What does Paul mean by Hagar and Sarah being two covenants?

Paul takes the true story of Abraham’s family and shows a deeper lesson in it. Hagar, the slave woman, and her son Ishmael picture the covenant given at Mount Sinai, tied to the earthly Jerusalem and life under the law. That way of relating to God brings bondage, because it depends on human effort and cannot make a person right with God. Sarah, the free woman, and her son Isaac picture the new covenant of promise, tied to the heavenly Jerusalem. That way is about God’s promise and grace in Christ, which brings freedom and makes people heirs.

Who are the children of promise in this passage?

The children of promise are those who, like Isaac, come into God’s family because of God’s promise, not because of human strength or ancestry. Isaac was born when Abraham and Sarah were too old to have children naturally, so his birth showed God’s power and faithfulness. In the same way, all who trust in Christ, whether Jew or Gentile, are born of the Spirit and counted as Abraham’s true offspring. They belong to the free woman, the heavenly Jerusalem, and they inherit the blessings God promised, including forgiveness and a place in God’s family.

What is the difference between the Jerusalem now and the Jerusalem above?

Paul speaks of two Jerusalems to explain two ways of relating to God. The “Jerusalem which now is” means the earthly city as it was then, tied to the law given at Sinai and to people who try to be right with God by keeping that law. He says this Jerusalem is in bondage with her children. The “Jerusalem which is above” is the heavenly city, the community of all who belong to Christ. This Jerusalem is free and is called the mother of believers, because through the gospel she brings many spiritual children into God’s family.

Why does Paul quote, "Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not" in this passage?

Paul quotes this line to show that God planned a surprising growth of his people through grace. The words speak of a barren woman who suddenly has many children. He connects this to Sarah, who was long barren yet became the mother of the child of promise. In the same way, the gospel brings many children into God’s family, often from places that once seemed spiritually empty and desolate. This shows that God’s way of promise brings a larger and freer family than the way of the law that people trusted in before.

Why does Paul say, "Cast out the bondwoman and her son"?

Paul is quoting what was said about Hagar and Ishmael in Abraham’s story, and he uses it as a picture. In the story, the son of the slave woman did not share the inheritance with the son of the free woman. Paul applies this to show that those who cling to the law for righteousness will not share the inheritance that belongs to those who live by God’s promise in Christ. He is not telling Christians to be harsh to people, but to reject going back under the law as a way of being right with God, because law and grace cannot both rule in the same way.

How were Ishmael and Isaac different according to this passage?

Ishmael and Isaac had the same earthly father, Abraham, but their births and meanings were very different. Ishmael was born to Hagar, a slave woman, through ordinary human means, so he is called the one “born after the flesh.” Isaac was born to Sarah, a free woman, when she was past the age to have children, so his birth came by God’s promise and power. Paul uses this to show the difference between people who rely on their own works under the law and people who rely on God’s promise in Christ and are born of the Spirit.

What does it mean that believers are not children of the bondwoman but of the free?

When Paul says believers are not children of the bondwoman but of the free, he is talking about their spiritual position. In Christ, they do not belong to the covenant that keeps them under fear and slavery to the law. Instead, they belong to the covenant of grace, where God accepts them because of Jesus and gives them the Spirit of adoption. Being children of the free woman means they have freedom from the law as a way of earning acceptance, and they are true heirs with the right to the inheritance God has promised.

How does this passage speak to pressure to keep religious laws today?

This passage shows that adding law-keeping as a condition for being right with God pulls people back into slavery. In Paul’s time, some were teaching that faith in Christ was not enough and that believers had to take on the full Jewish law. Paul answers by saying that in Christ, believers belong to the free woman, not the slave, and are already children of promise. So when we feel pressure to base our standing with God on rules, rituals, or performance, this passage reminds us to rest in Christ’s finished work and live as free sons and daughters.

Why does Paul say those born after the flesh persecute those born after the Spirit?

Paul points back to how Ishmael mocked or troubled Isaac and says something similar happens in his own day. Those who rely on their own effort and religious status often oppose those who live by faith in God’s promise. People who trust in the law may feel threatened by the message of grace, because it takes away boasting in human works. So there can be tension and even hostility. This helps believers understand that opposition for trusting Christ alone is not new; it has been pictured from the days of Abraham and will continue wherever law and grace collide.

Gal.4.21

Galatians 4:21

King James Version (KJV)

Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?

Chapter:

Context:

Hagar and Sarah

Cross References

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