who are Israelites. To them belong ¹  the adoption as sons, ²  the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple worship, ³  and the promises.

These things may be treated as an allegory, ¹  for these women represent two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai bearing children for slavery; this is Hagar.

that you were at that time without the Messiah, ¹  alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, ²  having no hope and without God in the world.

They ¹  utter empty words, ²  taking ³  false oaths and making empty ⁴  agreements. Therefore legal disputes sprout up like poisonous weeds ⁵  in the furrows of a plowed field.

Highways are empty, ¹  there are no travelers. ²  Treaties are broken, ³  witnesses are despised, ⁴  human life is treated with disrespect. ⁵ 

but you must not make an agreement with the people who live in this land. You should tear down the altars where they worship.’ ¹  But you have disobeyed me. ²  Why would you do such a thing? ³ 

Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. ¹  Scripture ²  does not say, “and to the descendants,” ³  referring to many, but “and to your descendant,” ⁴  referring to one, who is Christ.