Galatia 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ¹  an apostle (not from men, nor by human agency, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead)

Galatia 3:10

3:10 For all who ²  rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the book of the law.” ³ 

Galatia 3:19

3:19 Why then was the law given? ⁴  It was added ⁵  because of transgressions, ⁶  until the arrival of the descendant ⁷  to whom the promise had been made. It was administered ⁸  through angels by an intermediary. ⁹ 

Galatia 6:1

Support One Another

6:1 Brothers and sisters, ¹⁰  if a person ¹¹  is discovered in some sin, ¹²  you who are spiritual ¹³  restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness. ¹⁴  Pay close attention ¹⁵  to yourselves, so that you are not tempted too.

[1:1]  ¹ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[3:10]  ² tn Grk “For as many as.”

[3:10]  ³ tn Grk “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all the things written in the book of the law, to do them.”

[3:10]  sn A quotation from Deut 27:26.

[3:19]  ⁴ tn Grk “Why then the law?”

[3:19]  ⁵ tc For προσετέθη (proseteqh) several Western mss have ἐτέθη (eteqh, “it was established”; so D* F G it Ir^lat Ambst Spec). The net effect of this reading, in conjunction with the largely Western reading of πράξεων (praxewn) for παραβάσεων (parabasewn), seems to be a very positive assessment of the law. But there are compelling reasons for rejecting this reading: (1) externally, it is provincial and relatively late; (2) internally: (a) transcriptionally, there seems to be a much higher transcriptional probability that a scribe would try to smooth over Paul’s harsh saying here about the law than vice versa; (b) intrinsically: [1] Paul has already argued that the law came after the promise (vv. 15-18), indicating, more than likely, its temporary nature; [2] the verb “was added” in v. 19 (προσετέθη) is different from the verb in v. 15 (ἐπιδιατάσσεται, epidiatassetai); virtually all exegetes recognize this as an intentional linguistic shift on Paul’s part in order not to contradict his statement in v. 15; [3] the temper of 3:1–4:7 is decidedly against a positive statement about the Torah’s role in Heilsgeschichte.

[3:19]  ⁶ tc παραδόσεων (paradosewn; “traditions, commandments”) is read by D*, while the vast majority of witnesses read παραβάσεων (parabasewn, “transgressions”). D’s reading makes little sense in this context. πράξεων (praxewn, “of deeds”) replaces παραβάσεων in Ì⁴⁶ F G it Ir^lat Ambst Spec. The wording is best taken as going with νόμος (nomo"; “Why then the law of deeds?”), as is evident by the consistent punctuation in the later witnesses. But such an expression is unpauline and superfluous; it was almost certainly added by some early scribe(s) to soften the blow of Paul’s statement.

[3:19]  ⁷ tn Grk “the seed.” See the note on the first occurrence of the word “descendant” in 3:16.

[3:19]  ⁸ tn Or “was ordered.” L&N 31.22 has “was put into effect” here.

[3:19]  ⁹ tn Many modern translations (NASB, NIV, NRSV) render this word (μεσίτης, mesith"; here and in v. 20) as “mediator,” but this conveys a wrong impression in contemporary English. If this is referring to Moses, he certainly did not “mediate” between God and Israel but was an intermediary on God’s behalf. Moses was not a mediator, for example, who worked for compromise between opposing parties. He instead was God’s representative to his people who enabled them to have a relationship, but entirely on God’s terms.

[6:1]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:11.

[6:1]  ¹¹ tn Here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense, referring to both men and women.

[6:1]  ¹² tn Or “some transgression” (L&N 88.297).

[6:1]  ¹³ sn Who are spiritual refers to people who are controlled and directed by God’s Spirit.

[6:1]  ¹⁴ tn Or “with a gentle spirit” or “gently.”

[6:1]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “taking careful notice.”