The Pulpit Commentary — Galatians — Section 49

supposed oose be the only proper one to times much discussion ae to the bearing oftlie pronounce upon "e.n angel from heaven," pasBRge before us upon our controversy with it most certe.inly fast.ens JIIOn e.ny buman Romanists respecting tradition. If whnt being guilty of the eadll offence. The has been above ste.ted is just, it follows that " angel from heaven " is like the " second these words of the apostle forbid our adding, man from heaven" in 1 Cor. xv. 47; the on any grownd whalooer, to the dogmo. or phrru;e, "from heaven," denoting both coming Ohuroh pmctioe sanctioned by Soripture, down out of bee.van and also the higher any such dogma or Church practice as would sphere of being to which the peraon spoken transform or eesentil\lly modify the former, of appertains. Comp. nlao John iii. 31, "He but, on the other hand, the addition of that is from earth . . . he that is from dogma or Church practice which is not out of heaven." The force of the preposition ,ra;pil harmony with that sanctioned by Scripture, in ,va-y-y•'ll.((71..,u ,rap' 1, •v11YY•/\u1cfµ,8a may these words do not forbid. Let him be ao- be i.llustrated by its use in 1 Cor. iii. 11, onrsed ( livd8,µa; fr-r..,); let him be anathema,, " Other foundntion can no man lay than that is, a thifl'} doomed to destruction. The (,ra;pil) that which is la.id;" where it points word livtf.8,µa is originally identical with to a new foundation, not to be by the side a.vd871µa (anathema), a thing devoted, which of, but to supersede, the former one, Ta.ken in Luke xxi. 5 is rendered "offering ; " but thus, it would seem to follow up the before in Hellenistic Greek the former diverges expressed notion of " another gospel" super- from the latter by being ordinarily applied seding, setting aside, the true gospel This to "a thing devoted to destruction." In a.II sense of the preposition rea.dily passes on to la.ngnages it sometimes occuxs that a word, that of "contrary to,'' which is profusely one and the same originally, diverges into illustrated by Liddell and Scott(' Lexicon,' two slightly differing forms, need severally in verb. 1ra;p&., c. L i. 4, b), and which we have to express different phases of the original in Acts xviii. 13, "Worship God cm,trary to notion. Archbishop Trench, in his 'Study the Law [of Moses];" Rom. xvi. 17," Oansing of Words,' p. 156, referred to by Bishop the divisions ... contrary to the doctrine Lightfoot in his note on this passage, in- which ye lee.rued; " Rom. i. 26, "use which is stances" cant" and" chant,"" human" and against nature." It cannot be doubted that "humane," e.nd others. In the LXX. the apostle is here thinking of a (pretended) anathema is used to render the Hebrew gospel which wa.s incompatible with the word cherem, which in our Authorized true one, and not of merely additional ele- Version is translated "cursed " or "ac- ments of Christian doctrine which should cursed thing." Living things that were take their place alongside of those which cherem were to be put to death ; inanimate they had already received. Additional in- objects that were cherem were to be de- formation, we may be sure, was quite a.s stroyed. Thus in Dent. :xiii. directions are necessary or desirable for the Gala.tia.ns a.s given as to what was to be done in the case it was for either the Corinthians or the of an Israelite city which should have given "Hebrews;" neither of whom had as yet, itself to idolatry: the inhabitants and the as WW:! intimated to them (1 Cor. ill. 2; cattle thereof were to be smitten with the Heb. v. 12 ; vi. 1), been fed with "solid food," edge of the sword; and the spoil of the city but only with" milk," and whom it behoved was to be brought together and burned, and to "go on to fuller maturity " of know ledge. the city itself" to be a heap for ever, never The point in the apostle"s view was this: to be built again." And then (ver. 18), what he had himself taught them was, so far, "There she.II cleave nought of the cursed [or, certainly true and to be depended upon, and 'devoted'] thing (che1·em, livd.B•µa) to thine could not without treason against Christ be hand." Similarly, in Deut. vii. 26, of the set aside or superseded or essentially quali- idols and the silver or gold on them, of the fied; whereas the teaching which was now Canaanite~, "Thou she.It not take it unto being foisted upon their previous convictions thee, neither shalt thou bring an abomina- did infringe upon what he had taught tl1em, tion unto thine house, lest thou be e. cursed seriously e.nd even fundamentally. The thing [' be cherem,' or ' be anathema,' frr, tenor of the whole Epistle shows what were av&B,µa] like it; but thou shalt utterly the especial featuxes of this gospel which detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; were: now in question. The present question for it is a cursed thing (liv&8,µcf. fo·n)." See conCBrm,d the " good news" that God, also ibid., vers. 23-25 : Lev. xxvii. 28, 29; through the cross of Christ, had emancipated Josh. vi. 17, "The city she.11 be accursed [or, his servants from bondage to ceremonialism ; 'devoted;' cherem, livcf.8,µa ], and all that aro that God adopted them as simply believing therein: only Rahab the harlot shall live: " in Christ to be his sons in full possession of Josh. vil. 1, 12. In the New Testament bis fatherly love; and that by the Holy anathema occurs in four other pRBsages. I. Spirit he endued them with the conscious- l Cor. xii. 3, "No man speaking in the lless of thi... adoption. There he.s been at Spirit of God saith, ,T!)BUB is anathema," :'c\,' OIL I, 1-24.) THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. 13