What does "fullness of time" mean in Galatians 4:4-5?
Galatians 4:4 - 5
NKJV - 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law. 5 To redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
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Tim Maas
Supporter
I would say that it refers to the exact, unique point in history when, in God's omniscience, circumstances were such that all the specific prophecies related to the appearance, life, and redeeming work of Christ had been or could be fulfilled, and also when the status and location of Israel within the world of the Roman Empire would enable the gospel message to be disseminated with maximum effectiveness with respect to both time and geography.
Jack Gutknecht
Supporter
In my opinion, I would say that "the fullness of time" in Galatians 4:4 meant two things mainly:
1 Rome had brought together a large part of the world under its administration, giving a feeling of solidarity to the different lands. Additionally, in light of the fact that the realm was generally serene, travel was conceivable ("all roads lead to Rome"), permitting the early Christians to spread the gospel. Such an opportunity to travel would have been unimaginable in different periods.
2 While Rome had vanquished militarily, Greece had vanquished socially. A "typical" type of the Greek language (not quite the same as classical Greek which I studied at Ariz. State U) was the exchange language and was spoken all through the domain, making it conceivable to convey the gospel to a wide range of social orders through 1 basic language.
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