Galatia 4:8-9

Heirs of Promise Are Not to Return to Law

4:8 Formerly when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods at all. ¹  4:9 But now that you have come to know God (or rather to be known by God), how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless ²  basic forces? ³  Do you want to be enslaved to them all over again? ⁴ 

Galatia 4:24-25

4:24 These things may be treated as an allegory, ⁵  for these women represent two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai bearing children for slavery; this is Hagar. 4:25 Now Hagar represents Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.

[4:8]  ¹ tn Grk “those that by nature…” with the word “beings” implied. BDAG 1070 s.v. φύσις 2 sees this as referring to pagan worship: “Polytheists worship…beings that are by nature no gods at all Gal 4:8.”

[4:9]  ² tn Or “useless.” See L&N 65.16.

[4:9]  ³ tn See the note on the phrase “basic forces” in 4:3.

[4:9]  ⁴ tn Grk “basic forces, to which you want to be enslaved…” Verse 9 is a single sentence in the Greek text, but has been divided into two in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.

[4:24]  ⁵ tn Grk “which things are spoken about allegorically.” Paul is not saying the OT account is an allegory, but rather that he is constructing an allegory based on the OT account.