What does 1 Peter 1:19 mean?

Verse 19 continues the thought begun in verse 18. Peter is showing the great value Christians, God's children, carry in the eyes of our Father. It can be measured by the price He was willing to pay. He made a great sacrifice in order to possess us, to call us His own people. Peter has already shown that God didn't pay for us in mere human currency like silver or gold. Our worth to Him can't be weighed in pounds or dollars. Instead, in verse 19, Peter writes that we were redeemed with something that will still hold value long after this world's economies are forgotten.

Our Father purchased us with the blood of Christ. The value God place on our lives was equal to that of the very life of His "only begotten Son" (John 3:16). Peter describes Christ as a lamb free from blemish or defect. His Jewish readers, especially those who grew up participating in the sacrificial system, would have immediately understood the reference. In fact, some may have carried a memory of watching as a perfect, beautiful year-old lamb was killed, understanding that its blood was being spilled to cover their sin for a time.

As the sinless, perfectly righteous Son of God, the life of Jesus—His blood—was of such great value that He became the final offering required under that Old Covenant system. No more animal sacrifices are needed to temporarily cover human sin (Hebrews 9–10). Instead, the Father paid the ultimate price to redeem us, giving limitless value to lives that would otherwise have been futile and empty.