A Ransom for Many - What can that mean?

Almost 2000 years ago, Jesus of Nazareth -- Jesus Christ -- was crucified. He died. Painfully. And then, by the second morning after that, He was risen from the dead. His physical body was gone - or, rather, in light of subsequent events, it seems to have been transformed into a spiritual one. (That's an interesting thing to think through, in itself, but it's not the focus of this article.)

Instead, here we want to focus on some of the things that are said in the Bible about why Jesus died. There's an almost-2000-year-old confusion about it. Let's dig into it...

In Mark 10:42-45 (and in Matthew 20:25-28), we find this well-known lesson, which occurs late in Jesus's ministry. James and John - still not really understanding the depth of what was going on, are lobbying Jesus for promises of sitting at His left and right hand when he is "king". The other disciples are displeased, of course. Jesus knows what's going on, so He gathers them all, and tries to explain the real nature of His mission, and what their mission should be, too.

Here's the text:

"But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."

A ransom. The Greek word used here is λύτρον, or lutron, which means the price for redeeming or ransoming, from λύω, luo, for loosening, untying, or setting free.

Some theologians have taken this text, and combined it with the text from the crucifixion story, when Jesus says three things that show his distress, and his feeling of separation from his Divine essence -- "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?", and "Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done", and "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

It can certainly be interpreted as a sort of sacrifice, in which Jesus acts as a sort of scapegoat, substituting his death for the human race that had disappointed His Father. Some theologians have done that. Anselm of Canterbury, in around 1000 AD, was one of the leaders of a faction that made that argument. But we don't think that's the right track; in fact, we think it was a wrong track that's been pretty damaging.

In New Christian theology, it doesn't make sense that God was angry. He's love itself. Is He disappointed when we don't reciprocate His love? Sure. But angry? No. There's certainly the appearance of it, especially in the Old Testament at times, but the core nature of God is love.

What's more, it should be even clearer that the death of Jesus's physical body wouldn't make God the Father feel better. Remember, they are really ONE person, of one mind - not two.

Instead, the whole cycle of God's incarnation, ministry, physical death, and resurrection was undertaken so that new truths could reach humankind.

Here's an interesting passage, from Arcana Coelestia 1419,

"The Lord, being love itself, or the essence and life of the love of all in the heavens, wills to give to the human race all things that are His; which is signified by His saying that the Son of man came to give His life a ransom for many."

Further, in Apocalypse Explained 328:15, we find this explanation:

“The phrase ‘to ransom’ means to free people from falsities and reform them by means of truths. This is signified by the words, ‘Ransom [redeem] me, O Jehovah, God of truth’” (Psalm 31:5)

One reason Jesus died was to overcome the power of hell. Jesus fought against evil spirits throughout His life. The clearest description of this is just after his baptism, when he spends 40 days in the wilderness. His suffering on the cross was the final struggle against evil, and His resurrection was his final victory over it.

For every person, overcoming evil involves temptation or a struggle against evil. As we struggle against evil individually, Christ struggled against evil on a cosmic scale. His death was the conclusion of that struggle, but it wasn't a loss; it was a win. The Bible says that God took on flesh and blood so that

“... through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.” (Hebrews 2:14,15)

Another reason that Bible gives for Jesus’ death was that He might unite His human nature with His Divine nature, so that He could “make in Himself, of two, one new man,” (Ephesians 2:14-16, cf. John 17:11, 21; 10:30).

There are other reasons mentioned, too:

He could "go to the Father" (John 13:3; 14:2, 28; 16:10).

He could be "glorified" (John 17:1,5) or "enter into His glory" (Luke 24:26).

He could be "perfected" (Luke 13:32), or "sanctified" (John 17:19).

In Swedenborg's True Christianity 86, it says,

"Jehovah God came into the world as divine truth for the purpose of redeeming people. Redemption was a matter of gaining control of the hells, restructuring the heavens, and then establishing a church."

At the crucifixion, the forces of evil thought they had won. The religious and civic powers of the day led the way in condemning him. He was mocked. The crowd turned against him.

The death of Jesus' physical body was a "ransom" in this way: by undergoing that torture and death, He could then show that his spiritual power transcended natural death. He freed us, loosened us, from domination by the hells, and established a new church -- a new way that we can follow.

182. Verse 1. And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, signifies those who live a moral but not a spiritual life, because they have little regard for the knowledges of spiritual things and for intelligence and wisdom therefrom. This is evident from what is written to the angel of this church, from which, when viewed in the internal or spiritual sense, it can be seen that those who live a moral but not a spiritual life, because they have little regard for the knowledges of the spiritual things and for intelligence and wisdom therefrom, are here treated of. But before unfolding the things that follow as to their spiritual sense, it is necessary to explain and open what moral life is and what spiritual life is, also what moral life from spiritual life is, and what moral life apart from spiritual life. Moral life is acting well, sincerely, and justly with one's companions in all the affairs and occupations of life; in a word, it is the life that is apparent before men, because it is the life lived with them. But this life has a two-fold origin; it is either from the love of self and the world, or it is from love to God and love towards the neighbor.

[2] Moral life from the love of self and the world is not in itself moral life, although it seems to be moral; for the man acting thus acts well, sincerely, and justly for the sake of self and the world only, and what is good, sincere, and just serves him as means to an end, which is, either that he may be raised above others and rule over them, or that he may gain wealth; and of these things he thinks in his spirit, or when he is by himself secretly; but these things that he thinks he does not dare to avow openly, because they would destroy the good opinion others have of him, and thus destroy the means by which he wishes to attain his ends. From this it can be seen that there lies within the moral life of such a man nothing else than to acquire all things in preference to others, thus that he wishes to have all others to serve him, or to gain possession of their goods; from which it is evident that his moral life is not in itself a moral life; for if he should gain what he aims at, or what he has as an end, he would subject others to himself as slaves, and would deprive them of their goods. And as all means savor of the end, and in their essence are of the same quality as their ends, for which reason they are also called intermediate ends, therefore such a life, regarded in itself, is merely craftiness and fraud. And this also becomes clearly evident in the case of those with whom these external bonds are released, as takes place, when engaged in lawsuits against their fellows, when they desire nothing so much as to subvert justice, and secure the good will of the judge or the favor of the king, and this secretly, that they may deprive others of their goods; and when they obtain this, they rejoice in spirit and in heart. This is still more evident in the case of kings who place honor in wars and victories, that they find the highest joy of their hearts in subjugating provinces and kingdoms, and where resistance is made, in depriving the vanquished of all their goods, and even of life. Such also is the delight of many who engage at such times in military service. This becomes still more evident with all of this character when they become spirits, which is immediately after the death of the body. As they then think and act from their spirit, they rush into every wickedness according to their love, however morally they may have lived in appearance while in the world.

[3] But spiritual life is wholly different, because it has a different origin; for it is from love to God and love towards the neighbor. Consequently, the moral life also of those who are spiritual is different, and is a truly moral life; for these, when they think in their spirit, which takes place when they are thinking secretly by themselves, do not think from self and the world, but from the Lord and heaven; for the interiors of their minds, that is, of their thought and will, are actually elevated by the Lord into heaven, and are there conjoined to Him; thus the Lord flows into their thoughts, intentions, and ends, and governs them and withdraws them from their proprium [what is their own], which is solely from the love of self and of the world. The moral life of such persons is, in appearance, like the moral life of those described above, and yet their moral life is spiritual, because it is from a spiritual origin. Their moral life is simply an effect of spiritual life, which is the efficient cause, thus the origin. For they act well, sincerely, and justly with their fellows from fear of God and from love of the neighbor; in these loves the Lord keeps their mind and disposition [mentem et animum]; consequently when they become spirits, which takes place when the body dies, they think and act intelligently and wisely, and are elevated into heaven. Of these it may be said, that with them every good of love and every truth of faith flows in out of heaven, that is, through heaven from the Lord. But this is not true of those described above; for their good ¹ is not the good of heaven, nor is their truth the truth of heaven; but what they call good is the delight of the lust of the flesh, and it is falsity therefrom that they call truth; these flow into them from self and from the world. From this it can also be known what moral life from spiritual life is, and what moral life apart from spiritual life is; namely, that moral life from spiritual life is truly moral life, which may be called spiritual, since it has its cause and origin in the spiritual; but that moral life apart from spiritual life is not moral life, and may be called infernal, for so far as the love of self and of the world reign in it, so far it is fraudulent and hypocritical.

[4] From what has now been said, the quality of external sanctity may also be inferred (by which is meant worship in churches, prayers, and gestures then), with such as are in the love of self and of the world, and yet live an apparently moral life, namely, that nothing of these is elevated to heaven and is heard there, but that they flow out from some thought of the external or natural man, and thus from their mouth into the world. For the interior thoughts of such, which are of their very spirits, are full of craftiness and fraud against the neighbor; and yet it is through interiors that there is elevation into heaven. Moreover, their worship in churches, and prayers, and gestures at such times, are either the result of habit from infancy, and are thence become familiar, or they are from a principle that such external things contribute everything to salvation, or they are a consequence of there being no business for them at home and abroad on holy days, or of a fear of being regarded as irreligious by their companions. But worship with those who live a moral life from a spiritual origin is altogether different, for it is truly a worship of God, for their prayers are elevated to heaven and are heard, for the Lord leads their prayers through heaven to Himself. (But more may be seen on these subjects in the work on Heaven and Hell, n. 468, 484, 529, 530-534; and above, in the Explanation of the Apocalypse, n. 107.) These things are premised, because what is written to the angel of this church treats of those who live a moral but not a spiritual life, for the reason that they have little regard for the knowledges of spiritual things.

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