CHAPTER 3

(A.D. 58)

BY FAITH

¹O foolish Galatians (failure to use ones powers of perception), who has bewit ched you (malignant influence), that you should not obey the truth (refers to Jesus Christ and Him Crucified), before whose eyes Jesus Christ has been evidently set forth, crucified among you? (Paul Preached the Cross with such vividness that his hearers could see Jesus Christ Crucified among them. Regrettably, only a few modern Preachers follow his example.)

²This only would I learn of you (I will convince you of your error by this one argument), Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by the hearing of Faith? (This refers to being Born-Again, at which time the Spirit of God comes into the heart and life of the new Believer. It is received simply by trusting Christ, and what He did at the Cross.)

³Are you so foolish? having begun in the Spirit (do you think you can now be brought to a state of spiritual maturity by means of self-effort?), are you now made perfect by the flesh? (These Galatians were practicing Salvation by Faith, and Sanctification by self, which is also the state of most modern Christians.)

⁴Have you suffered so many things in vain? (You have suffered persecution because of your acceptance of Christ. Dont throw it away.) if it be yet in vain (in essence saying, I trust it is not in vain).

⁵He (the Lord Jesus) therefore Who Ministers to you the Spirit, and works Miracles among you, does He it by the works of the Law, or by the hearing of Faith? (It is obvious that everything the Lord does is done on the basis of the Believer exhibiting Faith. It is never by works of the Law.)

ABRAHAM

⁶Even as Abraham believed God (proclaims the fact that the Patriarch was justified by Faith, not works), and it was accounted to him for Righteousness. (The Righteousness of God is imputed to a person only on the basis of Faith in Christ, and what Christ has done at the Cross [Jn. 8:56].)

⁷Know you therefore that they which are of Faith (presents Faith, and Faith alone, as the foundation; but the Object of Faith must ever be the Cross), the same are the children of Abraham (the legitimate sons of Abraham).

⁸And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through Faith (proclaims the Word of God as the Foundation of all Things), Preached before the Gospel unto Abraham, saying, In you shall the nations be blessed (Gen. 12:1-3).

⁹So then they (whomsoever they might be) which be of Faith (in Christ and the Cross) are blessed with Faithful Abraham. (He received Justification by Faith, and so do we!)

FAITH ALONE

¹⁰For as many as are of the Works of the Law are under the curse (the Believer can only be under Law or Grace; it is one or the other; one can only come to Grace through the Cross; if one is trusting in Law, whatever kind of Law, one is cursed): for it is written, Cursed is every one who continues not in all things which are written in the Book of the Law to do them (Deut. 27:26). (To attain the Righteousness of the Law, one must keep the Law perfectly, thereby never failing. Such is impossible, so that leaves only the Cross as the means of Salvation and Victory.)

¹¹But that no man is justified by the Law in the sight of God, it is evident (because it is impossible for man to perfectly keep the Law): for, The just shall live by Faith ([Hab. 2:4], Faith in Christ and what He did at the Cross).

¹²And the Law is not of Faith (the two principles of Law and of Faith as a means of Justification are mutually exclusive of one another): but, The man who does them shall live in them. (The Believer has a choice. He can attempt to live this life by either Law or Faith. He cannot live by both.)

¹³Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the Law (He did so on the Cross), being made a curse for us (He took the penalty of the Law, which was death): for it is written, Cursed is every one who hangs on a tree (Gal. 3:13):

¹⁴That the blessing of Abraham (Justification by Faith) might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ (what He did at the Cross); that we might receive the Promise of the Spirit through Faith. (All sin was atoned at the Cross, which lifted the sin debt from believing man, making it possible for the Holy Spirit to come into the life of the Believer and abide there forever [Jn. 14:16-17].)

THE COVENANT

¹⁵Brethren, I speak after the manner of men (now presents an argument to show that the Covenant God made with Abraham is still in force); Though it be but a mans covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or adds thereto. (In other words, the Covenant of Justification by Faith cannot be broken or set aside.)

¹⁶Now to Abraham and his Seed were the Promises made (to all those who are brought into Salvation by Faith in Christ). He said not, And to Seeds, as of many; but as of One, And to your Seed, which is Christ. (Abrahams Seed was Christ, and Christ is both God and Man. Therefore, the Covenant cannot be broken.)

¹⁷And this I say, that the Covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ (refers to the Abrahamic Covenant, which is Justification by Faith), the Law (the Law of Moses), which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the Promise of none effect. (In other words, the Law of Moses did not annul the Abrahamic Covenant. In fact, that Covenant is still in force.)

¹⁸For if the inheritance be of the Law, it is no more of Promise (the inheritance cannot come from both Covenants and, in fact, it cannot come by the Law): but God gave it to Abraham by Promise. (The verb gave is in a perfect tense, which means that God gave the Promise about Christ as a permanent Promise that cannot be superseded or modified.)

THE LAW

¹⁹Wherefore then serves the Law? (What good is the Law?) It was added because of transgressions (was given to define sin), till the Seed should come to whom the Promise was made (Christ is the Promise); and it was ordained by Angels in the hand of a mediator. (Moses was the mediator of the Law.)

²⁰Now a mediator is not a mediator of one (for there to be a mediator, there has to be more than one person involved; in other words, the mediator is the middle person between two or more people who are at enmity with each other), but God is one. (God is the Mediator of the New Covenant, but in a different way than Moses. Jesus is God, and Jesus is also Man. Consequently, the New Covenant doesnt depend upon man as such, but rather the man Christ Jesus. Therefore, this Covenant cannot fail!)

²¹Is the Law then against the Promises of God? (This demands a negative answer.) God forbid: for if there had been a Law given which could have given life, verily Righteousness should have been by the Law. (The Law of Moses could show a man what he was, but had no power to change the man.)

²²But the Scripture has concluded all under sin (means that the Law could not give Eternal Life; it could only exact its penalty, which was death), that the Promise by Faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them who believe. (Eternal Life comes by Faith in the Promise, Who is Jesus Christ and what He did at the Cross. In other words, the word believe demands that Christ and the Cross ever be the Object of our Faith.)

²³But before Faith came (actually says in the Greek, before the Faith; in short, it refers to Jesus Christ and Him Crucified), we were kept under the Law (actually means, to keep inward under lock and key), shut up unto the Faith which should afterwards be revealed. (This proclaims the fact that the Law pointed to Christ, always to Christ.)

²⁴Wherefore the Law was our schoolmaster (should have been translated, guardian)to bring us unto Christ (proclaims what the end result of the Law was intended to be), that we might be justified by Faith. (This proclaims to us that the Law had no permanent function, but served only until Christ would come. It is only by Faith in Christ that one can be justified.)

²⁵But after that Faith is come (Paul is speaking about the Finished Work of Christ on the Cross), we are no longer under a schoolmaster. (This should actually say, We are no longer under the guardianship of the Law. The Law was totally fulfilled in Christ.)

FAITH

²⁶For you are all the Children of God by Faith in Christ Jesus. (Every person who is saved, and every person who has ever been or ever will be saved, is saved only by Faith in Christ Jesus, which refers to what He did at the Cross.)

²⁷For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ (refers to the Baptism into His Death at Calvary [Rom. 6:3-5]; the reference is not to Water Baptism) have put on Christ (means to be clothed with Him [Jn. 14:20]).

²⁸There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female (all have a common life in Christ Jesus): for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (This proclaims an end of all class, status, and social distinction. This phrase alone answers all racism.)

²⁹And if you be Christs, then are you Abrahams seed (Christ is Abrahams Seed, so my union with Christ makes me Abrahams seed as well), and heirs according to the Promise (heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ [Rom. 8:17]).