COMMENTARY ON GALATIANS
LESSON NUMBER 9
Gal 1:15 “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by His grace, 16 To reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: 17 Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus.”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Galatians 1:15-17
WHY AND HOW PAUL GOT HIS START
INTRODUCTION
It is important to know the qualifications of a messenger from God. Luke wrote as one who had a “perfect understanding of all things” (Lk 1:3). John wrote as one who had heard and seen “the Word of life” (1 John 1:1), and as one who had received “The Revelation of Jesus Christ” (Rev 1:1). Peter wrote as “an apostle of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet 1:1). James wrote as “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (James 1:1). Paul wrote as “a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle” (Rom 1:1), “through the will of God” (1 Cor 1:1; Col 1:1). Paul now elaborates on his own calling and his response to it. He will speak humbly, yet with the authority that comes from personal involvement with the King of kings and Lord of lords. All of this suggests that how individuals view the proclaimer has a great bearing on how they receive what he says. Paul reminded the Thessalonians that they had not received his word as “the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe” (1 Thess 2:13). In this epistle he will remind the Galatians that they had once received him “as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus” (Gal 4:14). At that time they had flourished, running well and experiencing the working of God among themselves. However, now that they had chosen to receive another message that contradicted what Paul had preached, they had fallen on spiritually hard times. Paul knows that unless they recover from this setback, his labor with them will have been spent in vain, and they will have no part in the eternal inheritance. He therefore exerts himself to assist them in seeing what they had seen in him at the first. He knows that if they can see him rightly, his message will once again burn in their hearts, and they will recover from their backward motion to the glory of God.
WHEN IT PLEASED GOD
Gal 1:15 “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by His grace.”
Paul has reminded the Galatians of his background, which was one of profound commitment to “the Jews’ religion,” which was the only revealed religion, or manner of life Godward in all of the world. However, his zealous life was suddenly interrupted completely independent of his own will or efforts. The Lord forced his way into the life of Saul of Tarsus in such a way that he could not ignore it. Paul now speaks of this time in his life.
WHEN IT PLEASED GOD. Other versions read, “the good pleasure of God,” ASV “chose,” NJB “well pleased,” YLT and “saw fit and was pleased.” AMPLIFIED The word “pleased” comes from a word that means, “it seems good to one, chooses, determines, decides, and to be favorable inclined to one.” THAYER Although a number of modern translations omit this word altogether, it is critical to the proper understanding of the text. God must be seen as One who operates according to His own will (Eph 1:11; 2 Tim 1:9; Heb 2:4; James 1:18).
Further, God’s will is based upon His own determinations – “the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11). Never is this more clear than in the example of Saul of Tarsus being called by the Lord.
SEPARATED FROM HIS MOTHER’S WOMB. Other versions read, “set me apart, even from my mother’s womb,” NASB “set me apart from birth,” NIV “set me apart before I was born,” NRSV and “from my mother’s body.” BBE This expression does not refer to the birth of Saul, as some modern versions represent it. (NIV, BBE, NET, NIB, WEYMOUTH, WILLIAMS, MONTGOMERY) This refers to BEFORE the birth, not at or after it. Further, this choice was not known by Saul until he had been confronted by Jesus on the road to Damascus. The Lord revealed to Ananas that Saul was a chosen vessel before he was sent to speak to him (Acts 9:15). Now, Paul states that this choice was in place while he was yet in his mother’s womb.
Paul also referred to himself as being “separated unto the Gospel of God” (Rom 1:1).
Several key persons of Scripture are spoken of in this manner. Jacob (Gen 25:23). Samson (Judges 13:5,7). The nation of Israel (Isa 46:3). The prophesied Savior, Jesus (Isa 49:1,5). Jeremiah (Jer 1:5). John the Baptist (Lk 1:15). In his doctrine, Paul affirms that this language indicates the choice had nothing whatsoever to do with the works of the one so chosen. This has particular reference to Jacob. “For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth; It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated” (Rom 9:11-13).
This did not excuse the actions of Paul prior to his conversion. It rather confirms that the counsels of God cannot be negated by men, and that the depraved human condition will not hinder God from carrying out His determinations.
Paul applies this reasoning to the those who are in Christ Jesus. “Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began” (2 Tim 1:9). Paul affirms that by Divine arrangement calling comes after Divine determination (Rom 8:30). Jude states that there is a sense in which calling comes after sanctification and preservation (Jude 1:1). Both doctrine and godly reasoning will lead the believer to this conclusion.
CALLED BY GOD’S GRACE. Other versions read, “called me through His grace” NKJV To be called by God’s grace is to be called, or summoned, to the Lord because He wants to do it. It is an expression of His favor. Although, from one perspective, all of humanity is in a common condition, having sinned and coming short of the glory of God, yet some are singled out for involvement in the work of the Lord. This was true of all prophets and apostles.
In this case, the calling was not motivated by the worthiness of the individual, or by the quest of the person involved, or the recognition of their works. The calling was “according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28), or “according to His own purpose and grace” (2 Tim 1:9). This was a call to DO something, as well as to BE something. Paul frequently referred to this calling in his writings: “called to be an apostle” (Rom 1:1; 1 Cor 15:9); “called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God” (1 Cor 1:1).
To be called by God’s grace involves being made aware of Divine favor, particularly as it is seen in the humility, suffering, and death of the Lord Jesus Christ. The love of God, which is the root of His grace, is perceived “because He laid down His life for us” (1 John 3:16). This is the motivating factor in our life in Christ, as well as in our calling – both the call to partake of His salvation, and the call to labor in His vineyard. Therefore we read, “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead” (2 Cor 5:14). The awareness of this thrust Paul into the work of an apostle. He never did forget that Jesus loved him, and gave Himself for him (Gal 2:20).
THE SON WAS REVEALED IN PAUL
1:16 “ To reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood.”
TO REVEAL HIS SON IN ME. Other versions read, “reveal His Son to me,” NRSV “give the revelation of His Son in me,” BBE “show me His Son,” GWN “reveal His Son by me,” MRD/PNT/TNT “within me,” LIVING/AMPLIFIED and “unveil His Son in me.” WILLIAMS
As you can see, there are at least three differing representations in the various versions: “IN me,” “TO me,” and “BY me.” Technically, the word translated “in” (evn) can mean “with.” However, its primary meaning denotes “a fixed location in place, time, and state.”STRONG’S The meaning here is that Paul experienced illumination concerning the Person, accomplishments, and ministry of Jesus Christ. His was not a mere intellectual grasp of the Lord, as one who was taught by men. Many people have been taught about Christ who have very little discernment of Him. They do not have the “understanding” that is accomplished when one is taught by the Lord (Eph 4:21; 1 Thess 4:9; 1 John 5:20). Paul was so taught that he could reason on Christ, draw out the implications of His Person, work, and ministry, and collate it with human experience. He would use the knowledge of the Lord like a skilled craftsman can use the tools of his trade.
When Paul prayed for the enlightening of the eyes of the understanding of the saints, he was seeking their measure of what he himself had experienced. God has never dispatched a person to declare His Son who was fundamentally ignorant of Him. Further, the level of understanding that was imparted to Paul was unparalleled. He “labored more abundantly that they all” because he saw more (1 Cor 15:10).
THAT I MIGHT PREACH HIM. Other versions read, “proclaim Him,” NRSV “give the news of Him,” BBE “announce Him,” CJB “by the Gospel preach Him,” PNT and “proclaim Him good news.” YLT Certain Judaizers were said to preach Moses (Acts 15:21). Others were said to have “preached another Jesus” whom Paul did not preach (2 Cor 11:4). Paul, however, preached the real Jesus – One God had given him to understand.
Boiled down to its essence, Paul “preached Christ” (Acts 9:20). He did not proclaim a way of life, but a Person. He was not engaged in preaching methods, but the Lord Jesus. He did not bring the message of a church, a group, or a particular man-made theology, but he declared Christ. His writings contain 573 references to Jesus Christ. He proclaimed Him as God’s Son (Rom 1:4), our Savior (Tit 1:4), the Mediator (1 Tim 2:5), the Intercessor (Rom 8:34), the Head of the body (Col 1:18), the Head of all principality and power (Col 2:10), the Firstborn from the dead (Col 1:18), the King (1 Tim 6:15), the “Author and Finisher of our faith” (Heb 12:2), the “High Priest” (Heb 8:1), the “great Shepherd of the Sheep”Heb 13;20), “the Last Adam” (1 Cor 15:45), “the Second Man” (1 Cor 15:47), “a minister of the sanctuary” (Heb 8:1), and much more. Take every reference to the Lord Jesus Christ out of Paul’s writings, and they lose all of their utility. There is no other theme that would suddenly surface – no other emphasis.
From one point of view, God revealed much of His Son to Paul because he considered him to be “faithful” (1 Tim 1:12). He knew the tenderness of his heart, and how he would make known what he had been given to see. He would not cater to the whims of men, or cave in to the pressures of the Judaizers.
AMONG THE HEATHEN. Other versions read, “the Gentiles,” NKJV “the nations,” YLT and “the Gentiles (the non-Jewish world.” AMPLIFIED The “heathen,” or the Gentiles, are all nations with the single exception of the Jews. Today, the total Jewish population is 13.3 million, which is 1.4% of the world’s population. By way of comparison, the Muslim population of the world is 1,500,000,000, or 23% of the world’s population. Twelve apostles were specifically sent to Israel (Gal 2:7; Matt 19:28), and one was sent to the Gentile world. By way of comparison, the professed Christian population of the world is 2,500,000,000, or 38% of the population.
Paul was faithful to his commission, traveling extensively throughout the Gentile world, and writing key doctrines and expositions to the Gentile churches (Rome, Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, Colossae, and Thessalonica.
IMMEDIATELY I CONFERRED NOT WITH FLESH AND BLOOD. Other versions read, “did not immediately consult with flesh and blood,” NASB “did not consult any man,” NIV “did not confer with any human being,” NRSV and” [did not consult or counsel with any frail human being or communicate with anyone].” AMPLIFIED After the Son commenced to be revealed in Him, it is as though Paul sensed the folly of consulting with any man. There was a loftiness in the revelation that was transcendent to anything that could have been learned from men. The record in Acts affirms that Paul immediately began to preach Christ, saying He was “the Son of God” (Acts 9:20). That was at the beginning of the revelation, which accentuates its lofty nature. The point Paul is making is that the doctrine he declared was not a compilation of things he was taught by men. His writings, for example, were not like those of Luke (Lk 1:1-2).
HE WENT TO ARABIA AND RETURNED TO DAMASCUS
1:17 “Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus.”
Paul is establishing the originality of his message – a message from which the Galatians had departed. Their defection was therefore from God, not merely from Paul the teacher.
NEITHER WENT I UP TO JERUSALEM. Jerusalem was the center of Christian activity. That is where Jesus particularly ministered, and it is where the church was launched, and the Gospel was first preached. Yet, there seemed to be an intuitive sense in Paul that it would be inappropriate at this time, when his understanding was being shaped, to seek a kind of short-cut to learning. Ananias had told Paul that he had been chosen to “know” God’s will, and to declare what he had “seen and heard” (Acts 22:14). In recounting his Damascus road experience to king Agrippa, Paul declared that Jesus had said to him, “for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee” (Acts 26:16). When Jesus met Saul on the road to Damascus, He told him to go into the city, and there it would be told him what to do (Acts 9:6). However, no such instruction was given to him concerning the message that he was to declare. That was something Jesus made clear He Himself would teach to Paul. That is why Paul “immediately conferred not with flesh and blood.”
TO THEM WHICH WERE APOSTLES BEFORE ME. Those who were apostles before Paul had not only heard Jesus personally, but had been given the Holy Spirit to bring those words to their remembrance (John 14:26), and guide them into all truth (John 16:13). In His prayer to God during His last evening with the disciples, Jesus referred to those apostles as those through whose words the world would believe (John 17:20). However, Paul would not be in that category. He did not believe because of what the apostles said, but because of what Jesus said.
I WENT INTO ARABIA. Other versions read, “I went immediately into Arabia,” NIV “I went away at once into Arabia,” NRSV “right away I departed to Arabia,” NET and “but I went away and retired into Arabia.” AMPLIFIED
This is the solitary Scriptural reference to Paul’s retreat into Arabia. Luke makes no reference to it. We do not know what part of Arabia is meant, how long he was there, or what he did while he was there. We assume that this was a time of tutelage by the Lord Jesus Himself. At least, it was the commencement of the revelation to which he refers in verse sixteen.
It is understood that Arabia was immediately to the south of Damascus, but we know little more than that as regards this text. Paul does mention Arabia later in this epistle, declaring that Mount Sinai was there (Gal 4:25). Although it is nothing more than speculation, the thought has occurred to me that Sinai would be an excellent location for Divine tutelage.
The point that is being made here is that Paul’s understanding of the things of God was not formed as a result of the ministry of any of his peers. Further, it did not simply spring forth from his study of Moses and the Prophets, with whom, he was no doubt very familiar. His understanding is traced back to the personal teaching of the Lord Jesus. In fact, he cites one instance of such teaching in his letter to the Corinthians. “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread” (1 Cor 11:23). So far as the record is concerned, no other apostle ever taught concerning the institution of the Lord’s Table. And, no other section of Scripture says of that table what Paul said (1 Cor 10:16-21; 11:23-32). I gather that this is a good example of the personal teaching that Paul received from Jesus on a number of Kingdom realities.
I RETURNED AGAIN TO DAMASCUS. Following an unspecified period of time in Arabia, Paul returned to Damascus – not to his home town of Tarsus (Acts 9:11; 21:39; 22:3), but to Damascus, the place where he received his call from God, and where he first preached that Jesus was the Son of God (Acts 9:8-27; 22:10-11). That is where it is written that he “showed first unto them of Damascus . . . that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance” (Acts 26:20). This was within the context of proving to the Jews that Jesus “is very Christ” (Acts 9:22). How much he was taught by Jesus during that time, we do not know.
This kind of testimony cold not be delivered by the teachers that had caused the defection at Galatia. They were parroting the doctrinal stance of men, not a message that had been given by the Christ they professed to be representing. Among other things, this shows the seriousness of a religion that is anchored in human tradition. It also confirms the value of the teaching of Paul, who was a spokesman for Jesus, receiving understanding that is reflected in no other inspired writing.
It is my judgment that today we have a church that is in the precise predicament in which the Galatians found themselves. That is why it is so essential that the message of this book be grasped, and not glossed as is so traditional among certain bodies of people. Paul is dealing with foundational realities that had a bearing on a fundamental understanding of the New Covenant.