⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.^(A)”

Hagar and Ishmael

16 Now Sarai,^(A) Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.^(B) But she had an Egyptian slave^(C) named Hagar;^{(D) 2} so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children.^(E) Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”^(F)

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. ³ So after Abram had been living in Canaan^(G) ten years,^(H) Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar,^(I) and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.^{(J) 5} Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”^(K)

⁶ “Your slave is in your hands,^(L)” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated^(M) Hagar; so she fled from her.

⁷ The angel of the Lord^(N) found Hagar near a spring^(O) in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.^{(P) 8} And he said, “Hagar,^(Q) slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”^(R)

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

⁹ Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” ¹⁰ The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”^(S)

¹¹ The angel of the Lord^(T) also said to her:

¹³ She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,^(AA)” for she said, “I have now seen^[c] the One who sees me.”^{(AB) 14} That is why the well^(AC) was called Beer Lahai Roi^[d];^(AD) it is still there, between Kadesh^(AE) and Bered.

¹⁵ So Hagar^(AF) bore Abram a son,^(AG) and Abram gave the name Ishmael^(AH) to the son she had borne. ¹⁶ Abram was eighty-six years old^(AI) when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

No Other Gospel

⁶ I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called^(A) you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel^(B)— ⁷ which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion^(C) and are trying to pervert^(D) the gospel of Christ. ⁸ But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you,^(E) let them be under God’s curse!^(F)

Faith or Works of the Law

3 You foolish^(A) Galatians!^(B) Who has bewitched you?^(C) Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.^{(D) 2} I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit^(E) by the works of the law,^(F) or by believing what you heard?^{(G) 3} Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?^[a]

Paul’s Concern for the Galatians

⁸ Formerly, when you did not know God,^(A) you were slaves^(B) to those who by nature are not gods.^{(C) 9} But now that you know God—or rather are known by God^(D)—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable forces^[a]? Do you wish to be enslaved^(E) by them all over again?^{(F) 10} You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!^{(G) 11} I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you.^(H)

Hagar and Sarah

²¹ Tell me, you who want to be under the law,^(A) are you not aware of what the law says? ²² For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman^(B) and the other by the free woman.^{(C) 23} His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh,^(D) but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise.^(E)

²⁴ These things are being taken figuratively: The women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. ²⁵ Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. ²⁶ But the Jerusalem that is above^(F) is free, and she is our mother. ²⁷ For it is written:

²⁸ Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise.^(H)

Freedom in Christ

5 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.^(A) Stand firm,^(B) then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.^(C)

² Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised,^(D) Christ will be of no value to you at all. ³ Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.^{(E) 4} You who are trying to be justified by the law^(F) have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.^(G)