6 I marvel that ye are so quickly removing from him that called you in the grace of Christ unto a different gospel;
For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we did not preach, or `if' ye receive a different spirit, which ye did not receive, or a different gospel, which ye did not accept, ye do well to bear with `him'.
Ye were running well; who hindered you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion `came' not of him that calleth you.
And the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw nigh `unto me', and with their mouth and with their lips to honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment of men which hath been taught `them';
Ye are severed from Christ, ye would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace.
For being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.
The man answered and said unto them, Why, herein is the marvel, that ye know not whence he is, and `yet' he opened mine eyes.
seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue;
but like as he who called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living;
and the grace of our Lord abounded exceedingly with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
As I exhorted thee to tarry at Ephesus, when I was going into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge certain men not to teach a different doctrine,
but now that ye have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how turn ye back again to the weak and beggarly rudiments, whereunto ye desire to be in bondage over again? Ye observe days, and months, and seasons, and years. I am afraid of you, lest by any means I have bestowed labor upon you in vain. I beseech you, brethren, become as I `am', for I also `am become' as ye `are'. Ye did me no wrong: but ye know that because of an infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you the first time: and that which was a temptation to you in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but ye received me as an angel of God, `even' as Christ Jesus. Where then is that gratulation of yourselves? for I bear you witness, that, if possible, ye would have plucked out your eyes and given them to me.
O foolish Galatians, who did bewitch you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was openly set forth crucified? This only would I learn from you. Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the flesh? Did ye suffer so many things in vain? if it be indeed in vain. He therefore that supplieth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, `doeth he it' by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
But we believe that we shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in like manner as they.
And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages teaching.
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith Jehovah. For my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Galatians 1
Commentary on Galatians 1 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 1
In this chapter, after the preface or introduction (v. 1-5), the apostle severely reproves these churches for their defection from the faith (v. 6-9), and then proves his own apostleship, which his enemies had brought them to question,
Gal 1:1-5
In these verses we have the preface or introduction to the epistle, where observe,
The apostle, having thus taken notice of the great love wherewith Christ hath loved us, concludes this preface with a solemn ascription of praise and glory to him (v. 5): To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Intimating that on this account he is justly entitled to our highest esteem and regard. Or this doxology may be considered as referring both to God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom he had just before been wishing grace and peace. They are both the proper objects of our worship and adoration, and all honour and glory are perpetually due to them, both on account of their own infinite excellences, and also on account of the blessings we receive from them.
Gal 1:6-9
Here the apostle comes to the body of the epistle; and he begins it with a more general reproof of these churches for their unsteadiness in the faith, which he afterwards, in some following parts of it, enlarges more upon. Here we may observe,
Gal 1:10-24
What Paul had said more generally, in the preface of this epistle, he now proceeds more particularly to enlarge upon. There he had declared himself to be an apostle of Christ; and here he comes more directly to support his claim to that character and office. There were some in the churches of Galatia who were prevailed with to call this in question; for those who preached up the ceremonial law did all they could to lessen Paul's reputation, who preached the pure gospel of Christ to the Gentiles: and therefore he here sets himself to prove the divinity both of his mission and doctrine, that thereby he might wipe off the aspersions which his enemies had cast upon him, and recover these Christians into a better opinion of the gospel he had preached to them. This he gives sufficient evidence of,