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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gal_1:11-17
11For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to Man_1:12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; 14and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions. 15But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, was pleased 16to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, 17nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus.
Gal_1:11 to Gal_2:14 This is a literary unit in which Paul defends his apostleship, so as to defend his gospel.
Gal_1:11
NASB "For I would have you know, brethren"
NKJV "But I make known to you, brethren"
NRSV "For I want you to know, brothers and sisters"
TEV "Let me tell you, my brothers"
NJB "The fact is, brothers, and I want you to realize this"
The KJV translates this as "I certify to you," a technical rendering of the phrase (cf. 1Co_12:3; 1Co_15:1; 2Co_8:1).
Gal_1:11-12 "the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man" This begins a phrase which repeats the twin disclaimers of Gal_1:1. Paul claimed that his message does not have a human origin (cf. 2Th_2:13; 2Pe_1:20-21). He further asserted that he did not receive it from any human. The word "receive" was used of students being taught in rabbinical schools. The gospel was contrary to the teachings Paul received as a rabbinical student in Jerusalem. It was taught to him by a revelation from Jesus Christ, both on the road to Damascus and in Arabia (cf. Eph_3:2-3). He stated this three times in Gal_1:11-12!
The word "gospel" and the verb "was preached" are both from the compound term
1. eu, "good"
2. angelion, "news" or "message"
Paul uses them together in 1Co_15:1.
Gal_1:12 "a revelation of Jesus Christ" This may be either subjective genitive case (emphasizing Jesus as the agent of the revelation, i.e., opposite "from men") or objective genitive case (emphasizing Jesus as the content of the revelation, cf. Gal_1:16).
Gal_1:13 "you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism" It is not certain how these churches heard.
1. it was common knowledge
2. Paul shared with them
3. the false teachers had alluded to his former conduct
"Judaism" seems to refer to Pharisaism (cf. Act_26:4-5). After the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70 by the Roman general Titus, the Pharisaic party moved to the city of Jamnia. The Sadducean element was completely eliminated and Pharisaism developed into modern rabbinical Judaism. Paul mentioned something of his life as a zealous Pharisee in Php_3:4-6.
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NASB "how I used to persecute beyond measure"
NKJV "how I persecuted"
NRSV "I was violently persecuting"
TEV "how I persecuted without mercy"
NJB "how much damage I did to it"
This imperfect tense verb is used in Act_9:4, referring to his repeated activity described in Act_8:1-3; Act_22:20; and Act_26:10 (cf. 1Co_15:9; 1Ti_1:13). These are the same general contexts in which Paul shared his personal testimony.
For "beyond measure" (hyperbole), see Special Topic following.
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▣ "the church of God" Ekklesia is a compound Greek word from "out of" and "to call." This was used in Koine Greek to describe any kind of assembly, such as a town assembly (cf. Act_19:32). The Church chose this term because it was used in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, written as early as 250 b.c. for the library at Alexandria, Egypt. This Greek term translated the Hebrew term qahal which was used in the covenantal phrase "the assembly of Israel" (cf. Num_20:4). The NT writers asserted that they were the "divinely called out ones" who were the People of God of their day. They saw no radical break between the OT People of God and themselves, the NT People of God. We must assert that the Church of Jesus Christ is the true heir to the OT Scriptures, not modern rabbinical Judaism.
Note that Paul mentioned the local churches in Gal_1:2 and the universal Church in Gal_1:13. "Church" is used in three different ways in the NT.
1. house churches (cf. Rom_16:5)
2. local or area churches (cf. Gal_1:2; 1Co_1:2)
3. the whole body of Christ on earth (Gal_1:13; Mat_16:18; Eph_1:22; Eph_3:21; Eph_5:23-32)
▣ "and tried to destroy it" This verb phrase is imperfect tense, meaning repeated action in past time.
Gal_1:14 "I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries" This refers to Paul's fellow rabbinical students in Jerusalem. No one is more enthusiastic than a first-year theology student! The Jewish zeal for the Law was/is actually devotion and zeal without knowledge and truth (cf. Rom_10:2 ff.). Paul was trying to please his Jewish contemporaries!
▣ "being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions" Here is the use of the term "traditions" which was a technical term for "the Oral Tradition." The Jews believed that the Oral Tradition, like the written Old Testament, was given by God to Moses on Mt. Sinai. The Oral Tradition was meant to surround, protect, and interpret the written Old Testament. Later codified in the Babylonian and Palestinian Talmuds, it resulted in formalism and folklore instead of a vital faith relationship (cf. Isa_29:13; Col_2:16-23; 2Ti_3:1-5). See note on "traditions" at 2Th_2:15.
Gal_1:15
NASB "But when God"
NKJV "But when it pleased God"
NRSV "But when God"
TEV "But God"
NJB "Then God"
Many reliable ancient manuscripts, instead of having the term "God," use the Masculine pronoun "he," (cf. manuscripts P46 and B). Theos [God] does occur in manuscripts à , A, and D. "He" was likely original and scribes later added theos to clarify the ambiguous pronoun. See Appendix Two.
▣ "who had set me apart even from my mother's womb and called me through His grace" Paul is alluding to the call of some OT prophets, particularly Jeremiah (cf. Jer_1:4-5, or the Servant of YHWH, Isa_49:1; Isa_49:5). He felt a divine call to the ministry (cf. Rom_1:1). This is another way of asserting that his authority and apostleship were not from men (cf. Gal_1:1; Gal_1:11-12). The concept of being "called" by God is emphasized in Paul's personal testimony (cf. Act_9:1-19; Act_13:2; Act_22:1-16; and Act_26:9-18). Some of the strongest biblical passages on election can be found in Paul's writings (cf. Romans 9 and Ephesians 1).
It is interesting that Paul's "through His grace" seems to be synonymous with "Holy Spirit." The terminology is common in Paul's writings (cf. Rom_3:24; 1Co_15:10; 2Co_6:1; Eph_2:8).
Grace reflects the unchanging character of God and the spirit makes the contact between the Holy God and sinful mankind (cf. Joh_6:44; Joh_6:65).
Gal_1:16
NASB, NKJV,
NJB "to reveal His Son in me"
NRSV, TEV "to reveal his Son to me"
"To reveal" [apocaluptô], translated "revelation" in Gal_1:12 typically means "a clear manifestation or unveiling." Apparently this occurred on the Damascus road and later in Arabia (cf. Gal_1:17).
The phrase "in me" has been much debated. Some believe it means that God revealed Jesus to Paul while others think it means that God revealed Jesus through Paul. Both are true. The Revised English Bible translation combines both possibilities ("to reveal His Son in and through me"). The larger context seems to fit the first option best, but in Gal_1:16 the second option fits best.
▣ "that I might preach about Him among the Gentiles" The phrase "in me" is paralleled by "in the Gentiles." God called Paul to call the heathen (cf. Act_9:15; Act_22:15; Act_26:16-18; Rom_1:5; Rom_11:13; Rom_15:16; Gal_2:7; Gal_2:9; E Php_3:8; 1Ti_2:7). We derive the English word "ethnic" from this Greek word for "Gentiles."
NASB "I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood"
NKJV "I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood"
NRSV "I did not confer with any human being"
TEV "I did not go to anyone for advice"
NJB "I did not stop to discuss this with any human being"
This seems to refer to Paul's private study time in Arabia (cf. Gal_1:17). We are not sure how long he studied or how long he remained in Arabia. It was probably the Nabatean kingdom, which was very close to the city of Damascus, just to the southeast (cf. 2Co_11:32). From Gal_1:18 it seems that he could have stayed for as long as three years (but not necessarily). Paul's basic purpose for mentioning this (it is omitted in the book of Acts) was to show that he did not receive his gospel from the Apostles in Jerusalem, nor was he officially sanctioned by the Church in Jerusalem, but from God and by God (cf. Gal_1:1; Gal_1:11-12).
"Flesh" has sexual connotations. See Special Topic below.
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Gal_1:17 "to those who were apostles before me" Paul certainly recognized the leadership of the original Twelve, but also asserted his equality to them.