Galatians 3

1 O thoughtless Galatians, who did bewitch you, not to obey the truth — before whose eyes Jesus Christ was described before among you crucified?

You foolish Galatians! Whose sophistry has bewitched you--you to whom Jesus Christ has been vividly portrayed as on the Cross?

2 this only do I wish to learn from you — by works of law the Spirit did ye receive, or by the hearing of faith?

Answer me this one question, "Is it on the ground of your obedience to the Law that you received the Spirit, or is it because, when you heard, you believed?"

3 so thoughtless are ye! having begun in the Spirit, now in the flesh do ye end?

Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now going to reach perfection through what is external?

4 so many things did ye suffer in vain! if, indeed, even in vain.

Have you endured such sufferings to no purpose--if indeed it has been to no purpose?

5 He, therefore, who is supplying to you the Spirit, and working mighty acts among you — by works of law or by the hearing of faith [is it]?

He who gives you His Spirit and works miracles among you--does He do so on the ground of your obedience to the Law, or is it the result of your having heard and believed:

6 according as Abraham did believe God, and it was reckoned to him — to righteousness;

even as Abraham believed God, and his faith was placed to his account as righteousness?

7 know ye, then, that those of faith — these are sons of Abraham,

Notice therefore that those who possess faith are true sons of Abraham.

8 and the Writing having foreseen that by faith God doth declare righteous the nations did proclaim before the good news to Abraham —

And the Scripture, foreseeing that in consequence of faith God would declare the nations to be free from guilt, sent beforehand the Good News to Abraham, saying, "In you all the nations shall be blessed."

9 'Blessed in thee shall be all the nations;' so that those of faith are blessed with the faithful Abraham,

So we see that it is those who possess faith that are blessed with believing Abraham.

10 for as many as are of works of law are under a curse, for it hath been written, 'Cursed [is] every one who is not remaining in all things that have been written in the Book of the Law — to do them,'

All who are depending upon their own obedience to the Law are under a curse, for it is written, "Cursed is every one who does not remain faithful to all the precepts of the Law, and practise them."

11 and that in law no one is declared righteous with God, is evident, because 'The righteous by faith shall live;'

It is evident, too, that no one can find acceptance with God simply by obeying the Law, because "the righteous shall live by faith,"

12 and the law is not by faith, but — 'The man who did them shall live in them.'

and the Law has nothing to do with faith. It teaches that "he who does these things shall live by doing them."

13 Christ did redeem us from the curse of the law, having become for us a curse, for it hath been written, 'Cursed is every one who is hanging on a tree,'

Christ has purchased our freedom from the curse of the Law by becoming accursed for us--because "Cursed is every one who is hanged upon a tree."

14 that to the nations the blessing of Abraham may come in Christ Jesus, that the promise of the Spirit we may receive through the faith.

Our freedom has been thus purchased in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing belonging to Abraham may come upon the nations, so that through faith we may receive the promised Spirit.

15 Brethren, as a man I say [it], even of man a confirmed covenant no one doth make void or doth add to,

Brethren, even a covenant made by a man--to borrow an illustration from daily life--when once formally sanctioned is not liable to be set aside or added to.

16 and to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his seed; He doth not say, 'And to seeds,' as of many, but as of one, 'And to thy seed,' which is Christ;

(Now the promises were given to Abraham and to his seed. God did not say "and to seeds," as if speaking of many, but "and to your seed," since He spoke of only one--and this is Christ.)

17 and this I say, A covenant confirmed before by God to Christ, the law, that came four hundred and thirty years after, doth not set aside, to make void the promise,

I mean that the Covenant which God had already formally made is not abrogated by the Law which was given four hundred and thirty years later--so as to annul the promise.

18 for if by law [be] the inheritance, [it is] no more by promise, but to Abraham through promise did God grant [it].

For if the inheritance comes through obedience to Law, it no longer comes because of a promise. But, as a matter of fact, God has granted it to Abraham in fulfilment of a promise.

19 Why, then, the law? on account of the transgressions it was added, till the seed might come to which the promise hath been made, having been set in order through messengers in the hand of a mediator —

Why then was the Law given? It was imposed later on for the sake of defining sin, until the seed should come to whom God had made the promise; and its details were laid down by a mediator with the help of angels.

20 and the mediator is not of one, and God is one —

But there cannot be a mediator where only one individual is concerned.

21 the law, then, [is] against the promises of God? — let it not be! for if a law was given that was able to make alive, truly by law there would have been the righteousness,

God, however, is only one. Is the Law then opposed to the promises of God? No, indeed; for if a Law had been given which could have conferred Life, righteousness would certainly have come by the Law.

22 but the Writing did shut up the whole under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ may be given to those believing.

But Scripture has shown that all mankind are the prisoners of sin, in order that the promised blessing, which depends on faith in Jesus Christ, may be given to those who believe.

23 And before the coming of the faith, under law we were being kept, shut up to the faith about to be revealed,

Before this faith came, we Jews were perpetual prisoners under the Law, living under restraints and limitations in preparation for the faith which was soon to be revealed.

24 so that the law became our child-conductor — to Christ, that by faith we may be declared righteous,

So that the Law has acted the part of a tutor-slave to lead us to Christ, in order that through faith we may be declared to be free from guilt.

25 and the faith having come, no more under a child-conductor are we,

But now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor-slave.

26 for ye are all sons of God through the faith in Christ Jesus,

You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus;

27 for as many as to Christ were baptized did put on Christ;

for all of you who have been baptized into Christ, have clothed yourselves with Christ.

28 there is not here Jew or Greek, there is not here servant nor freeman, there is not here male and female, for all ye are one in Christ Jesus;

In Him the distinctions between Jew and Gentile, slave and free man, male and female, disappear; you are all one in Christ Jesus.

29 and if ye [are] of Christ then of Abraham ye are seed, and according to promise — heirs.

And if you belong to Christ, then you are indeed true descendants of Abraham, and are heirs in fulfilment of the promise.