THE ARGUMENT Galatia (to the churches in which country this Epistle is directed) is by all agreed to be a part of Asia the Lesser, now under the power of the Turks, and by them called Chiangare.

The term apostle, in its native signification, signifieth no more then one sent; in its ecclesiastical use, it signifies one extraordinarily sent to preach the gospel; of these some were sent either more immediately by Christ, (as the twelve were sent, Matt.

He writeth not only in his own name, but in the name of all those other Christians that were with him in the place where he now was (whether Rome or Corinth, or some other place, is uncertain); with whose consent and privity probably he wrote, possibly at their instigation, and whose common consent…

A common, as well as religious and Christian, form of salutation; Paul’s mark in every Epistle, and used by him without any variation, (except in his Epistles to Timothy and Titus, where he only adds mercy &c.), the want of which, as also of his name, offers some grounds to doubt whether he wrote…

Which Christ, though he was put to death by Pilate and the Jews, yet he was not compelled to die; for he laid down his life, no man took it from him, John 10:17–18. Sometimes it is said, he died for our sins, as Rom. 5:8; sometimes, that he gave himself, ( meaning, to death), as in Eph. 5:2, Eph.

To which Father, (yet not excluding the Son), for do great benefits bestowed upon us, be honour, and praise, from age to age, and to all eternity. The term Amen, being always used in Scripture either as a term of assertion, to aver the truth of a thing, or as a term of wishing, may here be…

The apostle here beginneth the matter and substance of his Epistle, with a reprehension of this church; which in, some things is much qualified, in other things much aggravated.

Which is not another; another doctrine it is, but another doctrine or glad tidings of salvation, or another gospel of Christ, it is not; for there is no other.

The apostle, by this vehement expression, doth no more suppose it possible that a heavenly angel should publish to them any other way of salvation than what he had published, than that he himself might so contradict his own doctrine.

For do I now persuade men, or God? There is an emphasis in the particle now, since I became a Christian, and was made an apostle; while I was a Pharisee I did otherwise, but since I became an apostle of Jesus Christ, do I persuade you to hear what men say, or what God saith? Or (as others) do I…

He calls them brethren, though some of them were revolted, because they owned Christ, and makes known or declares to them, (so the word is translated, Luke 2:15, John 15:15, John 17:26), that the doctrine of the gospel, which he had preached unto them, was no human invention or fiction, nor rested…

Not of man, as my first and sole instructor, not only at second-hand, from Peter, James, or John, as the false teachers had suggested, nor was I taught it otherwise than by the immediate revelation of Jesus Christ.

It will be no difficult thing for you to believe, that I had never preached the gospel without a Divine revelation of the truth of it, if you do but reflect upon my former conversation; for you cannot but have heard, that I was born a Jew, educated in the Jewish religion, and was a zealous defender…

The word here used, and translated profited, may be interpreted either of his own personal proficiency, and going on in the Jewish religion, or of his propagating of it, and making that to go on, which seemeth to be the sense of the same word, 2 Tim. 2:16.

Here are two acts predicated of God, with relation to Paul: the first is a separating of him from the womb; the same was said of two of the great prophets, Isaiah and Jeremiah, Isa. 49:1, Jer. 1:5.

When it pleased God to discover Christ his Son (by an eternal generation) to me, whom neither naturally, nor from any instruction in my education, was acquainted with any thing of Christ, but, according to the common prejudices of those of my own country, looked upon him as a mere man, and an…

As Jerusalem was the place for the oracle of the law, under the Old Testament; so it also was for the gospel upon the first publication of it. There the disciples were; they returned thither after they had seen Christ ascend to heaven, Luke 24:52; from thence they were not to depart, but to wait…

These three years were spent partly in Arabia, partly at Damascus, whither he returned; and he, being there, was not idle, but, as Luke informs us, preached Christ in the synagogues, confounded the Jews, proving that this was the very Christ, which made the Jews take counsel to kill him: here it…

The apostles were at this time scattered, either through the persecution, or for the fulfilling of the work of their apostleship; so as probably there were at this time no more of the apostles at Jerusalem, except Peter, and James the less, the son of Alpheus, who is here called the brother of our…

Whether those words, before God, make this sentence an oath, is not material to determine; they are either an oath, or a very serious asseveration. If the apostle designed to call God for a witness, to the correspondence of his words with the truth of the things he had spoken, they make up an…

After that I came from Jerusalem, I came into the country of Syria; probably not to Damascus, the chief city of Syria, (where he had so narrow an escape in a basket), but into the country parts of Syria; for Syria lay in the way between Judea and Cilicia.

To be in Christ, signifieth: 1. Their being Christians indeed; they having received Christ by a true and lively faith, and given themselves to the obedience of his precepts. In this sense the apostle saith: If any man be in Christ he is a new creature. 2.

Though those churches in the country of Judea had never seen Paul’s person, yet they had heard of him: 1. That he had been a persecutor of those which professed the doctrine of the gospel, which he here calleth the faith, it being the object and the means of faith. 2.

And they praised God on his behalf, for working so great a change in him.