Galatians 4:1-7 can be explicated in numerous ways. It derives from the fact that every individual is unique and has a distinct worldview. That is why interpretations of the Biblical passages vary depending on the author and his or her perception of reality. My attention was caught by two commentaries to this reading – those provided by John Anthony Dunne and Martinus C. de Boer.
Dunne believes that this passage hints at the idea of suffering. His primary argument is that the cry “Abba, Father”[1] is the cry in the middle of suffering[2]. The author claims that suffering is not an individual’s physical condition. Instead, it is the state of one’s soul when he or she is in the midst of the unknown. So, this cry is the cry of hope and vindication[3].
De Boer sees this passage as the sign of the apocalyptic assertion – the end of the evil times and the beginning of the good ones[4]. He justifies his belief by pointing to the fact that when Christ comes into one’s heart together with God’s spirit, this transformation changes the people’s lives for the better, thus suggesting the beginning of a new era, the time of faith, the Spirit, and the law[5].
There are some points to agree with within the authors’ ideas or, at least, partially agree. For example, I agree with de Boer’s idea of the end of the era of evil and the transition towards the era of goodness and faith to a particular extent. I cannot say that I support his intention about the apocalyptic assertion, but I believe in the changes occurring in life once an individual allows God’s Spirit to fill his or her heart and soul. It indeed implies becoming God’s child and ceasing to be a slave[6] – a slave of mundane affairs and desires. Once an individual becomes a God’s child, he or she does not live under the society’s laws, but switches to the Godly laws. This step changes life and heralds the beginning of a new era in life.
However, I cannot agree with Dunne’s statement that the cry “Abba, Father”[7] is the cry amid suffering and agony because of the fear of the unknown. I believe it is the cry of happiness coming from the realization of salvation and changing one’s life for the better. It is the exclamation of joy because God’s spirit fills an individual’s heart and soul and he or she cannot be considered a slave anymore because now he or she becomes a child of God.
It is what I mentioned earlier in my reflection on this passage when I spoke of the intimacy of salvation and the changes in one’s life occurring with becoming a God’s child. The idea of the end on the old epoch formulated by de Boer is pertinent to what I speculated on in my previous letter. The thought is that once an individual finds God and his or her heart is filled with His Spirit and Faith in Him, it is impossible to return to the old life. Once a person ceases to be a slave and becomes a child of God, nothing can bring him or her back to life in slavery because God has promised, “since you are His child, God has made you also an heir”[8].
Bibliography
De Boer, Martinus C. Galatians: A Commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011.
Dunne, John Anthony. “Suffering and Covenantal Hope in Galatians: A Critique of the ‘Apocalyptic Reading’ and its Proponents.” Scottish Journal of Theology 68, no. 1 (2015): 1-15.
News, Samuel. Galatians. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010.
Foonotes
- Samuel Ngewa, Galatians (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 15.
- John Anthony Dunne, “Suffering and Covenantal Hope in Galatians: A Critique of the ‘Apocalyptic Reading’ and its Proponents,” Scottish Journal of Theology 68, no. 1 (2015): 13.
- Ibid., 13-14.
- Martinus C. de Boer, Galatians: A Commentary. (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011), 262.
- Ibid., 262.
- Ngewa, 15.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.