Galatians 3
3
By Faith, or by Works of the Law?
1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? #[Num. 21:9] It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly #[1 Cor. 1:23]portrayed as crucified. 2Let me ask you only this: #ver. 14; Eph. 1:13; Heb. 6:4; See Acts 15:8 Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by #Rom. 10:17hearing with faith? 3Are you so foolish? #Phil. 1:6; [ch. 4:9]Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by#3:3 Or now ending with the flesh? 4#1 Cor. 15:2; [Heb. 10:35; 2 John 8]Did you suffer#3:4 Or experience so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and #[1 Cor. 12:10] works miracles among you do so #ver. 2by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— 6just as #Cited from Gen. 15:6; [Rom. 4:9, 21, 22]; See Rom. 4:3Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?
7Know then that it is #ver. 9 those of faith who are #See Luke 19:9the sons of Abraham. 8And the Scripture, foreseeing that #See Rom. 3:30 God would justify#3:8 Or count righteous; also verses 11, 24 the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, #Cited from Gen. 12:3“In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
10For all who rely on works of the law are #[ch. 5:4]; See Rom. 4:15 under a curse; for it is written, #Cited from Deut. 27:26; [Jer. 11:3; Ezek. 18:4] “Cursed be everyone who does not #[Matt. 5:19]abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11Now it is evident that #See ch. 2:16 no one is justified before God by the law, for #Rom. 1:17; Heb. 10:38; Cited from Hab. 2:4“The righteous shall live by faith.”#3:11 Or The one who by faith is righteous will live 12But the law is not of faith, rather #Cited from Lev. 18:5; See Rom. 10:5“The one who does them shall live by them.” 13Christ #ch. 4:5; [Rev. 22:3]; See 2 Pet. 2:1 redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, #Cited from Deut. 21:23 “Cursed is everyone who is hanged #See Acts 5:30on a tree”— 14so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might #Rom. 4:9, 16; [ver. 28] come to the Gentiles, so that #ver. 2 we might receive #Acts 2:33; [Isa. 32:15; 44:3; Joel 2:28; John 7:39; Eph. 1:13]the promised Spirit#3:14 Greek receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
The Law and the Promise
15 # See Rom. 3:5 To give a human example, brothers:#3:15 Or brothers and sisters #[Heb. 9:17]even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. 16Now #Rom. 4:13, 16; See Luke 1:55 the promises were made #Gen. 12:7; Acts 13:32 to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, #Acts 3:25“And to your offspring,” who is Christ. 17This is what I mean: the law, which came #Ex. 12:40, 41; [Gen. 15:13; Acts 7:6] 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as #Rom. 4:14to make the promise void. 18For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but #[Heb. 6:13, 14]God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
19Why then the law? #[Rom. 4:15] It was added because of transgressions, #ver. 16 until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was #Acts 7:53; Heb. 2:2 put in place through angels #Ex. 20:19, 21, 22; Deut. 5:5, 22, 23, 27, 31; Acts 7:38by an intermediary. 20Now #1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 8:6; 9:15; 12:24; [Heb. 6:17] an intermediary implies more than one, but #Rom. 3:30God is one.
21Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For #See ch. 2:21if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 22But the Scripture #Rom. 11:32; See Rom. 3:9 imprisoned everything under sin, so that #Rom. 4:16 the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given #See Acts 10:43to those who believe.
23Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, #[1 Pet. 1:5]imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24So then, #[Matt. 5:17; Rom. 10:4; Col. 2:17; Heb. 9:9, 10] the law was our #1 Cor. 4:15 (Gk.) guardian until Christ came, #ver. 11; See ch. 2:16in order that we might be justified by faith. 25But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26for in Christ Jesus #ch. 4:5, 6; [John 1:12]; See Rom. 8:14-16you are all sons of God, through faith. 27For as many of you as #Rom. 6:3 were baptized #See Acts 8:16 into Christ have #See Rom. 13:14put on Christ. 28#[ver. 14; ch. 5:6; 6:15]; See Rom. 3:30; 1 Cor. 12:13 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave#3:28 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface nor free, #1 Cor. 11:11there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29And #See Rom. 9:7; 1 Cor. 3:23 if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, #ch. 4:1, 7; Rom. 8:17; Eph. 3:6; [ch. 4:28; 2 Tim. 1:1; Titus 1:2; Heb. 9:15]heirs according to promise.
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Galatians 3
3
Faith is the only way to be saved
1You stupid Galatians! I told you exactly how Jesus Christ was nailed to a cross. Has someone now put an evil spell on you?#Dt 27.26 (LXX). 2I want to know only one thing. How were you given God's Spirit? Was it by obeying the Law of Moses or by hearing about Christ and having faith in him? 3How can you be so stupid? Do you think that by yourself you can complete what God's Spirit started in you? 4Have you gone through all this for nothing? Is it all really for nothing? 5God gives you his Spirit and works miracles in you. But does he do this because you obey the Law of Moses or because you have heard about Christ and have faith in him?
6The Scriptures say that God accepted Abraham because Abraham had faith.#Gn 15.6; Ro 4.3. 7And so, you should understand that everyone who has faith is a child of Abraham.#3.7 a child of Abraham: God chose Abraham, and so it was believed that anyone who was a child of Abraham was also a child of God. See the note at 3.29.#Ro 4.16. 8Long ago the Scriptures said that God would accept the Gentiles because of their faith. That's why God told Abraham the good news that all nations would be blessed because of him.#Gn 12.3. 9This means that everyone who has faith will share in the blessings that were given to Abraham because of his faith.
10Anyone who tries to please God by obeying the Law is under a curse. The Scriptures say, “Everyone who doesn't obey everything in the Law is under a curse.” 11No one can please God by obeying the Law. The Scriptures also say, “The people God accepts because of their faith will live.”#3.11 The people God accepts because of their faith will live: Or “The people God accepts will live because of their faith.”#He 2.4.
12The Law isn't based on faith. It promises life only to people who obey its commands.#Lv 18.5. 13But Christ rescued us from the Law's curse, when he became a curse in our place. This is because the Scriptures say that anyone who is nailed to a tree is under a curse.#Dt 21.23. 14And because of what Jesus Christ has done, the blessing that was promised to Abraham was taken to the Gentiles. This happened so that by faith we would be given the promised Holy Spirit.
The Law and the promise
15My friends, I will use an everyday example to explain what I mean. Once someone agrees to something, no one else can change or cancel the agreement.#3.15 Once someone…cancel the agreement: Or “Once a person makes out a will, no one can change or cancel it.” 16That is how it is with the promises God made to Abraham and his descendant.#3.16 descendant: The Greek text has “seed”, which may mean one or many descendants. In this verse Paul says it means Christ. The promises were not made to many descendants, but only to one, and that one is Christ. 17What I am saying is that the Law cannot change or cancel God's promise that was made 430 years before the Law was given.#Ex 12.40. 18If we have to obey the Law in order to receive God's blessings, those blessings don't really come to us because of God's promise. But God was kind to Abraham and made him a promise.#Ro 4.14.
19What is the use of the Law? It was given later to show that we sin. But it was only supposed to last until the coming of that descendant#3.19 that descendant: Jesus. who was given the promise. In fact, angels gave the Law to Moses, and he gave it to the people. 20There is only one God, and the Law did not come directly from him.
Slaves and children
21Does the Law disagree with God's promises? No, it doesn't! If any law could give life to us, we could become acceptable to God by obeying that law. 22But the Scriptures say that sin controls everyone, so that God's promises will be for anyone who has faith in Jesus Christ.
23The Law controlled us and kept us under its power until the time came when we would have faith. 24In fact, the Law was our teacher. It was supposed to teach us until we had faith and were acceptable to God. 25But once a person has learnt to have faith, there is no more need to have the Law as a teacher.
26All of you are God's children because of your faith in Christ Jesus. 27And when you were baptized, it was as though you had put on Christ in the same way you put on new clothes. 28Faith in Christ Jesus is what makes each of you equal with each other, whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a man or a woman. 29So if you belong to Christ, you are now part of Abraham's family,#3.29 you are now part of Abraham's family: Paul tells the Galatians that faith in Jesus Christ is what makes someone a true child of Abraham and of God. See the note at 3.7. and you will be given what God has promised.#Ro 4.13.
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