cause in their case, he says, nor the manner is good. fy*&$) exclude you from us, from me. They think, that we shall be excluded from you ; but they would not exclude us from you, but you from us : IxxXg/fra/, I am disposed to think, is not used in the sense, in which the Latins say that chickens are hatched (excludi, thrust forth from the shell).
18. KaXov 8e, but it is good) He advises them not to allow themselves to be excluded. — rb ^XoDotfa/) After the active he uses the middle. It is the duty of Paul in the name of Christ
2 Cor. xi. 2 : it is the part of the Church, as the bride, i, to respond to the ardent love [of the Bridegroom and of His minister], to kindle zeal by zeal (see Chrys.), to be zeal ous for one another [zelare inter se, to love zealously among themselves] ; rb makes an emphatic addition [Epitasis. See Ap pend.] — ev xaXti, in a good thing) when the matter in hand is good, ev rti vrapsTvaiy when I am present, answers to this ; and so also vdvrors, always, corresponds to it. The latter is the time in general, while the expression, when I am present, is the time in particular, and that too modified so as at the same time to comprehend the ground of that zeal on their part, viz. that they had been able to exult, as they had done, at the presence of Paul : the sv xaX£ is in consonance with sv r& vapsTvai, and may be taken with always for one idea, Whensoever any good thing is presented in your way, and not merely when I am present. — ev rti <!rape/vai fte, when I am present) They Ijacl formerly shown towards Paul, when present, great earnestness [zeal] of love, and had in turn sharpened the zeal of Paul, ver. 15.
19. Tsxvia povj my little children) A father should be £*jXwro£, i.e. affectionately and zealously honoured by his children. This closely agrees with [ver. 17, they zealously affect] you, as de9 but, which occurs in the following verse [ver. 18] shows. Paul ad dresses the Galatians, not as a rival, but as a father, comp. 1 Cor. iv. 15, with authority and the tenderest sympathy towards his little children — children that were weak and alienated from him. The pathetic style often accumulates figurative expres sions. Here, however, the figure, derived from the mother, prevails. In the note on ^XoDtfda/, conjugal affection (£5jXog) was assumed from the parallelism. Even in spiritual things, love sometimes descends, rather than ascends ; 2 Cor. xii. 15.