If you had asked a devout Israelite in...

If you had asked a devout Israelite in the Old Testament period “Are you redeemed?” the answer would have been a most definite yes. And if you had asked “How do you know?” you would be taken aside to sit down somewhere while your friend recounted a long and exciting story—the story of the exodus.

For indeed it is the exodus that provided the primary model of God’s idea of redemption, not just in the Old Testament but even in…