6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.
In Mark 10:45 we read that Jesus is a ransom for many
and in 1 Timothy 2:6 we read that Jesus is a ransom for all
. How should we understand this difference?
The expression for many
in Mark 10:45 is not written in this way to limit
the for all
in 1 Timothy 2:6, but the focus of Mark is on the fact that Jesus’ one death (Mark 10:32–34) will be a ransom for far more than one human being. Mark leaves the question how one takes part in the rich yield of Jesus’ death and if everyone shall, and will want to, take part in it.
Paul speaks in 1 Timothy 2:6 about Jesus Christ, who gave himself as a ransom [antilutron] for all.
In 1 Timothy 2 Paul does not formulate (as Jesus did in Mark 10) from the one death to the many rescues, but from the many rescues (1 Timothy 2:1–4) to the one Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5–6). For all who are saved (or on the prayer of the congregation still will be saved), Jesus is the ransom. No one is saved by another ransom.
The different perspectives in Mark 10 and 1 Timothy 2 accounts for the different choice of words without there being a difference in meaning.1
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”