Ephesians 1:7: what the blood buys, and by what measure
7In him, we have redemption through his blood: the remission of sins in accord with the riches of his grace,
A verse with three terms and one measure. Notice that the measure is not the size of the offence but the riches of the one forgiving.
Short answer
Ephesians 1:7 states that it is in him, and by means of his blood, that redemption exists — and that this redemption is named as the remission of sins, measured against the riches of grace. The line belongs to a single long blessing, and the measure is not the size of the guilt.
- Written by
- Maria Luisa Navarro Schmitt
- Reviewed by
- Raphael Navarro Schmitt
- Published on
- Reading time
- 2 min read
The word rendered redemption comes from the commercial vocabulary of the ancient world: it described the ransom paid to release someone from a debt or from servitude. The word keeps the price in view, which is why the next phrase about blood is not decorative.
Where this verse appears
The opening of Ephesians is, in the original, one enormous sentence running from verse 3 to verse 14, listing what has been done in Christ. Our verse is one item on that list.
Two verses earlier the text speaks of adoption as sons; one earlier, of praise for the glory of a grace freely given. The following verse says that grace was poured out abundantly, in all wisdom and prudence.
What it says
The sentence links three things in a specific order. First the redemption, which is the resulting state; then the means, the blood, which is sacrificial language; and finally its concrete content, the remission of sins. These are not three parallel benefits: each explains the next.
The closing measure is what runs hardest against common sense. The forgiveness is reckoned according to the riches of grace — by the capacity of the one forgiving, not by the seriousness of what was done. That relocates the question most people ask when they feel guilty.
A word about what is not here: the verse does not describe how each Christian tradition understands this forgiveness being applied in a person’s life — sacraments, repentance, perseverance. Catholics and Protestants organise that differently, and none of it is being settled by this line.
What to do with it today
It is for anyone repeating a request for forgiveness that has already been answered. If forgiveness depended on the size of your failure, recalculating would be worth it; since it is tied to someone else’s riches, the sum is not yours to do. The line does not erase the consequences of what was done — it takes you out of the role of auditor on your own case.
A prayer to carry with you
Lord, I still measure your forgiveness by the size of what I did. Teach me to measure it by what you have. Amen.