SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:1

Section 1:1–5

Paul greeted the Christians in Galatia

This section is the introduction to Paul’s letter to the Galatians. In this introduction, Paul followed the customs of that time for writing a letter. The custom was to put the writer’s name first and then write the names of the people to whom the letter was sent. After that the writer greeted them with a wish for their well-being. So, Paul began this letter with his own name in 1:1. Then in 1:2 he mentioned the people to whom he was sending the letter. In 1:3 he greeted these people with a wish for their well-being. Among Christians, this wish was often a prayer for God’s blessing.

In this section, Paul briefly introduced two main themes of his letter.

(a) It was God and Jesus who had made Paul an apostle. It was not other people who had called him to become an apostle. That gave him very high authority. This authority is one of the themes of his letter, and he discussed it more fully in chapter 2.

(b) In 1:4, Paul reminded the Galatians that we Christians are saved because Jesus died for our sins. The main theme of the whole letter to the Galatians is that we are saved by the grace of God and by believing in Jesus.

Some other possible headings for this section are:

Greeting
-or-
Greetings from Paul

Paragraph 1:1–2

1:1a

Paul: Paul began this letter with his name. He did not use a verb. But you may need to add a verb to help your readers understand that Paul was the person who wrote the letter. For example:

This letter is from Paul (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-

?I,? Paul, ?am writing this letter? ?to you? .

an apostle: The word apostle refers to a person whom someone sends with his authority. He sends him to give a message or to accomplish a particular task. Here, the word apostle refers to a man whom Jesus chose and gave authority. After Jesus returned to heaven, his apostles were the leaders of the people who believed in him.

If you have already translated the Gospels, you can probably use the same term for apostle as you used there.

Some ways to translate apostle are:

a ?special? messenger
-or-
a representative
-or-
a person with authority ?from Jesus?
-or-
a chief leader ?of Jesus’s work?

See also apostle in the Glossary for more information.

1:1b

sent: In Greek, there is no verb in 1:1b. Many languages may need to supply a verb here as the Berean Standard Bible does. Here are some other examples of English versions that supply a verb here:

not sent from men (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
I was not chosen to be an apostle by human beings (New Century Version)
-or-
I was not appointed by any group (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
whose call to be an apostle did not come from human beings (Good News Translation)

not from men nor by man: There are at least two ways to interpret these two phrases:

(1) The focus is on the difference in meaning indicated by the two prepositions from and by. According to this interpretation, the phrase not from men means that no human being chose/commissioned Paul to be an apostle. The phrase nor by man means that there was no intermediary between God/Jesus and Paul when he chose/commissioned Paul to be an apostle. On the road to Damascus, Jesus spoke directly to Paul without going through any human being. For example:

It was not men who made me an apostle. It was not an intermediary who made me an apostle.

(2) The focus is on the plural and singular nouns men and man. According to this interpretation, the first phrase means that no group of men (such as the church in Antioch or Jerusalem) chose/commissioned Paul to be an apostle. The second phrase means that no individual man (such as Ananias, Peter, Barnabas, or James) chose/commissioned him to be an apostle. For example:

?chosen? not by any group or individual (God’s Word)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). This is the interpretation that most English commentaries follow.

Some other ways to translate these phrases are:

?My call to be an apostle did? not ?come? from men. ?It did not come? through an intermediary
-or-
Men did not ?commission me to be an apostle? . ?Jesus? did not use an intermediary ?to chose/appoint me? .

1:1c

but: There is a contrast here. The contrast is between those (in 1:1b) who did not send Paul and God, who did send him. Languages have different ways to indicate this negative-positive type of contrast. Some of the ways are:

With the conjunction “but.”

With a conjunction other than “but.” This is a common way in English to show this type of contrast. For example:

rather
-or-
on the contrary
-or-
instead

With no conjunction. For example:

b I was not chosen to be an apostle by human beings, nor was I sent from human beings. c I was made an apostle through Jesus Christ… (New Century Version)

by Jesus Christ and God the Father: This phrase means that Paul was chosen and sent through/by Jesus Christ and God the Father. His authority as an apostle came directly from God.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
I was chosen to be an apostle by Jesus Christ and by God the Father (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Jesus Christ and God the Father ?chose me? ?to be an apostle?

Jesus Christ: In the phrase Jesus Christ, Jesus is a personal name, and Christ is his title. Christ is not the surname of Jesus.

One way to show this is:

Jesus the Christ/Messiah

In some languages, people say the title before the name. For example:

Christ Jesus

Christ: The title Christ is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “Messiah.” The Jews used this title to refer to the person whom God had appointed and promised to send as king and savior.

Some ways to translate Christ are:

Use a title or a descriptive phrase in your language that has the same meaning as Christ. For example:

the Messiah
-or-
the Promised Deliverer
-or-
the Rescuer/Ruler whom God appointed

Transliterate Christ and include a phrase that explains the meaning. For example:

Christ, the appointed one
-or-
Cristo, the Savior whom God promised to send
-or-
Christ, he comes from God

Transliterate Christ and indicate in some way that it is a title. For example:

the Christ
-or-
Kirisita

If you do not indicate the meaning of Christ in the text, you may want to include a footnote to explain it. Or you may want to explain the meaning in a glossary. For example:

The word/title “Christ” refers to the one whom God had promised to send. He would be both king/ruler and savior.

God the Father: In some languages, it may be more natural to translate God the Father as:

Father God
-or-
God our Father

1:1d

who raised Him from the dead: This is a relative clause. In some languages, a literal translation of this relative clause may imply a wrong meaning. It may imply that there is one God who raised Jesus from the dead, and another God who did not raise Jesus. If this is true in your language, you should translate this clause as a separate sentence. For example

He raised Him from the dead
-or-
He made Jesus to live again

General Comment on 1:1b–d

In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of some of the clauses in 1:1b–d. For example:

1c I was chosen to be an apostle by Jesus Christ and by God the Father, 1d who raised him from death. 1b No mere human chose or appointed me to this work. (Contemporary English Version)

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:2

1:2a

and all the brothers with me: This clause means that other believers joined with Paul in sending this letter. It implies that they supported Paul and agreed with what he wrote. They joined with Paul in sending their greetings to the Galatians.
h
Some other ways to translate this clause are:

All the believers who are here join me in sending greetings (Good News Translation)
-or-
All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending this letter (New Living Translation (2004))

This phrase does not mean that the brothers were writers with Paul. Do not imply that the brothers helped Paul to write the letter.

brothers: In the letters of the New Testament, the word brothers refers to brothers in the faith. It refers to fellow believers. It is often restricted to the leading men in the local church. It does not refer to Paul’s biological brothers.

Some other ways to translate this word are:

fellow-believers
-or-
my companions in the faith
-or-
the Lord’s followers (Contemporary English Version)

1:2b

To the churches of Galatia: This phrase tells to whom Paul was sending his letter. These churches were located in the Roman province of Galatia.

In Greek, this phrase has no verb. In many languages, it will be more natural to include a verb here. For example:

?I am writing this letter? to the churches in Galatia
-or-

?We are sending this letter? to the believers in the province/region of Galatia

churches: The word churches refers to groups of believers. It does not refer to church buildings.

Some other ways to translate this word are:

the groups of believers ?in Christ?
-or-
the congregations
-or-
the people/followers of Christ

See church in the Glossary for more information.

of Galatia: Galatia was one of the provinces/regions in the Roman Empire. It is not the name of a town. To make this clear, you may say:

in the province/region of Galatia

General Comment on 1:1–2

In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the clauses in 1:1–2. Some ways to reorder these verses are:

Begin the letter by stating that Paul and all the brothers with him sent it. For example:

?This letter is? from the apostle Paul and from all the brothers who are with me here.

Begin the letter by stating that Paul sent it to the Galatian believers. Then state those who joined with Paul in sending this letter. For example:

?I,? Paul, ?am writing? to ?you,? all the believers in Galatia. All the brothers who are with me ?join in sending greetings to you? .

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:3

1:3

Grace and peace to you: This phrase was a common greeting among Christians at that time. This greeting was like a prayer or a blessing. Paul prayed to God and asked him to bless the Galatians.

In Greek, this greeting has no verb. In some languages, it may be more natural to add a verb. (The verbs are underlined below.) For example:

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-

?I pray that? God our(incl.) Father and the Lord Jesus Christ will bless you(plur) with his favor. ?I pray that he will? give you(plur) peace ?in your hearts? .

Some languages translate the words Grace and peace as long phrases. If that is true in your language, you may want to use something shorter in this greeting. Here Paul was not actually teaching about grace and peace. So it may not be necessary to include all the elements normally associated with these terms.

Grace: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Grace refers to kindness that is shown to people freely. In this context, the word refers to God’s grace. He is kind to people because he loves them. People have not done anything to deserve his kindness.

Some other ways to translate this word are:

kindness
-or-
generous help
-or-
favor

See also grace, Meaning 1 in the Glossary.

peace: The Jewish concept of peace includes both an absence of war and a state of well-being, safety, health, and economic prosperity. All this comes from God for those who are in a relationship with him.

Some languages may have one word to describe the absence of war or conflict. These languages may have a different word to describe a general state of well-being or an inner peace of the heart. If that is the case, choose the word that describes a state of wholeness or well-being.

from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: There is a textual issue here. Different Greek texts have the pronoun our in different places.

(1) Some texts have our Father. For example:

God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (New Revised Standard Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, New Revised Standard Version, New International Version, Good News Translation, New American Standard Bible, New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004), English Standard Version)

(2) Some texts have our Lord Jesus Christ. For example:

God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ (Revised Standard Version)

(Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, NET Bible, Revised English Bible, King James Version, God’s Word, Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

It is recommended that you follow option (1). This is the option followed in the UBS Handbook Greek New Testament.

God our Father: In some languages, it may be more natural to translate God our Father as:

God our ?heavenly? Father
-or-
our Father God

the Lord Jesus Christ: In the term Lord Jesus Christ, Jesus is a personal name, and Lord and Christ are both titles.

The word Lord means “master” or “one who has authority over others.” It is a title.

As mentioned in 1:1c, the title Christ is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “Messiah.” It is also a title.

Some other ways to translate the Lord Jesus Christ are:

the Lord Jesus the Christ
-or-
Jesus the Lord and Christ
-or-
the Master and Messiah Jesus

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:4

1:4a

In this verse Paul introduced one of the themes in his letter: salvation is based on Christ’s death on the cross.

who: The pronoun who refers to Jesus. It connects verses 3 and 4. In some languages, it may be natural to make this connection by starting a new sentence that has Jesus as the subject. For example:

Jesus gave himself for our sins (New Century Version)

gave Himself: This phrase means that Jesus “voluntarily gave his life,” “willingly died,” or “chose to die” on the cross.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

Christ…gave himself as a sacrifice (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
He yielded/surrendered his life
-or-
Jesus was willing to be punished and killed

for our sins: This phrase means “to pay for our sins” or “to take the punishment for our sins.”

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

on account of our sins
-or-
so that our sins might be forgiven

sins: The word sins means the things that we do when we disobey God’s standard of what is right or good. Sins include acts, thoughts, and attitudes that are not what God wants or approves. A person can also sin by not doing what God wants him to do.

Use a general term that can include any wrongdoing against God. For example:

disobedience
-or-
wrong acts
-or-
offenses ?against God?
-or-
evil deeds

In some languages it may be natural to translate the word sins with a phrase that includes a verb. For example:

wrong things that ?we? have done

Here are problems to avoid:

(a) The term should not imply that only crimes like murder or stealing are sins. Actions like gossip and greed are also sins.

(b) The term should not include accidents or mistakes that are not against God’s will.

1:4b

to rescue us from the present evil age: This clause states the purpose of Jesus’ giving himself to die for our sins (1:4a). He gave himself in order to deliver us from the evil that dominates our world. He freed us from being slaves to sin.

Some other ways to express this purpose are:

4a Christ gave himself for our sins 4b in order to deliver us from the present evil age.
-or-

4a Christ gave himself for our sins 4b so that he might deliver us from the present evil age.

to rescue us: The phrase to rescue us means “to free us.”

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

to deliver us (English Standard Version)
-or-
to rescue us (New International Version)
-or-
to redeem us

This phrase does not mean that Jesus removes us from this world.

the present evil age: At times Paul used this phrase to refer to the evil period of time in which Christians lived. He also used it to refer to the evil way that people lived during this period. In this context, this phrase focuses on the sinful and wicked way of life in our world.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

the sinful way that people live in this world
-or-
this evil that is in this world
-or-
the wickedness that is now on the earth
-or-
the evil ways in which human beings think and act (SSA)

1:4c

according to the will of our God and Father: This clause gives the background and reason for Jesus giving his life to set us free (in 1:4a–b). It means that it was God’s will that Jesus die for our sins in order to deliver us.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

?Christ did this to obey? the will of our God and Father.
-or-
because that was what our God and Father wanted (God’s Word)

See the General Comment below for some other ways to translate this clause.

our God and Father: This phrase describes God in two ways: he is our God, and he is also our Father. It does not refer to two different beings.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

God our Father (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
our God, who is our Father
-or-
our Father God

General Comment on 1:4a–c

In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the clauses in this verse. For example:

4a Jesus gave his life for our sins, 4c just as God our Father planned, 4b in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-

4c Christ obeyed God our Father 4a and gave himself as a sacrifice for our sins 4b to rescue us from this evil world. (Contemporary English Version)

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:5

1:5

to whom be glory forever and ever: In this clause, the word glory refers to the “greatness” or “magnificence” of God. Here Paul stated a fact: God is always glorious, great, or magnificent. He always has glory/greatness. Paul was not praying that people recognize God’s glory.

In Greek, there is no verb here, so English versions supply one. In some languages, it will also be necessary to supply a verb here. For example:

God has greatness forever.
-or-
God is always great!

In some languages, the word glory is expressed by the figurative use of a particular word. For example:

God always has heaviness.
-or-
Bigness is/belongs to God forever.

to whom: The pronoun whom refers to God.

forever and ever: This phrase emphasizes the idea of forever. Some other ways to say this are:

without end
-or-
endlessly

Amen: The word Amen means “let it be so.” Many languages transliterate this word.

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:6

Section 1:6–10

Paul rebuked the Galatians for turning away from the true gospel

In this section, Paul began his plea with the Galatians to turn back to the true gospel. He did this in several ways:

(a) He rebuked them for turning away from the true gospel.

(b) He condemned anyone who proclaimed any other gospel.

At this point in most of Paul’s other letters, he thanked God for his readers. The fact that he does not do that in Galatians shows how concerned and upset he was.

Some other possible headings for this section are:

Do not follow false teaching
-or-
Do not turn away from the true gospel
-or-
Follow the Good News We Gave You (God’s Word)
-or-
There Is No Other Gospel (New Revised Standard Version)

Paragraph 1:6–9

1:6a–c

In some languages, it will be more natural to put parts of 1:6a and 1:6c together. In order to do this, the order of some of the clauses in 1:6 will have to be changed. For example:

a I am very surprised at you. b God called you to live in the grace of Christ. a ?But? you quickly started to desert him c and started to follow another gospel.

1:6a–b

the One who: The words the One who refer to God the Father. Paul claimed that the Galatians were not only deserting the true gospel. They were deserting God himself.

Some other ways to translate these words are:

him who
-or-
God who
-or-
God. He

1:6a

I am amazed: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as amazed means “astonished” or “surprised.” The context determines whether the reaction is favorable or unfavorable. In this context it is unfavorable.

Paul had expected the Galatian believers to remain faithful to the true gospel. It was hard for him to believe that they were deserting the gospel. Translate this verb in a way that expresses a bad surprise. For example:

I am dismayed/disappointed
-or-
I am shocked (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
I am very surprised

how quickly you are deserting: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as deserting here refers to switching from one side/team to another. Here it refers to a change of religious belief and practice. It indicates that the Galatians had started “turning away from” or “abandoning” the true gospel. The Greek tense of this verb indicates that the “turning away” was not yet complete.

The phrase how quickly indicates that the Galatians started to turn away from the gospel soon after Paul had taught it to them.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

that you are turning away so soon (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
that you are so soon turning your backs on
-or-
that you are so quickly changing your minds and abandoning/leaving

1:6b

who called you by the grace of Christ:
There are at least two ways to interpret the phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as by the grace of Christ.

(1) It refers to the purpose for which God called us. God called us so that we should live in the grace of Christ. In other words, God called the Galatians to experience Christ’s kindness. For example:

called you to live in the grace of Christ (New International Version (2011))

(New International Version (2011), King James Version)

(2) It refers to the means by which God called us. God called us through/by the grace of Christ. For example:

called you by the grace of Christ (New International Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Interpretation (1) has more commentary support than interpretation (2). Many English versions literally translate this phrase as “in the grace of Christ.” So they may also be following interpretation (1), but that is not certain.

When you translate 1:6b, you may want to use the New International Version (2011) as your source text. It says:

called you to live in the grace of Christ (New International Version (2011))

Here the word “live” is used in a figurative sense. Some languages can translate this figurative sense as something like “experience the grace of Christ.” In other languages, this idea is expressed by one of the verbs related to the senses. For example: see, hear, touch, smell, taste/drink, or know the grace of Christ.

Some other ways to translate 1:6b are:

called you to ?live/experience/know? the kindness of Christ
-or-
called you to ?experience/feel/taste? the good that Christ does for us
-or-
invited you to know that Christ helps us
-or-
invited you to ?receive? Christ’s kindness/help

called you: Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

invited you
-or-
summoned you

the grace of Christ: The phrase grace of Christ means “Christ’s kindness, generosity, or favor.” Christ shows his kindness to people who do not deserve it.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

Christ’s kindness
-or-
the kind/good things that Christ does for you

See also grace, Meaning 2 in the Glossary.

1:6c

and are turning to a different gospel: This phrase further explains what the Galatians were doing when they started to desert God. They started turning to a different gospel. This means that they started to believe, accept, and follow a message that was different from the true gospel.

The Berean Standard Bible uses two verbs, “deserting” (in 1:6a) and turning (here), to translate one Greek verb. Most English versions also use two verbs.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

and are accepting another gospel (Good News Translation)
-or-
and are following a different gospel (NET Bible)
-or-
You have believed another message (Contemporary English Version)

a different gospel: This phrase refers to a false gospel or false message. It contrasts with the true good news that Paul taught.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

a different kind of good news (God’s Word)
-or-
a different way that pretends to be the Good News (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
a different ?teaching that you think is? good news

See also gospel in the Glossary.

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:7

1:7a

which is not even a gospel: This clause indicates that the “different gospel” is not the gospel at all. It is not good news. A different gospel does not really exist.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

Actually, there is no “other gospel,” (Good News Translation)
-or-
not that there really is another gospel (NET Bible)
-or-
but is not the Good News at all (New Living Translation (2004))

1:7b

Evidently: The Greek phrase that Berean Standard Bible here translates as Evidently is more literally “if not” or “except.” In most of the other places in the New Testament where this phrase occurs, it is translated as “except.” In those places, this phrase introduces an exception to the previous clause. Here this phrase also introduces an exception.

Some ways to connect 1:7a and 1:7b are:

Use the word except. This option probably follows the Greek most closely. It introduces 1:7b as an exception to 1:7a. For example:

7a There is no other gospel 7b except ?in the minds/thinking of? some who trouble you 7c and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

Use a conjunction such as but or however. For example:

7a not that there really is another gospel, 7b but there are some who are disturbing you 7c and wanting to distort the gospel of Christ (NET Bible)

If you follow this option, you may want to change the order of some of the clauses in 7b and 7c. For example:

7a not that there really is another gospel. 7b But there are some who 7c want to distort the gospel of Christ ?into another gospel? . 7b They are disturbing you.

Use no conjunction or other word to introduce 1:7b. For example:

7a But what some people are calling good news is not really good news at all. 7b They are confusing you. 7c They want to distort the Good News about Christ. (God’s Word)

some people are troubling you: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as troubling also means “confuse.” This verb is in the present tense. When Paul wrote this letter, some men (who were false teachers) were in the process of trying to confuse the Galatians.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

some people are confusing you (New Century Version)
-or-
You are being fooled by those… (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
some people are causing you trouble (Contemporary English Version)

1:7c

and trying to distort the gospel of Christ: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as distort means to change a good thing into a bad thing.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

and trying to change the gospel of Christ (Good News Translation)
-or-
and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ (New International Version)
-or-
by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ (New Living Translation (2004))

the gospel of Christ: This phrase means the Good News about Christ.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

the message about Christ
-or-
the Good News about Christ (God’s Word)

See gospel in the Glossary for more information.

© 2016 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Galatians 1:8

1:8–9

In these verses, Paul strongly condemned anyone who teaches a false gospel. The true gospel is the only gospel. It is more important than any person.

No one, including Paul, may change the gospel. Paul said that God would curse anyone who would change the gospel. He emphasized this by stating a situation that was not real. Neither Paul nor the brothers with him had preached a different gospel to the Galatians.

This contrasts with the real situation of the false teachers who were teaching a false gospel. Paul was warning those who were listening to the false teachers.

1:8

Before you translate 1:8, carefully consider what is the most natural order in your language for the clauses in this verse. In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of some of the clauses. Compare the order of the clause in the Berean Standard Bible and God’s Word:

a But even if we or an angel from heaven b should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, c let him be under a curse! (Berean Standard Bible)

b Whoever tells you good news that is different from the Good News we gave you c should be condemned to hell, a even if he is one of us or an angel from heaven. (God’s Word)

See other examples in the Display under 1:8a–c reordered.

1:8a

But: There is a contrast here. The contrast is between the “gospel of Christ” that Paul preached and the “different gospel” that some men were preaching. With this contrast, Paul continued to show that there is only one gospel.

Some English versions indicate this contrast with the conjunction But. Other English versions do not translate this conjunction here. However, the contrast is still shown by the expressions for the true gospel and the false gospel.

even if: The phrase even if introduces a situation that is not real. The following situation never happened. The Greek grammar clearly shows that what follows is a hypothetical statement.

Some other ways to translate this are:

suppose
-or-
consider/imagine ?the false situation in which?
-or-
if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you ?but we have not done that?

we: The pronoun we refers to Paul and his companions. Paul used it to emphasize that he himself is included. This pronoun does not include the Galatians.

an angel from heaven: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as angel means “messenger.” It can be either a human messenger or a divine messenger. The phrase from heaven shows that here it refers to a divine messenger.

Here, heaven is a figure of speech that represents God who lives in heaven. So the phrase angel from heaven refers to a “messenger from heaven” or “messenger from God.”

Some ways to translate this phrase are:

Use a descriptive word or phrase. For example:

messenger from heaven/God
-or-

?good/holy? spirit-being from above

Use a local term that fits the biblical meaning. If you use a term for angel that people cannot confuse with an ordinary messenger, then it would not be necessary to add from heaven. For example:

angel

In some areas the churches may already be using a borrowed term or a transliterated word for angel. Be sure that this term fits the biblical meaning. If some people do not understand the right meaning from this term, you may need to indicate the meaning with a descriptive phrase. For example:

an angelos messenger from heaven
-or-
a sacred angelos spirit from above

Be sure that your term for angel is different from your terms for “prophet” and “apostle.”

See also angel in the Glossary for more information.

1:8b

should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as contrary to can also be translated as “that is opposed to” or “that does not agree with.”

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

should preach to you a gospel that is different from the one we preached to you (Good News Translation)
-or-
should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you (New International Version)
-or-
should preach/teach you a doctrine that does not agree with the gospel we already taught you

1:8c

let him be under a curse: This clause is a type of prayer. Paul asked God to punish or condemn the person who changed the true gospel and preached another gospel.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

may he be cursed
-or-
Let God’s curse fall on anyone (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
I pray that God will punish (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
may he be condemned to hell (Good News Translation)

Paul was not casting a spell on someone. Do not use an expression in your language that would imply casting a spell.

him: The pronoun him refers to anyone who might preach a false gospel.

Some ways to translate this more clearly are:

that person
-or-
that messenger

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