Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ

Paul makes a very interesting summary of the position of His chosen people the Israelites - although they have the inheritance and blessings, they were like slaves - possibly meaning slaves to sin. Their appointed guardians may be the prophets and the judges. Then in God's fullness of time, His Son Yeshua came, who also receive the Gentiles as adopted sons. Only through Christ who gave us the Holy Spirit, we can become the true sons of God.

The Galatians had started out right in faith but they had somehow gone back to some traditions or some other forms of bondage which Paul is vehemently rebuking. Paul commended their previous attitude that they would have given them their eyes if Paul needed it. Paul then uses the history to teach the Galatians the difference between the covenants made to Isaac and Ishmael. His audience may even feel jolted or insulted as he compared the current Israelites as those of Ishmael. The promise and blessings to Ishmael was a covenant related to the bondwoman, that is associated with slavery. This is being likened to the Law of Mount Sinai - who made the Israelites into slaves of the Law. The covenant with Isaac is that of a free woman and to be under this free covenant is to be under the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.




Galatians 4

4 Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, 2 but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. 3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born[a] of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of[b] God through Christ.


Fears for the Church

8 But then, indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which by nature are not gods. 9 But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage? 10 You observe days and months and seasons and years. 11 I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain.

12 Brethren, I urge you to become like me, for I became like you. You have not injured me at all. 13 You know that because of physical infirmity I preached the gospel to you at the first. 14 And my trial which was in my flesh you did not despise or reject, but you received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. 15 What[c] then was the blessing you enjoyed? For I bear you witness that, if possible, you would have plucked out your own eyes and given them to me. 16 Have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth?

17 They zealously court you, but for no good; yes, they want to exclude you, that you may be zealous for them. 18 But it is good to be zealous in a good thing always, and not only when I am present with you. 19 My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you, 20 I would like to be present with you now and to change my tone; for I have doubts about you.



Two Covenants

21 Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman. 23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise, 24 which things are symbolic. For these are the[d] two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar— 25 for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children— 26 but the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all. 27 For it is written:

“Rejoice, O barren,
You who do not bear!
Break forth and shout,
You who are not in labor!
For the desolate has many more children
Than she who has a husband.”[e]

28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. 29 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. 30 Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.”[f] 31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free.

Favor on Ishmael

This is the second time we saw that God had favour on Ishmeal. This episode starts with the birth of Isaac - the promised seed of Abraham who is to be Abraham's heir. By this time Ishmael is about 13 to 14 years old. A few chapters back, when Ishmael's mother was pregnant with him, she was forced to run away from Abraham's household. At that time, an angel directed her to return. This time Sarah asked Abraham to throw Hagar and her son Ishmael out.

We see that Abraham loved Ishmael and was not happy with Sarah's request. But God told Abraham to do what Sarah asked as this was His will too. As Hagar and Ishmael were almost dying in the desert, again God send an angel to save them. In addition, God also promised to make Ishmael into a great nation.

Genesis 21

Isaac Is Born

 1 And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as He had spoken. 2 For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. 3 And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—Isaac. 4 Then Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5 Now Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6 And Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and all who hear will laugh with me.” 7 She also said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hagar and Ishmael Depart
  
8 So the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the same day that Isaac was weaned.
9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, scoffing. 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac.” 11 And the matter was very displeasing in Abraham’s sight because of his son.
12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called. 13 Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed.”
14 So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water; and putting it on her shoulder, he gave it and the boy to Hagar, and sent her away. Then she departed and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba. 15 And the water in the skin was used up, and she placed the boy under one of the shrubs. 16 Then she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said to herself, “Let me not see the death of the boy.” So she sat opposite him, and lifted her voice and wept.
17 And God heard the voice of the lad. Then the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for I will make him a great nation.”
19 Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink. 20 So God was with the lad; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. 21 He dwelt in the Wilderness of Paran; and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

A Covenant with Abimelech
  
22 And it came to pass at that time that Abimelech and Phichol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, “God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now therefore, swear to me by God that you will not deal falsely with me, with my offspring, or with my posterity; but that according to the kindness that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt.”
24 And Abraham said, “I will swear.”
25 Then Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech’s servants had seized. 26 And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor had I heard of it until today.” 27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant. 28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 Then Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?”
30 And he said, “You will take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that they may be my witness that I have dug this well.” 31 Therefore he called that place Beersheba,[a] because the two of them swore an oath there.
32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba. So Abimelech rose with Phichol, the commander of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there called on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines many days.

Hagar and Ishmael

In this chapter we see a breakdown of faith as several characters took matters into their own hands. Before going further, let us all acknowledge that we have done the same at various points in our life, some more than others, in trusting our own efforts or growing impatient with God when we do not see immediate results.

To give some background, at this point in time, Abraham had been promised descendents as many as the stars in the sky and sand on the beach. Several chapters back, God had already ruled out the possibility that Abraham need to give his inheritance to his relative or friend due to his not having any children - meaning that Abraham would have his own children.

Some time must have passed between God's promise and the events in this chapter. Abraham would have also discussed with Sarah about God's promises. Sarah may have doubted that the promise of Abraham's offspring would come through her after waiting for some time and looking at her age. She took matters into her own hands, perhaps thinking she is helping God fulfill His promise, by asking Abraham to make a child with her servant. Abraham also made the mistake of taking part in Sarah's plan. The result is ill feelings created between Hagar the maid and Sarah. Eventually, with Abraham's permission, Sarah drove Hagar away, though they may not have known that Hagar was pregnant.

As Hagar fled Abraham's household, an angel revealed to Hagar that she was pregnant. Moreover, it appears God's promise to bless Abraham with many descendents also included the child of Hagar, Ishmael, who would have many offsprings. The angel also revealed that the descendents of Ishmael will be a quarrelsome people and may develop into nations that will be in constant strife with each other.

The chapter ends with Hagar's obedience to the angel's message “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.” By this act of Hagar, the blessings on her child was able to come true.


Genesis 16

 1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar.
 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the LORD has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai.
 3 Then Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan.
 4 So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress became despised in her eyes.
5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “My wrong be upon you! I gave my maid into your embrace; and when she saw that she had conceived, I became despised in her eyes. The LORD judge between you and me.”
6 So Abram said to Sarai, “Indeed your maid is in your hand; do to her as you please.” And when Sarai dealt harshly with her, she fled from her presence.
7 Now the Angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.
8 And He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from, and where are you going?”
She said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.”
9 The Angel of the LORD said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.”
10 Then the Angel of the LORD said to her, “I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude.”
11 And the Angel of the LORD said to her:

      “ Behold, you are with child,
      And you shall bear a son.
      You shall call his name Ishmael,
      Because the LORD has heard your affliction.
 12 He shall be a wild man;
      His hand shall be against every man,
      And every man’s hand against him.
      And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.”
13 Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?”
14 Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Roi;[a] observe, it is between Kadesh and Bered.
15 So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.
16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.