Daily Devotional | Free from the Law

Have you ever signed a contract without reading the fine print? Have you ever committed to something without understanding the full extent of the expectations or implications?

After Paul’s impassioned appeal in Galatians 4:8–20, he begins today’s passage with a pointed rhetorical question: “Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says?” (v. 21). The word “under” is significant since Paul uses it several times throughout Galatians. Each time, the meaning goes beyond submission to enslavement. Here, Paul questions again whether the Galatian Christians, who were committing themselves to live “under” the Old Testament Law, understood what they were getting into. Paul returns to the Old Testament narrative again to try to help them understand. He recounts the story of Abraham’s two sons (Ishmael and Isaac). Paul is using the story to illustrate a broader truth. He is upfront about his interpretation technique: “These things are being taken figuratively” (v. 24).

Ishmael, the son of Hagar, was born “according to the flesh” (v. 23). When Abraham’s wife Sarah could not conceive, she took the initiative and recommended that Abraham sleep with her slave Hagar in order to build a family (Genesis 16). Ishmael was born as the result of human planning rather than trust in God. By contrast, God promised Abraham that Sarah would have a son and be “the mother of nations” (Gen. 17:15–16). Isaac was born of that divine promise.

In verses 24–27, Paul explains the deeper lessons behind the patriarchal narrative. He likens Hagar and her line to a “slavery covenant,” bound to the Law of Moses given at Mount Sinai and upheld in earthly Jerusalem. By contrast, Isaac represents a heavenly, free Jerusalem. Paul calls his readers to live out that freedom.