The Pulpit Commentary — Galatians — Section 48

meriting strong censure, or (in Col., f.oe. cit.) brethren, prompt him not unfreqnently to B8 persons to be carefully guimle, I 11gainst. veil his own individuality by aBsociating in Who these troublers were 11nd where they this woy with himself those who were wont came frotn is uncertain (eee note on ver. 2). to share more or less in his evangelilltic The verb -rapu1T1Tew frequently means "to labours and anfferinga, although in reality alorm" ot." disquiet," as Matt. ii. 3; xiv. 26; what he says me.y apply principally to him• Luke i. 12; xxiv. 38; John xiv. l; l Pet. self and only in a. very modified measure to iii. 14. And this is probobly the sense in them. A signal instance of this is furnished which it is used here and in the similar by that whole passage in his Second Epistle passages, eh. v. 10; Acts xv. 24. It describes to the Corinthians, which begins with the the action of those who came to believers fourth chnpter and goes on down to the reposing in a sense of acceptance with God eleventh verse of the sixth. Nevertheless, through Ohrist; and filled their minds with we should in all such cases imperfectly uneasiness and apprehension, by telling them represent the spirit of his words, if we were that they were not safe as they were,but must to substitute the singular pronoun "I." In do something else if they wished to really the present instance individuals of the evan- possess the Divine favour. Others, however, gelizing party whfoh were wont to accompany connect the verb with the notion of civil him had, no doubt, been fellow-workers with disturbance, e.s in Acts xvii. 8, and thus hini also in Galatia, and are therefore here with raising seditions and shaking men's inclusively referred to. Compare the plural allegiance, in conformity with the metaphor and the singular verbs in the next verse. of µ.<..a:ri8e1T8e in ver. 6. And would pervert The introduction of this reference to himself the gospel of Christ («al 8b..ov-r,s µ.e-r<JIT-rp<,j,tu and his fellow-workers, as well e.s that to -ro eilc&'}''}'•luov -rov Xp,11'-roii) ; and would fain "an angel from heaven," seems meant to turn into its clean contrary the gospel of Ghrist. make hiB readers feel that this was no ques- The verb µ.nalT-rplc/mv is an appropriate one tion of distinguished personality, as if it to .use with 1·eforence to such a misrepresen- mattered who it was that taught a different tation of the gospel as the one now in the doctrine; whether(suppose) it were a James apostle's view; for this converted it from a or. a Cephe.s, for those revered names were doctrine of emancipation into a doctrine of often used to cloa.k the designs of J udaizera; renewed bondage (comp. eh. v. 1-4). So or whether it was one of the Galatian the verb is used in the only other passages Churchmen themselves especially looketl up in which it is found in the New Testament, to (of. eh. v. 10 and note). An anathema Acts ii. 20, "The sun sho.11 be turned into was his due, whoever he might be. In the darkness;" J e.s. iv. 9, "Let your laughter be manner of its introduction we cannot foil to turned into mow-ning.''· So in Sire.eh xi. 31, recognize an underlying consciousness on " Turning good things into evil.'' Liddell the writer's po.rt of tbe highly distinguished e and Scott Lexicon') cite /J,E'Tc&O'Tpt,/,·as = position which he himself held ; but there is "contrariwise,'' Plato, 'Gorg.,' 456, E; 'Rep.,' present the consciousness too that he was 687, D. In the phrase -ro •~a.n•ll.wv -roii Do{hing more than the mere orgrm or channel Xp,crTov, the addition of the genitive, "of of Christ's ,teaching ; from that teaching he Christ,'' with the twofold article, marks the himself may not swerve without justly incur- words with. a sto.tely emphRais. It was no ring the "woe" wb.ich he told the Corinthians lees than THE <JOSPEL Oil' CHRIST that these J1e should have to fee.r in case ha preached men were tampering with. "The gospel of not the gospel (1 Cor. ix. 16). Or an e.ngel Christ" means here the gospel of which from heaven preach e.ny other gospel unto Christ is the Author, ns in "the gospel of you than that which we have preaohed unto God." (Rom. i. 1), e.nd which he had sent you (1) 6.n,ll.os i( oiipo.vov EUO.'}''}'fAl(71Ta, uµ,v forth his e.postles to proclaim. The peculiar 1ro.p' l> •b11n<ll.11Ta.µ.e81> u,u.iv); or if an a'llgel emphasis and the conneotion forbid our ta.k- from heaven Bhould set himself to preach w,to ing the genitive as denoting merely the you a gospel other than that ioe preached unto subject-me.tter. you. 'fhe ooustruction of the entire sentence Ver. 8.-But though we (a.ll.ll.a «al iav displays in the Greek a broken character ~µ.,,s); but even if we ourselves. This "but" not quite so opparent in our Authorized (&.ll.ll.a) is strongly odversative. What those Version. The verb" should preach a gospel" disturbers of the believer's pee.ea would is in the singular number ( ,iian<ll.((71,,-a,); hove been fain to do was a thing impossible. neglecting the "we,'' it attaches itself to Heaven's gospel could not be thus changed. "on ongel from heaven,'' which latter, as And the attempt to thus change it, being in being the higher, absorbs the previously effoot to fight against God, merited God's no.mod subject altogether, stantling as sole curse. In the plurol "we" the e.postle in- subject, both in the hypothetical clause nncl tends principally his own self. A shrinking in the concluding one, "let him be ana- from unnecesse.1·y self-obtrusion, e.ntl tender thema.'' It is, of course, apparent that, if respectful sympathy with his ministerial the sentence of anathema would in the  12 THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [oR. I, 1-24;