1 I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave,¹ though he is the owner of everything, 2 but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3 In the same way we also, when we were children, ^cwere enslaved to the elementary principles² of the world. 4 But ^dwhen the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, ^eborn ^fof woman, born ^gunder the law, 5 ^hto redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive ⁱadoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent ^jthe Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then ^kan heir through God.