The Pulpit Commentary — Galatians — Section 196

evil can be presented to us in a fascinating form. Here the Galatians a.re described as those who ha.d been bewitched. H wa.s as if some one had exerted an evil spell on them. Hie evil eye had rested on them and held them BO that they could not see him by whose crucifixion they had formerly been BO much affected. And the apostle wonders who it could be tha.t had bewitched them. Who had been envious of the influence which the Crucified One had obtained over them? What false representations had he made? What flattering promises bad be held out? Such a one had grea.i guilt on his head ; but they also were chargeable with foolishness in a.llowincr tbem- seltes to be bewitched by him. The Galatians were by no means stupid; they were rather of quick perception. They had the strong emotional qualities of the Celtic nature_; their tei:npt3:tion was s?dd~n cban~e of feeling. They _were foolish in yielding to their temptation, m not subJectmg theu feelings to the guidance of reason, in not using the Divine helps against their being bewitched. And the apostle, in cbaro-ing home foolishness on them, would have them recall what the cross had once bee~ in their eyes, in order to break the present spell of evil 2. The one admission he aJJks of them in order to prove their foolishness. "This only would I learn from you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by the hearing of faith?" He felt that he had such a hold on them from their past experiences that he could have asked of them many admissions. With one, however, be will be content. This bad reference to the reception of the Spirit. The gospel dispensation was the dispensation of the Spirit. It was by the sacrifice of Christ that the Spirit was really obtained. It was soon after the offering of that sacrifice that the Spirit was poured out, as though liberated from pre- vious restraints. The great blessing, then, of that dispensation, obtained they it by the works of the Law, or by the bearing of faith? The Law is to be understood in the sense of the Mosaic Law, which the Judaists sought to impose on Gentile Christians. The Law and faith are here placed in opposition. Works are the characteristic of the Law; bearing is the characteristic of faith. Was it, then, by Law-working that they had received the Spirit? When would it quantitatively and qualitatively have sufficed for their receiving the Spirit? Was it not the case, too, that the great majority of them in the Galatian Churches bad not been under the Law? They had not been circumcised, and yet the Spirit bad been received by them. Was it not, then, by the hearing which belongs to faith? They had not tediously to elaborate a Law-righteousness. They had not to work for a righteousness at all They had simply to hear in connection with the preaching of the gospel. They bad to listen to the proclamation of a right- eousness elaborated for them. And while their faith was imperfect, and could not be in itself the ground of their justification, they had, as perfectly justified, received the Spirit. 3. 7'wo points in which their foolishness was shown at its height. "Are ye so foolish ? " (1). They belied the beginning they had made. "Having begun in the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the flesh?" They began by renouncing the flesh, by confessing that, with the weak elements in their nature, they never could arrive at perfection. In despair of the flesh, then, and in order to be delivered from its weakness, they cast themselves upon the Spirit. They called in Divine help against their sinful tendencies. This was the right beginning to make. And having thus begun, they should have gone on, i11 dependence on the help of the Spirit, toward perfection. But they were proving untrue to the beglnning they bad made. They were going back to the flesh which they professed to have left behind as a source of dependence. 'fhey were now saying tbat it, forsooth, with all its weakness, was able to bring about their perfection. (2) They stultified their sufferings. " Did ye suffer so many things in vain? if it be indeed in vain." It ls to be inferred that they suffered persecution. They suffered many things, though of their sufferings we have no record. They suffered for ChriRt, and it may have been for liberty in him. That gave a noble character to their sufferings, and promised a glorious reward. But now, with their changed relation to Christ, those sufferings had lost their character. There was no longer a Christian halo around them. They were simply a blunder, what might have been avoided. They could not hope, then, for the reward of the Christian confessor or martyr. The apostle is, ho~ever, unwilling to believe that the matter has ended with them. In the words which he appends, "if it be indeed in vain," he not only leaves a loophole of doubt, but mak_es _an appeal to them not to throw away that which they bad nobly won. 4. The one admissitlt' reverted to with special rrference to the miraculous operations of the Spirit. "He therefore GALATIANS, II  lGJ TUE EPISTLE ,TO '£.ij.E,:GALA'J:IA,N~.