Galatians 1:20

Now the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not. Solemn asseveration that his visit was only for fifteen days, and that he saw no apostle except Peter and James Probably it was reported by Judaizers that he had received a course of instruction from the apostles in Jerusalem from the first; hence, his earnestness in asserting the contrary, to vindicate his apostleship as derived directly from Christ....

20._Now the things which I write to you_. This affirmation extends to the whole narrative. The vast earnestness of Paul on this subject is evinced by his resorting to an oath, which cannot lawfully be employed but on great and weighty occasions. Nor is it wonderful that he insists with so much earnestness on this point; for we have already seen to what expedients the impostors had recourse in order to take from him the name and credit of an apostle. Now the modes of swearing used by good men deserve our attention; for we learn from them that an oath must be viewed simply as an appeal to the judgment-seat of God for the integrity and truth of our words and actions; and such a transaction ought to be guided by religion and the fear of God....

15-24 St. Paul was wonderfully brought to the knowledge and faith of Christ. All who are savingly converted, are called by the grace of God; their conversion is wrought by his power and grace working in them. It will but little avail us to have Christ revealed to us, if he is not also revealed in us. He instantly prepared to obey, without hesitating as to his worldly interest, credit, ease, or life itself. And what matter of thanksgiving and joy is it to the churches of Christ, when they hear of such instances to the praise of the glory of his grace, whether they have ever seen them or not! They glorify God for his power and mercy in saving such persons, and for all the service to his people and cause that is done, and may be further expected from them....

Verse 20. _BEFORE GOD I LIE NOT._] This he speaks in reference to having seen only _Peter_ and _James_ at Jerusalem; and consequently to prove that he had not learned the Gospel from the assembly of the apostles at Jerusalem, nor consequently received his commission from them....

BEHOLD, BEFORE GOD I LIE NOT - This is an oath, or a solemn appeal to God; see the note at Romans 9:1. The design of this oath here is to prevent all suspicion of falsehood, It may seem to be remarkable that Paul should make this solemn appeal to God in this argument, and in the narrative of a plain fact, when his statement could hardly be called in question by anyone. But we may remark: (1) That the oath here refers not only to the fact that he was with Peter and James only fifteen days, but to the entire group of facts to which he had referred in this chapter. “The things which I wrote unto you.” It included, therefore, the narrative about his conversion, and the direct revelation which he had from the Lord Jesus. (2) There were no radios which he could appeal to in this case, and he could, th

EXPOSITION GALATIANS 1:1 _The_ _introductory greeting. _The style of this greeting, compared with those found in St. Paul's other Epistles, gives indications of his having addressed himself to the composition of the letter under strong perturbation of feeling. This transpires in the abruptness with which, at the very outset, he at once sweeps aside, as it were, out of his path, a slur east upon his apostolic commission, in protesting that he was "apostle, not from man nor through a man." It appears again in that impetuous negligence of exact precision of language, with which the mention of "God the Father" is conjoined with that of "Jesus Christ" under the one preposition "through," as the _medium _through which his apostleship had been conferred upon him. We cannot help receiving the impression that the apostle had only just bef

NOW THE THINGS WHICH I WRITE UNTO YOU,.... Concerning his education, his religion, his principles and practices before conversion; concerning his call by the grace of God, the revelation of Christ in him, and his preaching of him among the Heathen; concerning his travels to several places for this purpose, and especially concerning his not receiving the Gospel from men, not from any of the apostles; and how that upon his conversion he did not go up to Jerusalem to any of them, to be taught and sent forth by them; and that it was not till three years after that he wept thither to see Peter, with whom he stayed but fifteen days, and saw no other apostle, but James the Lord's brother. Now this being a matter of moment, and what he had been charged with by the false teachers, that the Gospel he preached he had received from men, in order to disqualify him and bring him into contempt as an ap...

Galatians 1:1. _Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)_ Paul begins this Epistle by stating his commission as an apostle. In Galatia, he had been subjected to the great sorrow of having his apostle-ship called in question. Does he, therefore, give up his claim to the office, and retire from the work? No, not for a moment; but he begins his letter to the Galatians by declaring himself to be «an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ.» His enemies had said, «Paul was never one of the Saviour's twelve apostles; he is not like those who were trained and educated by Christ himself. No doubt he has borrowed his doctrine from them, and he is only a retailer of other men's goods». No, no,» says Paul, «I am an apostle as truly as any other of the twelve; ‘not of men, neither by man, but by Je

ANALYSIS AND ANNOTATIONS I. THE TESTIMONY OF PAUL CONCERNING HIS APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY AND THE GOSPEL CHAPTER 1 _ 1. The Introduction. (Galatians 1:1)_ 2. The Rebuke. (Galatians 1:6) 3. Paul's Gospel Given by Revelation. (Galatians 1:11) 4. How Paul became an Apostle Independent of Jerusalem. (Galatians 1:13) The introductory words of this Epistle are brief and of deep significance. He speaks of himself as an apostle not from men, nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father. His apostleship had been called in question and the gospel he preached branded as lacki

Not till he had been three years a Christian and a Christian preacher did he come in contact with the earlier apostles; and then but slightly. He visited Cephas at Jerusalem, spending a fortnight with him (_cf._ 1 Corinthians 15:3?); and he also met James, the brother of Christ (the Gr. may mean either this one other apostle or this important non-apostolic personage: no real difference to the argument). Evidently stories had been put about that Paul had been instructed by the apostolic college. There is no truth in them! After the one brief and limited contact, he pursued his own career in his native province of Cilicia and at Antioch (compare Acts 9:30; Acts 11:25 ff.), favourably heard of in Judæ an churches, but not kno