Who Are the Redeemed From Every Generation

Greetings, a servant of God, by the grace of God, teaching the truth of God under the authority of Jesus Christ to any who are willing to receive it. (Mat 13:43).

The Holy Bible contains the truth of God by the word of God (Joh 17:17); therefore, God teaches and gives understanding, wisdom, and knowledge to all who pray and seek Him with all the heart (Deu 4:29-31; Jer 29:12,13; Psa 119:2).

From the first pages of Genesis to the final chapters of Revelation, Scripture tells a single story: the redemption of a people whom God calls out of darkness (Psalm 18:28) and brings unto Himself (Gen 48:16). The Bible is not merely the history of nations, kings, prophets, or empires. It is the record of God's ongoing work to redeem men and women (Isaiah 43:6) from every generation who hear His proclamation, believe His word, and walk in His ways.

The question is not simply who the redeemed are, but why redemption became necessary in the first place. The story begins in a garden where God creates mankind in His image and places them within His provision and fellowship (Gen 1:26-28; 2:15-17). There, another voice appears. The serpent challenges the word of God from the beginning with a simple question: “Yea, has God said?” (Gen 3:1). From that moment forward, two competing proclamations stand before humanity: the truth of God and the deception of the adversary (Revelation 12:9). Every generation since has been forced to choose between them.

The conflict that begins in Eden unfolds throughout the entire Bible. Pharaoh enslaves God's people in Egypt, yet behind every power that opposes God stands the same spirit of rebellion against His truth. The tribes of Israel are redeemed from bondage (Exo 6:6,7), but redemption proves to be more than deliverance from a nation. The prophets reveal that mankind must also be redeemed from the snare of the devil (1Ti 3:7; 2Ti 2:26) in the form of sin, idolatry, unbelief, deception, and the corruption of the heart (Eze 20:16-20; Jer 17:9; Isa 59:14,15).

As the Scriptures progress, God continually preserves a faithful remnant. Abel offers by faith (Heb 11:4). Enoch walks with God (Gen 5:24; Heb 11:5). Noah finds grace (Gen 6:8). Abraham believes God (Gen 15:6). Moses chooses the reproach of Christ above the treasures of Egypt (Heb 11:24-26). The prophets endure rejection. The disciples believe and follow the Christ. The apostles carry His gospel to the nations. Though separated by centuries, they belong to the same redeemed people because they are united by faith in the God who calls, teaches, and saves.

When Jesus, the Christ of God appears, the purpose of redemption becomes clearer still. He comes not merely to rescue people from earthly oppression, but to save His people from their sins (Mat 1:21). He teaches that His sheep hear His voice and follow Him (John 10:27). He lays down His life as the ransom for many (Mat 20:28). Through His sacrifice, God redeems a people unto Himself from every nation, tribe, tongue, and people (Rev 5:9).

The New Testament reveals redemption as a transfer of allegiance and ownership. The redeemed are delivered from the power of darkness and brought into the kingdom of God's dear Son (Col 1:13). They are redeemed not only from something, but unto Someone. They are God's purchased possession, called to walk in truth, righteousness, and covenant faithfulness (Titus 2:14; 1Pe 1:18,19).

The story reaches its climax in Revelation. The adversary who first appeared in Eden is finally judged (Rev 20:2,10). Death itself is destroyed (Rev 20:14). The kingdoms of this world become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (Rev 11:15). The redeemed stand before God from every generation, every nation, and every age, having been brought safely through the long conflict between truth and deception (Rev 7:9-17). This study follows that story from beginning to end. It asks a simple question with a profound answer:

Who are the redeemed from every generation?

To answer it, we must return to the beginning, to a garden, to a tree, and to the first voice that dared to challenge the word of God. There we will find the first promise of redemption, the first hint of the coming Redeemer, and the foundation of the story that unfolds throughout the whole Bible.

The Choice of Voice to Follow

Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, has God said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

Gen 3:2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

Gen 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.

Gen 3:4 And the serpent said unto the woman, You shall not surely die:

Gen 3:5 For God does know that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

Gen 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

Gen 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

Gen 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

The story of redemption begins with a choice. Before there was a redeemed people, there was a competing voice. Before mankind was separated from the tree of life, the adversary first sought to separate mankind from the word of God. The serpent's opening question appears harmless:

"Yea, has God said...?" (Gen 3:1)

Yet behind the question lies the first challenge to God's authority. The issue is not the fruit, the tree, or the garden. The issue is whether God's proclamation can be trusted. The adversary introduces doubt where certainty existed and invites the woman to reconsider what God has plainly spoken.

The woman demonstrates that she knows God's command (Gen 3:2,3). The conflict therefore is not ignorance but allegiance. Which voice will be believed? The voice of the Creator, who gave life and every good thing, or the voice of the adversary, who offers an alternative understanding of reality? The answer becomes clear in the serpent's next words:

"You shall not surely die." (Gen 3:4)

Here Scripture records the first direct lie spoken by the adversary. God had declared:

"In the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die." (Gen 2:17)

The serpent declares the exact opposite. Jesus later identifies this moment as consistent with the adversary's very nature:

"He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it." (John 8:44)

The first utterance of the adversary in Scripture is therefore a lie directed against God's word. But the deception immediately deepens. Having contradicted God, the serpent now presumes to explain God's motives:

"For God does know that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened..." (Gen 3:5)

Notice what has happened. The adversary first denies what God said, then claims to speak on God's behalf. He attributes motives to God that God Himself never expressed. He becomes an interpreter of God's mind while opposing God's word.

This pattern appears repeatedly throughout Scripture. False prophets, false teachers, and deceivers not only reject what God has spoken; they often claim to explain God while contradicting Him. The LORD later warns:

"Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams... as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal." (Jer 23:27)

And again:

"I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied." (Jer 23:21)

The adversary's method is therefore established in Eden: contradict God's word, then substitute another explanation. When the woman begins to view the tree through the lens of the serpent's words, her judgment changes (Gen 3:6). What God prohibited now appears desirable. The outward act of eating merely reveals the inward transfer of trust. Adam and Eve choose another proclamation above God's own voice.

The immediate consequences reveal the true nature of the adversary's promise. Their eyes are opened, but not unto exaltation. Instead, they become conscious of shame, guilt, and vulnerability (Gen 3:7). Innocence is lost. Fear enters. Fellowship is wounded. The final verse of this section reveals the tragic result:

"And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden." (Gen 3:8)

The voice they followed did not lead them nearer to God but farther away from Him. This establishes the foundation for the entire story of redemption. The redeemed of every generation are distinguished by the same issue first revealed in Eden. They hear God's voice and choose His proclamation above every competing voice.

The conflict that begins here runs through the entire Bible. Cain and Abel, Noah and his generation, Moses and Pharaoh, the prophets and false prophets, Christ and the religious leaders of His day, the Lamb and the dragon all stand within the same conflict between truth and deception. Redemption begins when God calls people back to His voice. As Jesus later declares:

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27)

The first chapter of redemption therefore begins not with a deliverer, but with two voices. One leads away from life. The other leads back to it. Every redeemed person in every generation is ultimately identified by the voice they choose to follow.