Topical Bible: Redemption: Typified: First-Born

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In the biblical narrative, the concept of redemption is intricately woven into the fabric of God's relationship with His people. One of the profound typologies of redemption is found in the designation and treatment of the first-born. This typology is deeply rooted in the Old Testament and finds its ultimate fulfillment in the New Testament through Jesus Christ.

Old Testament Context

The first-born holds a place of significant importance in the biblical tradition. In ancient Israel, the first-born son was regarded as the primary heir and the one who would carry on the family lineage. This status is not merely cultural but is imbued with theological significance, as seen in the laws and narratives of the Old Testament.

Exodus and the Passover

The most prominent typology of redemption involving the first-born is found in the account of the Exodus. In Exodus 12, God commands the Israelites to sacrifice a lamb and apply its blood to the doorposts of their homes. This act would spare the first-born of Israel from the final plague that struck Egypt—the death of every first-born son. The Lord declares, "For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and I will strike down every firstborn male, both man and beast, and I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD" (Exodus 12:12). The Passover lamb thus becomes a type of Christ, whose sacrificial death redeems believers from the bondage of sin.

Consecration of the First-Born

Following the Exodus, God commands the consecration of all first-born males to Himself, both human and animal, as a perpetual reminder of His deliverance. In Exodus 13:2, the Lord instructs, "Consecrate to Me every firstborn male. The firstborn from every womb among the Israelites belongs to Me, both of man and beast." This consecration signifies that the first-born are set apart for God's purposes, symbolizing the redemption and sanctification of His people.

Levitical Redemption

The redemption of the first-born is further elaborated in the Levitical laws. In Numbers 3:12-13, God takes the Levites in place of the first-born of Israel, stating, "Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the Israelites in place of every firstborn Israelite from the womb. The Levites belong to Me, for all the firstborn are Mine. On the day I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated to Myself every firstborn in Israel, both man and beast. They are Mine; I am the LORD." This substitutionary act prefigures the ultimate redemption through Christ, who is both the first-born of all creation and the first-born from the dead (Colossians 1:15, 18).

New Testament Fulfillment

The typology of the first-born finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ, who is described as the "firstborn over all creation" (Colossians 1:15) and the "firstborn from the dead" (Colossians 1:18). As the first-born, Christ embodies the perfect fulfillment of the law and the ultimate act of redemption. His sacrificial death and resurrection secure the redemption of all who believe, making them co-heirs with Him.

In Hebrews 12:23, believers are referred to as the "assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven," indicating that through Christ, they share in the privileges and inheritance of the first-born. This typology underscores the profound truth that redemption is not merely a transaction but a transformation, bringing believers into a new relationship with God as His consecrated and redeemed children.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Exodus 13:11-15
And it shall be when the LORD shall bring you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and to your fathers, and shall give it you,
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Numbers 18:15
Every thing that opens the matrix in all flesh, which they bring to the LORD, whether it be of men or beasts, shall be yours: nevertheless the firstborn of man shall you surely redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts shall you redeem.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Christ, to Perform the Office of Mediator, Behoved to Become Man.
... for which reason Paul designates him "the first-born of every ... Hence under the Law
he was typified by sacrifices ... has been given us as the price of redemption. ...
/.../the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 12 christ to perform.htm

Scriptural Types.
... his blood that we have "redemption, the forgiveness ... Accordingly the priests who typified
Christ were taken from ... against the destroyer of the first-born (Exod.12 ...
/.../barrows/companion to the bible/chapter xxxvii scriptural types.htm

The Blood of Sprinkling
... fit to undertake the enterprise of our redemption as this ... pass that family by, and
leave their first-born unharmed. ... This was all typified in the blood of bulls ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 32 1886/the blood of sprinkling.htm

On the Offices of Our Lord Jesus Christ
... 3:6; x, 21.) For that is properly typified by a ... hath offered to God the true price
of redemption for us ... Psalm 45:7.) "I will make him my First-born, higher than ...
/.../arminius/the works of james arminius vol 1/disputation 14 on the offices.htm

Christ Our Passover
... No other creature could so well have typified him who ... blood sprinkled on us for our
redemption; secondly, by ... our king began to slay your first-born, for God is ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 2 1856/christ our passover.htm

Covenanting Enforced by the Grant of Covenant Signs and Seals.
... And as the first-born of Israel were a sign ... the New, were dispensations of the Covenant
of Redemption. ... former, Christ and his work were typified and predicted. ...
/.../cunningham/the ordinance of covenanting/chapter xi covenanting enforced by.htm

How Christ is the Way in General, "I am the Way. "
... ceremonially, but it is only the blood of Jesus, typified by that ... "He will not take
our first-born for our ... to God a ransom for him; for the redemption of the ...
/.../brown/christ the way the truth and the life/chapter iii how christ is.htm

Oration Concerning Simeon and Anna
... She hath brought forth her first-born Son, even the only ... the ark of the covenant,
which typified thee, that ... of Him to all that looked for redemption in Jerusalem ...
/.../the writings of methodius fragments/oration concerning simeon and anna.htm

A Description of Heart-Purity
... v) Purity is the end of our redemption. ... with Marcion the heretic, but called him
the devil's firstborn'. ... The Cherubims, which typified the angels, were made of ...
/.../16 a description of heart-purity.htm

Continuation of the Discourse on the Holy Ghost.
... Holy Spirit wrought, but also in the first-born children of ... were sealed unto the
day of redemption [2239 ... heaven where the Church is, the typified ark." Compare ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture xvii continuation of the.htm