Ransom

"Truly no man can ransom another, or give to God the price of his life, for the ransom of their life is costly and can never suffice, that he should live on forever and never see the pit" - Psalms 49:7-9 (ESV)

Out of the numerous thoughts that emerge out of these verses, one of the questions that emerge is "What is the worth/price of a man?". If the worth/price of a man is known it would have been easier to buy/sell/redeem man by another man (although buying and selling are indeed in practice in some parts of the world). World had made a futile attempt at this and says, "everything comes with a price". There is now man; famous, infamous, not so famous, beggars, poor, rich, richest, common man and even man whom nobody would dare care. The best method to ascertain your worth is to approach any insurance company and they would make a careful assessment based on your fame, riches, disease conditions and disease pre-disposition and would tell your worth in this world. Man, then loses his everything to increase his worth.

But let us give thanks to our Lord that he teaches us through his words that each and every man is priceless, and no price is ever sufficient. This not only teaches us to be careful about ourselves and feel proud but also enables us to love our fellow beings and consider them great as we read:

"As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight" - Psalms 16:3 (ESV)

For our redemption, that is to never see the pit and to live forever, the price of our priceless life had to be paid; an impossible task. And here we have a sole reason to fall down on our face to the ground and worship our Lord, for his blood could pay the price (ransom) of our redemption, which prompted the Holy Spirit in Peter to write:

"knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot" - 1 Peter 1:18-19.