Neither Jew nor Greek, Male nor Female? Here's What Galatians 3:28 Actually Means

Unity in Christ does not mean the erasure of God-created distinctions.

The phrase “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” is one of the most misinterpreted verses in the New Testament. It is often quoted but seldom understood.

This passage can be found in the Letter to the Galatians. It is situated in the middle of a long dialogue by the Apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, about the drawbacks of imposing the Jewish law on Christians. This cannot be done, argues Paul. To impose any type of law or tradition on Christians would be to place a condition on the Gospel. That cannot be allowed to happen.

As part of this discussion, Paul felt it necessary to discuss the law’s original purpose, which was twofold. First, the law was given as a “guardian” or “schoolmaster,” put in place until Christ came (Galatians 3:24). Its purpose was to keep the covenant people of God, who were each personally saddled with a fallen sin nature, from flying off the proverbial rails and living like the immoral pagan nations of the world.

This was to remain in effect until God sent His Holy Spirit to sanctify His people, an act that could only occur after the blood of Christ had been shed for the sins of the world. The law was never intended to make the people of God righteous, holy, or deserving of God’s grace due to their good behavior. It was incapable of doing so. Not because the law was corrupt, but because the people were.

Second, Paul says that through Scripture, the law imprisoned everything under sin, so that “the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe” (Gal 3:22). What does this mean? The law allows everyone to see just how unrighteous they are. The law brings conviction, shame, and sin-consciousness. The law awakens in many the realization that, apart from a savior, we are doomed. We, in and of ourselves, are not enough. We will never merit the favor of a holy God based on our actions or our integrity.

Paul goes on to state that now that Christ has come, we are no longer under a guardian. The need for a law has been removed. Because of that, the things that once separated Jews and Gentiles (the God-given Sinaitic Law, along with all the other ceremonial and civil customs that were a part of God’s Covenant with Israel) have been rendered obsolete. What separates Jew and Gentile now? Nothing. We are all part of the same body, the Body of Christ, and we are all received into that body based on faith, not works (particularly, law keeping).

This is what Paul meant when he wrote the phrase, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Did he mean to say that there is no longer a distinction between Jews and Gentiles, between male and female believers, or between bondservants and free people? No. Should we dismiss any notion of difference between these various identities and the roles they represent? No. Throughout the New Testament, and particularly in the Pauline corpus, we see that the distinctions between male and female, slave and free person, Jew and Gentile are upheld. What is not upheld is the idea that one is better than the other, or that one group merits favor from God because of these particular identities. That is what Paul is addressing.

Men are to love their wives like Christ loves the Church (Ephesians 5:25). Wives are to submit to their husbands, as to the Lord (Ephesians 5:22). Bondservants are to obey their masters as they would Christ (Ephesians 6:5). Masters are to treat those in their charge with care and respect, remembering that they too have a master in heaven (Ephesians 6:9). Likewise, a Jewish Christian should not seek to “undo the marks” of his Jewish identity, and a Gentile Christian should never feel compelled to be circumcised because of his faith in Jesus.

“Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision” (1 Corinthians 7:18).

In all these examples, there is a consistent theme. What formerly separated us from one another in terms of cultural status, social position, or basic ontology no longer serves as a template for spiritual hierarchy. What used to make us unequal in the world's eyes no longer does so in the Church. We are all on equal footing in Christ Jesus. We are all saved through our faith and by His grace.

Paul is not saying that the male and female sexes no longer exist. He is in no way attempting to whitewash the inherent differences between men and women or denigrate the fundamental, God-ordained roles that accompany each gender. He is not saying that Jews should stop being Jewish or that Gentiles should stop being whatever ethnicity they are to try to become Jewish for the sake of their Christian faith.

He is saying, very simply, that in Christ Jesus everyone stands on equal footing before God. We were all sinners in need of a savior. Now, we are all sons and daughters of God by faith, and no one has a leg up with God because of their ethnicity, social status, gender, or good works.

Neither Jew nor Greek, Male nor Female? Here's What Galatians 3:28 Actually Means

Blake Barbera is the founder and Lead Teaching Minister at That You May Know Him. He has been teaching the Bible for more than two decades, and has served the Church in various capacities during that time, including as a missionary and pastor.

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