1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?z[Num. 21:9] It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publiclya[1 Cor. 1:23] portrayed as crucified. 2 Let me ask you only this:bver. 14; Eph. 1:13; Heb. 6:4; See Acts 15:8 Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or bycRom. 10:17 hearing with faith? 3 Are you so foolish?dPhil. 1:6; [ch. 4:9] Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by1Or now ending with the flesh? 4 e1 Cor. 15:2; [Heb. 10:35; 2 John 8] Did you suffer1Or experience so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you andf[1 Cor. 12:10] works miracles among you do sogver. 2 by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— 6 just ashCited from Gen. 15:6; [Rom. 4:9, 21, 22]; See Rom. 4:3 Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness ”?
7 Know then that it isiver. 9 those of faith who arejSee Luke 19:9 the sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing thatkSee Rom. 3:30 God would justify1Or count righteous; also verses 11, 24 the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying,lCited from Gen. 12:3 “In you shall all the nations be blessed. ” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 For all who rely on works of the law arem[ch. 5:4]; See Rom. 4:15 under a curse; for it is written,nCited from Deut. 27:26; [Jer. 11:3; Ezek. 18:4] “Cursed be everyone who does noto[Matt. 5:19] abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them. ” 11 Now it is evident thatpSee ch. 2:16 no one is justified before God by the law, forqRom. 1:17; Heb. 10:38; Cited from Hab. 2:4 “The righteous shall live by faith. ”1Or The one who by faith is righteous will live 12 But the law is not of faith, ratherrCited from Lev. 18:5; See Rom. 10:5 “The one who does them shall live by them. ” 13 Christsch. 4:5; [Rev. 22:3]; See 2 Pet. 2:1 redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written,tCited from Deut. 21:23 “Cursed is everyone who is hangeduSee Acts 5:30 on a tree ” — 14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham mightvRom. 4:9, 16; [ver. 28] come to the Gentiles, so thatwver. 2 we might receivexActs 2:33; [Isa. 32:15; 44:3; Joel 2:28; John 7:39; Eph. 1:13] the promised Spirit through faith.
15 ySee Rom. 3:5 To give a human example, brothers:z[Heb. 9:17] even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. 16 NowaRom. 4:13, 16; See Luke 1:55 the promises were madebGen. 12:7; Acts 13:32 to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings, ” referring to many, but referring to one,cActs 3:25 “And to your offspring, ” who is Christ. 17 This is what I mean: the law, which camedEx. 12:40, 41; [Gen. 15:13; Acts 7:6] 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so aseRom. 4:14 to make the promise void. 18 For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; butf[Heb. 6:13, 14] God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
19 Why then the law?g[Rom. 4:15] It was added because of transgressions,hver. 16 until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it wasiActs 7:53; Heb. 2:2 put in place through angelsjEx. 20:19, 21, 22; Deut. 5:5, 22, 23, 27, 31; Acts 7:38 by an intermediary. 20 Nowk1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 8:6; 9:15; 12:24; [Heb. 6:17] an intermediary implies more than one, butlRom. 3:30 God is one.
21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! FormSee ch. 2:21 if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 22 But the ScripturenRom. 11:32; See Rom. 3:9 imprisoned everything under sin, so thatoRom. 4:16 the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be givenpSee Acts 10:43 to those who believe.
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law,q[1 Pet. 1:5] imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then,r[Matt. 5:17; Rom. 10:4; Col. 2:17; Heb. 9:9, 10] the law was ours1 Cor. 4:15 (Gk.) guardian until Christ came,tver. 11; See ch. 2:16 in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26 for in Christ Jesusuch. 4:5, 6; [John 1:12]; See Rom. 8:14-16 you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you asvRom. 6:3 were baptizedwSee Acts 8:16 into Christ havexSee Rom. 13:14 put on Christ. 28 y[ver. 14; ch. 5:6; 6:15]; See Rom. 3:30; 1 Cor. 12:13 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free,z1 Cor. 11:11 there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 AndaSee Rom. 9:7; 1 Cor. 3:23 if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring,bch. 4:1, 7; Rom. 8:17; Eph. 3:6; [ch. 4:28; 2 Tim. 1:1; Titus 1:2; Heb. 9:15] heirs according to promise.