the (sometimes to be supplied · article — nominative singular neuter
Agar
ἉγὰρHagar
G28
Hagar · noun — nominative singular feminine, a proper name
is
ἐστίestí
G2076
he (she or it) is
mount
ὄροςoros
G3735
perhaps akin to G142 (αἴρω) · noun — nominative singular neuter, a place
Sinai
ΣινᾶSina
G4614
Sina (i.e. Sinai) · noun — nominative singular neuter, a place
in
ἐνen
G1722
"in · preposition
Arabia
Ἀραβίᾳ,Arabia
G688
Arabia · noun — dative singular feminine, a place
and
δὲde
G1161
but · conjunction
to
συστοιχεῖsustoichei
G4960
to file together (as soldiers in ranks) · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
Jerusalem
Ἰερουσαλήμ,Ierousalēm
G2419
Hierusalem (i.e. Jerushalem) · noun — dative singular feminine, a place
which
τῇtēa
G3588
the (sometimes to be supplied · article — dative singular feminine
now
νῦνnun
G3568
"now" (as adverb of date · adverb
is
τῇtēa
G3588
the (sometimes to be supplied · article — dative singular feminine
and
δὲde
G1161
but · conjunction
bondage
δουλεύειdouleuei
G1398
to be a slave to (literal or figurative · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
with
μετὰmeta
G3326
properly · preposition
her
αὐτῆς.autēs
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — genitive singular feminine
children
τέκνωνteknōn
G5043
a child (as produced) · noun — genitive plural neuter
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Psalms 68:17 The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place.
Matthew 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy child…
Galatians 1:17 Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus.
Deuteronomy 33:2 And he said, The LORD came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of…
Judges 5:5 The mountains melted from before the LORD, even that Sinai from before the LORD God of Israel.
Psalms 68:8 The earth shook, the heavens also dropped at the presence of God: even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
Luke 13:34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children t…
Luke 19:44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Galatians 4:21–end
In these verses the apostle illustrates the difference between believers who rested in Christ only and those judaizers who trusted in the law, by a comparison taken from the story of Isaac and Ishmael. This he introduces in such a manner as was proper to strike and impress their minds, and to convince them of their great weakness in departing from the truth, and suffering themselves to be deprived of the liberty of the gospel: Tell me, says he, you that desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? He takes it for granted that they did hear the law, for among the Jews it was wont to be read in their public assemblies every sabbath day; and, since they were so very fond of being under…
Translate, "For this word, Hagar, is (imports) Mount Sinai in Arabia (that is, among the Arabians--in the Arabian tongue)." So CHRYSOSTOM explains. Haraut, the traveller, says that to this day the Arabians call Sinai, "Hadschar," that is, Hagar, meaning a rock or stone. Hagar twice fled into the desert of Arabia (Gen. 16:1-16; Gen 21:9-21): from her the mountain and city took its name, and the people were called Hagarenes. Sinai, with its rugged rocks, far removed from the promised land, was well suited to represent the law which inspires with terror, and the spirit of bondage.
answereth--literally, "stands in the same rank with"; "she corresponds to."
Jerusalem which now is--that is, th…
For this Agar is Mount Sinai in Arabia - Το γαρ Αγαρ Σινα ορος εστιν εν τη Αραβια. This is the common reading; but it is read differently in some of the most respectable MSS., versions, and fathers; thus: το γαρ Σινα ορος εστιν εν τῃ Αραβια, for this Sinai is a mountain of Arabia; the word Αγαρ, Agar, being omitted. This reading is supported by CFG, some others, the Ethiopic, Armenian, Vulgate, and one copy of the Itala; by Epiphanius, Damascenus, Ambrosiaster, Jerome, Augustine, Hilary, Sedulius, and Bede; and the word is sometimes, though not always, omitted by Cyril and Origen, which proves that in their time there were doubts concerning the common reading.
Of the word Agar in this verse…
The Church Fathers
Hagar, who is interpreted as "sojourning," "wandering" or "tarrying," gives birth to Ishmael.… No wonder that the Old Covenant, which is on Mount Sinai, which is in Arabia and nearby to Jerusalem, is stated and alleged in writing to be ephemeral and not perpetual. The sojourning of Hagar stands in contrast with perpetual possession. The name of Mount Sinai means "tribulation," while Arabia means "death."
The bond-woman was called Hagar, and "Hagar" is the word for Mount Sinai in the language of that country. So that it is necessary that all who are born of the Old Covenant should be bondmen, for that mountain where the Old Covenant was delivered hath a name in common with the bondwoman. And it includes Jerusalem, for this is the meaning of, "And answereth to Jerusalem that now is." That is, it borders on, and is contiguous to it. "For she is in bondage with her children." What follows from hence? Not only that she was in bondage and brought forth bondmen, but that this Covenant is so too, whereof the bondwoman was a type. For Jerusalem is adjacent to the mountain of the same name with the bondwoman, and in this mountain the Covenant was delivered. Now where is the type of Sarah?
Mount Sinai is in Arabia. There the law was given to Moses. It is near Jerusalem. That mountain Sinai itself, in the language of the Arabs, is called Hagar. And, it is said, therefore: Hagar and Sarah were types of the two covenants. The slave-girl was a type of the Old Covenant, for she begets servants of the law. The free woman is a type of the New Covenant, for she bears those freed from the yoke of the law. For, it is said, Mount Sinai, where the law was given, is neighboring to Jerusalem, and in the Arabs' tongue it has the same name as Hagar the slave, Hagar herself being likewise called, as from the name, the type becoming near to the truth: "corresponds to," that is, it touches, it borders. — [PHOTIUS] "to Jerusalem." That is, to the one here on earth. So the upper and the free one, both stand apart. [end of the excerpt by Photius] — "And she serves." This, he says, is the old covenant given on Mount Sinai; it serves with her children, the Jews. It serves under the law.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Hagar — Flight, or, according to others, stranger, an Egyptian, Sarah’s handmaid (Gen. 16:1; 21:9, 10), whom she gave to Abraham (q.v.) as a secondary wife (16:2). When she was about to become a mother she…
Heaven — (1.) Definitions. The phrase “heaven and earth” is used to indicate the whole universe (Gen. 1:1; Jer. 23:24; Acts 17:24). According to the Jewish notion there were three heavens, (a) The firmament,…
Sarah — Princess, the wife and at the same time the half-sister of Abraham (Gen. 11:29; 20:12). This name was given to her at the time that it was announced to Abraham that she should be the mother of the…
Church Of Israel · A type of the church of Christ — A type of the church of Christ
Hagar · General references — General references
Jerusalem · Illustrative: Of the church — Illustrative: Of the church
Justification · 23:6; — 23:6;
Liberty, Christian · Typified — Typified
Parables · The two covenants — The two covenants
Sinai · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
For this Agar is Mount Sinai in Arabia,.... The Arabic version, instead of Arabia, reads "Balca". The Syriac version makes Hagar to be a mountain, reading the words thus, "for Mount Hagar is Sinai, which is in Arabia": and some have been of opinion that Sinai was called Hagar by the Arabians. It is certain, that which may be pronounced Hagar, does signify in the Arabic language a stone or rock; and that one part of Arabia is called Arabia Petraea, from the rockiness of it; the metropolis of which was or "Agara", and the inhabitants Agarenes; and Hagar was the name of the chief city of Bahrein, a province of Arabia (r): and it may be observed, that when Hagar, with her son, was cast out, th…
Galatians 4:21-26
21. Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?
21. Dicite mihi, qui sub Lege vultis esse, Legem non auditis?
22. For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
22. Scriptum est enim, quod Abraham duos filios habuit; unum ex ancilla, alterum ex libera.
23. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
23. Sed qui erat ex ancilla, secundum carnem erat genitus: qui vero ex libera, per promissionem.
24. Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.
24. Quae…
Both Hagar and Mount Sinai were symbols of Jerusalem, which stood for Judaism in Paul’s day. Judaism continued to trust in the law and in physical descent from Abraham for their status before God (cp. John 8:31-59); they rejected Christ and continued to live in slavery to the law (Gal 3:23-24; 4:1-3). • Mount Sinai in Arabia: The traditional location for Mount Sinai is in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. However, some have suggested that in Arabia means that Mount Sinai was in Midian, where Moses once lived (see Exod 3:1).
