Genesis 35:11

35:11 Then God said to him, “I am the sovereign God. ¹  Be fruitful and multiply! A nation – even a company of nations – will descend from you; kings will be among your descendants! ² 

Galatians 4:26-31

4:26 But the Jerusalem above is free, ³  and she is our mother. 4:27 For it is written:

“Rejoice, O barren woman who does not bear children; ⁴ 

break forth and shout, you who have no birth pains,

because the children of the desolate woman are more numerous

than those of the woman who has a husband.” ⁵ 

4:28 But you, ⁶  brothers and sisters, ⁷  are children of the promise like Isaac. 4:29 But just as at that time the one born by natural descent ⁸  persecuted the one born according to the Spirit, ⁹  so it is now. 4:30 But what does the scripture say? “Throw out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman will not share the inheritance with the son” ¹⁰  of the free woman. 4:31 Therefore, brothers and sisters, ¹¹  we are not children of the slave woman but of the free woman.

Galatians 4:1

4:1 Now I mean that the heir, as long as he is a minor, ¹²  is no different from a slave, though he is the owner ¹³  of everything.

Galatians 3:6

3:6 Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, ¹⁴ 

[35:11]  ¹ tn The name אֵל שַׁדַּי (’el shadday, “El Shaddai”) has often been translated “God Almighty,” primarily because Jerome translated it omnipotens (“all powerful”) in the Latin Vulgate. There has been much debate over the meaning of the name. For discussion see W. F. Albright, “The Names Shaddai and Abram,” JBL 54 (1935): 173-210; R. Gordis, “The Biblical Root sdy-sd,” JTS 41 (1940): 34-43; and especially T. N. D. Mettinger, In Search of God, 69-72. Shaddai/El Shaddai is the sovereign king of the world who grants, blesses, and judges. In the Book of Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he both blesses/protects and takes away life/happiness. The patriarchs knew God primarily as El Shaddai (Exod 6:3). While the origin and meaning of this name are uncertain its significance is clear. The name is used in contexts where God appears as the source of fertility and life. For a fuller discussion see the note on “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.

[35:11]  ² tn Heb “A nation and a company of nations will be from you and kings from your loins will come out.”

[4:26]  ³ sn The meaning of the statement the Jerusalem above is free is that the other woman represents the second covenant (cf. v. 24); she corresponds to the Jerusalem above that is free. Paul’s argument is very condensed at this point.

[4:27]  ⁴ tn The direct object “children” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied for clarity. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[4:27]  ⁵ tn Grk “because more are the children of the barren one than of the one having a husband.”

[4:28]  ⁶ tc Most mss (א A C D² Ψ 062 Ï lat sy bo) read “we” here, while “you” is found in Ì⁴⁶ B D* F G 0261^vid 0278 33 1739 al sa. It is more likely that a copyist, noticing the first person pronouns in vv. 26 and 31, changed a second person pronoun here to first person for consistency.

[4:28]  ⁷ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:11.

[4:29]  ⁸ tn Grk “according to the flesh”; see the note on the phrase “by natural descent” in 4:23.

[4:29]  ⁹ tn Or “the one born by the Spirit’s [power].”

[4:30]  ¹⁰ sn A quotation from Gen 21:10. The phrase of the free woman does not occur in Gen 21:10.

[4:31]  ¹¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:11.

[4:1]  ¹² tn Grk “a small child.” The Greek term νήπιος (nhpios) refers to a young child, no longer a helpless infant but probably not more than three or four years old (L&N 9.43). The point in context, though, is that this child is too young to take any responsibility for the management of his assets.

[4:1]  ¹³ tn Grk “master” or “lord” (κύριος, kurios).

[3:6]  ¹⁴ sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.