Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

²¹ Tell me, you people that want the law to control you, why do you not listen to the law?

²² The holy writings say that Abraham had two sons. One was the son of the slave woman. The other one was the son of the free woman.

²³ The child of the slave woman was born as any child is born. But the child of the free woman was born because God promised he would be born.

²⁴ These things have another meaning. These two women are like two agreements. One agreement came from Mount Sinai. The children are born slaves. That agreement is like Hagar.

²⁵ So Hagar means Mount Sinai in the country of Arabia. She is like the city of Jerusalem today, because Jerusalem is a slave and her children are too.

²⁶ But the city of Jerusalem in heaven is free, and that is our mother.

²⁷ The holy writings say, `The woman who has not had a child, be happy! You who do not feel the pain of bearing a child, open your mouth and shout. The woman who is left alone has more children than the woman who has a husband!'

²⁸ My brothers, we are like Isaac. We are born because God made a promise.

²⁹ Abraham's child who was born as any child is born, troubled the other child who was born by the Spirit. It is that way today.

³⁰ But what does the holy writings say? They says, `Put away the slave woman and her son. The son of the slave woman will have nothing when the father dies. The son of the free woman will have everything.'

³¹ So, my brothers, we are not the children of the slave woman, but we are children of the free woman.

5 Christ has made us really free. So, stay free! Do not let yourselves be made slaves again.