The Great Deception: How Galatians 4 Hijacked the History of Christ
The Great Deception: How Galatians 4 Hijacked the History of Christ The Galatians 4 Allegory serves as the original blueprint for 2,000 years of religious persecution. In this passage, Paul performs a spiritual "identity theft," using an ancient family story to justify the removal of the original witnesses of Christ. The Allegory: Turning a Family Tree into a Weapon In Galatians 4:21–31 , Paul constructs a "logic of exclusion" that redefines the heirs of Abraham: The Labels: Paul claims that Ishmael (the firstborn) represents the Jerusalem Church and the Jewish people, whom he labels as "slaves" to the Law. He claims that Isaac represents his own Gentile followers, whom he labels as the "free" heirs. The Replacement: By calling the physical descendants of Abraham "Ishmaelites," Paul tells his audience that they have effectively replaced the original family of the faith. The Contradiction: In the same letter where Paul famously cl...