For the past couple weeks I have been spending some time in the book of Genesis. I have been reading through it and trying to see things afresh. Upon reading through it I come across the narrative of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar, which actually immediately took me to the new testament, which took me to the gospel.

Let me explain. As I was reading it, my mind went to Galatians chapter four and it reads as follows.

Gal. 4:21 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? 22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. 23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. 24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. 25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. 27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. 28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. 29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. 30 Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. 31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

So in order to see what the Apostle Paul is saying here is to understand the context. Paul is dealing with heretics who have came into the church and are perverting the gospel. He says, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel,” in the very first chapter of this epistle. In chapter two he says, “And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage.” What was this bondage that Paul is speaking about? The bondage of the law! The bondage of the ministration of death! (2 Cor. 3:6-9) The bondage of striving to please God by our works! This same bondage is preached from many pulpits in America today! However Paul vehemently condemns it and says, “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.”

Paul in the first two chapters condemns them for trying to use the law for justification. In chapter three Paul condemns them for trying to use the law for sanctification. Paul states, “Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” What Paul was condemning specifically was the false teaching that, “you may be justified by faith but you also must observe the law of Moses.” Remember Paul marveled that they were so soon removed from the gospel. They were removed from the gospel within one generation and looking back to the law and Paul is rebuking them for it!

Now unto chapter four and the picture Paul gives us from Genesis. If you remember, Abraham was an very old and so was his wife. Not only was Sarah too old to have children but she was barren! She couldn’t have a child at all! However God promised Abraham a son, the “son of promise.” What did Abraham do? Well he moved in unbelief and sought after a woman other than his wife to have a son, enters Hagar, the handmaid. Abraham in his unbelief entered into a sexual relation with Hagar to have a son, whom Abraham thought to be the son of promise. In other words, Abraham looked to the arm of his flesh to gain the promise of God. That’s a perfect picture of the false doctrine of self-righteousness or justification by works! He didn’t trust God and tried to use the law to bring about this promise. This is what Paul is stating in these verses! This is what Paul is condemning throughout this epistle!

God, through Paul, also shows us that these two women were pictures of covenants. He states that the old covenant which was given at Mount Sinai, “gendereth bondage.” The word for “gendereth” comes from a word in Greek that means to procreate, or beget, or conceive. So the old covenant given an Mount Sinai begats bondage and Paul is condemning that covenant! Why would Paul do that? Well because we have a better covenant that is not like the old covenant according to Jeremiah and the writer of Hebrews. (Jer. 31 and Heb. 8) The old covenant was full of types and shadows of the “good things to come” (Heb. 10:1), the new is full of the very image of what the types and shadows were pointing at! What God is saying through Paul here in Galatians is we are in the New Covenant, not the old, and we shouldn’t be looking back like Lot’s wife.

Let’s notice one last thing from this text in Galatians four. Notice God says, “Cast out the bondwoman!” He doesn’t say it’s okay to have the bondwoman and the freewoman! You can either have the bondwoman or the freewoman but you cannot have both! If you want the bondwoman (the law, the old covenant) you will be a slave, if you want the freewoman (the gospel, the new covenant) you will be free! Paul is telling these Galatians who have been so soon removed from the gospel to look to Christ, and not the law to attain the promise of God. There is no attaining the promise of God within the law, the law condemns and kills. The only way to attain the promise of God, which is His Son, is through faith! We must look to Him and cast out the bondwoman!

For His Glory!