One journey
From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible tells one journey: humanity falls into sin, and God opens the only way home, which is forgiveness. There is no second road. Redemption in Christ is the thread that holds all of Scripture together, from the garden of Eden to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.
1. Creation: made for communion with God (Gen 1–2)
God creates heaven and earth, then man in his own image (), and calls it all "very good" (). Man lives in the garden, walks with God, and knows neither shame nor fear. This is the starting point: life in communion, without sin. See CCC .
2. The Fall: sin breaks communion (Gen 3–11)
Adam and Eve are tempted to be like God and eat the forbidden fruit. They hide, blame one another, and are driven from the garden. Sin spreads: Cain kills Abel, evil fills the earth until the Flood, and men build the Tower of Babel to glorify themselves. Yet even in judgment God promises that the woman's offspring will crush the serpent's head (), the first promise of a Redeemer. See CCC .
3. The Covenant: God chooses one people to prepare the way (Gen 12–50)
God calls Abraham and promises to bless all nations through his descendants. The promise passes to Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. Joseph, sold by his brothers, forgives them () and saves his family. The story already shows that human evil does not defeat God's plan. See CCC .
4. Exodus and the Law: the blood that saves (Exodus – Deuteronomy)
On Passover night, the blood of the lamb on the doorposts spares Israel from death (). At Sinai God gives the Law and the system of sacrifice. On the Day of Atonement the high priest sprinkles blood in the Holy of Holies to cleanse the people's sin (Lev 16). All of this teaches one thing: sin must be atoned for, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (). But animal sacrifices are only a shadow; their blood cannot truly take away sin. See CCC .
5. The Prophets: the promise of forgiveness grows clearer
Again and again the people break the covenant, and the prophets rebuke them. But the prophets also foretell full forgiveness:
- : God removes our transgressions as far as the east is from the west.
- : sins red as crimson will become white as snow.
- : God blots out our transgressions for his own sake and remembers our sins no more.
- : the suffering Servant bears the sins of many.
- : the new covenant, in which God forgives their wickedness and remembers their sin no more.
- Micah 7:18–19: a God who delights in steadfast love and hurls all our sins into the depths of the sea.
- : the Lord is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled.
See CCC .
6. Christ: forgiveness made real (the Gospels)
In the fullness of time God sends his Son. John the Baptist points to him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (). Jesus tells the paralyzed man, "Friend, your sins are forgiven" (). He teaches us to pray, "forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven" (), and he asks for limitless forgiveness: not seven times, but seventy-seven times (Matt 18:21–22).
At the Last Supper Jesus raises the cup and says that his blood is "poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (). On the cross, in agony, he prays, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (). This is the summit of the road: the true Lamb takes the place of every sacrifice. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins (). His resurrection shows that sin and death are defeated. See CCC .
7. The Church: forgiveness handed on to us (Acts – the Letters)
After rising, Jesus breathes on the disciples and says, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them" (John 20:22–23). From this the Church receives the ministry of forgiveness: Baptism, which washes away sin; the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation; and the Eucharist, which renews the covenant in Christ's blood. John writes that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness ().
The forgiveness we receive makes us able to forgive others. Paul urges us to forgive one another "as the Lord forgave you" (; ). Jesus even ties the two together: if we do not forgive others, our Father in heaven will not forgive us (Matt 6:14–15). See CCC .
8. New Creation: life restored (2 Cor 5:17; 1 Pet 1:3)
Whoever is in Christ is a new creation; the old has passed away, the new has come (). In his great mercy God has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus (). Forgiveness does not only wipe out the past; it opens a new beginning. See CCC .
9. Revelation: the Bride of the Lamb and glory (Rev 7; 19; 21)
The last book shows the end of the journey. Those standing before God's throne have "washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb" (). The Church is pictured as a bride in fine linen, bright and clean, invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb (Rev 19:7–9). Then John sees a new heaven and a new earth. God dwells with humanity, wipes away every tear, and says, "Behold, I make all things new" (Rev 21:1–5).
The garden lost in Genesis is restored in Revelation: the tree of life is there again (), and humanity lives with God once more. See CCC .
One road
- Creation (Gen 1–2): man in communion with God.
- Fall (Gen 3–11): sin breaks communion.
- Covenant (Gen 12 – Deut): God prepares the way through sacrifice and Law.
- Prophecy (the Prophets): the promise of full forgiveness.
- Redemption (the Gospels): Christ forgives and redeems on the cross.
- Sanctification (Acts – the Letters): the Church hands on forgiveness; we forgive in turn.
- Glory (Revelation): the Bride of the Lamb invited to the supper.
From beginning to end there is one road: the forgiveness God himself accomplishes in Christ. We cannot redeem ourselves by our works. What is asked of us is to receive it in faith, confess our sins, and pass that forgiveness on to others. Whoever walks this road arrives at glory.