What does it mean that the Son was born under the law?

Explanation:

Paul has explained that the Israelites were imprisoned under the law (Galatians 3:23). That is because the Israelites were not able to uphold the law, and this put them under a curse (Galatians 3:10). Yet there is hope because God sent forth his Son Jesus Christ to redeem those under the law (Galatians 4:5). And Jesus can accomplish this redemptive work because he himself was born under the law. Thus, when Paul says that the Son was born under the law, his point is that, just as Israel was subject to the regulations of the law, so Jesus was subject to the regulations of the law. And why was Jesus subject to the regulations of the law? So that he could redeem those under the law.⁴

Counterargument:

We know that Paul is writing to the Judaizers who insisted that the Gentiles uphold the Jewish laws. Thus, Paul is concerned with ethnicity throughout his letter. Therefore, when he says that the Son was born of a woman, born under the law, he likely has ethnicity in mind. To be born under law is to emphasize Jesus' Jewishness, not that he was subject to the regulations of the law.⁵

Response to counterargument:

This view fails to understand the task required of the Son as the Saviour. The problem that the Israelites and the rest of humanity face is that they are under the curse of the law (Galatians 3:10). To be under the law not only meant that you were (likely) an Israelite, but that in order to be justified before God you had to live according to its standard in its entirety. If one did not uphold every word of the law, one was under a curse (Galatians 3:10). We know from Galatians 4:4–5 that the Son was born under the law to redeem those under the law. We also know from Galatians 3:13 that Jesus accomplished this redemptive work by becoming a curse himself.⁶ Thus, although the Israelites and the rest of humanity were under a curse for not upholding the law, Jesus took the curse of the law upon himself, and he freely forgives all those who place their faith in him. So what is it that makes Jesus an effective Saviour? Is it the fact that he is ethnically Jewish that he can take the curse of the law upon himself and yet share his eternal inheritance with those who place their faith in him? No. Rather, it is the fact that he was born under the same restrictions as Israel, and yet upheld the law perfectly.

Explanation:

Paul says that the Son was born under the law (Galatians 4:4 to redeem those under the law (Galatians 4:5). At first it is not clear what it means that Jesus is born under the law, but when we look to the Gospel of Matthew, we find our answer.⁷ There Christ himself says that he came not to abolish the law and the prophets but to fulfill them. He then explains that not one iota or dot will pass from the law until all is accomplished (Matthew 5:17–18). What we learn from Jesus is that Jesus’ role as Saviour was not to abolish the law but to fulfill it. Of course, for Jesus to fulfill the law means he must be subject to its regulations, just as the Israelites were. Thus, when Paul says that the Son was born under the law, this aligns closely with the fact that Jesus, as the Saviour, was subject to the regulations of the law so that he could fulfil the demands of the law.

Counterargument:

The problem with this argument is that we want to understand Paul’s intention, and there is no indication that he has the Gospel of Matthew in mind. In fact, the Gospel of Matthew would likely not have been written when Paul penned his letter to the Galatians. Thus, we cannot use an argument based on a passage from Matthew to support Paul’s meaning in Galatians.

Response to counterargument:

The problem with this counterargument is that it fails to recognize the unity of Scripture. Scripture is not a disparate collection of books, but a collection of books with one primary author (the Lord) and that are united around the historical redemptive work of Jesus Christ. This means that exegetes are required to interpret passages in light of the whole of Scripture. Added to this, the fact that Paul’s statement aligns with Jesus’ statement about himself simply shows the coherence of the theology of the atonement. Jesus is the perfect mediator, which means that he had to be like his brothers in every respect (Hebrews 2:17).

Explanation:

The Jewish people understood that the Mosaic law reflected the will of God. In fact, in rabbinic writings we find phrases such as the yoke of the Torah, the yoke of the kingdom of heaven, and the yoke of the commandments. These were synonyms for being under the submission of God’s will.⁸ In other words, to be under the law was not just to know an arbitrary set of regulations, but it was to know the will of God. Thus, that the Son was born under the law means that Jesus was subject to the regulations of the law in the sense that he was subject to God’s will.

Counterargument:

We know from Scripture that Jesus Christ was God himself, so how does it make sense to say that Jesus was subject to God’s will? Instead, it makes more sense to think that the fact that the Son was born under the law refers to his humanity, and possibly, Jewishness.

Response to counterargument:

While it is true that Jesus was God, we know that God is tri-personal. This means that the Godhead comprises the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We know from the Gospels that Jesus came to obey the Father’s will (John 6:38). Thus, although Jesus and God the Father are equal in glory and stature, Jesus willingly obeyed the Father, even unto death. So there is no problem with the fact that Jesus is God and that he submitted himself under the law, that is, to the will of the Father.

The one possible problem with this view is that if we assume that Paul is consistent when he uses the phrase under the law, then it seems like Paul is saying that Christ died for the Jews only. Paul says in Galatians 3:23 that we were confined under the law, and there it seems like he is referring to Israel. Now he says that the Son was born under the law to redeem those who were under the law (Galatians 4:5). Taking all three passages together, it seems like the Son was born under the regulations of the Mosaic law to redeem the Israelites. Of course, we can remedy this problem by seeing that we must consider the meaning of under the law in each instance that it occurs. Likely, there is a special nuance that can be detected from the context each time Paul uses the phrase.

Explanation:

Paul explains that the Son was born of woman and born under the law. Both phrases mean the same thing, which is that the Son was born a human. We can deduce that when Paul says the Son was born under the law, he means that Jesus was a human, because every human is subject to the law.¹² That is to say, once someone is born, that person is under the law. Thus, when Paul says that the Son was born of a woman, he simply repeats himself when he says that the Son was born under the law.

Counterargument:

The problem with this argument is that it overlooks Paul’s intent in the overall context of this section. Paul wants the Galatians to understand that no one is justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Christ (Galatians 2:16; Galatians 3:11; Galatians 3:22). His point is that if one is under the law, one is cursed and imprisoned. In fact, Paul develops a chiasm in Galatians 4:4–5 that highlights his point that God sent his Son, born under law, to redeem those under the law, so that they too could be God’s sons. While it is impossible for the Jews to uphold the works of the law, the Son was born under the law so that sinful humans could be adopted as God’s sons. Such a statement implies that Jesus upheld the Mosaic law, and thus has the right to share his inheritance.

A. God sent his Son

B. born under the law

B`. to redeem those under the law.

A`. That we might receive our sonship.¹³

As the chiasm suggests, the emphasis is not on the fact that Jesus was human, although it is important that Jesus was a human. Rather, Paul emphasizes the fact that Jesus was born under the regulations of the Mosaic law, to redeem those under the law. And since the law, as explained in Scripture, imprisoned all to sin (Galatians 3:22), Jesus can redeem all.

Further, it is not clear why Paul would repeat the same phrase twice. By saying that the Son was born of a woman, he clearly intends that Jesus was a human. Thus, when he says that the Son was also born under the law, we should take it that he introduces a new point.

Explanation:

When Paul says that the Son was born under the law, we can deduce his point is that Jesus experienced the fullness of the human condition. We can deduce this because Paul uses the same phrase in Galatians 3:23 to describe the plight of the human condition.¹⁴ There Paul says that we were imprisoned under the law. Now Paul explains that the Son was also born under the law, except his purpose is to release those who are imprisoned by the law. In other words, the Son became fully human to release all those who are imprisoned in their sinful nature by the regulations of the law.

Counterargument:

This view holds that Paul uses the phrase under the law to point out something about the human condition in Galatians 3:23. Therefore, when Paul says that the Son was born under the law in Galatians 4:4, his point is that Jesus can relate to the human condition because he was fully human. The problem with this view is that it does not capture the nuance in Paul’s thinking. For example, it is true that to be under the law is a part of the human condition. Still, it is also true that to be under the law is to be under a set of regulations that God gave to the Israelites through Moses. Thus, when Paul says that the Son was born under the law to redeem those under the law, it is just as likely that he means that the Son was born under the regulations of the Mosaic law to redeem those under the same regulations.

This view does not consider the statement in context. Paul is explaining the purpose of the law (Galatians 3:19), and how it relates to the redemptive-historical plan of God that began with a promise to Abraham (Galatians 3:16). The law played an integral role in the life of Israel. Paul explains to the Judaizers why and how the terms of the covenant changed in light of Jesus’ ministry. So Paul has in mind Jesus’ humanity in Galatians 4:4, but also the fact that he was subject to the same Mosaic laws as the Jews.