Let us not become conceited, ¹  provoking ²  one another, being jealous ³  of one another.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be ¹  with your spirit, brothers and sisters. ²  Amen.

But from those who were influential ¹  (whatever they were makes no difference to me; God shows no favoritism between people ² ) – those influential leaders ³  added ⁴  nothing to my message. ⁵ 

But when I saw that they were not behaving consistently with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas ¹  in front of them all, “If you, although you are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you try to force ²  the Gentiles to live like Jews?”

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one ¹  who called you by the grace of Christ ²  and are following ³  a different ⁴  gospel –

They were only hearing, “The one who once persecuted us is now proclaiming the good news ¹  of the faith he once tried to destroy.”

But ¹  we did not surrender to them ²  even for a moment, ³  in order that the truth of the gospel would remain with you. ⁴ 

On the contrary, when they saw ¹  that I was entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised ²  just as Peter was to the circumcised ³ 

(for he who empowered ¹  Peter for his apostleship ²  to the circumcised ³  also empowered me for my apostleship to the Gentiles) ⁴ 

But when Cephas ¹  came to Antioch, ²  I opposed him to his face, because he had clearly done wrong. ³ 

But if while seeking to be justified in Christ we ourselves have also been found to be sinners, is Christ then one who encourages ¹  sin? Absolutely not!

I do not set aside ¹  God’s grace, because if righteousness ²  could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing! ³ 

The only thing I want to learn from you is this: Did you receive the Spirit by doing the works of the law ¹  or by believing what you heard? ² 

Brothers and sisters, ¹  I offer an example from everyday life: ²  When a covenant ³  has been ratified, ⁴  even though it is only a human contract, no one can set it aside or add anything to it.

Now before faith ¹  came we were held in custody under the law, being kept as prisoners ²  until the coming faith would be revealed.

Now I mean that the heir, as long as he is a minor, ¹  is no different from a slave, though he is the owner ²  of everything.

For freedom ¹  Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke ²  of slavery.

And I testify again to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey ¹  the whole law.

yet we know ¹  that no one ²  is justified by the works of the law ³  but by the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. ⁴  And ⁵  we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by the faithfulness of Christ ⁶  and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one ⁷  will be justified.

in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, ¹  so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.