Liberation In Biblical Perspective

By Henry Nawl Thang Bik

Introduction

 Liberation is an ongoing event of God’s involvement among God’s creations, which serves as a paradigm of liberation for contemporary people everywhere under oppression, giving impetus to their struggles to become a people from being no-people. The motif of “Liberation” does play a significant role in the theological understanding of the exodus text. It definitely has a significant place in the redemptive plan of God. The theme of the liberation, which is found in the Bible, especially in the book of Exodus, is really an inspiration for all oppressed and exploited class, which we can see through out the human history. This paper will mainly focus to the biblical understanding of Liberation.

A.   Old Testament Perspective of Liberation

1. Five Basic Hebrew Roots for Liberation

            (a) אצי - ‘yasa’- In the Old Testament ‘yasa’[1] mainly refers to physically going out or coming to another location with some exceptions of more figurative meanings such as release from bondage (Exodus 21:2-5; Lev. 25:54).[2]

            (b) צשי - ‘yasah’ –The OT understanding of the root ‘yasah’ in general implies ‘bringing help to the people in the midst of their trouble’ rather than ‘rescuing them from it.’[3]

            (c) לענ-‘nsl’ –The verb ‘nasal’ occurs manly in Hiphil stem and mostly with God as the subject. In general, it designates the snatching away or freeing from the firm, grip of oppression. [4]

            (e) הדפ - ‘pdh’ –In the Hebrew Bible, the verb ‘padu’[5] with qal stem appears in cultic instructions about the redemption of first-born human beings and animals. ‘Pdh’ designates a legal act of redemption from slavery by Yahweh. Yahweh’s ransom from the slavery of Egypt assures Israel of future help and also models proper conduct for future Israel.[6]

            (f) לאג - ‘g’al’or ‘go’el’ – the Hebrew root ‘gal’ means ‘to redeem, to deliver, to ransom,’[7] and its denominative geulah has the meaning of ‘right and duty of redemption.’ The verb is applicable to mean two realms namely ‘legal or social life and with regard to God’s redeeming acts.’ Yahweh commissioned Moses with a promise to redeem ‘g’al’ or ‘go’el’ Israel from the Egyptian slavery.[8]

2. Liberation Motif In Exodus

Jean Cardomnel observes, “Sacred history, the conscious history of a people does not begin in Genesis, but in Exodus. The tangible experience of liberation is the only way to discover the fact of creation. It is only the deeply lived experience of oppression that prompts man to work towards their radical liberation, in which process they can come to discover that the world is a creation.”[9] Liberation of Israelites from slavery is a central event in exodus, but it is not the final objective of God’s work; redemption is in the service of a new creation.[10]

3. God as the Liberator

The liberative dimension of the image of God belongs to the very basic God-experience of the people of Israel. It is the faith expression of the ancient Israelites there is only one God, merciful liberator and Giver of life who came down to liberate his devotees from oppressive forces, must have preceded the explicit profession of monotheistic faith. The Hebrew verb that specifically refers to the redeeming and liberating act of God is ga’al. It is used in exodus for the basic experience of Israel’s liberation from slavery, according to God’s promise. ‘I am the Lord and I will free you from the burden of the Egyptians and deliver you from slavery to them. ‘I will redeem you with an outstretched arm’ (Ex. 6:6; 15:13).[11]God always acted in redemptive manner towards his people-like no other gods would have done for his own (I Chron.17: 21). The chosen people do not deserve any such preferential treatment it is only because God loves them that time and again he redeems them (Isa. 43:1, 4; Deut. 7:8).

4. Liberation As the On-going Experience

The liberation that God initiates through the exodus event is an unending liberation and it continues through out the life and history of Israel.[12] Assmann states, “The Exodus is not only paradigmatic for Israel’s faith with a limited ‘salvation history’ but the paradigm for the interpretation of all space and time, that is for the ongoing, global salvation history.”[13] Crotto says, “the exodus is not an event which took place at one point in history but it is ongoing event because it inspired a constant reinterpretation in terms of God’s successive acts of salvation, which has become a relevant message for all people at all times.”[14]

1. Liberation paradigm in the wisdom literature: - Liberation paradigms are found in wisdom literature. The whole of psalms recalls Israel’s liberation. Yahweh is the redeemer (gial) of the orphans and widows and pleads their causes (prov.23: 11). Yahweh takes up the cause of the victims and redeems their lives (Lam. 3:58). There are also many passages in psalms, which talk about Yahweh’s liberative action (Ps. 119:154; 72:2, 14; 18:2, 66:12, etc).[15]

2. Liberation paradigm in the prophetic literatures: -Prophetic literatures are also talking about liberation or on-going experience of liberation.

(i)    Hosea: - “when Israel was a child I loved him and out of Egypt I called my son,” says God (Hos.11: 1). Yahweh is calling the stumbling Israel back to God (14:1) saying, “I have been the Lord your God either since the land of Egypt, you know no God but Me, and besides Me there is no Savior (13:4). 

(ii)   Micah: - prophet Micah tells – forth that Israel shall go to Babylon but their Yahweh shall rescue (nasal) them and redeem (g’al) them from the lands of their enemies (Mic. 4:10).

(iii)  Amos: - for prophet Amos, being prophet of justice, exodus means ‘liberation with responsibility.’ The people of Israel are liberated so that they will become model to uphold justice, safeguard righteousness and protect equality (Amos 3:1, 2; 2:6-8).

(iv) Ezekiel: - for prophet Ezekiel, the liberation is grounded on Yahweh’s oath and its purpose is the gift of the land and the worship of Yahweh alone in the land (Ezekiel 20: 6, 34, 38, 41).

(v) Jeremiah: - Jeremiah declares that Yahweh has ransomed Jacob, and has redeemed him from the hands too strong for him (Jeremiah 31:11).[16]

(vi)   Deu-tro Isaiah: -  Deutro-Isaiah is mainly focusing on the word go’el, for him the liberation and redemption can be achieved through Yaweh. This is not by human’s power or might but the Lord.

B.   The New Testament Perspective of Liberation

1.The liberating work of Christ: The whole humanity was under the bondage of sin. Christ comes to liberate human being from slavery to sin and all the powers at its command. Those whom he liberates far from becoming self-directed are ushered into a new bondage (Rom 6:12-23) they become Christ’s willing slaves, he becomes their Lord. (1Cor 7:22, Rom. 6; Eph. 6:6-7). “Christ crucified” is “our redemption” (1Cor 1:18-31) His death is the ransom price that secures liberation from the bondage to Sin (1 Timothy 2:6, Titus 2:14).

2.      Liberation from bondage to the law: To be under law is to be “Under Sin”(Gal 3:22-23). To purchase those who were under the Law, Christ himself was born under the Law on their behalf (Gal 3:10-13). Therefore those people are no longer “under the Law” but “under Grace”(Rom 6; 14). Those once bound to the law are now married to Christ (Rom 7:1-6). The law itself is not abandoned but rested from Sin’s grip and placed into the hands of a new master. The spirit grants liberation, not now from the “law” itself nor from the “writing” but from the “letter” which is what the Law becomes apart from the Spirit and the Christ in whom the law reaches its appointed goal (1 Cor 3:4-17).

3.      Liberation from the flesh: Paul frequently employs that Sarx (“flesh”) to denote the whole person in rebellion against God and in bondage to sin. By Christ’s incarnation and death, sin is “condemned in the flesh”, and its victims freed from existence “according to the flesh”(Rom 8:3-4). They are no longer “in the flesh” but “in Christ” and “in the spirit.”[17]

4.      Liberation from death: Sin explains death’s entry into the world (Rom 5:12). The death that results from bondage to sin is at the same time the effect of God’s wrath (Rom 1:18-32). By his sacrificial death of Christ, rescues his peoples from “the wrath to come”(Rom 5:9) and by his resurrection from the death he offers “eternal life” in place of death (Rom 5:21) “The last enemy” is not yet destroyed (1Cor 15:20-26) but those united to Christ and dwelt by his spirit are already granted ‘newness of life”(Rom 6:4,13). 

5.      The practice of Christian Liberty:  The tension between liberty and law, or freedom and obligation, which marks the current study of Pauline letters themselves .We, shall consider three – Galatians, 1 Corinthians, and Romans. Having    declared “Christ set us from freedom,” (Gal 5:1). Paul enjoins readers not to misuse their freedom (Gal 5:13) but to “fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal 6:2). In 1Corinthians 8-10 freedom to eat certain meats is qualified by the command to respect the weak. A roman 14-15 addresses a conflict between champion of liberty and defenders of the law.

6.      Thralldom to Christ: Slavery to Christ and submission to his Lordship provides the basis for the exercise of liberty. But do not use your liberty, as an opportunity for the flesh, rather, be slaves to one another in love.[18]

Conclusion

When we look from the liberation perspective, the Bible presents God as the liberator at all occasions right from the creation. Liberation theology focuses on God’s salvation as liberative act of God. The liberation of the Hebrew from slavery and the life and death of Jesus are the basic and prototype for the contemporary human struggles for liberation. The church as the representative of God’s community must join in solidarity with the oppressed against the oppressors. This is an act of showing God’s participation in the human struggle for liberation and justice. We are the liberated community and so we should work for the liberation of oppressed people who are in our nation and the whole universe.

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[1] The Hebrew root ‘yasa’ in Gal stem means ‘go out, come forth, proceed, come forward; Hiphil- ‘cause to go forth, to come forth, bring forth, produce; hopael- ‘be brought for the, conducted.. Etc… the use of ‘yasa’ is to describe Yahweh’s act of liberation begins with the book of Exodus. Yahweh acts as a warrior in order to liberate and set the oppressed people free. See F Brown, S.R. Driver and C.A. Brigg, Hebrew English Lexicon of the Old Testament (eds.) (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976), 442. Yasa can be also ‘to bring out and to bring up,’ ‘go or come out,’ ‘march out,’ and in a technical sense ‘emancipation,’ ‘to lead out.’ Thus bringing out of the house of bondage means that Yahweh causes the Israelites to go up, or go out of the land of Egypt. The deliverance from Egypt is seen as an activity of Yahweh. See Joseph Kandathil, “Oppression/Liberation Experience of Israel in Exodus,” Jeevadhara (ed.) by Felix Podimattam, Vol. XVII No. 102, Nov., 1987), 443-444.

[2] F Brown, S.R. Driver and C.A. Brigg, Hebrew English Lexicon of the Old Testament (eds.) (Oxford: Clarendon press, 1976), 442.

[3] The term ‘yasah’ in Niphal means ‘to be helped, or be victorious;’ Hiphil- ‘help, deliver, save, come to one’s aid, bringing victory,’ and the nominative form Yeshua- means ‘help, salvation, deliverance, safety, victory,’; See F Brown, S.R. Driver and C.A. Brigg, Hebrew English Lexicon of the Old Testament (eds.), 447.

[4]The Hebrew term ‘nasal’ with the niphal stem means ‘be rescued; piel- ‘take away, plunder; hiphil- ‘to rescue, save snatch away, pull out, give up; hopael- ‘be saved, pull out; hithpael- ‘remove, give up; and the nominative ‘hassala’ means ‘deliverance’. Yahweh says to Moses that Israel will plunder the Egyptians (Ex. 3:22, 12:36). See F Brown, S.R. Driver and C.A. Brigg, Hebrew English Lexicon of the Old Testament (eds.), 664.

[5] It simply means redeemed or purchased land. F Brown, S.R. Driver and C.A. Brigg., 804.

[6]The word ‘pdh’ in the qal stem denotes ‘ransom, redeem, deliver; Hiphil- to let ransom and the nominative also has the meaning ransom or redemption.

[7] Deliverance or redemption is needed not only form outward enemies. Often the enemies are the wicked in Israel itself, the rich and the rulers who oppress the weak and the poor. Though the verb used is nasal, RSV renders it ‘rescue’ which otherwise is used to render the verb ‘Palat.’ However in Ezk. 34: 27 of the same chapter nasal is again translated as ‘deliver.’ See Joseph Kandathil, “Oppression/Liberation Experience of Israel in Exodus,” Jeevadhara (ed.) by Felix Podimattam., 444.

[8] See F Brown and others, Hebrew English Lexicon of the Old Testament.,145.

[9] Madayil Mani Chacko, Liberation and Service of God: a theological Evaluation of Exodus 1:1-15:21. (Delhi: ISPCK, 2002), 223.

[10] T. Desmond Alexander and David W. Baker, Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch (eds.), (Secundrabad: OM Authentic Books, 2003), 254.

[11] Shilanand Hemay, “God and the Liberator,” Jeevadhara (ed.) by Augustine Mullored, Vol. XXXVI No. 212, 2005, 34-38.

[12] The historical and religious experience of the exodus is the first kerygmatic core for a theology of liberation. It is also an event, which inspires economic and cultural liberation.

[13] J. Andrew Kirk, Liberation Theology (Bashing Stoke: Marshall Morgan and Scott, 1979), 101.

[14] J. Andrew Kirk, Liberation Theology., 102.

[15] T. Desamond Alexander and David W Baker, Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch (eds,), 395.

[16] Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. I., 33

[17] “Our old self was crucified with Christ so that the body under Sin’s control might be rendered powerless that we should no longer be slaves to Sin”(Rom 6:6)

[18] Gerald F.Hawthrone and Ralph P. Reid, Dictionary of Paul and His Letters (Illinois: Inter Varsity Press, 1993),