Bible Commentaries
Galatians 1

Verse 1

General remarks. The preceding three epistles of Paul were written to single congregations, and they were located in Europe. The present one was sent to a group of churches in a certain district called Galatia. It was a part of Asia Minor, which in turn was a part of the continent of Asia. Paul had labored among these churches and at one time a warm personal attachment had been formed between them. There were some Jews in these churches, but for the most part they were Gentiles. The principal reason for the epistle was to counteract the evil teaching of some Judaizers who were troubling the churches. These were Jews who tried to induce Gentile Christians to take up the ordinances of the law of Moses, particularly the rite of circumcision. This disturbance was in evidence in many parts of the Roman Empire where Christianity had been planted (Act 15:1-2; Col 2:16-23, and others), but the present epistle is directed to the territory in Galatia, doubtless because Paul was so dis-pointed over the reversal of conditions there. Gal 1:1. Apostle is from APOSTOLOS, and Thayer defines it as follows: "A delegate, messenger, one sent forth with orders." If the word is to have any special application it will need to be determined by the connection in which it is used. For instance, if a man is sent out merely on the authority of men, then such an apostle would have human authority only. Hence Paul considers that point when he says here that his apostleship is not of men neither by men. His divine call to the office had been questioned by some of his critics operating in Galatia. The same situation appears to have existed elsewhere. (See 1Co 9:1-2.) Who raised him from the dead. This fact gives force to the authority of Paul, for God would not have raised Jesus from the dead had he not been his Son. The apostolic call, therefore, which Jesus gave to Paul, came ultimately from God.

Verse 2

Gal 1:2. Brethren which are with me. These brethren had no authority in connection with this letter; they did not even take part In the writing of it (chapter 6:11). The phrase means they Joined the apostle in friendly salutation to the churches.

Verse 3

Gal 1:3. This expression of well-wishing occurs at the beginning of every me of Paul's epistles with the excention of Hebrews. It is not a mere sentimental statement but contains some fundamental truths. Grace is from CHARTS, and one part of Thayer's definition is, "kindness which bestows unon one what he has not deserved." This phase of the word explains why the apostle specifies that it is the grace from God he is wishing for his brethren, since all of God's favors are bestowed upon man only through the Lord Jesus Christ. That is because the sacrifice of Christ provided the way for God to maintain his justice and at the same time extend this unmerited favor to humanity. (See the notes at Rom 3:26, volume 1 of the New Testament Commentary.) Peace is from EIRENE, and the outstanding definition in Thayer's lexicon is, "peace between individuals, i. e., harmony, concord, security, safety, prosperity." It is significant that Paul ascribes this favor to God and Christ, for they are the only Beings who can assure it to man in the face of unnumbered difficulties besetting an existence on the earth. And such a favor will be granted only to those who model their lives according to the will of the Lord. Such a life will assure one of being at peace with God, though it may not always have such a result with mankind. (See Rom 12:18.)

Verse 4

Gal 1:4. The churches of Macedonia were praised for their liberal support of the brethren in Christ (2Co 8:5), and their devotion is accounted for partly by the fact that they "first gave their own selves to the Lord." The same motive is ascribed to Christ in his sacrifice for mankind, namely, he gave himself for our sins. Many people are willing to bestow some favor upon others if it does not require any personal inconvenience upon themselves. And it is usually even then in a case where the person to be bene-fitted is "a worthy individual." But Jesus made his supreme sacrifice for the sins of the world. Furthermore, this favor from Christ was not with the motive that the ones benefited might be placed in a condition where they could "return the favor" upon their benefactor; it was to deliver them from this present evil world; that is, rescue them from the evil influences and results of the present world or age.

Verse 5

Gal 1:5. Whom refers to the Father in the preceding verse. For ever and ever is an emphatic way of saying that God deserves to reecive glory without end. Amen is explained at Rom 16:24, in volume 1 of the New Testament Commentary.

Verse 6

Gal 1:6. Up to this place the verses constitute Paul's introduction for his epistle. He now begins on the main subject of the letter, namely, the corruptions that had entered among the churches of Galatia through the activities of Judaizers. The reader should again consult the comments on these false teachers in "general remarks" at the beginning of this epistle. Him that called you refers to God (1Co 1:9), who had called them by the preaching of Paul, to receive the grace or favor of Christ. So soon removed indicates the fickleness of these brethren, for it had not been such a long time since they had been taught the truth. Gospel is always from EUAG-GELION, and its primary meaning according to Thayer is, "good tidings," and it can have special applications only by the connection in which it is used. Hence if some pretended good news should be offered to persons, it would be a form of gospel regardless of whether it were true or false. That explains why Paul uses the phrase another gospel. The first word is from HETEROS, which means another kind of gospel or supposed good news. The false doctrine was the claim that Christians could obtain salvation by observing the ordinances of the law of Moses, especially that of circumcision; this is clearly shown in Act 15:1. But since such "good news" was false, Paul calls it another kind of gospel.

Verse 7

Gal 1:7. This verse might seem to contradict the preceding one, but the explanation is in the difference between the original words for another. (See verse 6 for the meaning of the word in that instance.) In this verse the word is from ALLOS, which means another something of the same kind. As there is but one true Gospel, there cannot be another like it or of the same kind. That is why Paul says this doctrine that the Judaizers were giving was not another Gospel like the one he was preaching; and for a good reason, for there is no other like it. To pervert the Gospel means to corrupt it by mixing it with something else. The Judaizers were trying to combine the law of Moses with that of Christ, and in so doing Paul charges them with perverting the Gospel, and it was causing trouble for those who otherwise had been faithful.

Verse 8

Gal 1:8. We have seen that some people questioned the apostleship of Paul (verse 1); on the other hand, some Judaizers charged that he was advocating the practice of circumcision as a religious necessity (chapter 5:11). A pretext for such a false claim may have been drawn from the fact that Paul had Timothy circumcised (Act 16:3), disregarding the fact that Timothy had Jewish blood in his veins, and thus had a right to it from a national standpoint. (See the comments at that place in volume 1 of the New Testament Commentary.) However, even if Paul did preach such a false doctrine, that would not make it right but instead he would be under the curse of God. Angels from heaven were never permitted to preach the terms of salvation to any human individual, much less would they dare preach a gospel that contradicted the inspired one given by Paul.

Verse 9

Gal 1:9. To emphasize his warning against the false teacher, Paul refers to what he had taught them at a previous time. Said before is from PROEI-PON, which Thayer defines at this place, "to say before, i. e., heretofore, formerly." Robinson defines it, "to have said before, to have already declared." Hence it could not be intimated that Paul's present warning was some new idea of his. We know Paul had been among them before and had delivered his teaching on the matters of proper living. (See chapter 5:21.) Accursed is from ANATHEMA, and Thayer defines it at this place, "a man accursed, devoted to the direst woes." Robinson says it means to be "separated from God's favor and delivered to destruction." It is easy to see that preaching a false doctrine is one of the worst sins of which a man can be guilty.

Verse 10

Gal 1:10. Persuade in this passage means "to make friends of, win one's favor, gain one's good-will; to seek to win one, strive to please one," according to Thayer. Paul makes his statement in question form, but he really is denying that he is trying to please men with his preaching. The basic reason is that he could not be a servant of Christ while preaching in a way to win the favor of men. He was resolved to be true to God even though he would lose the friendship of the whole world. This was in agreement with his statement in Rom 3:4.

Verse 11

Gal 1:11. To certify means to make known, and after man means to be according to man. Since the Gospel was not composed to suit the wishes of man, Paul could not be true to his call were he to try bending it to suit man in order to win his friendship and good will.

Verse 12

Gal 1:12. Paul received the Gospel by the revelation authorized of Christ. (See the definition of the word in the comments at 2Co 12:1.)

Verse 13

Gal 1:13. Conversation means conduct or manner of life, and Paul is referring to what he practiced while he was a worker in the Jews' religion, which means that under the law of Moses. His reference to the persecution of the church of God in the past, was to show that his present defense of it was not motivated by a life-long prejudice in its favor. Beyond measure is from HUPERBOLE which is defined in Thayer's lexicon as "preeminently; exceedingly." Wasted is from the same Greek word as "destroyed" in Act 9:21, where the persecution by Paul is the subject. In that place it is stated that he "destroyed them which called on the name" of the Son of God. This explains in what sense the church of God may be destroyed; it is by overthrowing certain members of it. Such individual destruction of the church has always been and always will be possible, but the church as a whole is destined to live for ever. (See Dan 2:44.) It was impossible for the powers of darkness to prevent the building of the church (Mat 16:18), and the world is given assurance that Christianity will exist on earth until the second coming of Christ (1Co 15:51-52; 1Th 4:15-17).

Verse 14

Gal 1:14. Profited does not have the sense of personal gain as the word usually does. The original is defined in the lexicon, "to go forward, advance, proceed, make progress." Equals is from SUNELIKIOTES, which Thayer defines, "one of the same age, an equal in age." It is much like a case in the public schools where it may be said of a boy that "he stood at the head of his class." The point Paul is making is that in leaving Judaism and coming to the Gospel, he was not seeking some balm for disappointment over failure, for he was highly successful before. Traditions is from PARADOSIS, which Thayer defines, "a giving over, giving up; i. e., the act of giving up, the surrender. A giving over which is done by word of mouth or in writing." The reader should make himself familiar with this word, which is used frequently in the New Testament, but not always in a bad sense. Any doctrine or rule of conduct becomes a tradition when it has once been given over from one person to another. Whether it is good or bad, and whether it is of any authority or not depends upon the persons handing over the doctrine. Hence the traditions Paul was condemning were those that had been given over by the Jewish fathers, and they were not of authority.

Verse 15

Gal 1:15. Separated is from a word that means to "appoint, set apart, one for some purpose." From my mother's womb means from the time of his birth. At the time of Paul's birth, God determined to use him as a special messenger of Christ. However, that was not made known to him for many years, and even then He did not put that appointment in effect until He had called him by his grace or the Gospel. That call is recorded in Acts 9.

Verse 16

Gal 1:16. This verse states the purpose for which God selected Paul, which was to preach His Son among the heathen, or nations of the world. Immediately denotes that Paul did not delay entering into the work for which he had been called. Conferred not with flesh and blood indicates he did not seek counsel or information about his duty; not even of his relatives or close personal friends.

Verse 17

Gal 1:17. Paul did not first try to consult the other apostles, for his call was from God directly and the previous apostles would not have been able to confer any special qualifications on him. Since no other reference is made to this Journey into Arabia, we have no way of determining the_ purpose of it nor how he spent the time while there. But we have the information that after his stay there was ended, he returned to the city of his conversion before going elsewhere.

Verse 18

Gal 1:18. After three years is dated from his conversion, and includes the time spent in Arabia and Damascus. The time spent in the last place was divided between the days immediately after his conversion, and his return from Arabia. (See verse 17 and Act 9:19-22.) The special purpose for Paul's Journey to Jerusalem was to see Peter. As this was his first visit to that city since his conversion, it is not strange that he had not met Peter before. The words to see are from HIS-TOREO, and this is the only place in the Greek New Testament where the word is used. Thayer defines it, "1, to inquire into, examine, investigate. 2, to find out, learn by inquiry. 3, to gain knowledge of by visiting; to become personally acquainted with, know face to face." All of this was after the three years, in the course of which Paul had been preaching the Gospel elsewhere, hence it does not contradict verse 17. Neither does it leave any room for saying that he went up there to receive the Gospel from Peter (which would have contradicted verse 12). But the importance of the apostle Peter created a desire in Paul to "become personally acquainted with him," and to "know him face to face." He spent fifteen days in the city while visiting Peter.

Verse 19

Gal 1:19. Apostles . . . James the Lord's brother. He was not one of the twelve, but was a very prominent man in the church at Jerusalem, and the term is applied to him in a sort of honorary manner. Regarding such a use of the word, Funk and Wagnalls New Standard Bible Dictionary says the following: "The term came to be used more widely than at first, restricted to its reference to the twelve and Paul. This is confirmed by Paul's reference to James, the Lord's brother, as an apostle (Gal 1:19)." Thayer agrees with this thought, for after giving the definition of the Greek word for apostle, he adds by way of explanation, "In a broader sense the name is transferred to other eminent Christian teachers."

Verse 20

Gal 1:20. Paul's apostleship had been questioned by some Judaizers, and his account contained in the preceding several verses is given as factual evidence of his authority. The statement before God I lie not is added to show that he is conscientious and serious, for he knows that God understands his heart.

Verse 21

Gal 1:21. Syria and Cilicia were provinces north of Palestine, and the latter contained Tarsus, the city of Paul's birth. The immediate occasion for his going there at this time is shown in Act 9:26-30. (See the comments at that place in volume 1 of the New Testament Commentary.)

Verse 22

Gal 1:22. Unknown by face means they had not seen Paul personally. This is not strange, for he had spent the years following his conversion in Damascus and Arabia, and was in Jerusalem only fifteen days (verse 18) before being driven out by persecution.

Verse 23

Gal 1:23. They had heard only. Even though these churches had never met Paul in person, yet the report of his persecution of the saints had reached their ears and filled them with a state of unrest. Now the opposite report was coming to their ears and it brought great relief to them. Hence the writer of Acts says the churches had "rest" upon the ceasing of oppression from this man. (See the comments at Act 9:31 in volume 1 of the New Testament Commentary.)

Verse 24

Gal 1:24. Glorified God in me means they gave God the glory for all of the good results of Paul's conversion. This glorification toward God was not in words only, as may be seen in the passage cited at the close of the preceding paragraph.