Hidden Meaning. Galatians 4:21-25.
Dear Ambassadors of Christ,
In our passage today and continuing tomorrow, Paul introduces a concept Bible scholars call Typology. Many Old Testament events, persons, and places depict New Testament situations. Sometimes the “type” that New Testament writers like Paul use are not obvious. It follows that we should not be quick to see a type in the Old Testament unless the New Testament identifies it as such.
Caution (v. 21).Paul is saying to the advocates of legalism that they are getting themselves into a situation they do not fully understand. Like a lot of furniture sold by the roadside in many parts of our country, it may look “good from far, but it’s far from good.”
To help us appreciate the status of those under the law, Paul takes us back to Abraham, the father of all who believe and uses the analogy of two sons of the same man but who are totally different from each other.
Contrast (vv. 22-23). Slave Woman versus Free Woman (v. 22). Both Hagar and Sarah each gave Abraham a son. Yet the rights of the two were not the same, because Hagar was a slave, while Sarah was free. The law corresponds to Hagar and ironically, is the medium of bondage. The promise (and corresponding faith, by which the promise is received) corresponds to Sarah and is the medium of freedom. Those who choose the law choose with it, bondage. Those who choose faith choose with it, liberty. It is that simple. Flesh Versus Promise (v. 23). Ishmael was born according to the flesh. This does not refer to the physical affiliation to Abraham, because Isaac also had the same.
The flesh here refers to the consultation between Sarah and Abraham, without reference to God, in which they decided to get a child through Hagar. The law is of the flesh and the attempt to keep it is actually a way of excluding God because it is a human effort. Isaac on the other hand was born as a result of the promise of God. As we have seen before, God’s promise is not conditional, meaning that we do not have to do anything for God to make good his word. That is another way of spelling freedom!
Covenant (vv. 24-25). Hagar and Sarah, Slave Woman and Free Woman, Ishmael and Isaac, Flesh and Promise, are all symbolic of two covenants. We deal today with the first of the two covenants, the one of Mount Sinai. This is the covenant of the law, represented in Paul’s time by Jerusalem. This is because Jerusalem was the seat of Jewish legal authority. It was where the Jewish supreme council – the Sanhedrin, had its seat and from where it enforced the law.
It is a sad picture that Paul paints of the Jewish people who were descendants of Sarah but who by choosing the law instead of the promise, are now in bondage as children of Hagar! Back to the question in verse 21, Do you really know what you are getting yourself into?
Your Loving Pastor Chris.