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Gal.3:1. O foolish Galatians! who deceived you not to obey the truth, Having first shown that he is an apostle not from men or through men, and having presented himself as worthy of trust, he then speaks with greater authority. Intending to compare faith and law, he calls the Galatians foolish, without in any way violating the law of Christ, but on the contrary, completely observing it (Matthew 5:22), since it is not the one who directly calls his brother stupid who is accused, but the one who is in vain. The Galatians are quite rightly called foolish, since they remained insensitive to such benefits and made the death of Christ useless. And notice, after the proof, he begins to blame and immediately stops it. For he did not say: “Who deceived you?” but: “Who deceived?” (έβάσκανε) Who was jealous? thereby showing that in the beginning they did deeds worthy of envy. It also shows that those who incline them to this act not out of concern for them and not to make up for shortcomings, but to destroy what already exists. For such is envy. And he says this not because envy in itself has the power to harm, but because those who teach this came to it out of envy. you, who had before your eyes Jesus Christ as if he were crucified? But He was crucified in Jerusalem. How does he say that “before your eyes” and “before your eyes”? Because with the eyes of faith they saw the Cross much more clearly than those who were then present and saw it. For while many of those who saw bodily did not derive any benefit for themselves, they, without seeing with their eyes, saw very clearly through faith. So, Christ was “predestinated,” that is, vividly depicted through the sermon, but you, having believed in the sermon, saw Him as present. This is both praise and reproach for them: praise because they accepted it with such complete confidence, and blame because they abandoned Him whom they saw naked, crucified and dying, and turned to the law. Notice how he, leaving everything behind, speaks of the one Cross of Christ. Gal.3:2. I just want to know this from you: did you receive the Spirit through the works of the law, or through instruction in faith? Since you do not listen to lengthy instructions and do not want to see the greatness of the economy, I will tell you briefly. Answer me this little: where did you receive the Holy Spirit and show such power and signs? Is it from works of the law, or from faith? It is clear that from faith, since it was not at that time that you kept the law, had the Spirit and performed miracles. How then, having left faith, do you cling to the law again? Gal.3:3. Are you so foolish that, having begun in the spirit, you are now ending in the flesh? (τελεΐσθε) Again he resorted to censure well in time. He says that you should have been moving towards perfection over time, but you not only have not succeeded, but have also moved back. For to perform signs is a spiritual work, and this is what you did in the beginning, but to be circumcised is a carnal work, which you have now chosen. And he did not say: τελειΐτε - you yourself finish, but τελεΐσθε - you are forced to finish, showing that those who teach circumcision caught and slaughtered them like dumb animals. Gal.3:4. Have you really suffered so much without benefit? Oh, if only there was no benefit! They struggled with many trials for the sake of Christ. And really, he says, have you suffered so much in vain? For if you are circumcised, it is all in vain, and the deceivers have robbed you of so many crowns. Then, giving them hope of returning, he says: “if only there was no benefit,” that is, if you want to come to your senses, then you worked not in vain, not in vain. Let those who deny repentance be ashamed after this. So they performed signs, were confessors and martyrs, but when they fell away, Paul did not reject them, but accepted them with joy. Gal.3:5. Does He who gives you the Spirit and performs miracles among you do these things through the works of the law, or through instruction in faith? God, he says, who gives you the Spirit to prophesy and speak in tongues, and gives you the power to perform signs and wonders, did he do this because of the works of the law, as if by doing them you pleased Him, or because of the faith you discovered in Christ? Obviously, for her sake. How then do you, having abandoned the faith through which you became famous, return to the abolished law? Gal.3:6. So Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness. Although, he says, you should have learned the power of faith mainly from the fact that you performed signs, but if you pay attention to the forefather, about whom you talk a lot, you will find that he, too, was justified by faith. And if he who lived before grace is justified by faith, then much more must those who have been rewarded with grace hold to faith. Gal.3:7. Know then that those who believe are the sons of Abraham. Since they were afraid that by deviating from the law they would lose their kinship with the patriarch (after all, they were very proud of him), he, on the contrary, shows that faith most makes those who have it sons of Abraham. Gal.3:8. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, foreshadowed to Abraham: in you all nations will be blessed. Having shown how believers are children of Abraham, he also cites evidence from Scripture: “in you all nations will be blessed” (cf. Gen. 12:3), that is, through imitation of your faith. It also shows that faith is older than the law, if before the law it justified Abraham, and that what is happening now is happening according to prophecy. “The Scripture,” he says, “provides,” that is, God Himself, who gave the law, predestined that they are justified not by the law, but by faith. And he did not say: “revealed,” but: “foreshadowed,” so that you would know that Abraham also rejoiced at this method of justification and desired its fulfillment. Gal.3:9. So the believers are blessed with faithful Abraham, Since they were afraid that they would be cursed for not keeping the law (as it is written: cursed is he who does not keep what is written in the law), he shows exactly the opposite, namely, that those who leave the law and come to faith are blessed, just as faithful Abraham received a blessing. Gal.3:10. and all who are established in the works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: Cursed is everyone who does not continually do all that is written in the book of the law. Lest anyone object, saying: Abraham was quite naturally blessed and justified by faith, since there was not yet a law, and you show me that after the law has been given, faith justifies and makes them blessed, the apostle now shows not only that faith justifies and imparts blessing, but also that the law is the author of sin and curse, because no one can fulfill what is written in the law, and he who does not is cursed. Thus, blessing belongs to faith, and in vain you fear curse for deviating from the law. After all, by holding on to it, you are more likely to fall under a curse, being unable to fulfill it. Gal.3:11. But that by law no one is justified before God is clear, because the righteous will live by faith. Gal.3:12. But the law is not of faith; but whoever does it will live by it. Having shown that the law exposes to curses, but faith imparts blessings, he now says that only faith, and not the law, justifies, and quotes the words of Habakkuk: “The righteous shall live by faith” (Hab. 2:4), and not by the law. For the law requires not only faith, but also works. He also said well: “before God,” because those who adhere to the law may seem righteous to people, like the Pharisees, who present themselves as righteous before people. Since the law, due to its impracticability, did not justify, but subjected to curse, grace appeared, showing the easy way - faith, through which, being justified, we receive blessing. Thus, it has been proven that faith imparted blessing and justification not only before the law, but even more so after it. Gal.3:13. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree), Lest anyone object, saying: It is true that he who does not keep the law is cursed and that faith justifies, but how can it be seen that that oath is destroyed? We are afraid that, having once fallen under the yoke of the law, we ourselves will remain under the oath; therefore Paul shows that the curse is destroyed by Christ. For, having given a ransom for us by the fact that He Himself became an oath, He redeemed us from the oath of the law, to which He Himself was not subject, as one who fulfilled the law, but we were guilty of it, who were unable to fulfill it, just as if someone was condemned to death, and someone else, innocent, suffered death, deciding to die in his place. So, He took upon Himself the oath by hanging on a tree and destroyed the oath that was imposed on us for not fulfilling the law, although He Himself was not subject to it, because He fulfilled the law and did not commit sin. Gal.3:14. so that the blessing of Abraham may come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, For this reason, he says, He was cursed, so that “the blessing of Abraham”, that is, which comes from faith, “through Christ Jesus,” that is, about the seed of Abraham, “may extend to the Gentiles,” that is, to those who did not use the law, as it is written: “in your seed they will be blessed,” that is, in Christ, who came from you according to the flesh, those who believe in Him will obviously be blessed. that we may receive the promised Spirit through faith. For this reason, he says, the pagans were worthy of blessing, so that they could receive the Spirit through faith. Since it was impossible for those who were still under the oath to receive the Spirit, they receive a blessing after Christ destroys the oath and, then justified by faith, accept the promise of the Spirit. For what God promised Abraham, these are, according to Paul, spiritual gifts that are obviously now given to us, such as blessings and so on. Gal.3:15. Brethren! I speak from human reasoning: Above he called them foolish, now he calls them brothers, curbing them there, and comforting them here. A human example, he says, I intend to present to you. Even a will approved by a person cannot be canceled or added to by anyone. Gal.3:16. But promises were given to Abraham and to his seed. It is not said: and to descendants, as if about many, but as about one: and to your seed, which is Christ. Gal.3:17. What I say is that the covenant about Christ, previously established by God, is not abolished by the law, which appeared four hundred and thirty years later, so that the promise loses its validity. Paul wants to show that faith is a covenant older than the law, and that it would be unjust to prefer the law to it. He gave an example of this. If, he says, a person made a will, would anyone, coming later, dare to distort it or alter it, that is, add something? This should be understood even more in relation to God. And God gave a covenant to Abraham that in his seed the nations would be blessed. And his seed is Christ, because he did not say: by seed, so that you would not think about the Jews and Ishmaelites who came from him, but simply: in the seed, which, as it is said, is Christ. How then can the law cancel this covenant, agreement and promise, so that the nations are not blessed in Christ, but through the commandments of the law? After all, this is nothing more than a subversion of the promise, which is absurd. Gal.3:18. For if the inheritance is by law, it is no longer by promise; but God gave it to Abraham according to promise. If the law, he says, bestows blessing and makes heirs of life and righteousness, then the promise given to Abraham is therefore canceled and destroyed. But this would not make sense: the law came later, so how can it cancel the covenant that was before it? But don’t rush to strictly follow this whole example. That’s why he said: “I speak according to human reasoning,” that is, I give a human example. Therefore it is not surprising if it cannot be fully applied to the divine. Gal.3:19. What is the law for? It was given after because of crimes, Since he exalted faith and pointed out that it was older than the law, an objection arose: why was the law given if faith was ancient and itself imparted a blessing? It was not in vain, he says, that the law was given, but for the sake of crimes, to be instead of a bridle for the Jews, preventing the violation of, if not all, then at least some of the commandments. It is also beautifully said: “given after,” to show that the law was not given as a primary institution, as a promise, but, as it were, given in addition, because of many crimes, in order to prevent at least a few. until the time of the coming of the seed to which the promise relates, However, the law was not given forever, but until the time of the coming of Christ, to Whom was the promise that through Him the nations would be blessed. If the law was given before the appearance of Christ, why do you extend its meaning further? and taught through Angels, by the hand of a mediator. The law, he says, was given through the mediation of Angels - or priests, or actual Angels, because the Angels produced these trumpet sounds, thunders and signs. “By the hand of the mediator,” that is, Christ. It shows that Christ gave the law, and therefore He is free to abolish it. Gal.3:20. But there is no mediator with one, but there is only one God. So Christ serves as a mediator between two, namely, between God and people. For He reconciled both, giving peace and destroying the enmity that people had with God. Since He united human nature with Himself, He gave peace, miraculously uniting with the Divine nature the flesh that was hostile to it due to sin. So, if He is the intercessor and reconciler, then it is clear that He saves, and not the law. Gal.3:21. So the law is contrary to the promises of God? No way! If the promises communicated blessing, and the law brought curse, then, obviously, if we accepted it as valid, it would destroy the promises of God, which give blessing. But let it not be. Listen further in order. For if a law had been given that could give life, then true righteousness would have come from the law; Then, he says, the law would be stronger than faith, would impart a blessing and justify a person if it were able to revive and save. And now he rather kills, since he cannot free him from sins. How then can the law overcome faith, which has the power to quicken through baptism, and to bless and justify? Gal.3:22. but the Scripture (τα πάντα) concluded everyone under sin, so that the promise would be given to those who believe through faith in Jesus Christ. The law, he says, did not have the power to free from sins, but helped to “imprison” people under sin, that is, to show them as sinners and force them to desire remission of sins and turn to Christ, who can grant it. And since the Jews, not feeling the full gravity of their sins, did not want their forgiveness, God gave a law that imprisons them, that is, oppresses and suppresses them with reproofs, declares them sinners and encourages them to look for a way to receive forgiveness. And this method is faith in Christ, through which we receive blessing and justification. Gal.3:23. And before the coming of faith, we were imprisoned under the guard of the law, until the time when it was necessary to open ourselves to faith. The law, he says, brought great security to those who were under its protection, because it kept them from many sins and was like a wall, surrounding people and leading them to faith. How? Convicting sins, but not having the power to free from them, he necessarily pointed to the justifying faith, which existed in ancient times, but in secret, and appeared openly later, when God appeared in the flesh. Gal.3:24. So the law was a guide for us to Christ, so that we might be justified by faith; Just as a teacher protects a young man from everything bad and helps him to accept the teacher’s instructions with all care and diligence, so the law cultivated proper virtue in its followers and brought them to the teacher - Christ, by its reproof and indications of sins causing them to strive to seek the One who gives forgiveness and justifies by faith. So, let those who slander the law be ashamed, for neither the educator is in conflict with the teacher, nor the law with the New Testament. Gal.3:25. after the coming of faith, we are no longer under the guidance of a teacher. Gal.3:26. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus; With the advent of faith, which makes “a perfect man,” we, he says, can no longer be under the guidance of an educator, as having become perfect through it and having left childhood. Since we have become perfect men by faith, it is clear from here that we have become sons of God through faith in Christ. This is the way of thinking. Of course, he who is worthy to be the son of God is not imperfect and not a child. Therefore, it would be strange for those who have become men to obey the guidance of the law, just as when daylight comes and in the light of the sun they use a lamp. Look, above he said that faith makes sons of Abraham, and now - sons of God. She can do so much. Gal.3:27. all of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Defining how we are sons of God, he says that through baptism. But he did not say: you who were baptized became children of God, as the sequence required, but much more expressively: you put on Christ. And if we have put on Christ, the Son of God, and become like Him, it means that we have been brought into one kinship, into one image, having become by grace what He is by nature. Gal.3:28. There is no longer Jew or Gentile; there is neither slave nor free; there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Each of the baptized, he says, cast aside his natural characteristics, everyone received one type and one image, not of an Angel, but of the Lord Himself, revealing Christ in himself. So we are all one in Christ Jesus, precisely because we have one sealed image of Christ, or because we are one body, we have one head of Christ. Gal.3:29. If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise. Since he said earlier that the seed of Abraham, about whom the nations will be blessed, is Christ, to whom the promises were given, and also indicated that you also have the image of Christ, now he concludes: so, you too are the seed of Abraham and heirs of the promised blessing. How then do you keep the law after this, you who received the blessing by putting on Christ and becoming like Him, and from here you became the seed of Abraham? You might be interested in: