Galatians 1:8-9

1:8 But even if we (or an angel from heaven) should preach ¹  a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, ²  let him be condemned to hell! ³  1:9 As we have said before, and now I say again, if any one is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let him be condemned to hell! ⁴ 

Galatians 1:17-18

1:17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem ⁵  to see those who were apostles before me, but right away I departed to Arabia, ⁶  and then returned to Damascus.

1:18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem ⁷  to visit Cephas ⁸  and get information from him, ⁹  and I stayed with him fifteen days.

Galatians 2:8

2:8 (for he who empowered ¹⁰  Peter for his apostleship ¹¹  to the circumcised ¹²  also empowered me for my apostleship to the Gentiles) ¹³ 

Galatians 2:17

2:17 But if while seeking to be justified in Christ we ourselves have also been found to be sinners, is Christ then one who encourages ¹⁴  sin? Absolutely not!

Galatians 3:5

3:5 Does God then give ¹⁵  you the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law ¹⁶  or by your believing what you heard? ¹⁷ 

Galatians 4:3

4:3 So also we, when we were minors, ¹⁸  were enslaved under the basic forces ¹⁹  of the world.

Galatians 4:20

4:20 I wish I could be with you now and change my tone of voice, ²⁰  because I am perplexed about you.

Galatians 4:22

4:22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the ²¹  slave woman and the other by the free woman.

Galatians 5:1

Freedom of the Believer

5:1 For freedom ²²  Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke ²³  of slavery.

Galatians 5:24

5:24 Now those who belong to Christ ²⁴  have crucified the flesh ²⁵  with its passions ²⁶  and desires.

Galatians 6:7

6:7 Do not be deceived. God will not be made a fool. ²⁷  For a person ²⁸  will reap what he sows,

¹ tc ‡ Most witnesses have ὑμῖν (Jumin, “to you”) either after (א² A [D* ὑμᾶς] 6 33 326 614 945 1881 Ï Tert^pt Ambst) or before (Ì^51vid B H 0278 630 1175 [1739* ἡμῖν]) εὐαγγελίζηται (euaggelizhtai, “should preach” [or some variation on the form of this verb]). But the fact that it floats suggests its inauthenticity, especially since it appears to be a motivated reading for purposes of clarification. The following witnesses lack the pronoun: א* F G Ψ ar b g Cyp Mcion^T Tert^pt Lcf. The external evidence admittedly is not as weighty as evidence for the pronoun, but coupled with strong internal evidence the shorter reading should be considered original. Although it is possible that scribes may have deleted the pronoun to make Paul’s statement seem more universal, the fact that the pronoun floats suggests otherwise. NA²⁷ has the pronoun in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

² tn Or “other than the one we preached to you.”

³ tn Grk “let him be accursed” (ἀνάθεμα, anaqema). The translation gives the outcome which is implied by this dreadful curse.

⁴ tn See the note on this phrase in the previous verse.

⁷ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁸ sn As a geographical region Arabia included the territory west of Mesopotamia, east and south of Syria and Palestine, extending to the isthmus of Suez. During the Roman occupation, some independent kingdoms arose like that of the Nabateans south of Damascus, and these could be called simply Arabia. In light of the proximity to Damascus, this may well be the territory Paul says he visited here. See also C. W. Briggs, “The Apostle Paul in Arabia,” Biblical World 41 (1913): 255-59.

¹⁰ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹¹ sn Cephas. This individual is generally identified with the Apostle Peter (L&N 93.211).

¹² tn Although often translated “to get acquainted with Cephas,” this could give the impression of merely a social call. L&N 34.52 has “to visit, with the purpose of obtaining information” for the meaning of ἱστορέω (Jistorew), particularly in this verse.

¹³ tn Or “worked through”; the same word is also used in relation to Paul later in this verse.

¹⁴ tn Or “his ministry as an apostle.”

¹⁵ tn Grk “to the circumcision,” i.e., the Jewish people.

¹⁶ tn Grk “also empowered me to the Gentiles.”

¹⁶ tn Or “does Christ serve the interests of sin?”; or “is Christ an agent for sin?” See BDAG 230-31 s.v. διάκονος 2.

¹⁹ tn Or “provide.”

²⁰ tn Grk “by [the] works of [the] law” (the same phrase as in v. 2).

²¹ tn Grk “by [the] hearing of faith” (the same phrase as in v. 2).

²² tn See the note on the word “minor” in 4:1.

²³ tn Or “basic principles,” “elemental things,” or “elemental spirits.” Some interpreters take this as a reference to supernatural powers who controlled nature and/or human fate.

²⁵ tn Grk “voice” or “tone.” The contemporary English expression “tone of voice” is a good approximation to the meaning here.

²⁸ tn Paul’s use of the Greek article here and before the phrase “free woman” presumes that both these characters are well known to the recipients of his letter. This verse is given as an example of the category called “well-known (‘celebrity’ or ‘familiar’) article” by ExSyn 225.

³¹ tn Translating the dative as “For freedom” shows the purpose for Christ setting us free; however, it is also possible to take the phrase in the sense of means or instrument (“with [or by] freedom”), referring to the freedom mentioned in 4:31 and implied throughout the letter.

³² sn Here the yoke figuratively represents the burdensome nature of slavery.

³⁴ tc ‡ Some mss (א A B C P Ψ 0122¹ 0278 33 1175 1739 pc co) read “Christ Jesus” here, while many significant ones (Ì⁴⁶ D F G 0122*^,2 latt sy), as well as the Byzantine text, lack “Jesus.” The Byzantine text is especially not prone to omit the name “Jesus”; that it does so here argues for the authenticity of the shorter reading (for similar instances of probably authentic Byzantine shorter readings, see Matt 24:36 and Phil 1:14; cf. also W.-H. J. Wu, “A Systematic Analysis of the Shorter Readings in the Byzantine Text of the Synoptic Gospels” [Ph.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 2002]). On the strength of the alignment of Ì⁴⁶ with the Western and Byzantine texttypes, the shorter reading is preferred. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

³⁵ tn See the note on the word “flesh” in Gal 5:13.

³⁶ tn The Greek term παθήμασιν (paqhmasin, translated “passions”) refers to strong physical desires, especially of a sexual nature (L&N 25.30).

³⁷ tn Or “is not mocked,” “will not be ridiculed” (L&N 33.409). BDAG 660 s.v. μυκτηρίζω has “of God οὐ μ. he is not to be mocked, treated w. contempt, perh. outwitted Gal 6:7.”

³⁸ tn Here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense, referring to both men and women.