{"id":4333,"date":"2016-07-30T12:55:33","date_gmt":"2016-07-30T18:55:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/?p=4333"},"modified":"2024-02-12T07:32:37","modified_gmt":"2024-02-12T13:32:37","slug":"interpreting-galatians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/?p=4333","title":{"rendered":"Interpreting Galatians"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write the book of Galatians to explain the differences between law and grace. For much of the first two chapters, Paul points to the differences between himself\u2014the apostle of grace\u2014and the twelve, who were still preaching the law as part of the kingdom gospel. The particular law that caused the tension was circumcision, but Paul makes it clear that the issue involved the entire Old Testament law.<\/h3>\n

Paul had traveled throughout the region of Galatia, a Roman province in what is now Turkey. He had preached his message of salvation by grace through faith and started several churches. After he moved on, Judaizers visited the Christians in Galatia and informed them that they couldn\u2019t be saved unless they were circumcised and observed the Jewish feasts and ceremonies. The Galatians were beginning to waver in their faith. Paul wrote them this letter. He wasn\u2019t happy with the Judaizers or with those who had so soon forgotten his teaching.<\/h3>\n

Here\u2019s a quick survey of the first two chapters.<\/h3>\n

1:1 \u2014 Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through men, but through Jesus Christ)<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Already he\u2019s setting the tone. He didn\u2019t get his authority from men, not even from the other apostles, but personally and directly from Jesus Christ.<\/h3>\n

1:6 \u2014 a different gospel<\/span><\/em> \u2014 The word \u201cgospel\u201d means \u201cgood news.\u201d It isn\u2019t specific to one message. There are several gospels mentioned in Scripture. (There\u2019s a post on this coming soon.)<\/h3>\n

1:7 \u2014 which is not another<\/span><\/em> \u2014 In other words, this other gospel that the Judaizers were preaching to the Galatians was not good news for them (or for us). For the Galatians, this other gospel was a false gospel because it would put them under the law, which would not be good news.<\/h3>\n

1:8 \u2014 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Another reference to there being more than one gospel. Angels frequently delivered messages from God to Israel. They were, in fact, closely tied to the covenant of the Law made between God and Israel only, which was given to Israel by angels with Moses as mediator (John 1:17<\/span><\/a>; Acts 7:53<\/span><\/a>; Galatians 3:19<\/span><\/a>.) But Paul was saying that, for the Gentiles, his<\/em> message is more important than any other message, even if the other message is brought by angels because he<\/em> was the one God chose to bring the message of grace to the Gentiles. In addition, what we have preached to you<\/span><\/em> puts specific emphasis on Paul as the messenger. Paul repeats this warning in verse 9, but this time puts the emphasis on the hearers \u2014 what you have received<\/span><\/em> \u2014 referring to what they heard from him.<\/h3>\n

1:11-12 \u2014 But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Here is the answer to the question posed at the beginning of my last post as to whether the words of Jesus Christ are more important than the words of Paul. This is just one of many places where Paul makes it clear that his words ARE the words of Jesus Christ. Paul is making it clear that his message came by direct revelation from Jesus Christ. He didn\u2019t hear it from others, including the apostles. The \u201cI\u201d in the statement For<\/em> I<\/em><\/strong> neither received it from man<\/span> is emphatic in the Greek, suggesting a contrast with the Judaizers who probably professed to come from James (Galatians 2:12<\/span><\/a>). If Paul’s message was not different from that of the twelve, there would have been no reason for separate revelation and no reason why he couldn\u2019t have learned it from them. And, there would be no reason for him to be so adamant when he made this statement.<\/h3>\n

1:15-16 \u2014 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother\u2019s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles \u2026<\/span><\/em> \u2014 A clear statement that God called Paul to preach a specific message to Gentiles. In Greek, the word \u201creveal\u201d means to uncover or to unveil something hidden.<\/h3>\n

1:16-17 \u2014 I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Ask yourself why the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write this. Why would it be important for the Galatians to know that Paul didn\u2019t discuss his revelation with the twelve apostles or anybody else? Wouldn\u2019t you think the wise thing for him to do would be to sit under the teaching of others who had sat under the ministry of Jesus Christ Himself and who had been preaching the message for several years IF<\/em> <\/strong>it was the same message? Paul recognized the authority of the twelve apostles, but declares his independence from them.<\/h3>\n

1:18-19 \u2014 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord\u2019s brother. (Now concerning the things which I write to you, indeed, before God, I do not lie.)<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Again, why tell us this? Paul says he went to Jerusalem to \u201csee\u201d Peter. That\u2019s a word that is generally used to indicate a visit for the purpose of getting acquainted. (This James wasn\u2019t one of the twelve, but his association with them, by this time, was so great that he was referred to as an apostle in a greater sense. This James had become a leader in the Jerusalem church and wrote the book of James.) The point that Paul was making in these verses about the short duration and limits of his visit to Jerusalem were so important that he followed it up with a strong statement, before God, that he wasn\u2019t lying. This was to counter the claims the Judaizers were making to the Galatians about Paul\u2019s ministry, but also to demonstrate the uniqueness of his gospel.<\/h3>\n

2:1 \u2014 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and also took Titus with me.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 After fourteen years of ministry, Paul went to Jerusalem. He went to talk to the apostles, and he brought along Titus, who wasn\u2019t circumcised, to show the distinction of his message. Barnabas was a Jew and had been circumcised as a child.<\/h3>\n

2:2 \u2014 And I went up by revelation, and communicated to them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles \u2026<\/span><\/em> \u2014\u00a0 \u201cThat gospel which I preach\u201d was different from the gospel they were preaching, otherwise there would be no reason for him to communicate it to them. And he didn\u2019t go to make sure he and the twelve were on the same page. He went to tell them what he was preaching.<\/h3>\n

2:2 \u2014 But privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I might run, or had run, in vain.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Paul knew that the twelve were well known and well regarded for their ministry (and rightly so) to the Jews. If they were to openly oppose his message, his ministry would be less effective. So he traveled, by God\u2019s guidance, to Jerusalem to talk with them privately.<\/h3>\n

2:3 \u2014 Yet not even Titus who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 But notice that Titus was set forth as the exception (in Jerusalem). The Holy Spirit had never<\/em> told the twelve that circumcision and adherence to the law was no longer necessary for Jews saved under the kingdom message<\/em>. That was still<\/em> part of their gospel.<\/h3>\n

2:6 \u2014 But from those who seemed to be something\u2014whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God shows personal favoritism to no man\u2014for those who seemed to be something added nothing to me.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 This, at first look, was a startling thing to write. Paul seemed to be demeaning the twelve apostles. That wasn\u2019t the case. He was simply making an unequivocal statement that the twelve weren\u2019t the ultimate authorities, and especially not on this issue. Paul was probably refuting the Judaizers who were using the twelve as their authority for undermining Paul\u2019s ministry. Whatever they were<\/span><\/em> has the sense of \u201cwhat they once were.\u201d At Pentecost and following, until the rejection of the risen Christ by the Jews and the start of Paul\u2019s ministry, the twelve did<\/em> have ultimate authority. But Paul\u2019s authority came directly from Christ, and the twelve had no authority over him. Paul ended the verse with a clear statement that the twelve added nothing to his message or his authority.<\/h3>\n

2:7 \u2014 But on the contrary, when they saw that the gospel for the uncircumcised had been committed to me, as the gospel for the circumcised was to Peter<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Rather, the twelve recognized Paul\u2019s authority. And note the clear statement that there are two gospels in play here \u2014 that for the uncircumcised (Paul\u2019s gospel for the Gentiles) and that for the circumcised (Peter\u2019s gospel for the Jews) Note: the time was not far off \u2014 Acts 28:25-28<\/span><\/a> \u2014 when the gospel for the circumcised would be set aside entirely until after the Rapture of the Body of Christ. During the period (which continues today) between Acts 28 and the Rapture, there would be no<\/em> <\/strong>distinction between Jew and Gentile.<\/h3>\n

2:9 \u2014 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that had been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 This is a very important verse. Read it carefully. Then read it again. James, Cephas (Peter), and John agreed that their ministry would only be to the Jews. Why is this significant? Because these three men wrote almost all of those New Testament books that appear at the end of the Bible after those written by Paul. This verse makes it clear (because nowhere in Scripture is this information updated, changed, or cancelled) that the books written by James, Peter, and John are for the Jews. Don\u2019t misunderstand me. All Scripture is profitable (2 Timothy 3:16-17<\/span><\/a>). But we have to read it with understanding. This verse, although definitive, doesn\u2019t stand alone. There is plenty of evidence in the General Epistles that support this point. Look at the first verse of James, for example, or 1 Peter 1:1-2<\/span><\/a>.<\/h3>\n

2:11 \u2014 Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.<\/span><\/em> \u2014 Even after Paul\u2019s visit to Jerusalem, there continued to be tension. James was zealous for the law (and continued to be so much later\u2014see Acts 21:20<\/span><\/a>) and was apparently encouraging the Judaizers to preach the law. Peter, and even Barnabas (v. 13) were persuaded. And this answers the other question at the beginning of my last post. Paul and Peter weren\u2019t having a power struggle to see whose message would be taught. They were teaching different messages to different audiences, as directed by the Holy Spirit. The problem here is that Peter, for a moment, got the audiences and messages mixed up, and Paul had to set him right.<\/h3>\n

Paul goes on in the rest of this book to point out the differences between his gospel and the gospel of the circumcision. But our point here is that the Holy Spirit thought it important to take two chapters to explain the separation between Paul and the twelve in clear, decisive language. If it\u2019s that important to Him, we believe we should pay attention and remember the lesson as we read and interpret other Scriptures.<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write the book of Galatians to explain the differences between law and grace. For much of the first two chapters, Paul points to the differences between himself\u2014the apostle of grace\u2014and the twelve, who were … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-review"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4333"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8762,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4333\/revisions\/8762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}