Exegesis of Galatians 5:1-6

Kinder 1

NT Exegesis Step 1—Historical Analysis

Galatians 5:1-6, James Kinder

- For the Book:

o Who was the author?

Paul the apostle (1:1, Παῦλος ἀπόστολος).

This almost completely undisputed in this

particular book by reason of Paul’s personal

account of his life in the beginning of the

epistle which is consistent with the Acts

account.

o Who were the intended recipients?

There is much debate over this. The simple

answer is “the churches of Galatia” (1:2,

ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις τῆς Γαλατίας). The question

is, what was Paul meaning by the term

Galatia? Two views are offered: the northern

Gallic Kingdom of Galatia that was annexed

into the Roman Empire in 25 B.C. (An

Introduction to the New Testament 458), or

the Roman Provence of Galatia which included

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many cities in the south which we know Paul

visited. Although the evidences are not so

compelling on either side as to be

dogmatically certain, the Roman Province

(South Galatia) view is preferred for the

following reasons. First, the cities that

are excluded by mention of simply the

northern region are key cities which Paul

visited on his first missionary journey:

Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidian Antioch

(The Bible Knowledge Commentary 588, Acts 13-

14). Second, geographically speaking,

Northern Galatia would be an odd place for

Paul to end up in his missionary journeys,

even more odd would be the opposition of

foreign Judaizing radicals to show up in such

an undeveloped area to oppose his teachings

(An Introduction to the New Testament 459-

60). Finally, Paul, being Roman, would

naturally use the Roman imperial names for

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the Provinces rather than a more historical

name (INT 459).

o What was the place of writing?

Taking the southern Galatia view, the place

could be best estimated as Antioch of Syria

(The Bible Knowledge Commentary 588).

o What was the date of writing?

Again, the southern Galatia view advocates

for A.D. 48 (New Testament Survey 270)

o What kind of relationship existed between the

author and intended recipients?

Although Paul and Barnabas founded these

churches (Acts 13-14), the Judaizers brought

Paul’s apostleship under question, and the

Galatians were apparently slipping from

orthodox soteriology (An Introduction to the

New Testament 466, The Bible Knowledge

Commentary 588). Paul was apparently accused

of teaching circumcision (5:11), and of

preaching the gospel in order to please men

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and to gain status (1:10, An Introduction to

the New Testament 467-68). As a result, the

relationship between the churches and Paul is

questionable. There were doubtlessly still

loyalties to Paul’s teaching in the church,

but the relationship was strained enough that

Paul felt compelled to try to mend their view

of him in the first two chapters of the book

by defending his apostolic authority.

o What situation caused the writing?

The “gospel perverters” or Judaizers were the

main focus of and reason for the epistle

(1:7, 4:17).

o What is the purpose of the writing? Is it

explicitly stated?

Paul sets out to defend his apostolic

authority (1:8-9), to affirm the doctrine of

justification by faith alone (3:1-3), to have

them “zealously affected” in a good thing

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(ζηλοῦσθαι ἐν καλῷ) (4:18), and to defend

Christian liberty (5:1).

o What was the city of the intended recipients? What

was it like—it’s history, geography, religions,

economy, politics, population size, population

type, etc?

The recipients were not a city, but a

Province. Southern Galatia was part of the

Roman Empire, and was heterogeneous. There

were three major people-groups that were

settled in the area: the Celts, the

Phrygians, and the Hebrews. The largest

group, the Celts, was actually the people for

whom they named the province. Galatia is an

adapted word and a cognate for Celts. These

people settled the land from modern day

France, and were very slow to adapt to

Hellenistic culture (with the exception of

language). They were prone to fighting for

honor, and had a naturalistic religion that

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was centered in the elements. The Phrygians

were a people group that was conquered by the

Celts prior to Roman annexation. These

people as a result made up much of the slave

class in this province. Their religion has

striking similarities to old Jewish religion.

They believed in a “mountain-mother” goddess

named Cybele and her companion Attis who was

an androgynous being. According to their

religion, Attis castrated himself, and this

became the norm for any priests of Cybele’s

temple. Coincidentally, both the Celtic and

Phrygian people abstained from pork because

Attis was supposedly killed by a wild boar.

The Hebrews were present as the result of a

deportation of 2,000 Jews into the area in

210 B.C. They were well assimilated by the

time of Paul’s day. These considerations

show the appeal for the circumcision-gospel,

with the combination placing spiritual

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significance on abstaining from unclean meats

and from circumcision as a physical ritual to

demonstrate piety before God. (Rand).

- For the Passage:

o What is mentioned in the passage that is of a

historical, cultural, etc nature?

Galatians 5:1-6 is mostly theological in

nature, although circumcision is mentioned

several times. See note on intended

recipients.

o What did you learn about these historical, etc

things from a Bible encyclopedia/dictionary and/or

commentary?

According to Nelson’s Bible Dictionary,

circumcision was “a symbol for purity of

heart and readiness to hear and obey.” He

notes that circumcision, while physical, is

not necessarily for God’s favor even in the

Old Testament, but rather is a sign of a

spiritual heart-circumcision (Lev. 26:41-42).

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The Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary also

notes that more than just Jews practiced

circumcision in ancient times. Hebrews,

Arabians, Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, and

Egyptians all practiced this ritual, while

Babylonians, Assyrians, Canaanites, and

Philistines did not.

Works Cited

Moo, Douglas J. and D. A. Carson. An Introduction to the New

Testament. Grand

Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. Print.

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Rand, Thomas A. "Set Free And Set Right: Ritual, Theology,

And The Inculturation Of

The Gospel In Galatia." Worship 75.5 (2001): 453-468.

ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials. Web. 1 Apr.

2013.

Tenney, Merrill C. New Testament Survey. Grand Rapids: WM.

B. Eerdmans Publishing

Company, 1985. Print.

—. The Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary. Grand Rapids:

Zondervan Publishing

House, 1967. Print.

Walvoord, John F. and Roy B. Zuck. The Bible Knowledge

Commentary. Colorado

Springs: David C Cook, 1983. Print.

Youngblood, Ronald F. Nelson’s Student Bible Dictionary: A

Complete Guide to

Understanding the World of the Bible. Nashville: Thomas

Nelson, 2005. Print.

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NT Exegesis Step 2—Literary Analysis


- For the Book:

o What is the genre of the book [see UGM 95-96]?

The genre for the book would be epistle. The

book’s genre goes from narrative (chapters 1-

2) to doctrinal treatise (chapters 3-4), to

exhortation and instruction (chapters 5-6).

o What are the themes of the book?

The themes of the book are justification by

faith alone, warning against defection from

the one true gospel, and Christian living in

light of Christian liberty. There is also a

defense of Paul’s apostleship that could be

considered a theme.

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o What is the outline of the book?

I. Paul defends his apostleship and condemns

the Galatian Church for their apostasy from

the true Gospel (chapters 1-2)

1:1-1:5, Introduction and benediction

1:6-1:8, Problem stated: the gospel perverted

1:9-1:12, Paul’s defense of the Divine nature

and origin of his Gospel

1:13-24, Paul’s past as a persecutor as a

testimony of his present convictions and

Divine Gospel

2:1-10, Paul’s approval by the Jerusalem

Church as a testimony of his commission to be

an apostle to the Gentiles

2:11-21, Paul’s rebuke of Peter in Antioch as

a demonstration of his apostolic authority

II. Paul defends the doctrine of

justification by faith and unravels his

opponents’ arguments (chapters 3-4)

3:1-5, Galatians rebuked for their

foolishness, the logic of their doctrine

unraveled, and the consistency of their faith

confounded

3:6-9, Grace given to Abraham demonstrates

justification without the Law

3:10-12, The curse of the Law explained

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3:13-14, Christ’s absorption of the curse to

secure the Abrahamic promise to us

3:15-18, The promise of inheritance to

Abraham predating the Law demonstrates that

the Law cannot add stipulations to achieving

what has already been promised

3:19-25, The reason for the Law explained: a

restrainer of sin, a schoolmaster to point us

to Christ, and a judge to condemn all under

sin

3:26-29, The alternative of adoption into

God’s family through Christ presented as a

great equalizer and the true way to secure

the realization of the promises of God

4:1-7, The concepts of the tutelage of the

Law and us as heirs of God expounded

4:8-11, The Galatians’ turn to Jewish Law is

compared to the paganism of their former

religions characterized by idolatry

4:12-20, Paul marvels at their apparently

quick demonization of him under the influence

of the Judaizers when they formerly loved him

4:21-31, The story of Hagar and Rachel made

into an allegory to illustrate the

relationship between the Gospel of liberty

and the gospel of bondage

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III. Paul encourages the Galatian Church to

apply the truths of Christian liberty to

their lives and demonstrates how this is

practically possible (chapters 5-6)

5:1-6, In light of the former arguments, Paul

encourages the Galatians to stand strong in

the liberty of Christ and His Gospel,

concluding that following the Law only

condemns and enslaves the circumcised and

keeps them away from God’s grace which is

realized by faith alone

5:7-12, Paul directs an attack at his

opponents the Judaizers, warns not to allow

them to bring in false doctrine to the church

5:13-15, Encouragement to fulfill the Law in

another way; namely, through love

5:16-26, The miracle of the Spiritual fruit

replacing the carnal fruit as a demonstration

of the effectiveness of the way of grace in

forgiving sin and freeing man from the power

of present sin

6:1-5, A demonstration of how Christ’s law of

liberty works in relation to a sinning

brother

6:6-8, A demonstration of how God’s plan of

economy works itself out in Christian

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liberty, an encouragement to be generous to

ministers

6:9-10, A summary encouragement to do good to

all men as a result of the truth of Christ’s

Gospel that we shall one day reap from

6:11-13, Paul attacks the character of the

Judaizers, exposes their true intent and

cowardice

6:14-18, Paul defends his own character

again, argues from his own scars of

persecution that he has preached the truth

without fear, closing benediction

- For the Passage:

o Why do you think this passage is a complete unit

of thought, i.e. a paragraph, distinct from the

verses before and after?

The presence of οὖν in verse 1 (therefore)

demonstrates that this is a new paragraph;

also there is an obvious change in content

following the allegory of Rachel and Hagar.

Following verse 6 we see a question that

changes the subject from what the Judaizers

taught (circumcision) to who the Judaizers

were (leaven, them that “trouble” the

Galatians).

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o What is the genre of the passage [see UGM 95-96]?

The genre is exhortation, as seen by the

imperatives στήκετε (stand firm) and μὴ

ἐνέχεσθε (do not be subject).

o What are the themes of the passage?

The themes in these verses are Christ’s

liberty vs. the debt of the Law, and the

uselessness of circumcision and

uncircumcision

o How do this passage’s themes relate to the rest of

the Bible as a whole? (i.e., Canonical Context)

The theme of Christian liberty is seen mostly

in the New Testament. Such a liberty of

Spiritual guidance as opposed to guidance by

means of the Law is alluded to in the Old

Testament (Jer. 31:33), but never came to

fruition until Christ came to liberate us

from the Law (Rom. 8:2-4). The Bible teaches

elsewhere of an obligation to fulfill the Law

completely or to inherit Abraham’s promises

through faith (Rom. 4:16). Such an ultimatum

has been present throughout the Old and New

Testaments, whether there was a Law or not.

Circumcision has been a theme throughout the

Bible. It was first seen in Abraham as a

sign of God’s covenant to him (Gen. 17:10),

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as was described as a “token” of the covenant

between God and Abraham. This ritual was

expounded on in the Law (Lev. 12:1-3). Most

of Israel’s neighbors did not practice

circumcision, and so this practice

distinguished them from other nations. The

Old Testament also speaks of the circumcision

of the heart (Deut. 30:6). This circumcision

that is not physical is symbolic for a love

for God, and of a yielding obedience to His

commands (Deut. 10:6). Israel is compared

with Gentile nations when they are

“uncircumcised in heart” (Jer. 9:26). The

New Testament takes the idea of circumcision

and apparently (though not explicitly, so a

comparison must not be too closely drawn)

replaces it with baptism as a token of

devotion to God. As a result, New Testament

instances of circumcision are more usually

talking about the covenant of Abraham or of

devotion to God rather than of physical

circumcision (but see Acts 16:3). Paul

speaks elsewhere of circumcision as a

cutting-off of the sinful flesh, which Jesus

personally performs on us upon our Spiritual

rebirth (Col. 2:11).

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o How do this passage’s themes relate to other

passages of the Bible? (i.e., Canonical Context)

The doctrine of Christian liberty can be seen

best expounded in Romans 7:1-6. This teaches

us that there is a direct correlation between

our death to sin and our release from the

Law. The Law is to restrain our sin nature

while it is unrestrained by the Holy Spirit.

When we through Christ are dead to sin, we

are married to Christ and are released from

the obligation of the Law, because our bodies

are dead to it. Paul drives home the

doctrine of circumcision in Romans 2:25-29.

According to this passage then, there is a

decision to either trust circumcision and to

keep the whole Law, or to be circumcised in

the heart and be saved.

o How do this passage’s themes relate to the rest of

the book as a whole? (i.e., Remote Context)

Galatians 5:1-6 is the beginning of a new

section of the book where Paul begins to

encourage the Galatians to live out the

liberty that Christ has set before them.

Christian liberty from the Law was already

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defended in the book (3:1-5, 10-14, 4:5-7,

21-31). This passage is not so much an

original argument as it is a summary of his

arguments in the form of an exhortation.

Paul’s conclusion from his arguments is that

to be circumcised means to be obligated to do

the whole Law, and to be cut off from the

grace of Christ. Circumcision is not

addressed directly in the beginning of the

epistle except regarding Paul’s rebuke of

Peter (the Jews being those “of the

circumcision”). So this passage is actually

an introduction of this concept of

circumcision, both concluding the fallacy of

the legalism of the Judiazers, and

introducing a refutation of the necessity of

circumcision as taught by the Judaizers as a

result. Paul visits the concept of

circumcision one other time in the epistle as

a final warning before closing the book

(6:12-15).

o How do this passage’s themes relate to other

passages of the book? (i.e., Remote Context)

Christian liberty is explained and defended

in chapters 3 and 4. Paul uses arguments

from Abraham (3:1-9), from the nature of the

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Law itself (3:10-25), from the concept of

sonship (3:26-4:7), and from an allegory of

the bondwoman and freewoman (4:21-31).

Circumcision is only mentioned elsewhere in

this book in 2:11-14, and 6:13-15. The first

passage is where Paul refers to Jews as “the

circumcision” when he rebukes Peter. The

second is Paul’s final warning not to be

deceived by those who desired to have them

circumcised.

o How does this passage relate to the immediately

previous and immediately following sections of the

book [In other words, what led to this passage and

why and what in this passage leads to the

following passage]? (i.e., Immediate Context)

This passage immediately follows his allegory

of Rachel and Hagar, which was used to

illustrate the difference between the Law and

Christian liberty through grace. Paul picks

up from his instruction to provide a

practical exhortation to the Galatians with

his arguments in mind. He encourages them to

stand firm against the temptation to bring

themselves under the yoke of bondage again.

He was essentially comparing the bondage of

the Judaizers as no better than the bondage

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of the old Phrygian and Celtic religions

(4:8-10). Notice δουλεύειν in 4:9 compared

to δουλείας in 5:1. The observance of

holidays and abstention from pork and self-

castration was no worse than the observance

of Jewish feasts and abstention from unclean

meat and practicing circumcision. They were

both bondage and slavery. Paul continues

from this passage to make an emotional appeal

to the Galatians: “Ye did run well; who did

hinder you that ye should not obey the

truth?” (5:7). He argues that if

circumcision is taught, then there is really

no offense to the cross and no reason to

suffer persecution. He concludes on his

discourse on circumcision by noting—almost

sarcastically—that he wishes that the

Judaizers would go ahead and castrate

themselves (αποκοψονται is a future middle

indicative meaning ‘to cut away’,

demonstrating that Paul was not wishing them

to go to Hell, but rather literally to cut

themselves loose), which was the custom of

the day for pagan priests of that area.

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NT Exegesis Step 3 – Textual Analysis

Galatians 5:1-6, James KinderI. Preliminaries

a. Biblical Reference: Gal. 5:1b. Delineation of Problem:

i. List the readings. [chart below]ii. Label each reading as to the kind of variation is

involved (e.g., omission, addition, transposition of words, substitution). [chart below]

iii. Translate the alternatives so as to bring out the differences in meaning that each conveys. [chart below]

iv. List the major English versions that base their translation on each reading. [chart below]

Readings (UBSReading 1st)

Kind of Variationfrom the Other

Readings

Translation Major EnglishVersions UsingThis Reading

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε οὖν

Christ freedus for freedom; therefore stand!

ESV, NIV,NASB, YLT

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ transposition of Christ freed ESV, NIV, NASB

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Χριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε οὖν

words

us for freedom; therefore stand!

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳΧριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στῆτε οὖν

substitution

Christ freedus for freedom; therefore stand!

-

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳᾗ Χριστὸς

ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・

στήκετε

addition, omission

The freedom in which Christ set us free; stand!

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳοὖν, ᾗ

Χριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・

στήκετε

addition,transposition of

words

Therefore with the freedom, with which Christ set us free; stand!

KJV

ᾗ ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε οὖν

substitution

For which freedom Christ set us free; therefore stand!

II. External Evidence

a. Accumulation of Evidence.i. List readings. [chart below]ii. Record the evidence for each from the textual

apparatus of UBS4: [chart below]

Readings Evidenceτῇ

ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς

Χριστὸς

A B (D* omit οὖν) P 33 (l1590 transpose οὖν after ,*אἐλευθερίᾳ) copsa, (bo)

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ἠλευθέρωσεν・

στήκετεοὖντῇ

ἐλευθερίᾳΧριστὸςἡμᾶς


στήκετεοὖν

2א , C* (C2 ἐλευθερίᾳ οὖν) Ψ (0150 transpose οὖν afterἐλευθερίᾳ) (81 Χριστοῦ [sic]) 1241 1739 1881 Lectpt

Didymus

τῇἐλευθερίᾳΧριστὸςἡμᾶς

ἠλευθέρωσεν・στῆτε

οὖν

H 256 365 1175 (1319 omit οὖν) 1573 1962 (2127 omitἡμᾶς)

τῇἐλευθερίᾳᾗ Χριστὸς

ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσ

εν・στήκετε

D1 (D2 ἡμᾶς, ᾗ Χριστός) 075 (6 104 424c 459 2464 l 596στήκετε οὖν) 263 (1912 στῆτε οὖν) syrh(mg) geo slav

(Cyril)

τῇἐλευθερίᾳοὖν, ᾗΧριστὸςἡμᾶς


στήκετε

424* (436 / 1439 ὁ for ᾗ) 1852 2200 Byz [K L] Lectpt. AD (/165 / 170 στήκωμεν) Asterius Basil Marcus-Eremita

Theodoret

ᾗἐλευθερίᾳ

ἡμᾶςΧριστὸςἠλευθέρωσ

F G it(ar), (d), (f), g, (o), (r) (vg) (Marcionacc to Tertullian);(Victorinus-Rome) (Ambrosiaster) (Jerome) (Pelagius)

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οὖν

b. Distribution of Evidence. Segregate the support for each reading into the various text types (cf. NTTC Appendix 2). [chart below]

Readings Byzantine Alexandrian Western Others/Unknowns

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

οὖν

A B P 33 *אcopsa, (bo) D* l 1590

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳΧριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

οὖν

2א C* Ψ 811739

0150 12411881 LectptDidymus


H 1175256 365 13191573 1962

2127


ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

6 104 D

075 424 4592464 l 596263 1912 geoslav Cyril

syrh(mg)

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳοὖν, ᾗ

Χριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

K L

424* 436 l1439 1852

2200 Lectpt, AD

l 165 l 170Asterius

Basil Marcus-EremitaTheodoret

ᾗ ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

it(ar), (d), (f),

g, (o), (r) (vg)F G

Ambrosiaster

Marcionacc to

Tertullian;Victorinus-Rome JeromePelagius

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οὖν

c. Date of Evidence. For each text type, record the century of all the evidence except the minuscules and lectionaries (cf. UBS4's Introduction). [chart below]

Readings Byzantine Alexandrian Western Others/Unknowns

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

οὖν

IV - *אA - VB - IVP - IX33 – IX

copsa, (bo) –IV, IX

D* - VI l 1590 - XIII

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳΧριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

οὖν

2א - IVC* - V

Ψ - IX/X81 - 10441739 - X

0150 - IX1241 - XII1881 - XIV

Lectpt - IX-XIVDidymus - IV


H - VI1175 - X

256 - XI/XII365 - XII1319 - XII1573 -XII/XIII

1962 - XI/XII2127 - XII


ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

6 - XIII104 - 1087 D - VI

075 - X424 - XI459 - 10922464 - IX

l 596 - 1146263 - XIII1912 - Xgeo - Vslav - IXCyril - V

syrh(mg) - VIIτῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ

οὖν, ᾗΧριστὸς ἡμᾶςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

K - IXL - IX

424* - XI436 - XI/XIIl 1439 - XII1852 - XIII2200 - XIV

Lectpt, AD - IX-XIV

l 165 - XI

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l 170 - XIVAsterius - IVBasil - IVMarcus-

Eremita - VTheodoret - V

ᾗ ἐλευθερίᾳἡμᾶς Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε

οὖν

it(ar), (d), (f),

g, (o), (r) - IX,V/VI, IX,IX, XV,VI/VII

(vg) - IV/V

F - IXG - IX

Ambrosiaster - IV

Marcionacc to

Tertullian -I(?)/II

Victorinus-Rome -IV

Jerome - IV/VPelagius -

IV/V

d. Evaluation of Evidence. Provide the reading that is best supported by the external evidence and provide the rationalesupporting this reading over the other readings. [chart below]

Reading Rationale

τῇἐλευθερίᾳ

ἡμᾶςΧριστὸς



There were six different readings of this verse. Thethird reading has little support from late manuscriptsfrom one locality, and so can be dismissed. The fourthreading has wider geographical support, but not by much,and its manuscripts are later. The fifth reading haslate manuscripts, although it has some early churchquotations. It is also localized. The sixth readinghas some early support in the church fathers (though nomanuscripts are early), and some versional evidence from

the Byzantine versions, but the lack of earlymanuscripts cast doubt on the authenticity of this

reading. The first and second readings are very closeboth in meaning and in witnesses. The first reading canbe preferred because it has slightly more witnesses thatare early witnesses, although the verdict is not very

certain.

III. Internal Evidencea. Transcriptional Probabilities. Assuming that a reading is

not the original, provide several reasons for how it would have developed based on known types of scribal errors (cf. NTTC pg.16-17 and Appendix 1). [chart below]

Readings Possible Transcriptional Errors

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οὖν

This would be a simple accidental transposition of words. Compared with reading 3, this would be a substitution.




This would also be a simple accidental transposition of words. It is possible that the scribe was influenced bythe word order in verse 2 (Χριστὸς ὑμᾶς). Compared withreading 3, this would be a substitution.



οὖν

This would be a substitution, and could be intentional, but not certainly since the words are spelled and mean almost the same thing. στῆτε is the 2nd person plural imperative (or 2nd plural subjunctive) of ἵστημι which means “stand.” The word is very similar in meaning to στήκω, which means “stand firm” or “persevere.”




This is an addition plus an omission. The word ᾗ is added, possibly intentionally to clarify the meaning of the passage that the scribe thought Paul was communicating. The οὖν is dropped because of the grammatical consistency of this reading. If οὖν is present then the ᾗ doesn’t seem necessary anymore. On the one hand Paul would be saying “Christ freed us for freedom; stand therefore,” as if to say that Christ’s freeing action is the reason we should stand. On the other hand Paul would be saying “stand in the liberty with which Christ set us free,” as if to say that Christ’s liberty is the means by which we are able to stand. The theological significance of this reading makes the addition and omission not look so coincidental.

τῇἐλευθερίᾳοὖν, ᾗ

This is an addition and a transposition of words, and could possibly be a conflation (since it is one of the latest readings), or it could possibly be an attempt to clarify the 6th reading. Οὖν is placed in the beginning

Kinder 28

Χριστὸςἡμᾶς


στήκετε

of the clause, and ᾗ is added right after. This could be intentional or unintentional. The translation would be something like “Therefore we stand on the freedom which Christ freed us with.” With the οὖν placed so early in the passage, its force is placed on the fact ofthe freedom of Christ, rather than on the standing firm.Standing firm would then be taken as an indicative rather than imperative, since the writing seems now to be stating a fact rather than admonishing the believer. It would be a grammatical change for the scribe, not theological.

ᾗἐλευθερίᾳ



οὖν

This would be a substitution of words. ᾟ replaces τῇ, and is probably unintentional. The change would make the translation more confusing and difficult syntactically to understand. This is because ᾗ has no apparent antecedent, and seems out of place in the text.

b. Intrinsic Probabilities. Examine each variant from the standpoint of the author’s style, vocabulary, and teaching [especially this context]. [chart below]

Readings Author’s Style Author'sVocabulary

Author's Teaching




οὖν

These variationsare so minor that

it does notreally affect theoverall style ofthe passage.

στήκετε (or someform of it) isused 6 timesoutside thispassage in 6

different Paulineepistles, 5 ofwhich are the

exact same form.So this is commonin his vocabulary(for all readings

except 3).

The 1st-3rd

readings teachthe same thing,

and areconsistent withPauline doctrine.It teaches thatwe should standfirm as a result

of Christ’sfreedom.


- - -

Kinder 29





οὖν

-

στῆτε comes fromἳστημι which is avery common Greek

word, and isnaturally used alot by Paul aswell, although

this form is onlyused one other

time as a command(Eph. 6:14)

-




-

ὃς is extremelycommon and isused frequentlyby Paul (forreadings 4, 5,

and 6)

While the firstthree readingsteach that we

ought to stand asa result ofknowing thatChrist set us

free for the sakeof liberty,

readings 4 and 5teach that weshould stand upfor the libertywhich Christ

freed us to. Inthis case itwould be an

encouragement todefend thedoctrine of

liberty againstothers.

τῇἐλευθερίᾳοὖν, ᾗΧριστὸςἡμᾶς


- - -

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στήκετεᾗ


Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσ


οὖν

- -

The grammaticaldifficulty ofthis readingmakes this a

difficult readingto deduce a

certain teaching.

c. Evaluation. Provide the reading that is best supported by

the internal evidence and provide the rationale supporting this reading over the other readings. [chart below]

Reading Rationaleτῇ


Χριστὸςἠλευθέρωσ


οὖνORτῇ

ἐλευθερίᾳΧριστὸςἡμᾶς



These two readings are identical when examinedinternally since they have no differing vocabulary,

style, or teaching. None of the readings can really bepreferred on the basis of vocabulary or style. Theteaching is different for readings 4-6, and become

problematic as a result. The 6th reading isunintelligible, and can be ignored. The 4th and 5th

readings seem to teach something that is more universalin nature than the author intended. The rest of thepassage is about personal freedom, but these readings

would make it sound more corporate. The type oftranscriptional error required for at least the 4th

reading requires some intentional editing. The 3rd

reading could be attributed to a careless omission ofκε, since the different words mean the same thing. The

scribal error is essentially the same as 1 and 2,although it is possible to theorize that reading 2 came

out of the influence of the word order in verse 2.

IV. Conclusion

Provide the reading that you believe is most likely to be original and provide a rationale that encompasses all areas of investigation.

ReadingBelieved tobe Original

Concluding Rationale

Kinder 31




οὖν

The 4th-6th readings can be easily cast out fortheological difficulty and for lack of good manuscriptevidence. The 3rd reading has the most difference in

meaning from the other readings, and since it is late inthe manuscript data, and localized, it can be cast outas well although it isn’t theologically fatal. Reading2 can internally be said to have copied from verse 2,but I don’t think that possibility makes reading 2 anyless likely, since the case could also be made for

reading 1 by combining the consensus of all 6 readingsconcerning the order of the two words. If all of thewitnesses of readings 2-5 (which say Χριστὸς ἡμᾶς) wereput together against the witnesses of readings 1 and 6(which say ἡμᾶς Χριστὸς), then the 2nd reading would win

overwhelmingly. Metzger’s commentary gives a goodrationale for the changes, “Amid the variety of

readings, that adopted for the text seems to accountbest for the origin of the others. The apostle’s abruptintroduction of exhortations was softened by inserting

the relative ᾗ before or after ἐλευθερίᾳ, or bytransferring οὖν to the preceding clause” (528).

Works Cited

Metzger, Bruce M. A Textual Commentary on the Greek New

Testament. 2nd ed.

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Freiburg, Germany: Freiburger Graphische Betriebe,

1994. Print.

Kinder 33

NT Exegesis Step 4—Lexical Analysis


1. What word are you studying? Give the word's reference,

the Greek form in the text, the Greek lexical form in

brackets, and the English word it is translated as with

the English version's initials in parenthesis

following. Example: 2 Peter 2:1, δολον, [δολος, ου, ο],

deceit (NKJV)

Galatians 5:4, ἐξεπέσατε, [ἐκπίπτω], ye are

fallen (KJV)

2. What are its possible dictionary meanings? Look in the

resource below and record each option of meaning.

a. The Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early

Christian Literature (3rd Edition) [BDAG]

1. To fall from some point

2. To drift or be blown off course and run

aground

Kinder 34

3. To change for the worse from a favorable

condition

4. Become inadequate for some function

3. How is the same word used in other passages by the same

author (also look for contextual nuances/flavors/shades

that won't be found in a dictionary)? Give the

reference and an explanation for every other passage.

Romans 9:6—It is obvious by process of

elimination that the 4th meaning is used

here. Paul is speaking about the Word of God

concerning the promises of Abraham, and says

that the Word of God can’t “fail.” This

isn’t a physical failing (which would be the

first two meanings), and although the meaning

could include the 3rd, the 4th meaning best

represents it, since Paul is talking about

the Israelites’ promises and benefits.

4. Does the word have any special connotative meaning

(connotative meaning is emotional value attached to

Kinder 35

certain words by certain people especially in certain

contexts)? Explain.

None.

5. Are there any synonyms or opposites of this word in the

context that can help to define its meaning? For each,

give the reference, the Greek word, the English

translation, and an explanation.

None.

6. Does the word's use in history prior offer any useful

information or illustration or is there appropriately

useful theological information? Look in the resources

below and record any useful information/illustration.

a. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament: Abridged in One

Volume [TDNT abridged]

“This word means ‘to fall out of or down

from,’ ‘to make a sortie,’ ‘to go forth,’ ‘to

deviate or digress,’ ‘to be cast ashore,’ ‘to

be expelled,’ ‘to be omitted,’ ‘to stretch,’

and ‘to let slip.’ It is mostly literal in

the LXX for various Hebrew terms… The range

Kinder 36

of meaning is very great in the ten NT

instances. For the literal use one may turn

to 1 Pet. 1:24 and Jms. 1:11, as well as to

Acts 12:7… The sense ‘to lose’ occurs in 2

Peter 3:17. ‘To lose’ is also the sense in

Gal. 5:4. ‘To be in vain’ is the point in

Rom. 9:6: the promise of God to Israel has

not failed.”

b. The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology

“ekpiptō means to fall out of something, to

go out of something, e.g. to lose the way, to

give up hope; in the pass. sense, to be

driven out, excluded, or to lose something.

As a technical naval term it means to be

driven off course, to drift, to be cast

ashore, because of inability to follow the

course on which one has set out…”

7. Considering all that you have learned about this word

AND THE CONTEXT, what specific but fully nuanced

Kinder 37

meaning is the author communicating in this context?

Explain.

I believe that although this word has a wide

variety of meanings, that in this passage

Paul is using the word to describe a change

in the condition of his addressees.

According to NIDNTT, the word was used as a

naval term; so perhaps the visual effect was

that those who were addressed had blown off

course from what was right into what was

wrong. The controversy has to do with where

the addressees fell from, not with the

meaning of the word itself.

Works Cited

Brown, Colin. The New International Dictionary of New

Testament Theology. Grand

Kinder 38

Rapids: Zondervan, 1975. Print.

Danker, Frederick W., Walter Bauer, and William Arndt. A

Greek-English Lexicon of

the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature .

Third ed. Chicago: University of Chicago, 2000. Print.

Kittel, Gerhard, Geoffrey William. Bromiley, and Gerhard

Friedrich. Theological

Dictionary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI:

Eerdmans, 1964. Print.

Kinder 39

NT Exegesis Step 5 – Syntactical Analysis


1. Are there any nouns? If so, explain below its case-

usage and its effect on the translation/interpretation

of this text making sure to include the verse number

and the noun itself.

v. 1, ἐλευθερίᾳ, Dative of Means, or Dative of

Cause. If it is a dative of means, then the sense

would be “Christ freed you with freedom” or “it is

with freedom that Christ has set you free.” If it

were a dative of cause, then the sense would be

“Christ freed you for freedom,” or, “it is for the

purpose of freedom that Christ has set you free.”

Upon further reflection, I believe that the latter

usage is more probable. This would make more

sense in the argument proceeding: “therefore stand

Kinder 40

fast and do not be subjected again to a yoke of

slavery.” The sense of this argument would be

that since Christ freed us for the sake of being

free, it would be redundant and foolish to go

right back to the Law and be placed under it

again.

v. 1, Χριστὸς, Subject Nominative. This places

Christ as the subject of the verb “he set free.”

v. 1, ζυγῷ, Dative as Direct Object. The yoke is

the indirect object of “be subject to.” If we are

subjected again, we would be subjected to this

yoke, and be under its control.

v. 1, δουλείας, Genetive of Apposition. The

bondage described here is what the yoke is going

to be characterized by. This “yoke of bondage” is

what Christians ought to avoid and are told to

stand firm against. Such subjection would bring

us under a yoke that is described by and indeed

saturated with bondage to the Law.

Kinder 41

v. 2, Παῦλος, Subject Nominative. This simply

identifies Paul as the one who is speaking. This

is appositional to ἐγὼ.

v. 2, Χριστὸς, Subject Nominative. This

identifies Christ as He who will not benefit the

one who is circumcised.

v. 3, ἀνθρώπῳ, Dative as Indirect Object. Man who

has been circumcised is the recipient of this

portion of the letter.

v. 3, ὀφειλέτης, Predicate Nominative. A man who

is circumcised becomes a debtor.

v. 3, νόμον, Accusative as Direct Object. The Law

is the predicate of this clause, which means that

the Law is what the circumcised is obligated to

do.

v. 4, Χριστοῦ, Genitive after ἀπό. This form of

Christ is in order to grammatically direct the

preposition, and the sense is rendered “away from

Christ.”

Kinder 42

v. 4, νόμῳ, Dative after ἐν (Standard). The

Judaizers are trying to justify themselves using

the Law as their standard. They weren’t simply

following the Law for the sake of pride or self-

righteous piety, but they were doing it as a way

to salvation.

v. 4, χάριτος, Genitive of Separation. This usage

should be obvious by the verb ἐξεπέσατε “you

fell.” The genitive in this sense takes a sense

of separation, that the Judaizers have separated

themselves away from the grace that God had

provided for them in Jesus Christ.

v. 5, πνεύματι, Dative of Means. The verb of this

clause is ἀπεκδεχόμεθα, or “we wait.” The idea is

that we wait by the means of a spirit that comes

from faith. In other words, it is our spirit of

faith that gives us the ability (means) to wait

for this hope of righteousness. While the

Judaizers justified themselves by the Law (v. 4),

the Christians on the other hand had the faith to

Kinder 43

wait for their righteousness that would come from

Jesus.

v. 5, πίστεως, Genitive after ἐκ. This

prepositional usage of the genitive directs the

meaning to emphasize that our spirit proceeds out

of our faith.

v. 5, ἐλπίδα, Accusative of Direct Object. While

a spirit of faith is the means, the hope is the

end result. It is this hope—or rather perhaps,

the fulfillment of our hope—which we are waiting

for.

v. 5, δικαιοσύνης, Genitive of Apposition. This

substance of our hope, that is, what we hope for,

is righteousness. So to complete the thought, our

spirit that is characterized by faith is the means

that enables us to patiently wait for the

fulfillment of the hope that we have that one-day

we will also be righteous. The Judaizers tried to

achieve righteousness on earth; not understanding

that righteousness which comes from God has to

Kinder 44

come by faith, not by outward expressions of

morality. The time when our faith in Christ’s

righteousness becomes sight is later in heaven

when our bodies are glorified; this is why we wait

for it.

v. 6, Χριστῷ, Dative after ἐν (Spatial/Sphere).

The case-usage is prompted by the word ἐν. See

discussion on prepositions.

v. 6, Ἰησοῦ, Dative of Apposition. Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ

are appositional and really ought to be taken

together.

v. 6, περιτομή, Subject Nominative. This word, as

well as ἀκροβυστία both takes the same verb,

ἰσχύει. It simply names them both as the subjects

of the verb.

v. 6, ἀκροβυστία, Subject Nominative. The verb

ἰσχύει takes two verbs.

v. 6, πίστις, Subject Nominative. Faith is the

subject of the implied ισχυει in this verse.

While circumcision and uncircumcision are found

Kinder 45

weak and powerless, faith is able to do what they

could not.

v. 6, ἀγάπης, Genitive after δία (Means). That is

to say that faith works through love. Love is the

instrumentality by which faith can work itself

out. Faith is the worker, love is the tool, hope

is the result, and righteousness is the reward.

Compare this with the Judaizer’s scheme, and it is

evident that faith is deprived because of human

responsibility, love is diluted because of legal

obligation, hope is diminished because of

uncertainty in the outcome, and righteousness is

dead because of futility of effort.

2. Are there any pronouns? If so, explain below its case-

usage, its antecedent, and its effect on the

translation/interpretation of this text making sure to

include the verse number and the pronoun itself.

v. 1, ἡμᾶς, Accusative as Direct Object, no

antecedent. This is to identify the group of

people whom Christ sets free, “us.” This is

Kinder 46

probably inclusive of the Galatian believers

rather than exclusive, evidenced by the

exhortation following.

v. 2, ἐγὼ, Subject Nominative, Παῦλος. Paul uses

both his personal name, and the personal pronoun

“I” before using the 1st person singular verb

λέγω. He is very strongly emphasizing his

personality in this passage, perhaps because of

the emotion by which he speaks these things, being

a former Pharisee.

v. 2, ὑμῖν, Dative of Indirect Object, no

antecedent. He both identifies himself and his

addressees in this verse.

v. 2, ὑμᾶς, Accusative of Direct Object. This

identifies again in a personal way that Christ

will not profit you if you are circumcised. This

isn’t a doctrinal treatise, it is a personal

warning against defection.

v. 4, οἳτινες, Parenthetic Nominative (Generic

Relative Pronoun), κατηργήθητε. The word is

Kinder 47

translated “whoever,” and is a relative pronoun.

As a relative pronoun, Paul was widening his

target audience at this point (the Judaizers) to

whoever holds the same sentiments as they do with

the Law. He is not exempting the Church from

possibly committing this fallacy, as any of them

could, and it is his implicit desire that each

believer examine himself to determine whether he

is part of the group that justifies themselves by

acts of the Law.

v. 5, ἡμεῖς, Subject Nominative, antecedent is

debatable. “We” is the subject of “we wait.” On

the one hand, if it is an inclusive “we,” then

Paul is saying that “we all wait” by means of the

Spirit from faith for a hope of righteousness.

This seems to dull down the obvious spirited

animosity Paul has against the Judaizers; for this

reason, I believe that it is an exclusive “we,”

and that Paul is placing the “you” in verse 4 in

antithesis with the “we” of verse 5. Paul is

Kinder 48

essentially saying (very loosely), “whoever tries

to justify himself in the Law, you cut yourself

off from Christ and fall from His grace, but we on

the other hand wait for the hope of His

righteousness in a different way that requires a

spirit of faith.” Paul was demonstrating not only

the superior reward of the latter group, but also

of its reliance on faith rather than the Law.

v. 6, τι, Accusative of Direct Object. This word

is difficult to even include in the translation,

but it is important. The definition is “a certain

one, certain thing, anyone, anything.” Paul is

emphasizing that circumcision and uncircumcision

are not just weak; they are not able to do

anything at all.

3. Are there any participles, infinitives, subjunctives,

optatives, or imperatives? If so, explain below its

mood-usage and its effect on the


Kinder 49

include the verse number and the

participle/infinitive/subjunctive/optative/imperative

itself.

v. 1, στήκετε, Imperative of Command. Paul is

simply commanding the Galatians to stand firm as a

result of the freeing power of Christ. This is to

say that Christ can free someone from sin, but

that person still has to personally stand in that

freedom and claim it. It is possible to be stuck

in a legalistic rut with the salvation of Christ.

v. 1, ἐνέχεσθε, Imperative of Prohibition. Paul

is prohibiting the Galatians from ever being

subject again to the yoke of bondage. Since it is

present tense, it is possible (but not necessary

or certain) to read it as if Paul was telling them

to stop being subject to the yoke of bondage. The

implication would be that they were subject to

this yoke, and they need to get out of it and

never go back to it.

Kinder 50

v. 2, περιτέμνησθε, Conditional Subjunctive (3rd

class condition). This subjunctive with ἐάν

constructs a 3rd class condition. See discussion

on conditional sentences.

v. 3, περιτεμνομένῳ, Adjectival Participle. The

antecedent of this word is ἀνθρώπῳ, and describes

man attributively. The conveyed thought is a

“circumcised man.”

v. 3, ποιῆσαι, Infinitive of Result. To include

this nuance into a translation creates stilted

English, but the conveyed thought is that “he who

is circumcised is obligated as a result to do the

whole law.” The obligation is the direct result

of the circumcision.

v. 6, ἐνεργουμένη, Adverbial Participle of Means.

This could possibly be a participle of purpose,

but theologically it is not likely. That would be

as if to say that the purpose of having faith is

to work it out in love. More probably, Paul is

Kinder 51

emphasizing that faith avails by working through

love.

4. Are there any conditional sentences? If so, explain

below its class of condition and its effect on the


include the verse number and enough information for

others to know what you are referring to.

v. 2, 3rd class conditional sentence. Paul was

not certain that they had been circumcised, but he

saw it as a possibility. This is a true “if”

statement. “If you are circumcised” forms the

protasis, “Christ will not profit you at all” is

the apodosis.

5. Are there any significant uses of person, number,

gender, tense, or voice? If so, explain them below

making sure to include the verse number and enough

information for others to know what you are referring

to.

Kinder 52

v. 4, δικαιοῦσθε, Middle/Passive Conative Present.

This verb can be middle or passive, but either

way, this is definitely a conative present.

According to Wallace, a conative present “is used

to indicate that an attempt is being made in the

present time (indicative mood). Often it bears

the connotation that the action will not be

completed; it is thus an unsuccessful attempt in

progress” (534). Although this is not necessarily

going to show through a translation, the basic

sense of this use would render “whoever is trying

to be justified in the Law” or (if it is a

middle), “whoever is trying to justify himself in

the Law.” This wording is not necessary in the

translation (since it requires a lot of extra

wording from the translator and could be perceived

as biased or opinionated), but the effect of this

usage is to demonstrate that Paul doesn’t actually

believe that the Judaizers (or anybody) could be

justified by the Law, but even to try

Kinder 53

automatically disqualifies you from the one way

one can be justified: grace.

v. 4, ἐξεπέσατε, Connotative/Dramatic Aorist. On

the one hand, this can be interpreted as a blanket

statement and simplified by Paul “you fell from

grace.” It could be dramatic, to emphasize the

close relationship between the self-justification

by the Law and the falling, “you just fell from

grace.” This could mean that salvation is

something that can be lost and regained

perpetually on the basis of legalism, or it could

mean that falling from grace is something that a

believer does perpetually but does not amount to

loss of salvation, or it could mean (which is the

preferred view in my opinion) that the addressees

were not saved and since they missed the entire

point of the gospel of grace they fell even

further away from obtaining it.

6. Are there any significant presences or absences of the

article? If so, explain them below making sure to

Kinder 54



v. 4, τῆς χάριτος, Abstract Article. This grace

is identified as “the grace.” It is a certain

type of grace, not just a general grace. A man

who has fallen from grace has not fallen from all

types of grace, and it doesn’t mean that he

doesn’t have any grace in any way. It does mean

that he has fallen from a type of grace that can

only be available when he is joined with Christ,

since being cut off away from Christ is what

caused him to fall.

7. Are there any significant word, phrase, or clause

orders? If so, explain them below making sure to



v. 5, πνεύματι ἐκ πίστεως precedes ἐλπίδα

δικαιοσύνης ἀπεκδεχόμεθα. The sentence seems

backwards in English: “for we with a spirit from

Kinder 55

faith a hope of righteousness wait for it.” To

smooth out the translation we say “for we wait for

a hope of righteousness with a spirit which comes

from faith.” The emphasis on “spirit from faith”

is to place it in direct comparison with “in the

Law” in verse 4.

8. Are there any significant uses of prepositions,

conjunctions, or particles? If so, explain them below

making sure to include the verse number and enough

information for others to know what you are referring

to.

v. 1, οὖν. This word demonstrates that our

standing should be a direct result of Christ’s

freedom.

v. 2, Ἲδε. This word, combined with the personal

pronoun and Paul’s personal name, cause this verse

to be a very personal and somber plea to the

Galatians. For good reason too, one must only

look at what he’s saying.

Kinder 56

v. 2, οὐδὲν. Paul could have used a less emphatic

negation such as οὐ, but instead he uses a word

that means “not at all, in no way.” It is not

enough to say that Christ will not really profit

you anymore; Paul has to increase the severity of

his warning by saying that Christ will not profit

you in any way whatsoever.

v. 3, πάλιν. Paul has apparently spoken on this

issue to them before, perhaps when he was in

Galatia personally.

v. 5, ἐκ. This description of a believer’s spirit

is very vivid; the believer has a spirit that

proceeds out of faith. The origin of faith is an

important factor for a believer’s spirit. A

person can have a spirit that proceeds from

religion, legalism, fear, hate, spite, or even

zeal (Gal. 1:14). None of these will do, only a

spirit proceeding from faith will give someone

hope for righteousness.

Kinder 57

v. 6, ἐν. Paul concludes the prior discussion by

defining a new sphere of operations (ἐν + dative).

This new sphere is the sphere where Christ’s

righteousness is at work. In the sphere of

Christ, circumcision (legalism) and uncircumcision

(lawlessness) have no bearing on an individual’s

salvation, but rather faith. This is a strong

statement by Paul, and one of his crucial

doctrines. The implication is that both of these

extremes, while unhealthy, are not bad enough to

cause you to lose Christ. You cannot be fooled

into being too legalistic and lose your salvation

that way, neither can you be so sinful that Christ

does not profit you anymore. The only way for

Christ to not profit you is for you to not have

faith in His atonement (v. 2).

v. 6, δι᾽αγάπης. Wallace gives four ways that δία

can be used with the genitive: agency, means,

spatial, and temporal (368-69). The spatial and

temporal are obviously not the case in this

Kinder 58

instance because the passage is talking about

ideas, not things. Agency is not likely, since

agency talks about the personal agent that enables

an action. We could speculate that since God is

love that it is agency, but it is much safer and

less assuming to read this as means.

Kinder 59

Work Cited

Wallace, Daniel B. Greek Grammar: Beyond the Basics: An

Exegetical Syntax of the

New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996. Print.

Kinder 60

NT Exegesis Step 5 – Translation

James Kinder, Galatians 5:1-6

V.1: τῇ ἐλευθερία ἡμᾶς Χριστὸς ἠλευθέρωσεν・στήκετε οὖν καὶ

μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε.

Rough: [To the] [freedom, liberty] [you (pl)] [Christ]

[he/she/it set free]; [(you {pl}) stand!] [therefore]

[and, even, also, namely] [not, lest] [again] [to/with

yoke] [of slavery] [(you [pl]) be subject to!].

Smooth: Christ freed you for freedom; therefore stand

and do not be subject to a yoke of slavery again.

Kinder 61

InflectedWord

PersonCase

Num Gender/Tense

Voice Mood Lexical

FormInflectedMeaning

ἠλευθέρωσεν 3 s aor act ind ἐλευθερό

ω he set free

στήκετε 2 pl pres act imp στήκω you (pl) stand!

ἐνέχεσθε 2 pl pres m/p imp ἐνέχω subject yourself!

V.2: Ἴδε ἐγὼ Παῦλος λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἐὰν περιτέμνησθε, Χριστὸς

ὑμᾶς οὐδὲν ὠφελήσει.

Rough: [See!, Behold!] [I] [Paul] [I say] [to/with you

(pl)] [that, since, because] [if, whether] [you (pl)

may/would be circumcised], [Christ] [you (pl] [in no

way] [he/she/it will profit].

Smooth: Behold I Paul say to you that if you are

circumcised, Christ will not profit you in any way.

InflectedWord

Person

CaseNum Gender/

TenseVoice Mood Lexical


λέγω 1 pl pres act ind λέγω I sayπεριτέμνησθε 2 pl pres m/p sub περιτέμν

ωyou may be circumcised

ὠφελήσει 3 s fut act ind ὠφελέω he will profit

Kinder 62

V.3: μαρτύρομαι δὲ πάλιν παντὶ ἀνθρώπῳ περιτεμνομένῳ ὅτι

ὀφειλέτης ἐστὶν ὅλον τὸν νόμον ποιῆσαι.

Rough: [I testify] [but, and] [again] [to/with all]

[to/with man] [being circumcised] [that, since,

because] [debtor, one who is obligated or guilty,

sinner] [he/she/it is] [whole] [the] [law] [to do].

Smooth: But I testify again to every man who is

circumcised that he is a debtor to do the whole Law.

InflectedWord

Person

CaseNum Gender/

Tense Voice Mood LexicalForm

InflectedMeaning

μαρτύρομαι 1 s presmid(dep)

ind μαρτύρομαι

I testify

περιτεμνομένῳ dat s masc/

prespass ptc περιτέμν

ω

being circumcised

ἐστὶν 3 s pres act ind εἰμι he isποιῆσαι aor act inf ποιέω to do

V.4: κατηργήθητε ἀπὸ Χριστοῦ, οἵτινες ἐν νόμῳ δικαιοῦσθε,

τῆς χάριτος ἐξεπέσατε.

Rough: [you (pl) were cut off (from)] [(away) from] [of

Christ], [whoever] [in, on, among] [to/with law] [you

(pl) are justified], [of the] [of grace] [you (pl) fell

away from].

Kinder 63

Smooth: You cut yourselves off from Christ, whoever is

justified in the Law; you fell from grace.

InflectedWord

PersonCase

Num Gender/Tense Voice Mood Lexical


κατηργήθητε 2 pl aor pas

s ind καταργεώ

you are cut off from

δικαιοῦσθε 2 pl pres

m/p(dep)

ind δικαιόω you are justified

ἑξεπέσατε 2 pl aor act ind ἐκπίπτω you fell

V.5: ἡμεῖς γὰρ πνεύματι ἐκ πίστεως ἐλπίδα δικαιοσύνης

ἀπεκδεχόμεθα.

Rough: [we] [for] [to/with spirit/Spirit] [(out) from]

[of faith] [hope] [of righteousness] [we wait].

Smooth: For we with the spirit that comes from faith

wait for the hope of righteousness.

InflectedWord

PersonCase

Num Gender/Tense Voice Mood Lexical


ἀπεκδεχόμεθα 1 pl pres

m/p(dep)

ind ἀπεκδέχομαι we wait

V.6: ἐν γὰρ Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ οὔτε περιτομή τι ἰσχύει οὔτε

ἀκροβυστία ἀλλὰ πίστις δι᾽ἀγάπης ἐνεργουμένη.

Kinder 64

Rough: [in, on, among] [for] [to/with Christ] [to/with

Jesus] [neither, nor] [circumcision, foreskin] [a

certain one, a certain thing, anyone, anything]

[he/she/it is of value] [neither, nor] [uncircumcision]

[but, except] [faith] [through, on account of] [of

love] [being at work (for itself, of itself)].

Smooth: For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision is

worth anything nor uncircumcision but faith working

itself out through love.

InflectedWord

PersonCase

Num Gender/Tense

Voice

Mood

LexicalForm

InflectedMeaning

ισχύει 3 s pres act ind ἰσχύω it avails

ἐνεργουμένη nom s fem/

pres mid ptc ἐνεργέω

working (for itself)

NT Exegesis Step 6 – Structural Analysis


τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ ἡμᾶς Χριστὸς ἠλευθέρωσεν

στήκετε οὖν

Kinder 65

καὶ μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε.

Ἴδε ἐγὼ Παῦλος λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἐὰν περιτέμνησθε

Χριστὸς ὑμᾶς οὐδὲν ὠφελήσει.

μαρτύρομαι δὲ πάλιν παντὶ ἀνθρώπῳ περιτεμνομένῳ

ὅτι ὀφειλέτης ἐστὶν

ὅλον τὸν νόμον ποιῆσαι.

κατηργήθητε ἀπὸ Χριστοῦ,

οἵτινες ἐν νόμῳ

δικαιοῦσθε,

τῆς χάριτος ἐξεπέσατε.

ἡμεῖς γὰρ πνεύματι ἐκ πίστεως

ἐλπίδα δικαιοσύνης ἀπεκδεχόμεθα.

ἐν γὰρ Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ

οὔτε περιτομή τι ἰσχύει

οὔτε ἀκροβυστία

ἀλλὰ πίστις

δι᾽ἀγάπης

ἐνεργουμένη.

Christ freed you for freedom;

therefore stand

Kinder 66

and do not be subject to a yoke of slavery

again.

Behold I Paul say to you that if you are circumcised,

Christ will not profit you in

any way.

But I testify again to every man who is circumcised

that he is a debtor

to do the whole Law.

You cut yourselves off from Christ,

whoever is justified in

the Law;

you fell away from grace.

For we with the spirit that comes from faith

wait for the hope of righteousness.

For in Christ Jesus

neither circumcision is worth anything

nor uncircumcision

but faith working itself out

through love.

Kinder 67

As a result of Christ’s liberating act, we as

Christians should stand, and as a result not be bound by

slavery again. If a man is circumcised, he is obligated to

do the whole Law, cut off from Christ, and fallen from

grace. On the other hand, the Christian has a spirit that

proceeds out of our faith. With this spirit of faith we are

able to wait for a hope of future righteousness. In

summary, the sphere of Christ Jesus’ righteousness and grace

nullifies circumcision and uncircumcision, but it exalts and

enables faith, which works as a result through love.

NT Exegesis step 7—Rhetorical Analysis


- Is there alliteration? If so, explain. No.

- Is there anacoluthon? If so, explain. No.

- Is there anaphora? If so, explain. No.

- Is there anastrophe? If so, explain. No.

- Is there anticlimax? If so, explain. No.

- Is there antithesis? If so, explain.

Yes. Circumcision (περιτομή) and uncircumcision

(ἀκροβυστία) are placed in antithesis with each

other in verse 6. Also, there is antithesis

between the implied “you” in verse 4 and the

Kinder 68

exclusive “we” of verse 5. These two antitheses

work together. In verse 4, Paul describes the

inferior way in which the Judaizers (you) try to

justify themselves (circumcision—the Law). In

verse 5, Paul describes the way that the Christian

(we) is justified (faith—circumcision of the

heart). Verse 6 drives home the point that

neither circumcision (Law) nor uncircumcision

(lawlessness) are worth anything, but rather the

faith described in verse 4.

- Is there aposiopesis? If so, explain. No.

- Is there asyndeton? If so, explain. No.

- Is there chiasmus? If so, explain. No.

- Is there euphemism? If so, explain.

Possibly. If one were to interpret “you fell from

grace” (τῆς χάριτος ἐξεπέσατε) as a loss of

salvation, then this would basically be a

euphamism for “you lost your salvation,” or, “you

aren’t saved anymore.”

- Is there hendiadys? If so, explain. No.

- Is there hyperbole? If so, explain. No.

- Is there irony? If so, explain. No.

- Is there litotes? If so, explain. No.

- Is there meiosis? If so, explain. No.

- Is there metaphor? If so, explain. No.

Kinder 69

- Is there metonymy? If so, explain.

Yes. Circumcision (περιτομή) is placed in this

passage as a metonymy for an obligation to do the

law that comes from Judaistic expectations (v. 3).

Although it would seem to be a repetitive

statement, Paul’s point in this verse is not that

the Judaizers put on the Galatians an obligation

to obey the Law, but rather that the obligation is

total. The emphasis isn’t on “debtor,”

(ὀφειλέτης) but on “whole Law” (ὃλον τὸν νόμον).

Paul is making the point that if one is to

obligate himself under the Law (symbolized by

circumcision), then he is now a debtor to do the

whole Law completely. Further, to attempt to

justify oneself through the Law, then that person

has cut himself off from Christ, leaving only a

perfect adherence to every point of the Law as his

only chance. Such a person has fallen from grace,

and can only rely on the merciless Law, which does

not compromise. Such a usage of the word

“circumcision” is common for Paul. In fact, Paul

qualifies how he understands the word in Romans

2:28 when he says “For no one is a Jew who is

merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward

and physical.” Although he has used the word in

different ways, both as literal (Rom. 3:1) and as

Kinder 70

symbolic of something else (Col. 2:11), I believe

that Paul uses the word this way consistently

throughout the letter. In 5:11 he says “But if I,

brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I

still being persecuted? In that case the offense

of the cross has been removed.” Why would Paul

not use the word “Law” instead of circumcision,

since circumcision is only one part of what the

Judaizers preach as part of the Law? Even if the

literal circumcision was meant, an obligation to

obey the Law must be read into this word, since

many cultures of that age practiced circumcision

for health reasons. If Paul meant just people who

were literally circumcised without any reference

to the Law, then there would be a large portion of

the male population who would be disqualified from

grace because of a physical attribute.

- Is there paronomasia? If so, explain.

Yes. Profit (ὠφελήσει) and “one who is under

obligation” (ὀφειλέτης) are paranomasia. Paul is

essentially saying to the Judaizers, “Not only is

Christ not profitable (ὠφελήσει) for you, but you

are also obligated (ὀφειλέτης) to do the whole law

instead!”

- Is there periphrasis? If so, explain. No.

- Is there pleonasm? If so, explain.

Kinder 71

Possibly. Verse one has been translated in

various ways. The KJV says, “Stand fast therefore

in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free,

and be not entangled again with the yoke of

bondage.” The ESV, “For freedom Christ has set us

free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit

again to a yoke of slavery. The ESV’s translation

using the Dative of Cause shows how the two words

ἐλευθερίᾳ and ἠλεθυέρωσεν are pleonastic with each

other.

- Is there polysyndeton (the opposite of asyndeton)? If so,

explain. No.

- Is there Zeugma? If so, explain. No.

Kinder 72

NT Exegesis Step 8-10—Homiletical Analysis


The Main Ideas:

1. Christ’s purpose in giving us freedom is that we could

be free, and no longer slaves to the Law.

2. If someone is still a slave to the circumcision, then

Christ cannot profit him in any way.

3. The reason Christ does not profit him is because someone

who binds himself under the Law is obligated to do all of

it.

4. Because of this, he has rejected God’s salvation and

placed the Law in its place, cutting himself off from Christ

and His life-giving grace.

5. The Christian, on the other hand, ought to wait for the

hope they are given from Christ for righteousness; which is

what gave them freedom in the first place.

6. In conclusion, there is nothing in this world that is

sufficient enough or detrimental enough to alter a person’s

salvation status, but only faith.

Kinder 73

The Overarching Idea:

Since Christ has set the Christian free for the sake of

being free, he ought to avoid the temptation of being

legalistic once again, since freedom is superior in every

way to the bondage of the Law.

Title: Give me liberty, or give me death!

Message:

The Galatian church was riddled with heresy. There

were legalistic Jews who had migrated into their area who

taught that their salvation had to be accompanied by

circumcision and adherence to the Law. Not only that, but

they discredited Paul, and tried to tell the Galatians that

he too taught the doctrine of circumcision (5:11)! Paul had

to set them straight.

I. Christ freed you so that you could be FREE!

A. Stand firm against people who oppose this truth

B. Don’t look back to the past, this is a new way of

life

II. The man who trusts himself is FALLEN!

A. He has no freedom

Kinder 74

B. He is cut off from Christ

C. He is fallen from grace

III. The man who trusts in Christ is FORGIVEN!

A. We have hope for future righteousness—so believe

it!

B. Circumcision (legalism) does not have the strength

to make you righteous

C. Uncircumcision (lawlessness) is not able to depose

your standing in Christ

D. Only faith has any bearing with Christ, and from

that comes love!

Conclusion: Christ liberated us from the Law and from our

sin, and His desire for us is that we live freely. What

many people—like the legalistic Jews—don’t understand is

that Christ’s way of doing things actually produces more

righteous lives. If you trust your own works for salvation,

then you are only separating yourself further from Christ’s

plan for your life. You not only miss the point and beauty

of the Gospel of grace, but you become legalistic and

pharisaic. You are full of fear because the Law of God is

Kinder 75

your standard again instead of freedom in Christ, and you

are cut away from the life-giving grace that you need. Your

faith is deprived because of self-reliance, your hope is

diminished because of the fear of abandonment, you love is

diluted because of the obligation you feel to do the right

thing (it isn’t so selfless anymore), and most of all your

righteousness is dead because the Law does NOT save (Isa.

64:6)! There is another way; the way of liberty in Christ’s

sphere of grace rewards faith that produces love because of

our hope for righteousness from Him! So, when it comes to

our eternal destiny, there are really only two options:

liberty, or death!

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Exegesis of Galatians 5:1-6

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