“To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”
My Notes
What Does Galatians 4:5 Mean?
Paul states the double purpose of Christ's coming: to redeem those under the law AND to give the redeemed the adoption of sons. The redemption is negative (freeing FROM something — the law's bondage). The adoption is positive (receiving INTO something — the status of sons). Both happen through Christ. Both are necessary. The freedom from the old IS the entrance to the new.
The word "redeem" (exagorazō — to buy out of the marketplace, to purchase from slavery) means Christ paid the price to release the law-enslaved. The law-keeper was owned by the law's system. Christ's death was the purchase price. The freedom isn't free in the sense of costless. It cost Christ's life. But it's free to the recipient.
"The adoption of sons" (huiothesia — son-placing, the legal act of conferring full son-status on someone who wasn't born to it) is the positive gift. You weren't just freed from slavery. You were adopted into the family. The slave-to-son transition is the entire gospel compressed into one verse.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Does the slave-to-son transition (not just slave-to-free) describe the fullness of what Christ accomplished for you?
- 2.How does 'redemption' (buying out of bondage) differ from 'adoption' (placing in the family) — and do you experience both?
- 3.Does the adoption's fullness (same rights as a biological son) match your sense of belonging in God's family?
- 4.Where are you still living as a freed slave (liberated but not belonging) rather than an adopted son (fully family)?
Devotional
Christ came to redeem the law-enslaved. And to give us the adoption of sons. From slavery to family. In one transaction.
Paul compresses the entire gospel into two verbs: redeem (buy out of slavery) and receive (adopt into sonship). Christ's coming had a double purpose: the negative (removing the old condition — bondage to the law) and the positive (establishing the new condition — sons in God's family). Both are necessary. Freedom without adoption leaves you homeless. Adoption without freedom leaves you chained.
"Redeem them that were under the law" — exagorazō — to buy out of the marketplace. The image is the slave market: you were owned. The law was your master. You served under its demands. And Christ walked into the market, paid the price (His death), and purchased your freedom. You were bought. Out. The transaction is complete.
"That we might receive the adoption of sons" — huiothesia — the legal act of son-placing. In Roman law, an adopted son received the same rights as a biological son: full inheritance, full authority, full family name. Christ's redemption doesn't just free you. It places you in the family. With all the rights. With the full inheritance. With the Father's name.
The transition: slave → free → son. Not just slave → free (that's liberation without belonging). Not just slave → son (that skips the price). The full sequence: enslaved under the law → redeemed by Christ's death → adopted as God's son. The redemption enables the adoption. The purchase-price funds the family-entrance.
You were a slave. You were bought. You were adopted. And the adoption isn't probationary. It's full. You're not a freed slave living in the master's back room. You're a son sitting at the Father's table. With the Spirit of the Son in your heart crying "Abba, Father" (verse 6).
The slave market is behind you. The family table is in front of you. And the price that moved you from one to the other was paid by someone else.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
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Cross References
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