Paul, aan apostle (bnot commissioned and sent from men nor through the agency of man, but cthrough Jesus Christ—the Messiah—and God the Father, who draised Him from the dead),2 Cor 1:1Gal 1:11fActs 9:15; Gal 1:15fActs 2:24 2 and all athe brothers who are with me,Phil 4:21Acts 16:6; 1 Cor 16:1
To bthe churches of Galatia:
3 aGrace to you and peace inner calm and spiritual well-being from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,Rom 1:7 4 who agave Himself as a sacrifice to atone for our sins to save and sanctify us so that He might rescue us from bthis present evil 1age, in accordance with the will and purpose and plan of cour God and Father—Or world.Gal 2:20Matt 13:22; Rom 12:2; 2 Cor 4:4Phil 4:20 5 ato Him be ascribed all the glory through the ages of the ages. Amen.Rom 11:36
6 I am astonished and extremely irritated that you are so quickly shifting your allegiance and deserting aHim who called you by the grace of Christ, for a bdifferent even contrary gospel;Rom 8:28; Gal 1:15; 5:82 Cor 11:4; Gal 1:7, 11; 2:2, 7; 5:14; 1 Tim 1:3 7 which is really not another gospel; but there are obviously 1some people masquerading as teachers who are adisturbing and confusing you with a misleading, counterfeit teaching and want to distort the gospel of Christ twisting it into something which it absolutely is not.These people are often called “Judaizers;” they were Jews professing to be believers, who taught that Gentile Christians had to conform to certain OT laws and rituals (especially circumcision) in order to be saved. They denied the saving power of God’s grace alone and also sought to discredit Paul’s apostleship and undermine his ministry. Some scholars question the validity of some or all of the Judaizers’ true faith in Christ and His message of salvation.Acts 15:24; Gal 5:10 8 But even if we, or aan angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we originally preached to you, let him be bcondemned to destruction!2 Cor 11:14Rom 9:3 9 As we ahave said before, so I now say again, bif anyone is preaching to you a gospel different from that which you received from us, let him be ccondemned to destruction!Acts 18:23Rom 16:17Rom 9:3
10 Am I now 1atrying to win the favor and approval of men, or of God? Or am I seeking to please someone? If I were still trying to be popular with men, I would not be a bbond-servant of Christ.Paul’s question indicates that his opponents were accusing him of preaching only to gain a following.1 Cor 10:33; 1 Thess 2:4Rom 1:1; Phil 1:1
11 For aI want you to know, 1believers, that the gospel which was preached by me is bnot man’s gospel it is not a human invention, patterned after any human concept.Lit brethren.Rom 2:16; 1 Cor 15:11 Cor 3:4; 9:8 12 For indeed aI did not receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a direct brevelation of Jesus Christ.1 Cor 11:23; Gal 1:11 Cor 2:10; 2 Cor 12:1; Gal 1:16; 2:2
13 You have heard of amy career and former manner of life in Judaism, how I bused to hunt down and persecute cthe church of God extensively and with fanatical zeal dtried my best to destroy it.Acts 26:4fActs 8:3; 22:4, 51 Cor 10:32Acts 9:21 14 And you have heard how I asurpassed many of my contemporaries among my countrymen in my advanced study of the laws of Judaism, as I was extremely loyal to the btraditions of my ancestors.Acts 22:3Jer 9:14; Matt 15:2; Mark 7:3; Col 2:8 15 But when God, who had chosen me and set me apart before I was born, and acalled me through His grace, was pleased Is 49:1; Jer 1:5Is 49:1, 5; Jer 1:5; Acts 9:15; Rom 1:1; Gal 1:6 16 to reveal His Son in me so that I might apreach Him among the Gentiles as the good news—the way of salvation, bI did not immediately consult with 1canyone for guidance regarding God’s call and His revelation to me.Lit flesh and blood.Acts 9:15; Gal 2:9Acts 9:20Matt 16:17 17 aNor did I even go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia and stayed awhile, and afterward returned once more to bDamascus.Acts 9:19-22Acts 9:2
18 Then athree years later I did go up bto Jerusalem to get acquainted with cCephas , and I stayed with him fifteen days.Acts 9:22fActs 9:26John 1:42; Gal 2:9, 11, 14 19 But I did not see any other apostle except aJames, the half- brother of the Lord.Matt 12:46; Acts 12:17 20 (Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you as if I were standing abefore God that I am not lying.)Rom 9:1; 2 Cor 1:23; 11:31 21 Then aI went into the regions of bSyria and cCilicia.Acts 9:30Acts 15:23, 41Acts 6:9 22 And I was still unknown by sight to athe churches which were bin Christ in Judea ;1 Cor 7:17; 1 Thess 2:14Rom 16:7 23 they only kept hearing, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching athe good news of the faith which he once bwas trying to destroy.”Acts 6:7; Gal 6:10Acts 9:21 24 And they awere glorifying God as the Author and Source of what had taken place and all that had been accomplished in me.Matt 9:8