ἀρραβών: God Already Paid Your Down Payment

Arrabōn (ar-hrab-ohn'): Pledge, Guarantee, Deposit

Some of my favorite Bible study moments are when a word from ancient business shows up right in the middle of a promise about eternity.

This week's Greek word is arrabōn and it's origin isn't really a theological or "spiritual" word at all. This is a commercial and legal term. It's what you'd pay when you signed a contract for property in the ancient world. This word was used for a deposit, a down payment, a guarantee, that implied "the rest is coming".

Paul uses this exact word to describe the Holy Spirit living inside you. Three times he says it: the Spirit is your arrabōn.

This means your salvation isn't a maybe. Your salvation is not something you're hoping works out in the end. God has already made the first payment. He's already put something of Himself into your account as proof that the rest of the inheritance is coming.

That's why Paul can talk about the resurrection with so much confidence in 2 Corinthians. It's not wishful thinking!!! The deposit has already cleared and the promise is ours in hand.

If the Holy Spirit in you is proof your inheritance is already guaranteed, what would you stop worrying about today?

Scriptures where we find "arrabón":​

2 Corinthians 1:22 — "he...has given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee..."

2 Corinthians 5:5 — "who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee..."

Ephesians 1:14 — "who is the guarantee of our inheritance..."