What is the meaning of Galatians 3:19? Why then was the law given? Paul poses the very question he knows is on his readers’ minds. God had already made an unconditional promise to Abraham (Galatians 3:17), so why introduce the law four hundred-plus years later at Sinai? • The law served a distinct purpose within God’s unfolding plan. It did not replace the promise (Romans 4:13); it operated alongside it. • Think of a parent setting house rules after promising an inheritance. The rules do not cancel the inheritance; they guide family life until the children mature. • Exodus 19:5-6 shows the law forming Israel into a “kingdom of priests,” positioning them to display God’s character to the nations (Deuteronomy 4:6-8). It was added because of transgressions “Added” does not mean “added to the promise,” but “added alongside the promise.” • To expose sin. “Through the law we become conscious of sin” (Romans 3:20). What was vague became unmistakable. • To restrain sin. Detailed commands set boundaries for a nation surrounded by idolatry (1 Timothy 1:8-10). • To drive sinners to grace. “Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Romans 5:20). By highlighting inability, the law magnified the need for a Savior. until the arrival of the seed to whom the promise referred The law always had an expiration date. It pointed forward “until” Christ, the singular “Seed” (Galatians 3:16). • Genesis 22:18 foretold One through whom “all nations” would be blessed. • Jesus arrived “born under the law” to redeem those under it (Galatians 4:4-5). • With His coming, the guardian’s task was complete. Believers move from childhood under a tutor to full sonship (Galatians 3:24-26). • He fulfills, not abolishes, the law (Matthew 5:17), bringing a new covenant written on hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-34; 2 Corinthians 3:6). It was administered through angels by a mediator The delivery method underscores the law’s secondary role compared with the promise. • Deuteronomy 33:2 pictures the Lord coming from Sinai “with myriads of holy ones.” Stephen echoes this: “You received the law ordained by angels” (Acts 7:53). The writer to the Hebrews adds that it was a “message spoken through angels” (Hebrews 2:2). • Moses acted as the human go-between (Exodus 20:19), standing between God and the people. A mediator implies distance. • By contrast, the promise came directly to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3) and is now fulfilled directly in Christ, the one Mediator between God and men (1 Timothy 2:5). summary Galatians 3:19 places the law in its proper, limited role. God added it after the promise, not to replace grace but to reveal, restrain, and diagnose sin until Christ—the promised Seed—arrived. Delivered through angels and a mediator, the law carried authority yet also highlighted humanity’s separation from God. In Jesus the need for that temporary guardian ends, and the unconditional promise to Abraham opens wide to all who believe. |
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