God's Promises: He is Our Kinsman-Redeemer

Photo by Hugo Fergusson

A few weeks ago, I watched a prayer/worship video where Kalley Heiligenthal encouraged people to ask God what name they should call Him in their time of need. As I’ve mentioned earlier in this time of quarantine, He has so many names because He is exactly what we need in each situation we find ourselves in. As soon as I saw that video, I sensed deeply that my name for the Lord in this time is Kinsman-Redeemer. In fact, I think this is a name He is inviting the world to call Him as we navigate both our present and the coming future. But, what exactly is a kinsman-redeemer, and why is that name for God so timely?

The phrase “kinsman-redeemer” isn’t used a lot in the Bible, but it is a concept we’re introduced to in-depth in the book of Ruth. Ruth’s husband, brother-in-law, and father-in-law all passed away. She had the option to return to the land she came from or to stay with her mother-in-law to try to survive together. She chose to stay with Naomi. Ruth was from a foreign people and didn’t know all of the customs of Israel, but Naomi led her in how to conduct herself. Because they needed food, Ruth asked to go gather the grain that fell in the process of harvesting from nearby fields, which was a custom. She just so happened to go to the field of Boaz—a close relative of Naomi and just generally a decent guy. He took a liking to Ruth and gave her special favor in her grain collection, and Naomi was overjoyed to find that the person who was looking so kindly on Ruth was a kinsman-redeemer for her family. And Boaz took it upon himself to redeem Naomi’s land and to marry Ruth, restoring the dignity of the family and providing hope for the future.

The kinsman-redeemer or Goel had various obligations that related to restoration, deliverance, or redemption of his family members. For example, a kinsman-redeemer could purchase a relative who had sold himself into slavery. He could avenge the death of a relative who was wrongly killed. He could redeem a relative from captivity or reclaim property that had been sold due to hardship. He could redeem a relative from exile, and he could also continue the family name in the event that a relative passed away with no heir—as was the case with Boaz and Ruth’s husband. One stipulation was that he had to be the closest relative related by blood. (That’s why Boaz had to offer the opportunity to redeem Naomi’s property and Ruth to the closer relative first.) The kinsman-redeemer gave hope to his family. He restored freedom and wealth. He redeemed blood that was unrightfully shed. He used his blood as a reason to deliver those he loved which is why God calls Himself our Kinsman-Redeemer in the book of Isaiah:

“Now, this is what Yahweh says:

“Listen, Jacob, to the One who created you,
Israel, to the one who shaped who you are.[a]
Do not fear,
for I, your Kinsman-Redeemer, will rescue you.
I have called you by name, and you are mine.” – Isaiah 43:1 (The Passion Translation)


We know that that the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy. There is no part of COVID-19 that reflects the heart of Heaven, and it was not sent by Father God. Loss, pain, illness, economic downfall, chaos, backbiting, blame, fear, doubt, hopelessness, and depression that have emerged from this unique time in history are not things that flow from the Father of Lights. Yet, He does not leave us hopeless or at the hands of harm. Yes, He mourns and weeps with us. Yes, He is present in our suffering and our grief. As it says in Isaiah 63:8b-9a,“He became their Savior. When they suffered, he suffered with them.” However, Jesus didn’t just cry with Mary and Martha when Lazarus died. He also resurrected Lazarus, snatching him from the hands of death, redeeming the sorrows of his loved ones. He hasn’t left us to our miserable selves nor to the schemes of an enemy that hates us in the midst of coronavirus. He is our Kinsman-Redeemer. He will avenge the deaths of those who were taken from us before their time. That may not play out circumstantially the way that we think it should. But, I am reminded of Bill Johnson asking God for a redemptive anointing to pray for cancer patients and see healings after his own father passed away from cancer. We can always ask how we can participate in redemption. We can partner with God to push back the darkness; that is the response we’re invited to even in the midst of our grief. He will deliver us from our captivity and give us freedom again. He will redeem finances that have taken a hit. In the same way that Job’s restoration went abundantly beyond what Job had in the beginning of his story, I believe that God’s heart in restoration is lavish. We don’t know when our deliverance is coming. We don’t know how He is going to redeem our heartaches and losses. We don’t know why all of this is happening in the first place, but we can ask Him how we can partner with Him in redemption. We can ask Him how to pray. We can ask Him to grant us redemptive anointings for healing, redemptive wisdom in finances, and redemptive innovation for re-constructing our lives and societies in ways that honor Him better. It was, after all, His blood that made us His children. It was His sacrifice that made us His family. Jesus is our Brother and Advocate. He made us heirs with Him and invited us to carry His Kingdom on earth. He is the hope of our salvation.

“Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer” – Ruth 4:14