Ep 245: Galatians 4:1-7 and Deliverance from this Evil Age with Cody Cook

February 17, 2026
Protestant Libertarian Podcast

In this episode I talk with Cody Cook about his new book Delivered from This Present Evil Age where he argues that Galatians 4:1-7 portrays Christ defeating the spiritual powers which enslave humanity and inaugurating a new creation in which ethnic, national, and political divisions are abolished through Jesus. He discusses the influence of the apocalyptic school of Pauline interpretation on his work, the importance of Paul’s opening statement in Galatians 1:3-4 that Jesus has “rescued us from this present evil age”, the wider context of Galatians, and how the stoicheia enslaved humanity before Christ. He then explains the dynamics of Galatians 4:1-7, the inauguration of the new creation, and its impact on Christian identity, revealing that Paul is effectively undercutting nationalism, ethnic divisions, and political identities. We then have a conversation about our differing interpretations of the Paul within Judaism and apocalyptic schools of Pauline interpretation and how we understand the role of the Law in the new creation.