Galatians 1:14

Galatians 1:14. And made progress (or, advanced) in Judaism beyond many of mine own an in my race (or, nation), being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. Paul far surpassed in zeal for the Jewish religion his contemporary kinsmen or fellow-religionists. He belonged to the extreme party of the Pharisees who called themselves ‘zealots of the law, zealots of God'; comp. Acts 22:3, ‘I was zealous towards God'; Acts 23:6, ‘I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee' (Philippians 3:5-6). ‘Traditions of my fathers' are the law of Moses with all the explanations and additions of the Pharisees (afterwards embodied in the Mishna), which concealed rather than unveiled the Word of God and either hindered or destroyed its direct effect (comp. Matthew 15:2; Mark 7:3; Mark 7:13). Perhaps the written law is not included here. ‘Tradition' (paradosis) embraces everything which is handed down orally or in writing from generation to generation. It occurs twelve times in the New Testament, twice in a good sense of the Christian doctrine itself (1 Corinthians 11:2, rendered ‘ordinances' in the English version; 2 Thessalonians 2:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:6); in the other passages in an unfavorable sense of the human additions to, and perversions of, the written word of God; hence defined as ‘traditions of the elders' (Matthew 15:2-3; Matthew 15:6; Mark 7:3; Mark 5:8-9; Mark 5:13), or ‘tradition of men' (Colossians 2:8). Our Saviour never appeals to tire Jewish traditions except to oppose them; and this is of great moment in the controversy with Romanism, which relies more on ecclesiastical traditions than on the Bible.