Galatians 1 · The Lantern

Paul, an apostle (not from men, neither through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead),

Having beheld your bishop, I know that he was not selected to undertake the ministry which pertains to the common [weal], either by himself or by men, or out of vainglory, but by the love of Jesus Christ, and of God the Father, who raised Him from the dead; at whose meekness I am struck with admiration, and who by His silence is able to accomplish more than they who talk a grea…

(Chapter 1, Verse 1) Paul, an apostle not from men nor by man but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead. He does not propose himself as an apostle arrogantly, as some think, but necessarily, neither from men nor by man.

The Apostle therefore writes the Galatians this epistle in which he shows that with the coming of the grace of the New Testament, the Old Testament should be cast out, so that with the fulfillment of the truth, the figure may be abandoned, and with the attainment of these two, namely, grace and truth, one may arrive at the truth of justice and glory.

and all the brothers who are with me, to the churches of Galatia:

Whereas he was accustomed to call himself simply Paul the apostle to the Romans and Corinthians, in order to startle the Galatians and reprove them for a grave error he has joined with himself all the brothers who were with him, saying that they themselves were writing to the Galatians, making them feel the shame of thinking contrary to everyone, so as to give more weight to hi…

"and all the brothers with me." For what reason does he now mention all the brothers together? Because those who were accusing him said that Paul alone was now forbidding circumcision; therefore he wishes to show that there are many allies to him in such a teaching. "to the Churches of Galatia." See the mark of anger.

Then when he says, "and all the brethren who are with me," he refers to the persons who join with him in sending the greeting. These he describes in terms of sweet familiarity, because they "are with me," namely, for consolation and help. "A brother that is helped by his brother is like a strong city" (Prov 18:19).

Grace to you and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ,

He shows that the human race is sustained by the goodness of both, as much Father as Son. Nor does he indicate that the Son is less than the Father when he calls him our Lord, nor that the Father is greater when he calls him our God. He will not be a true Father unless he is also Lord, nor will the Son be a true Lord unless he is also God.

— [CHRYSOSTOM] "grace to you." For since they were in danger of falling from grace because of the circumcision, he prays this for them. He also says, "and peace." For they had been at war with God, by the observance of the ritual precepts. "from God the Father." Where do you have, he says, the right to call God Father?" Is it not from baptism? Why then do you oppose the law?

Then when he says, "grace be to you and peace," he mentions the good things he wishes them. First, he mentions the goods he wishes; Secondly, the author of these goods (v. 3): "from God the Father and our Lord." The goods he wishes them are twofold, but in them are included all spiritual goods.

who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father-

For when the human race was held in the dominion of the devil, the Savior offered himself to the willing devil, so that deceiving him by the power of his virtue—for the devil wanted to take possession of one whom he was unable to hold—he could carry off those whom the devil was detaining by a false right.

"who gave himself." Behold, he gave himself; therefore, when you hear that he has been given by the Father, perceive the Father's good pleasure. "to deliver us from." He gave Himself for our sins, blotting out the former things and preserving for the future.

The manner in which these goods are caused is also mentioned when he says, "who gave himself for our sins." Here is mentioned, first of all, the efficient cause, which is the death of Christ. Referring to this, he says "who gave himself for our sins." As if to say: Christ is the author of grace and peace, because He gave Himself to death and endured the cross.

to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different "good news";

When, again, he mentioned "certain false brethren as having crept in unawares," who wished to remove the Galatians into another gospel, he himself shows that that adulteration of the gospel was not meant to transfer them to the faith of another god and christ, but rather to perpetuate the teaching of the law; because he blames them for maintaining circumcision, and observing ti…

He is saying, "You have not departed from this teaching to that but from the one who called you.… The very Father who gave the law is the one who called you to this gospel.… And if you desert this gospel, you will not find another. For the Lord does not preach some things through us and others through the other apostles."

The greeting given, it is followed by the epistle message, in which the Apostle refutes their error; secondly, he admonishes them with a view to their correction (5:1): "Stand fast and be not held again under the yoke of bondage." He refutes their error two ways: namely, on the authority of the Gospel teaching; and by reason, using the Old Testament (3:1): "O senseless Galatian…

and there is not another "good news." Only there are some who trouble you, and want to pervert the Good News of Christ.

For nobody had induced them to apostatize from the Creator, that they should seem to "be removed to another gospel," simply when they return again to the Creator. When he adds, too, the words, "which is not another," he confirms the fact that the gospel which he maintains is the Creator's.

"Not that there is another gospel." Which is to say, he declares, only one thing, and there is no other besides this. Unless, then, some of you are troubled, wishing to pervert you and to distort the gospel of Christ.

Yet though it is not in itself another gospel, it can be another, if you consider the guilt of the others, i.e., of the deceivers. Hence in enlarging upon the guilt of the latter he says, "only there are some," namely, the seducers, "that trouble you," i.e., sully the purity of your understanding with which you were imbued with the truth of faith.

But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should proclaim to you any "good news" other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed.

To this angel, indeed, of Philumene, the apostle will reply in tones like those in which he even then predicted him, saying, "Although an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." To the arguments, however, which have been indicated just above, we have now to show our resistance.

He mentioned the angels, not speculating that any of the holy angels would say something contrary to the divine gospel, for he knew this to be impossible. But through this he reprehended every novelty of humanity.

Then after enlarging upon their guilt, the inflicting of the penalty is set forth when he says, "But though we, or an angel from heaven." And with respect to this he does two things: First, he promulgates the sentence; Secondly, he gives a reason for the sentence (v. 10).

As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any "good news" other than that which you received, let him be cursed.

For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

Oh blasphemy, bordering on martyrdom, which now attests me to be a Christian, while for that very account it detests me! The cursing of well-maintained Discipline is a blessing of the Name. "If," says he, "I wished to please men, I should not be Christ's servant." But the same apostle elsewhere bids us take care to please all: "As I," he says, "please all by all means.

No one persuades God, for all things are manifest to him. But a person does well in wishing to persuade others when it is not himself that he wishes them to like but the truth that he persuades them of.… When one pleases others on account of truth, it is not the proclaimer himself but the truth that pleases.… Thus the sense is, "Do I then persuade men or God?

Then when he says, "For do I now persuade men, or God?", he gives the reason for his sentence. First, he gives the reason for his sentence; Secondly, he discloses here his purpose (v. 10): "Or do I seek to please men?" For someone might say: Why do you excommunicate in this manner? Perhaps some are your friends or men of some authority. Therefore you ought not act in this way.

But I make known to you, brothers, concerning the Good News which was preached by me, that it is not according to man.

He then cursorily touches on his own conversion from a persecutor to an apostle-confirming thereby the Acts of the Apostles, in which book may be found the very subject of this epistle, how that certain persons interposed, and said that men ought to be circumcised, and that the law of Moses was to be observed; and how the apostles, when consulted, determined, by the authority o…

The gospel that is "according to men" is a lie, for every person is a liar, seeing that whatever truth is found in a man is not from the man but through the man from God.

In the foregoing the Apostle rebuked the Galatians for their fickleness of mind in so quickly setting aside the Gospel teaching; now he shows the dignity of the Gospel teaching.

For neither did I receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came to me through revelation of Jesus Christ.

For you have heard of my way of living in time past in Judaism, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and ravaged it.

I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my countrymen, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.

"When I was a child," he says, "as a child I spake, as a child I understood; but when I became a man, those (things) which had been the child's I abandoned: " so truly did he turn away from his early opinions: nor did he sin by becoming an emulator not of ancestral but of Christian traditions, wishing even the precision of them who advised the retention of circumcision.

"And I advanced." I advanced in the persecution of the churches, that is, I continually strove to make it more severe. I advanced and was honorable on that account among the Jews. What then is the reason that they suddenly took up arms against me, those who honored and loved me? Nothing else, he says, but the revelation of Christ.

It is plain also from the love and burning zeal he had for Judaism, as to outward progress. Hence he says, "And I made progress in the Jews' religion above many of my equals in my own nation:" wherein he mentions three things that indicate how great was his progress.

But when it was the good pleasure of God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me through his grace,

And that he, the apostle, was the very same person who had been born from the womb, that is, of the ancient substance of flesh, he does himself declare in the Epistle to the Galatians: "But when it pleased God, 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," it was not, as I have already o…

If from his mother's womb he was restricted against preaching and was restrained, for some entirely divine privilege the intervening time was allowed, so that his sudden change might strengthen many.

After showing that he did not receive the Gospel from man before his conversion, the Apostle now proves that he did not receive it from man after his conversion. About this he does two things: First, he shows that he did not receive the Gospel from man at the time of his conversion; Secondly, nor after his conversion (v. 18).

to reveal his Son in me, that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, 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 away into Arabia. Then I returned to Damascus.

He set out from Damascus to Arabia, therefore, to preach where none of the apostles had been and where Judaizing had not been promoted through the intrigues of pseudoapostles. And from there he returned again to Damascus so that he could attend to those who were still immature when he preached to them the gospel of God's grace.

[PHOTIUS] Paul said this more clearly, showing that he was not taught by the apostles but by Christ himself. He did not, he says, go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles before me and to learn anything from them. For he did go up to Jerusalem from Damascus, as the Acts indicate, (Acts 9:2) but not to be instructed, rather to preach Christ himself and to teach the faith.

Furthermore, his conversion was perfect with respect to his understanding, because he was so instructed by Christ that there was no need to be instructed by the apostles; hence he says, "Neither went I to Jerusalem," i.e., to be instructed by them.

Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days.

But of the other apostles I saw no one, except Jacob, the Lord's brother.

Festus was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the road; so he assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, [or, some of his companions]; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned: but as for those who seemed the most eq…

Let us pray for every episcopacy which is under the whole heaven, of those that rightly divide the word of Thy truth. And let us pray for our bishop James, and his parishes; let us pray for our bishop Clement, and his parishes; let us pray for our bishop Euodius, and his parishes; let us pray for our bishop Annianus, and his parishes: that the compassionate God may grant them t…

But lest anyone suppose that, although he was not instructed by Peter, he might have been instructed by others, he adds that he was not instructed by others. Hence he says, "But other of the apostles," by whom I might be instructed, "I saw none," i.e., no one, "saving James, the brother of the Lord." For I saw him in Jerusalem.

Now about the things which I write to you, behold, before God, I'm not lying.

"Now touching the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not." Observe throughout the transparent humility of this holy soul; his earnestness in his own vindication is as great as if he had to render an account of his deeds, and was pleading for his life in a court of justice.

"I tell you before the Lord that I am not lying." Do you see how he strives with this statement? For he even risked not being credible with regard to the proclamation, as being a follower of men and not of Christ.

Then when he says, "Now the things which I write to you, behold, before God I lie not," he confirms his statements with an oath. As if to say: The things I now write to you about myself, behold, are so well known that it is obvious I lie not. And this I say before God, i.e., with God as my witness.

Then I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.

I was still unknown by face to the churches of Judea which were in Christ,

"And I was still unknown by face unto the Churches of Judaea; but they only heard say, he that once persecuted us now preacheth the faith of which he once made havoc." What modesty in thus again mentioning the facts of his persecuting and laying waste the Church, and in thus making infamous his former life, while he passes over the illustrious deeds he was about to achieve!

"I was unknown." Therefore, he says, I did not preach to those who had believed from the circumcision that they must be circumcised (for this is what the slanderers said, that he proclaimed circumcision to those who believed from the Jews); therefore I did not preach, he said, since they did not know from the beginning. Or therefore.

Secondly, how he was known by the others, namely, not by sight but by report and reputation. Hence he says, "I was unknown by face to the churches of Judea, which were in Christ," i.e., in the faith of Christ: "As unknown and yet known" (2 Cor 6:8). Hence it is evident that the churches of Judea did not teach me.

but they only heard: "He who once persecuted us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy."

And they glorified God because of me.

By "glorified God in me" he means they called him great. For what is so magnificent as to have your own opinion turned around and receive the one whom you previously assailed? This being so, you also should follow nothing else than the gospel preached to you by the one who is a miracle among the Gentiles, because he preaches the faith of Christ.

— [PHOTIUS] "and they glorified God in me." He did not say, "They praised me," or "They glorified me," but, "they glorified God," he says. For all that which was in me, he says, was of God's grace. "in me," that is, on account of me. "glorified God in me," not this or that teacher, but God himself. He was the one who revealed to me and taught the preaching.

Thirdly, how he was approved by them, because "they glorified God in me," i.e., in my conversion they glorified Him Who converted me by His grace: "The beast of the field shall glorify me" (Is 43:20).

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