Chapter I.
(Vers. 1.)
(Verse 1.) Paul the apostle, not from men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead. He testifies that he is not chosen and sent by men to preach, like some who were chosen and sent by the apostles to strengthen the churches; nor like others who were sent by the Jews to disrupt the churches, whom he calls pseudo-apostles; but that he was sent by the Son of God himself, whom he seems to deny being a mere human in this matter; because he gave commandments as if he were God, not as a mere human, and he chose him by divine judgment. By which he designates himself as a suitable and firm preacher; because undoubtedly the one whom God chooses is much better than the one whom man chooses. He says that he is not chosen by man, as they thought about Christ, who compelled them to be circumcised; but by the Lord Jesus Christ, that is, by him who is God and man. This is immediately revealed when he says: And God the Father, who raised him from the dead. By saying this, he condemns two heresies, both Manichaeism and Photinism; because Manichaeus denies that Christ is a man, but does not deny that he was crucified, while Photinus does not concede that Christ is God, yet he does not dare to deny that he himself, that is, his own body, was raised from the dead. Thus, Manichaeus, by not denying the crucified Christ, seems foolishly not to acknowledge him as a man, and Photinus, by denying God with a certain impiousness, confesses that he raised himself from the dead. For indeed the Lord said: Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. But he said this of the temple of his body (John 2:19). Therefore, by raising himself from the dead, he signifies that he has raised his body from the dead; and yet he is said to be raised by his Father, because all the power of the Son is from the Father, so that the actions of the Son are the actions of the Father, from whom all things are.
(Vers. 2.)
(Verse 2.) And all the brothers who are with me, the churches of Galatia. After he asserted his authority, he continues to strengthen his argument; in order to show that all those who were with him were also stirred up against them. Although his authority was sufficient to not be debated; nevertheless, in order to emphasize their wrongdoing, by which they had abandoned the faith from the beginning, he designates many who were incited with him to refute their error. For it will be easy for anyone to understand that they are mistaken if they see themselves criticized by many.
(Vers. 3.)
(Verse 3.) Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The benefit of both the Father and the Son reveals the upliftment of the human race. It does not indicate a lesser Son when it calls him our Lord, nor a greater Father when it calls him our God. Because the Father will not be a true God unless he is also Lord, and the Son will not be a true Lord unless he is also God. Therefore, if there is one grace of the Father and the Son towards us, why, he asks, do you think less of the Son and equate the law with him, serving partly Christ and partly the law, when you have read the Lord saying, 'For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath' (Luke 6:5)? So that they may see how great an insult is inflicted upon the Lord by them, when they compare the Lord to a servant.
(Vers. 4.)
(Verse 4.) He who gave himself for our sins. Clearly shows that the Law is of no use when he says that Christ offered himself to suffer for us, in order to justify us whom the Law held guilty; so that, being freed from the Law through faith in Christ, we would no longer be sinners, but justified and called sons of God through a second birth. For when the human race was held captive under the dominion of the devil, the Savior offered himself willingly to the devil; mocking him with the power of his own virtue (for he desired to receive what he could not hold captive), he took away from him what he held unjustly. Therefore, having despoiled the underworld, He brought the trophy of souls to the Father, from whom all things are; a feat that the Law could not accomplish. Although it was intended to be beneficial, it was turned against us sinners, becoming hostile; and it began to kill, not to give life. But Christ, by forgiving sins, not only revived us, but also joined Himself to us; so that we may be called children of God, being made so through faith. So, how great an error it is to return to the Law after receiving grace, which means, after obtaining freedom, to desire to be enslaved again; like someone rescued from the sword who forgets the favor and sells himself again to the slave-master? For the accuser is indeed the buyer who, having left it behind, returns again to the former owner. To free us from the present evil age. This is what he says because the Lord has given himself up to death, in order to free us from the error of the age, that is, so that we may be made partakers in the knowledge of the one God, rather than being turned aside by the understanding of this age, which with the passing of time draws to an end. For the malice of this present age lies in this, that it does not render appropriate reverence to God the creator and Christ the restorer; while human error fabricates many gods for itself, or while proper honor is not preserved for Christ by those who believe in him.
(Vers. 5.)
(Verse 5) According to the will of God and our Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. In order to establish and confirm with authority what he says, that Christ has set us free, he adds that this was done by the will of the Father.
(Vers. 6.)
(Verse 6.) I am surprised that you are being so quickly transferred from the one who called you by the grace of Christ to a different gospel. The gospel is good news, and in this case, the old law is set aside by the gospel of grace. But instead of embracing what has been promised and fulfilled, you have turned to the works of the law, thus losing what you had attained and falling back into slavery. This is why he expresses his surprise, because by rejecting the greatest and most beneficial gift, they have enslaved themselves to the works of the law, forfeiting their received freedom and quickly regressing. Normally, someone gradually transitions from evil to good, but these Galatians have easily turned from good to the burdensome deeds of the flesh. For it rarely happens that someone seeks destruction out of joy, and thus one marvels at the dullness of those who, while in safety, subject themselves to pointless labor. It is like a crazy sailor standing in the harbor, secure from the storm, who sets sail into the open sea; so that he is tossed about by various tempests. And so these people, through foolishness, subject themselves; so that they suffer the pains of a disfigured reputation and take on the yoke of servitude to the Law, with no hope of this matter being proclaimed. Therefore, they were called to another gospel, different from what these individuals were preaching, who had disturbed them. However, it was not another gospel from what the apostles were proclaiming, which these false apostles claimed to be different for the sake of undermining the Apostle who had instructed them. And in order to deceive the Galatians with this falsehood, it was necessary for the Apostle's gospel to be declared as something different from what the teaching of the Savior dictated. But the truth was that it was in harmony with the Old Law, as was being preached by them. There were some who posed questions to Paul and Barnabas about this matter, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles (Act XV, 2); for they were teaching the believing Gentiles that unless they were circumcised according to the custom of Moses and followed the Jewish customs, they could not be saved.
(Vers. 7.)
(Verse 7) Which is nothing else but that there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. It is clear that they were doing this in order to turn the gospel of Christ into the law by changing traditions, so that they would be Jews in the name of Christ: and this is to pervert the gospel of Christ into the law.
(Vers. 8, 9.)
(Verse 8, 9.) But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. Do not marvel, brothers, that I have become so impassioned against those who oppose the Christian discipline, for it is for the salvation of the Galatians. This indignation shows that it is a serious sin to turn back to the Law after receiving the faith, for he affirms that the Gospel he preached to them is firm and true. It is as if he is saying that even if they, meaning the apostles themselves, should preach something different, they should not be listened to, as their reputation as apostles of Christ has spread everywhere. But if perhaps the devil, disguising himself as an angel of God, were to appear from the heavens in order to be easily heard, proclaiming these things, it would be known to be false, and it would be considered abominable. Therefore, if the apostles of Christ, whose excellent reputation was in performing signs and wonders, and an angel from heaven, whom spiritual reason can commend, were to teach differently than what they had been taught by the apostle Paul, he commanded that they be anathematized; how much more those whom he can commend no testimony to deceive? Therefore, he repeats the argument in order to confirm them in the initial tradition; for a repeated law makes the negligent more attentive.
(Vers. 10.)
(Verse 10.) For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. Therefore, I make it clear that my intention is not to please people but to please God, so that they may turn back to God through repentance, whom they had rejected. Moreover, immediately following this, he adds: Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. This indicates that they were seeking to please those who had turned them away, not God, during the confusion in Galatia, just as he himself had once done when he persecuted the Church in order to uphold the traditions of the Fathers. For in order to be praised by the Jews according to their will, they said that the Law must be observed, so that if they were to preach the true Gospel of Christ, they would make enemies. But the apostle Paul, who taught that pleasing God with complete devotion, did not fear offending men as long as he was commending the glory of God. For he placed all present things behind future things, and commended himself with hope as a worthy servant of Christ. But those who seek their own gain under the name of the Lord cannot be worthy servants. But perhaps someone might say: Therefore, those who were preaching the Law, which is said to have been given by God, were serving men. How then can the Law be called suitable, whose preaching is reported to be tempered according to the will of men? Before the coming of the Lord, the Law was preached according to the will of God; for time was owed to it, so that it might be observed. But when the promised Lord came in accordance with the Law, the Law had to cease, according to the predicted judgement of the prophets. Where the Lord says: The Law and the prophets were until John (Luke 16:16); for it was not worthy that the authority of the Law should be preserved in the presence of the Lord. Therefore, if anyone thinks that the Law should be kept from now on, he does not obey the will of the Lord, but contradicts it; for he satisfies his own desires.
(Vers. 11, 12.)
(Vers. 11, 12.) But I make known to you, brothers, the Gospel that was preached by me, that it is not according to man; for I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but through the revelation of Jesus Christ. Now he begins to explain the beginnings of the letter; for he wants to make the meaning itself clear, that what he was teaching, he did not learn from man, lest there be any doubt about what he was teaching. Nor was his preaching suited to human judgment, so that it might seem unworthy of divine authority; but he says that he learned it from the Son of God himself through revelation, when he was already in heaven after his resurrection, as I have previously mentioned; and he testifies that what he learned is in accordance with his will and majesty, from whom he says he learned it. Spiritual things are those which, when preserved, confer merit with God; for they are carnal things, which, though preserved in their proper time, have neither merited nor unmerited anything with God: they have not been of use; for even those who did not keep the Law were under a curse, and those who kept it did not justify themselves before God, because the just one lives by faith. For those commandments were to be kept as a burden, not as a matter of worthiness.
(Vers. 13.)
(Verse 13.) For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my people, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions. He briefly mentions his former persecutions against the church, in opposition to it, but then he says that he has left all that behind in order to be a servant of Christ. For he showed himself to be more devoted than those who had been appointed to uphold the law; not, however, seeking the favor of men, but thinking this to be advantageous before God. For through ignorance, when it pleased humanity, he believed he was serving God, having a clear conscience; for he did not yet know that the time for asserting the law was past, having followed the teaching of the fathers, either in error or in ill will; and with all diligence and fervor of mind he pursued this, so that he appeared superior to his fellow equals in the emulation of the law, thus raging against the discipline of Christ, showing no mercy to those who had obtained the covenants of faith. But when he learned by the revelation of God that this labor was empty and even contrary; he abandoned it and subjected himself to the grace of faith; so that his progress would be with God, he mentions. Therefore, if this person who is an Israelite, and who was supported by the dignity of a teacher among the Jews, educated by Gamaliel, a very wise man, having a place with the best men in life, abandoned the Law; how much more should those who were outside the Law not subject themselves to the Law? And if he rejoices in being freed from the yoke of slavery, what is it that they have bound their own liberty with the chains of the Law?
(Vers. 15, 16.)
(Verses 15, 16.) But when it pleased Him, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me by His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, immediately I did not confer with flesh and blood. While I had confidence in the Law, not knowing that the time for keeping the Law had passed, and with all zeal I opposed, thinking that I was doing God's will by resisting the Gospel of Christ; seeing that God approved of his zeal but recognizing his lack of knowledge, He chose to call him by His grace, knowing that he was now suitable to preach the Gospel of His Son among the Gentiles; for if he was so quick and faithful in the smallest matters, without seeking anyone's approval, how much more would he be steadfast in preaching, through the gift of God, in the hope of the promised reward? Therefore, the foreknowledge of God separates him from the womb of his mother, that is, before he was born or immediately after, God knew the future good, as he says to the prophet Jeremiah: Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, etc. (Jer. I, 5): so also the apostle Paul, knowing who he would become, met him; that before he converted, he called him, because it was necessary. Finally, he immediately received the dispensation of the gift of God, with all worldly care set aside; for he did not seek the advice of anyone, nor did he report to anyone what he would do: but immediately he preached Christ, for he is the Son of God. For just as future evils are often beforehand good, so future goods are accustomed to be beforehand evil.
(Vers. 17.)
(V. 17.) I did not go to Jerusalem to see my predecessors the apostles, but I went to Arabia, and then returned to Damascus. He says that he did not feel compelled by necessity to go to his predecessors the apostles in order to learn something from them; because God revealed to him through his Son how to teach. He speaks this in order to show that nothing else should be held but what he teaches: not to believe in men, but in God, from whom he testifies that he learned; and therefore, those who led them into the Law are false teachers, because what they taught was not handed down by God. So he went from Damascus to Arabia to preach, where there were no apostles, in order to found churches there so that Judaism would not be spread by false apostles. And from there he returned to Damascus to visit those to whom he had preached the gospel of the grace of God.
(Vers. 18.)
(Ver. 18.) Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and I stayed with him for fifteen days. It was fitting that he desired to see Peter, for he was the first among the apostles to whom the Savior had entrusted the care of the Churches; not that he needed to learn anything from him, for he had already learned from the author himself, by whom Peter himself had been instructed: but because of his affection for the apostolate, and so that Peter would know that this permission had been given to him, as he himself had received it. Therefore, coming to him, he was received as a guest and stayed with him for fifteen days, as a harmonious co-apostle. He declares this in order to show that he had unity with the apostles and did not disagree with them in any way, as the false apostles whispered about him, in order to distort him among the churches of the Gentiles and insert their own evil teachings, claiming that they were consistent with the doctrine of the senior apostles.
(Vers. 19.)
(Verse 19) I returned again to Damascus and saw none of the other apostles, except James the Lord's brother. James was seen in Jerusalem, for he was appointed by the apostles as bishop there, who also was previously unbelieving, as the Evangelist says: For even His brothers did not believe in Him yet (John 7:5). This James was the son of Joseph, who was therefore called the brother of the Lord, because Joseph was also called the father of Him, the Lord. For Mary said this to Jesus in the Gospel of Luke: 'Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.' (Luke 2:42). And in the Gospel of John, Philip said to Nathanael: 'We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.' (John 1:45). In this way, the Lord, the brother of James and the others, who was also called the son of Joseph, was spoken of. For some in a fit of madness impiously assert and contend that these were true brothers of the Lord, being sons of Mary, allowing at the same time that Joseph, though not His true father, was so called nevertheless. For if these were his true brothers, then Joseph will be the true father; because the one who called Joseph his father also called his brothers Jacob and the others.
(Vers. 20.)
(Verse 20.) But the things which I write to you, behold, before God, I do not lie. As for the matter of his commendation, he gives God as a witness, that the things he is about to say are true, lest it should appear that he is making them up; for it does not befit his character to invent anything. But when he commends himself, he wants to benefit these people; for this commendation is advantageous to them, so that they may know that the things spoken by him are most true.
(Vers. 21-24.)
(Verses 21-24.) Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. But I was unknown by face to the churches of Judea that are in Christ: they only heard, "He who once persecuted us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy." And they glorified God in me. This is what he says, that when he defended Judaism against the faith, just as those who had been subverted by the Galatians; he was chosen by God, and taught to conceal his Judaism, and preach the new Law: so that the Jewish believers, whom he had once persecuted, rejoiced in him, giving thanks to God who turned the persecutor into a defender; so that the Galatians would know that they were deceived, and would profess themselves as Jews in the name of Christ, circumcising the flesh of their foreskin, even though Christ's law commands something different from Judaism; there circumcision of the flesh is carried out, here it is the circumcision of the heart: there they serve under the elements, new moons, and the Sabbath, here they serve only God in spirit; because it is believed in the heart: there the condition is the cause of sin, here there is freedom through the forgiveness of sins. So there is much distance.