Galatians 2:11-21

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• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • Greek Interlinear Bible, ScrTR, ScrTR t, Strong, Parsing, CGTS, CGES id, AV.
  • The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Greek text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit:
    • "Image of God and Temple of God"
    • "Self-Denial and No-Self" 
  • "Revealed to James," The Jesus Database, an online annotated inventory of the traditions concerning the life and teachings of Jesus. Dr. Gregory C. Jenks, FaithFutures Foundation.
  • Chapter VIII, The Epistle of Ignatius to the Romans, Ignatius of Antioch (c. 110). (Longer version only - 4th cent interpolation.)
  • Vision II.2, Shepherd of Hermas. (c.145)
  • III.18, Stromata, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
  • V.3, V.13, Against Marcion, Tertullian (c. 212)
  • Chapter XIV, On Modesty, Tertullian (c. 217)
  • I.6, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Origen. (c.228)
  • IV.Summary.29, First Principles (De Principiis), Origen / Rufinus (c.230)
  • X.8, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Philocalia [anthology of Origen prepared by St. Basil and St. Gregory Nazianzen], Origen. (c.230)
  • XII.25, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, Origen. (c.247)
  • Commentary by St. John Chrysostom.
  • Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians (Galatians 2:14-16) by Martin Luther.
    • "With Paul we absolutely deny the possibility of self merit. God never yet gave to any person grace and everlasting life as a reward for merit."
  • Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians (Galatians 2:17-21) by Martin Luther.
    • "Either we are not justified by Christ, or we are not justified by the Law. The fact is, we are justified by Christ. Hence, we are not justified by the Law."
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "The Law that terrifies the conscience brings us to Christ, and he alone causes us to indeed die to the Law, because by making us righteous, he takes away from us the terror of conscience. And by sanctifying us, he causes the mortifying of lust in us, so that it cannot take such occasion to sin by the restraint which the Law makes, as it did before."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "Believers see themselves living in a state of dependence on Christ. Hence it is, that though he lives in the flesh, yet he does not live after the flesh."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "Hitherto St. Paul had been considering that single question, "Are Christians obliged to observe the ceremonial law? But he here insensibly goes farther, and, by citing this scripture, shows that what he spoke directly of the ceremonial, included also the moral, law. For David undoubtedly did so, when he said, Psalm 143:2, the place here referred to, "In thy sight shall no man living be justified;" which the Apostle likewise explains, Rom 3:19,20, in such a manner as can agree to none but the moral law."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "Christ's having died, shows that the law has no power to justify us; for if the law can justify or make us righteous, the death of Christ is superfluous [CHRYSOSTOM]."
  • From The People's New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
    • "The old life is laid aside, and the new life is a Christlike life, due to the spirit of Christ. He is now merged in Christ."
• Contemporary Commentary, Studies and Exegesis:
  • Commentary, Galatians 2:15-21, Jaime Clark-Soles, at WorkingPreacher.org, Luther Seminary, 2010.
    • "Paul wants the Galatians to see that those of us who live in the period of Christ/faith gain righteousness through that means and no other."
  • "First Thoughts on Year C Epistle Passages in the Lectionary," Pentecost 3, William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia.
    • "Not everyone will find Paul's particular understanding of the achievement of Christ's death to be the best way to speak about the good news, but there can be no denying that with it he upholds what many would see as a central tenet of Christian faith: God offers a relationship of ongoing love to all without discrimination and that neither entry into this relationship nor continuing in it is dependent on qualifications based on race, gender, or levels of adherence even to biblical law (the latter puts him in conflict with most Jewish Christians and Jews of his time)."
  • Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • Galatians 2:11-21, Opportunity to Do Good: The Letter to the Galatians, Craig Koester, Word & World Texts in Context, Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary, 1989.
  • "Paul Opposes Peter," "Saved by Faith," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources.
  • "Paul's Troubles--and His Gospel," Expository Essay, Galatians 2:11-21, Dr. William R. Long. Part 2.
    • "So many of us have blinding moral clarity in our 20s and 30s (some of us maintain it until the day we die), but most of us, when the gray appears on our heads, see the grays of life a little more easily. Paul did, too. But here he is the true believer. The one who is totally dedicated to Christ."
  • Kairos CoMotion Lectionary Discussion, Galatians 2:15-21, Wesley White. "A place of conversation regarding Progressive Christianity."
    • "It seems to be possible to be greedy for justification in the same way we can be greedy for a fruit of the spirit."
  • "Not Through the Law," Pheme Perkins, The Christian Century, 1989. At Religion Online.
    • "A theology of grace does not negate the law, but it seeks to transform those aspects of human relationships which the law cannot touch and which may even make law a vehicle for hatred and sin."
  • "Jesus Praying through Me," Dale Fletcher, Faith and Health Connection.
  • "Peter's Capitulation and Paul's Correction (Galatians 2:11-21)," by Robert L. Deffinbaugh at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
• Articles & Background:
  • "A Question of Identity: Is Cephas the Same Person as Peter?" James M. Scott, Journal of Biblical Studies, 2003.
  • Rhetorical Identification in Paul's Autobiographical Narrative: Galatians 1.13 - 2.14, by Paul E. Koptak.
    • "Paul not only sought to strengthen his relationship with the Galatians through his autobiographical narrative, but that he used the depictions of relationships within the narrative to create a rhetorical community that the Galatians were forced either to join or reject. Thus to reject circumcision was to identify with the community of Paul and the Christ who sent him."
  • "The Ego and 'I': Galatians 2:19 in New Perspective," Scot McKnight, Word & World, 2000.
    • "Who 'died to the law' in Gal 2:19? Reading Galatians in the light of recent sociological interpretation suggests the 'I' of this text is the 'Ego' of Peter and Paul as Jewish Christians, not all who believe in Christ, as often assumed."
  • "Meals, Food and Tablefellowship." Jerome H. Neyrey, in The Social Sciences and New Testament Interpretation, 159-82. R. L. Rohrbaugh, ed. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1996.
    • "How can readers understand the particular ceremony of meals and table fellowship? Why are meals so important as symbols of broader social relationships? How can we peer below the surface and grasp the social dynamics encoded in meals and commensality, what anthropologists call "the language of meals"?"
  • "Judaism, the Circumcision of Gentiles, and Apocalyptic Hope: Another Look at Galatians 1 and 2," Paula Fredriksen, Journal of Theological Studies, 1991.
  • Empathy and the New Testament," L. Ann Jervis, McMaster Journal of Theology and Ministry, 2000.
    • "Empathy connotes not just listening to another’s story but also participating in the other’s story, so that the listener not only hears and believes the facts of another’s experience, but actually feels the experience at some level.  To have empathy with another is not simply to believe what that person says but to feel along with that person, to participate in that person’s experience."
  • "Pluralism and Christian Commitment," Lamin Senneh, Theology Today, 1988.
    • "In the early centuries, the new Christian religion moved forward like an oriental caravanserai, with its complex baggage of exotic teachings, baffling mysteries, and an eclectic ethical code. In the jumble and tumble of social encounter, Christians spoke a bewildering variety of languages... Christian missionaries assumed that since all cultures and languages are lawful in God's eyes, the rendering of God's word into those languages and cultures is valid and necessary... Far from suppressing indigenous cultures, the effect of missionary translation has been to stimulate indigenous renewal."
• Recommended articles from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are linked below. ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices.
  • Barth, Markus, "Justification, From Text to Sermon on Galatians 2:11-21," Interpretation, 1968.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Cosgrove, Charles H., "Did Paul Value Ethnicity?" The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2006.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Das, A. Andrew, "Another Look at EAN ME in Galatians 2:16," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • deBoer, Martinus C., "Paul's Use and Interpretation of a Justification Tradition in Galatians 2:15-21," Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Dockery, David S., "Introduction to the Epistle and Paul's Defense of His Apostleship (Galatians 1:1 - 2:14)," Review & Expositor, 1994.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Dunn, James D.G., "The Incident at Antioch (Gal. 2:11-18)," Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 1983.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Garland, David E., "Paul's Defense of the Truth of the Gospel Regarding Gentiles (Galatians 2:15-3:22)," Review & Expositor, 1994.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Garlington, Don B., "Paul's PARTISAN EK and the Question of Justification in Galatians," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2008.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Gaventa, B.R., "Galatians 1 and 2: Autobiography as Paradigm," Novum Testamentum, 1986.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Grieb, A. Katherine, "'The One Who Called You...' Vocation and Leadership in the Pauline Literature," Interpretation, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hamerton-Kelly, R.G., "Sacred Violence and 'Works of Law.' 'Is Christ Then an Agent of Sin?' (Galatians 2:17)," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 1990.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Harrisville, Roy A., III, "Before PISTIS CHRISTOU: The Objective Genitive as Good Greek," Novum Testamentum, 2006.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hester, James D., "The Rhetorical Structure of Galatians 1:11-2:14," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1984.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hunn, Debbie, "EAN MN' in Galatians 2:16: A Look at Greek Literature," Novum Testamentum, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Kilpatrick, G.D., "Peter, Jerusalem and Galatians 1:13-2:14," Novum Testamentum, 1983.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Koester, Craig, "Opportunity to Do Good: The Letter to the Galatians," Word & World, 1989.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Koptak, Paul E., "Rhetorical Identification in Paul's Autobiographical Narrative (Galatians 1:13-2:14)," Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 1990.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Matlock, R. Barry, "Dethologizing the PISTIS XRISTOU Debate: Cautionary Remarks from a Lexical Semantic Perspective," Novum Testamentum, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Matlock, R. Barry, "'Even the Demons Believe': Paul and pistis Xristou," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2002.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Matlock, R. Barry, "The Rhetoric of PISTIS in Paul: Galatians 2:16, 3:22, Romans 3:22, and Philippians 3:9," Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • McEntire, Mark, "Letters in Stories and Stories in Letters: An Intertextual Exploration of Ezra 4-5 and Galatians 1-2," Perspectives in Religious Studies, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • McKnight, Scot, "The Ego and 'I': Galatians 2:19 in New Perspective," Word & World, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Neyrey, Jerome H., S.J., "God, Benefactor and Patron: The Major Cultural Model for Interpreting the Deity in Greco-Roman Antiquity," Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Owen, Paul L., "The 'Works of the Law' in Romans and Galatians: A New Defense of the Subjective Genitive," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2007. (See especially section beginning on page 562.)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Perkins, Pheme, "Not Through the Law," The Christian Century, 1989.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Sanders, Jack T., "Paul's 'Autobiographical' Statements in Galatians 1-2," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1966.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Sanneh, Lamin, "Pluralism and Christian Commitment," Theology Today, 1988.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Taylor, N.H., "Paul's Apostolic Legitimacy," Journal of Theology for Southern Africa, 1993.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Thurston, Bonnie Bowman, "The Conquered Self: Emptiness and God in a Buddhist-Christian Dialogue," Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 1985.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Udoh, Fabian E., "Paul's Views on the Law: Questions about Origin (Gal. 1:6-2:21; Phil. 3:2-11)," Novum Testamentum, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
• Sermons:
  • "M&Ms and the Gospel," "I Believe, I Believe," from a series of sermons on the book of Galatians by Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church in Des Moines, Washington.
• With Children:
  • "What Are You Worth?" Charles Kirkpatrick, Sermons4kids.com.
  • "Live by Faith," Jim Kerlin, childrensermons.com.
• Drama:
  • "A Tale of Two Gardens," Michele Pitman, dramatix.
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
• Hymns and Music:
  • Hymns with Scripture Allusions: Galatians 2:20. The Cyber Hymnal.
  • Hymnal Scripture References, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
  • At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
    • And Can It Be?
    • I Gave My Life for Thee
    • Now Let Us From this Table Rise
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of Galatians