“Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now” (Galatians 4:28-29).
The closing verses of Galatians chapter four draw some important insights from the Old Testament examples of Abraham, his wife Sarah, and Sarah’s maidservant Hagar. Sarah was the driving force behind Abraham’s marital relationship with Hagar, a union that produced a son named Ishmael. Sarah later bore a son named Isaac when she was well past her childbearing years according to God’s plan.
Paul the Apostle used these examples to draw attention to those who advocated a return to the works of the Law as the basis of a relationship with God. Consider the difference in these examples…
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Hagar / Old Covenant |
Sarah / New Covenant |
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Human-oriented |
God-initiated |
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Son was born via natural birth |
Son was born via supernatural birth |
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Mount Sinai – Old Covenant |
New Jerusalem – New Covenant |
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Slavery |
Freedom |
While some of the things Paul has written throughout this epistle may have been challenging for the Galatians, they could at least take comfort in his reference to them as “children of promise.” In light of that assessment, Paul encouraged the Galatians to push back against those who might seek to enslave them to the dictates of the Old Testament Law. One Biblical scholar offers a helpful observation at this point…
“Paul is assuring the Galatian Christians that they are not like Ishmael the son of the slave woman, but like Isaac who was born according to the promise, not in the usual course of nature but miraculously. So they are born of the Holy Spirit, and have their standing before God, not on the basis of physical descent from Abraham, but upon the promise made to Abraham which applies to all who have like faith to him.” (1)
Finally, Galatians 4:29 tells us “…you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit” (NLT). Another commentary provides us with the following insight on this passage…
“People are saved because of their faith in Christ, not because of what they do. Paul contrasted those who are enslaved to the law (represented by Hagar, the slave wife) with those who are free from the law (represented by Sarah, the freeborn wife). Hagar’s abuse of Sarah (Gen_16:4) was like the persecution that the Gentile Christians were getting from the Judaizers, who insisted on keeping the law in order to be saved.” (2)
(1) Kenneth S. Wuest, Word Studies in the Greek New Testament (Galatians 4:28) Copyright © 1942-55 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.
(2) Life Application Study Bible NASB (Galatians 4:21-31) Copyright © 2013 by Tyndale House Publishers Inc., all rights reserved.