The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (207 page)

12
 Brethren, I beg you,
become as I am
, for I also have become as you are. You did me no wrong;
¹³
you know it was because of
a bodily ailment
that I preached the gospel to you at first;
¹⁴
and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus.
¹⁵
What has become of the satisfaction you felt? For I bear you witness that, if possible, you would have plucked out your eyes and given them to me.
¹⁶
Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?
^h
17
They make much of you, but for no good purpose; they want to shut you out, that you may make much of them.
¹⁸
For a good purpose it is always good to be made much of, and not only when I am present with you.
¹⁹
My little children, with whom I am again
in travail
until Christ be formed in you!
²⁰
I could wish to be present with you now and to change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.

The Allegory of Hagar and Sarah

21
 Tell me, you who desire to be under law, do you not hear the law?
²²
For it is written that Abraham had
two sons
, one by a slave and one by a free woman.
²³
But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, the son of the free woman
through promise
.
²⁴
Now
this is an allegory
: these women are
two covenants
. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar.
²⁵
Now Hagar is Mount Sinai
in Arabia
;
ⁱ
she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.
²⁶
But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.
²⁷
For it is written,

  
"
Rejoice, O barren one
who does not bear;

  
break forth and shout, you who are not with labor pains;

  
for the desolate has more children

  
than she who has a husband."

²⁸
Now we,
^j
brethren, like Isaac, are
children of promise
.
²⁹
But as at that time he who was born according to the flesh
persecuted
him who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now.
³⁰
But what does the Scripture say? "
Cast out the slave
and her son; for the son of the slave shall not inherit with the son of the free woman."
³¹
So, brethren, we are not children of the slave but of the free woman.

Christian Freedom

5
  
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a
yoke of slavery
.

2
 Now I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you.
³
I testify again to every man who receives circumcision that he is bound to
keep the whole law
.
⁴
You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.
⁵
For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait for the hope of righteousness.
⁶
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is of any avail, but
faith working through love
.
⁷
You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?
⁸
This persuasion is not from him who called you.
⁹
A little leaven
leavens all the dough.
¹⁰
I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view than mine; and he who is troubling you will bear his judgment, whoever he is.
¹¹
But if I, brethren, still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? In that case the
stumbling block of the cross
 
*
has been removed.
¹²
I wish those who unsettle you would
mutilate themselves
!

13
 For you were
called to freedom
, brethren; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another.
¹⁴
For
the whole law
is fulfilled in one word, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
¹⁵
But if you bite and devour one another take heed that you are not consumed by one another.

The Works of the Flesh and the Fruit of the Spirit

16
 
But I say
, walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.
¹⁷
For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you would.
¹⁸
But if you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law.
¹⁹
Now the
works of the flesh
are plain: immorality, impurity, licentiousness,
²⁰
idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit,
²¹
envy,
^k
drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things
shall not inherit the kingdom of God
.
²²
But
the fruit of the Spirit
is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
²³
gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law.
²⁴
And those who belong to Christ Jesus have
crucified the flesh
with its passions and desires.

25
 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
²⁶
Let us have no self-conceit, no provoking of one another, no envy of one another.

Bear One Another's Burdens

6
  
Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual should
restore him
in a spirit of gentleness. Look to yourself, lest you too be tempted.
²
Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfil
the law of Christ
.
³
For if any one thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
⁴
But let each one
test his own work
, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor.
⁵
For each man will have to bear his own load.

6
 Let him who is taught the word
share all good things
with him who teaches.

7
 Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever
a man sows
, that he will also reap.
⁸
For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
⁹
And let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart.
¹⁰
So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Final Admonitions and Benediction

11
 See with what large letters
I am writing
to you with my own hand.
¹²
It is those
who want to make a good showing in the flesh that would compel you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
¹³
For even those who receive circumcision do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may glory in your flesh.
¹⁴
But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which
^l
the world has been
crucified to me
, and I to the world.
¹⁵
For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but
a new creation
.
¹⁶
Peace and mercy
be upon all who walk by this rule, upon the Israel of God.

17
 Henceforth let no man trouble me; for I bear on my body
the marks of Jesus
.

18
 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brethren. Amen.

Commentary on The Letter of Saint Paul to the Galatians

1:1-9
Unlike most Pauline letters, Galatians omits introductory expressions of praise and thanksgiving. Instead of his usual warmth, Paul opens with a sharp and confrontational tone, followed by an astonished rebuke (1:6-9). This tension is present throughout the epistle and comes to the surface in its many warnings (3:1; 4:11, 20; 5:1-12, 15; 6:7-9). 
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1:1 Paul an apostle:
From the outset Paul defends his apostleship. Because his opponents in Galatia apparently denied him authority on a par with the Twelve, he contends that his commission stems neither from human authority
(from men)
nor even from the original apostles
(through man).
Paul, like the Twelve, received his gospel directly from Jesus Christ (1:12; Acts 26:15-18; CCC 659). 
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1:2 all the brethren:
Not co-authors, but a group of fellow Christian supporters.
the churches:
Galatians is a circular letter directed to several congregations affected by the Judaizing crisis. It is disputed whether Paul was writing to those of North or South Galatia. See introduction:
Destination.
 
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1:3 Grace to you and peace:
A conventional Pauline greeting (Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:3; 2 Cor 1:2). 
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1:4 gave himself for our sins:
Anticipates the description of Christ's act of redemption in 3:13-14. Here and elsewhere Paul emphasizes that Jesus willingly offered himself as a sacrifice for our salvation (Gal 2:20; Eph 5:2; CCC 2824).
the present evil age:
Jewish theology distinguished between "this age", which is dominated by sin and death, and the "age to come" (Mt 12:32; Eph 1:21), when peace comes to reign in the cosmos and the powers of darkness are destroyed. Through Christ, the graces of the age to come are already pouring into the lives of believers, rescuing them from sin, selfishness, and Satan. 
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1:6 I am astonished:
Paul is distressed that his readers have been so easily lured into error by false teachers (3:1). His concern for the integrity of the gospel is manifest through the severity of his language.
him who called you:
God, through the mediating grace of Christ (1:15; Rom 8:30).
a different gospel:
I.e., a false gospel at variance with Paul's apostolic teaching. 
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1:7 some who trouble you:
The Judaizers, who labored to bring the Galatians under the yoke of circumcision and other burdensome laws of the Old Covenant (6:12-13). In doing so, they promoted a false gospel that implicitly denied the sufficiency of Christ's death for our salvation (2:21). Although our knowledge about these troublemakers is fragmentary, they seem to share the outlook and aims of Jewish traditionalists from Judea (Acts 15:1-5; 21:20-21). 
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1:10 trying to please men?:
It seems Paul was accused of subtracting circumcision from the requirements of Christian initiation in order to please the Gentiles. Ironically, it is the Judaizers who are the real men-pleasers, since they preach circumcision in order to avoid persecution by their Jewish kinsmen (6:12). Paul's willingness to preach the true gospel in the face of persecution is evidence that he seeks only the approval of God (5:11; Acts 14:19-22). 
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1:12 through a revelation:
Paul received his gospel directly from Christ, independent of apostolic tradition and instruction (Acts 26:12-18; CCC 153, 442). It is thus impossible that his message would conflict with that of the Jerusalem apostles who were also instructed by Christ, and in any case Paul has verified it with them (Gal 2:2; Acts 15:2). Notice that Paul is focusing on the foundational message of faith and salvation in Christ; other things, such as creeds and liturgical traditions, were indeed passed along to him by others (1 Cor 11:23-26; 15:3-7). 
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