Galatians

Ver 1. Paul, an apostle—not from men, nor through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead—

Cyril of Jerusalem writes, "But He who descended into the regions beneath the earth came up again; and Jesus, who was buried, truly rose again the third day. And if the Jews ever worry thee, meet them at once by asking thus: Did Jonah come forth from the whale on the third day, and hath not Christ then risen from the earth on the third day? Is a dead man raised to life on touching the bones of Elisha, and is it not much easier for the Maker of mankind to be raised by the power of the Father? Well then, He truly rose, and after He had risen was seen again of the disciples; and twelve disciples were witnesses of His Resurrection, who bare witness not in pleasing words, but contended even unto torture and death for the truth of the Resurrection. What then, shall every word be established at the mouth of two of three witnesses, according to the Scripture, and, though twelve bear witness to the Resurrection of Christ, art thou still incredulous in regard to His Resurrection?" (Catechetical Lecture 4, 12).

Peter Abelard writes, "Whence even the teacher Augustine, cited above, in Book One of his Retractions: 'It is written,' he says, 'you do not avoid sin by loquacity.' And also 'The apostle James says (James 1:19), Let every man be swift to hear but slow to speak.’ And ' (James 3:2) For in many things we all offend. If anyone does not offend in word, he is a perfect man. I do not claim this perfection for myself even now, when I am an old man – how much less when as a young man I began to write.' And in the prologue to Book Three of the On the Trinity (proem 2): 'Do not defer to my writings as if they were canonical scriptures, but whatever you would find in the canonical scriptures that you did not believe, believe steadfastly...' Nor ought we to regard the arguments of anyone, no matter how Catholic and well-regarded, in the way we regard the canonical scriptures." (Prologue to Sic et Non).

John Piper comments, "Do you see what it means? It means that when you read Galatians, you are hearing Christ. An apostle speaks with authority the message of the one who sent him. Galatians is the very word of the King of kings." (To Deliver Us from the Present Evil Age, Galatians 1:1-5).

Ver 2. and all the brothers who are with me, to the assemblies of Galatia:

Justin Martyr writes, "But to give you the account of the revelation of the holy Jesus Christ, I take up again my discourse, and I assert that even that revelation was made for us who believe in Christ the High Priest, namely this crucified One; and though we lived in fornication and all kinds of filthy conversation, we have by the grace of our Jesus, according to His Father's will, stripped ourselves of all those filthy wickednesses with which we were imbued... even so we, who through the name of Jesus have believed as one man in God the Maker of all, have been stripped, through the name of His first-begotten Son, of the filthy garments, i.e., of our sins; and being vehemently inflamed by the word of His calling, we are the true high priestly race of God, as even God Himself bears witness, saying that in every place among the Gentiles sacrifices are presented to Him well-pleasing and pure. Now God receives sacrifices from no one, except through His priests." (Dialogue with Trypho, 116).

John Chrysostom comments, "Not only this exordium, but, so to speak, the whole Epistle, is full of a vehement and lofty spirit. For always to address one's disciples with mildness, even when they needed severity, would be to play the corrupter and enemy, not the teacher. Wherefore our Lord too, who generally spoke gently to His disciples, here and there uses sterner language, and at one time pronounces a blessing, at another a rebuke" (Commentary on the Epistle of St. Paul to the Galatians).

F. F. Bruce comments, "The question of the North or South Galatian destination of our epistle is not one in which it is proper to take up partisan attitudes or indulge in dogmatic assertions; and it ill becomes champions of either view to disparage the rival view of those who maintain it. The fact that so many competent scholars can be cited in support of either position suggests that the evidence for neither is absolutely conclusive. But the weight of the evidence, it seems to me, favours the South Galatian view. If the Epistle to the Galatians was indeed addressed to the churches of Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Oerbe, then we have important historical, geographical, literary and epigraphic data which will provide material for its better understanding." (Galatian Problems: North or South Galatians?).

Ver 3. Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ,

Ambrose writes, “Thus I do not have the wherewithal to enable me to glory in my own works, I do not have the wherewithal to boast of myself, and so I will glory in Christ. I will not glory because I have been redeemed. I will not glory because I am free of sins, but because sins have been forgiven me. I will not glory because I am profitable or because anyone is profitable to me, but because Christ is an advocate in my behalf with the Father, because the blood of Christ has been poured out in my behalf.” (Jacob and the Happy Life, I:17-18, The Fathers of the Church, Vol. 65, Washington: The Catholic University of America Press, 1972, pg. 131-32).

Martin Luther comments, "The greeting of the Apostle is refreshing. Grace remits sin, and peace quiets the conscience. Sin and conscience torment us, but Christ has overcome these fiends now and forever. Only Christians possess this victorious knowledge given from above. These two terms, grace and peace, constitute Christianity. Grace involves the remission of sins, peace, and a happy conscience. Sin is not canceled by lawful living, for no person is able to live up to the Law. The Law reveals guilt, fills the conscience with terror, and drives men to despair. Much less is sin taken away by man-invented endeavors. The fact is, the more a person seeks credit for himself by his own efforts, the deeper he goes into debt. Nothing can take away sin except the grace of God. In actual living, however, it is not so easy to persuade oneself that by grace alone, in opposition to every other means, we obtain the forgiveness of our sins and peace with God." (Commentary on Galatians).

Joseph Exell and Henry Spence-Jones comments, "The apostle, looking upwards, discerns, as St. Stephen did, in the ineffable glory, the supreme God in whom he recognizes 'our Father,' and with him Jesus Christ, 'our Lord;' that is, our Master, Head, Mediator, 'through whom are all things, and we through him.' Grace and peace coming down from heaven, must come from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. From the very nature of the case it is obvious that the blessings referred to come to us through Christ, though also 'from' him; as also that St. Paul's delegation as apostle, spoken of in the first verse, originated from a volition and appointment of God the Father, as well as was brought about 'through' the ordering of his providence." (The Pulpit Commentary: Commentary on Galatians 1).

Ver 4. 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—

Athenagoras the Athenian writes, "But, as most of those who charge us with atheism, and that because they have not even the dreamiest conception of what God is, and are doltish and utterly unacquainted with natural and divine things, and such as measure piety by the rule of sacrifices, charges us with not acknowledging the same gods as the cities, be pleased to attend to the following considerations, O emperors, on both points. And first, as to our not sacrificing: the Framer and Father of this universe does not need blood, nor the odour of burnt-offerings, nor the fragrance of flowers and incense,40 for as much as He is Himself perfect fragrance, needing nothing either within or without; but the noblest sacrifice41 to Him is for us to know who stretched out and vaulted the heavens, and fixed the earth in its place like a centre, who gathered the water into seas and divided the light from the darkness, who adorned the sky with stars and made the earth to bring forth seed of every kind, who made animals and fashioned man. When, holding God to be this Framer of all things, who preserves them in being and superintends them all by knowledge and administrative skill, we "lift up holy hands" to Him, what need has He further of a hecatomb?" (A Plea For the Christians, 8).

John Chrysostom comments, "Thus it appears, that the ministry which He undertook was free and uncompelled; that He was delivered up by Himself, not by another. Let not therefore the words of John, that the Father gave His only-begotten Son for us, lead you to derogate from the dignity of the Only-begotten, or conceive any thing of earth in Him... He says not 'by the command,' but 'according to the will,' for inasmuch as there is an unity of will in the Father and the Son, that which the Son wills, the Father wills also" (Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians).

Anselm writes, "Set me free from the bonds of my sins, by Thine Only Co-Eternal Son, I implore Thee; me, to whom mine own deserts threaten the sentence of death, do Thou, appeased by the intercession of Thy most precious Son, Who sitteth at Thy Right Hand, restore to life. For what other intercessor I may bring before Thee for myself I know not, save Him, Who is the propitiation for our sins, Who sitteth at Thy Right Hand interceding for us." (Second Prayer, pg 181).

Matthew Henry comments, "From this we may note, 1. This present world is an evil world: it has become so by the sin of man, and it is so on account of the sin and sorrow with which it abounds and the many snares and temptations to which we are exposed as long as we continue in it. But, 2. Jesus Christ has died to deliver us from this present evil world, not presently to remove his people out of it, but to rescue them from the power of it, to keep them from the evil of it, and in due time to possess them of another and better world. This, the apostle informs us, he has done according to the will of God and our Father. In offering up himself a sacrifice for this end and purpose, he acted by the appointment of the Father, as well as with his own free consent; and therefore we have the greatest reason to depend upon the efficacy and acceptableness of what he has done and suffered for us" (Complete Commentary on Galatians).

Douglas Moo comments, "In keeping with the typical NT perspective of inaugurated eschatology, Paul claims that, though this present evil age continues in force, believers are rescued from this present age of evil, sin, and death and find their true identity in the new age that has broken into history through Christ's epochal death and resurrection." (Galatians, BECNT: Baker, 2013).

Ver 5. to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Irenaeus writes, "And He manifested the resurrection, Himself becoming the first-begotten of the dead, and in Himself raising up man that was fallen, lifting him up far above the heaven to the right hand of the glory of the Father: even as God promised by the prophet, saying: And I will raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen; that is, the flesh that was from David. And this our Lord Jesus Christ truly fulfilled, when He gloriously achieved our redemption, that He might truly raise us up, setting us free unto the Father. And if any man will not receive His birth from a virgin, how shall he receive His resurrection from the dead? For it is nothing wonderful and astonishing and extraordinary, if one who was not born rose from the dead: nay indeed we cannot speak of a resurrection of him who came unto being without birth. For one who is unborn and immortal, and has not undergone birth, will also not undergo death. For he who took not the beginning of man, how could he receive his end?" (The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, 38).

Bernard writes, "What excuse can there be for him who does not eagerly run in the fragrance of these perfumes, except perchance that their sweetness has not reached him? But the odour of life has gone forth into the whole world; for the whole earth is full of the mercy of the Lord, and His goodness is over all His works. Therefore he who has no perception of that fragrance, sweet, life giving, and everywhere diffused, and because of this does not run after Christ, is either dead, or he is corrupt... And the great fragrance of Thy righteousness is spread abroad upon every side, inasmuch as Thou art not only Righteous, but also Righteousness itself—yea, a Righteousness which renders righteous him who is unrighteous." (Sermons On The Song Of Solomon, 22.8).

James Fergusson comments, "Here is the close of the salutation; in which, by holding forth his own practice for an example, he comprehendeth the duty of the redeemed: they are to ascribe lasting glory and praise to God the Father, for his good-will to this work of our redemption by Jesus Christ." (A Brief Exposition of the Epistles of Paul).