בין "גאל ישראל" ל"גואל ישראל"

The prevailing view that the Geulah (Redemption) benedictions following the Shema and in the Haggadah use the past tense, whereas the Geulah benediction in the Shmone Esre uses the present tense, does not reflect the ancient reality. The appearance of these two phrases in the different prayers in early periods indicates that there was initially no difference in meaning between גאל ישראל and גואל ישראל. It was only at a later stage, when גאל ישראל was understood as the past tense, that a clear division in their use came into being.