The Figure of Hagar in Ancient Judaism and Galatians

To date, scholarly study of the allegory of Hagar and Sarah in Galatians 4:21-31 has not paid adequate attention to the way Paul's use of the story - chiefly in relation to the figure of Hagar - can be located within streams of ancient Jewish tradition. In this study, Ryan Heinsch fills this scholarly gap by considering Paul's allegorical portrayal of the figure of Hagar in Galatians 4:21-31 within the context of ancient Judaism. The author argues that Paul stands in continuity with - rather than against - ancient Judaism in that he, like other Jews in antiquity, portrays Hagar and her descendants as non-Jews. As a result, the author demonstrates further that Galatians 4:21-31 is not to be read as a polemic against Jews, Jewish Christ-followers, or the continuing validity of the Jewish law (as is common among interpreters), but rather, that Galatians 4:21-31 is an allegory Paul develops about the experience of gentiles in general and the once pagan Galatian gentiles in particular.

About the author

Born 1985; 2008 BA, Moody Bible Institute; 2014 MDiv, Moody Theological Seminary, Michigan; 2019 PhD, University of Aberdeen; currently adjunct professor at Moody Theological Seminary, and Bible faculty at Southwest Christian High School (Chaska, MN).

Product details

• Authors: Ryan Heinsch
• Publisher: Mohr Siebeck
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 01.10.2022
• EAN: 9783161617898
• ISBN: 978-3-16-161789-8
• No. of pages: 262
• Dimensions: 156 mm x 15 mm x 239 mm
• Weight: 426 g
• Series: Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament. Zweite Reihe; Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2. Reihe; WUNT II
• Subject: Humanities, art, music > Religion/theology > Christianity