however, that the Ephesians would, like the Galatians, be
more familiar with the Greek and Roman law and custom regarding the adoption, the
selection and legal installment of the heir, and the actual moment of taking possession.
This too, if known to the reader, will intensify the meaning of Eph. 1: 14 and so we give
a brief review of the custom--not of adoption in its initial stages, but in its final phases.
So far as the ceremony of adoption was concerned, the difference between the
transferring of a son into slavery, and his becoming a member of the family was very
slight. In the one case the adopter said: "I claim this man as my slave"; in the other, "I
claim this man as my son". The form was almost the same; it was the spirit that differed.
If the adopter died and the adopted son claimed the inheritance, the latter had to testify
to the fact that he was the adopted heir. Furthermore:
"The law required corroborative evidence. One of the seven witnesses is called. `I
was present', he says at the ceremony. `It was I who held the scales and struck them with
the ingot of brass. It was an adoption. I heard the words of the vindication, and I say this
person was claimed by the deceased, not as a slave but as a son'." (W. E. Ball).
Bearing all these facts in mind, can we not feel something of the thrill with which the
Roman Christian would read the words: