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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gal_3:6-9
6Even so Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. 7Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. 8The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, "All the nations will be blessed in you." 9So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.
Gal_3:6 "Even so Abraham" Gal_3:6-9 amplify the example of Abraham, the spiritual and racial father of the Jewish nation. The false teachers may have used Abraham as an example of someone who believed God and then later was circumcised. This explains why Paul's argument recorded in Romans 4 is not developed here. Abraham is paradigmatic of how all humans come to God (cf. LXX of Gen_15:6). Salvation and right standing with God has always been by grace through faith. This was not a new message!
"Even so," Curtis Vaughan, A Study Guide Commentary, makes the comment that this makes the comment that this phrase implies that as Abraham was made right with God by grace through faith, so too, the Galatians (p. 61). The faith principle is expanded to all who have faith in Gal_3:7; Gal_3:9; even to Gentiles, Gal_3:8!
One's relationship to Abraham was not determined by (1) physical lineage (Israel) or (2) physical sign (circumcision, cf. Rom_2:28-29), but by grace (cf. Gal_3:18) through faith (cf. Eph_2:8-9)!
▣ "believed"
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▣ "it was reckoned to him as righteousness" This is a quote from the Septuagint of Gen_15:6. "Reckoned," an aorist passive verb, is a commercial term that meant "to make a deposit into another's account" (cf. Rom_4:3; Rom_4:9; Rom_4:22). See hyperlink at Gal_2:21. God's righteousness was given to Abraham because of God's love and Abraham's faith that God would give him an heir. The Gen_15:6 quotation comes from the Septuagint. Paul quotes the Law of Moses several times (see Contextual Insights, C) to strengthen his argument. Since the false teachers used the Law to make their argument, Paul used the same technique to prove them wrong. The writings of Moses (Genesis – Deuteronomy) were the most authoritative section of the Hebrew canon for Judaism for first century Judaism.
Gal_3:7 "be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham" This statement is the major thrust of this contextual unit. This declaration would have appalled the Jewish-oriented false teachers. This same truth (i.e., Jews were not right with God because of their ethnic origins) is alluded to in the message of John the Baptist (cf. Luk_3:8) and specifically in the words of Jesus in Joh_8:37-59. This theological truth is developed by Paul in Gal_3:14; Gal_3:29 and Rom_2:28-29. One can tell Abraham's sons by
1. who they trust and know (personal relationship with Jesus)
2. how they live (Christlikeness), not by who their parents (ancestors) are
Gal_3:8 "The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith" This Hebraic idiom affirms the full inspiration of the OT. In this verse the Scripture is personified twice. See note at Gal_4:30.
The salvation of all humans has always been God's plan (cf. Gen_3:15; Gen_12:3; Exo_19:5-6). There is only one God and all humans are made in His image (Gen_1:26-27; Gen_5:1; Gen_9:6), therefore, He loves everyone (cf. Eze_18:32; Joh_3:16; 1Ti_2:4; 2Pe_3:9). The universal love of God, which includes the Gentiles, is clearly seen in Isaiah (cf. Isa_2:2-4; Isa_45:21-25; Isa_56:1-8; Isa_60:1-3).
The mechanism of this universally available salvation is God's grace through
1. the work of Christ
2. the drawing of the Spirit
3. a human faith response (cf. Eph_2:8-9)
4. which issues in Christlikeness (Gal_3:10)
▣ "preached the gospel beforehand" This English phrase translates one work in Greek (proeuangelisato, aorist middle [deponent] indicative).
1. pro – before
2. eu – good
3. angelia – message/news
4. euangelizomai – means to preach
5. all together it means "preach the good message beforehand"
It is found only here in the NT. It denotes that God's love for all humans was revealed to Abraham in his initial call (i.e., Gen_12:3). The gospel (euangelion) has its roots in the writings of Moses.
▣ "All the nations will be blessed in you" Here Paul quotes God's promise to Abraham, recorded in Gen_12:3; Gen_18:18; Gen_22:18; Gen_26:4. The Hebrew verb form may be
1. a passive form, "will be blessed" (cf. Gen_18:18; Gen_28:14)
2. a middle reflexive form, "will bless themselves" (cf. Gen_22:16-18; Gen_26:4)
However, in the Septuagint and in Paul's quote, it is passive, not middle. In this text Paul combined Gen_12:3 with Gen_18:18 from the Septuagint. The salvation of all humans made in God's image has always been God's plan! See hyperlink at Gal_1:7.
Gal_3:9
NASB "those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer"
NKJV "those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham"
NRSV "those who believe are blessed with Abraham who believed"
TEV "Abraham believed and was blessed; so all who believe are blessed as he was"
NJB "Those therefore who rely on faith receive the same blessing as Abraham, the man of faith"
The preposition "syn," meaning "joint participation with," shows the close identification between Abraham and all those who have faith in God. The description of Abraham as "faithful" or "believing" emphasizes that Abraham believed God by trusting in His promise. NT faith also means trusting in the trustworthiness of God and His promises. However, remember that Abraham did not have perfect faith, he too, tried to help God fulfill His promise by having a natural child with Hagar (cf. Genesis 16). It is not mankind's perfect faith, but the object of their faith.