† Paul contrasts two Jerusalems: the earthly one tied to the Old Covenant, and the heavenly one that represented the New Covenant. The earthly city, bound in slavery under the Law, was destined for destruction. The Jerusalem above, however, is the true dwelling of God with His people, the New Covenant reality revealed in Christ.

† Notice Paul says this Jerusalem above is free. It is not enslaved to the Law, temple sacrifices, or genealogies. It is a spiritual city made up of those who belong to Christ. Paul's audience, first-century believers, were being tempted to go back to the Law, but he reminds them they are children of freedom, not slavery.

† Paul shows this through the story of Sarah and Hagar in Galatians 4:21-31. Hagar, the slave woman, represents the Old Covenant given at Mount Sinai and the present Jerusalem, which was in slavery with her children. Sarah, the free woman, represents the covenant of promise, the Jerusalem above, who is free. Just as Ishmael, the son of the slave, was cast out and did not inherit, so the Old Covenant and the earthly city were cast out. And just as Isaac, the son of promise, inherited, so we, like Isaac, are children of promise and heirs of freedom in Christ.

† The phrase she is our mother highlights the covenantal identity of the church. Just as Israel looked to earthly Jerusalem as their mother-city, Paul directs the believers to see the heavenly Jerusalem as their origin and inheritance. This Jerusalem is not confined to a strip of land in the Middle East, but is the kingdom that Jesus established.

† Hebrews 12:22 echoes this when it says: You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. This was not a future hope for the Hebrews, it was a present reality. By faith in Christ, they had entered into the New Jerusalem, even before the Old passed away in AD 70.

† Revelation 21:2, 9-10 shows the full picture: the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. The bride is the church. The New Jerusalem is not a literal city of stone, it is the body of Christ, the people of God redeemed under the New Covenant.

† From the fulfilled perspective, Galatians 4:26 reminds us that we are not waiting for a rebuilt temple or a future Jerusalem on earth. The city of God has already come down in Christ, and she is our mother. We live in that city today, in His kingdom that has no end.

† This is the fulfilled perspective we proclaim at Fulfilled Prophecies †

Source Index
† Galatians 4:21-31 - https://biblehub.com/galatians/4-21.htm

† Hebrews 12:22 - https://biblehub.com/hebrews/12-22.htm

† Revelation 21:2, 9-10 - https://biblehub.com/revelation/21-2.htm

† Genesis 21:9-12 - https://biblehub.com/genesis/21-9.htm