CIRCUMSTANCES OF WRITING

AUTHOR: The author’s name is “Paul,” and he claims to be “an apostle” of Christ (Gl 1:1). The autobiographical information in the letter is consistent with what is known about the apostle Paul from Acts and his other letters. Theologically, everything in Galatians agrees with Paul’s views elsewhere, notably in Romans.

BACKGROUND: It is not certain where the Galatian churches were located or when Paul wrote Galatians. The reason is that, during the New Testament era, the term Galatians was used both ethnically and politically. If “Galatians” is understood ethnically, the founding of the Galatian churches is only implied in the New Testament. On Paul’s second missionary journey, he “went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia” (Ac 16:6) in north central Asia Minor (near Ankara, the capital of Turkey). His later visit to the same general area is recorded in Acts 18:23 and 19:1. This is where a group from Gaul (modern France) invaded in the third century BC, and it became known as Galatia.

Understood politically, “Galatians” can refer to those living in the southern part of the Roman province of Galatia. That region included the cities of Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe, where Paul worked to plant churches, as recorded in Acts 13:14-14:23.

The view that Galatians was written to the area where the ethnic Galatians lived is called the “North Galatian” theory. The possible dates of writing related to this understanding range from AD 52 or 53, if shortly after the second missionary journey, to AD 56, if written about the same time as Romans, to which it is similar theologically.

The view that Galatians was sent to churches in the southern portion of the Roman province of Galatia is known as the “South Galatian” theory. Some holding this view date Galatians in the early 50s, but others as early as AD 48 or 49, before the Jerusalem Council, which is usually dated to about AD 49. If the earlier date here is correct, Galatians is among the earliest of the New Testament books.

Another key consideration is comparing the basis of contention in Galatians to the topic of debate at the Jerusalem Council. The problem addressed in Galatians is that “the works of the law” of Moses (2:16-17; 3:2; cp. 5:4), notably circumcision (5:2; 6:12-13), were added by some teachers to what was required to be justified before God. This is the same issue that Acts records as the reason why the Jerusalem Council met (Ac 15:1,5), supporting the idea that the existing problem in the Galatian churches was part of the reason for the Jerusalem Council.

If Galatians was written after the Jerusalem Council, it is inconceivable that Paul would not have cited the conclusions of the council, which supported his works-free view of the gospel. This strongly implies that the Jerusalem Council had not yet occurred when Paul wrote Galatians.

MESSAGE AND PURPOSE

Galatians was written to clarify and defend “the truth of the gospel” (2:5,16) in the face of a false gospel. This was done by: (1) defending Paul’s message and authority as an apostle, (2) considering the Old Testament basis of the gospel message, and (3) demonstrating how the gospel message Paul preached worked practically in daily Christian living. Paul chose this approach to correct those in the Galatian churches in regard to both their faith and practice related to the gospel.

CONTRIBUTION TO THE BIBLE

There is much about the life and movements of the apostle Paul that is only known—or filled in significantly—from Galatians 1:13-2:14 (and the personal glimpse in 4:13-14). Included are a mention of Paul’s sojourn to “Arabia” (1:17) and descriptions of two trips to Jerusalem (1:18-19; 2:1-10). Paul described a confrontation with Peter (2:11-14) that is mentioned nowhere else in the New Testament.

In the middle third of Galatians, certain aspects of the gospel’s Old Testament background are explained in unique ways. Notable are: (1) the curse related to Jesus being crucified, as cited from Deuteronomy 21:23 (Gl 3:13); (2) Jesus fulfilling the prophecy of the singular physical “seed” of Abraham (3:16; see Gn 22:18); (3) the roles of the law as prison (3:22-23) and guardian (3:24-25) until Christ; and (4) the extended allegory of the slave and free sons of Abraham (4:21-31).

Galatians tells us much about the ministry of the Holy Spirit in relation to the Christian life. After God sends his Spirit into the hearts of believers, adopting them as his children (4:5-6), they are commanded to “walk by the Spirit” (5:16), be “led by the Spirit” (5:18), and “keep in step with the Spirit” (5:25), as well as “sow to the Spirit” and “reap” the related eternal harvest (6:8). The moment-by-moment outcome of that kind of sensitivity to the ministry of the Holy Spirit is what is meant by “the fruit of the Spirit” (5:22-23).

STRUCTURE

Galatians follows the typical pattern for a first-century letter, with the exception of the element of thanksgiving: salutation (1:1-5), the main body (1:6-6:15), and a farewell (6:16-18). Contrasting concepts are prominent in the letter: divine revelation vs. human insight, grace vs. law, justification vs. condemnation, Jerusalem vs. Mount Sinai, sonship vs. slavery, the fruit of the Spirit vs. the works of the flesh, and liberty vs. bondage.

OUTLINE

I.Introduction (1:1-9)

A.Greeting (1:1-5)

B.The Galatians’ lapse from the gospel (1:6-9)

II.The Authenticity of Paul’s Message (1:10-2:21)

A.Paul’s gospel revealed by Christ (1:10-24)

B.Paul’s gospel acknowledged by others (2:1-10)

C.Paul’s gospel vs. Peter’s compromise (2:11-21)

III.The Way of Salvation (3:1-4:31)

A.Salvation is by faith, not works (3:1-14)

B.Salvation is through promise, not law (3:15-26)

C.Believers are sons, not slaves (3:27-4:31)

IV.The Path of Freedom (5:1-6:10)

A.Freedom must not be lost through legalism (5:1-12)

B.Freedom must not be abused through license (5:13-26)

C.Freedom must be expressed through service (6:1-10)

V.Conclusion: Sacrificial Living vs. Legalism (6:11-18)

300 BC-AD 33

The Galatians, Celts of European origins, invade Asia Minor. 278 BC

Mark Antony and Pompey reward the Galatians with additional territory for supporting Rome in its wars against the Mithridates. 63-36 BC

Amyntas, king of Galatia, wills his kingdom to Rome at his death. 25 BC

Jesus’s trials, death, resurrection, and ascension Nisan 14-16 or April 3-5, ad 33

AD 34-46

Saul’s conversion on the Damascus Road October 34

Paul returns to his native Tarsus. 37-40

Barnabas travels from Antioch of Syria to find Paul. Summer 40

Barnabas and Saul serve together in Antioch. 41

Emperor Caligula is murdered by members of his Praetorian Guard. Claudius succeeds him as emperor. 41

Judea experiences severe famine. 46

AD 41-49

Paul, Barnabas, and John Mark make their first missionary journey. 47-49

From Syrian Antioch, Paul writes his letter to the Galatians, assuming the destination of the letter was the churches of southern Galatia: Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. 49

Barnabas and Paul travel from Antioch to Jerusalem for the conference dealing with the question of whether Gentiles had to be circumcised in order to be saved. 49

Paul and Barnabas part ways over the question of whether John Mark should be allowed to join them on a second missionary journey. 49

AD 49-51

Paul and Silas team up for an overland journey to revisit cities of south Galatia as the first segment of Paul’s second missionary journey. 49

Timothy joins Paul and Silas as they travel through north Galatia to Troas. 49

Paul, Silas, and Timothy sail from Troas to Macedonia, planting the church in Philippi. 50

Paul and his companions move from Philippi to Thessalonica and Berea. 50

As a result of much persecution, Paul and his companions split up, with Paul going to Corinth by way of Athens. 50-51