The Pulpit Commentary — Galatians — Section 231

of house nncl home, in eh. v. 12, where see founded happiness for this later poor grati- note. That ye might a.ft'eot them (1va. a.b-ro~ 1 fication of heing recipients of mere fal.;o (,rl\ov-r•); that ye may admire tltem,elves. The flattery, he yearns to bring them back to position of uJ-roh makes it emphatis. We what they were so senselessly casting away, may parnphra.ee thus : that, being detached and that they should hold it fast, a stable from regard to my teaching, and made to joy, whether he was with them or not. This feel B certain gmve deficiency on your own would be the case if " Christ were truly p1:1rt in respect to acceptableness with Goel, formed in them." The phrase, iv ,ca.l\cp, ye m1:1y be led to look up ae disciples to these "in what is good," is similar to iv ,cp.,.,,,,.,ii kind-hearted sympathetic advisers for in- (John vii. 4); b iv -r,ii cpav•p,ii, iv -r(p ,cpvrr,ii etruotion and guidance. The construction 'Iov6a.,or (Rom. ii. 28, 29). The sphere in of 1va. with (,rl\ov-re, which in ordinary Greek which this admiring felicitation acts must is the present indicatifle, (11>.w-re being the be " what is good ; " here that highest good form for the present subjunctive, is precisely which these Galatians were in danger of similar to that of 1va. µ11 with cpu,novcrBe in losing, if, indeed, they possessed it-bein!?. l Cor. iv. 6. When it ie considered how and knowing themselves to be, sons of Gorl. punctually St. Paul is wont to comply with It is a doubtful point whether ver. 19 should the syntactical rule with reference to 1va., and be conjoined with this present verse, with a that these two remarkable deflections there- colon between vers. 19 and 20, and a comma from a.re connected with contract forms of only at the end of ver. 18; or whether the verbs in -do,, Riickert's suggestion seems to sentences shonld be separated as they appear be perfectly reasonable, the.t the solecism in our Authorized Version. But at all events, lies, not in the syntactical construction, but the earnest, anxious, tender affectionateness iu the grammatical inflexion, contracting-&., which, e.s it were, wrings the apostle's heart into -oii instead of into -w. Thie form of con- in writing ver. 19, is to be felt already traction may have been a provincialism of working in his soul in the writing of this 'farsue, or it may have been e.n idiotism of eighteenth verse. The sense above given St. Paul himself. Other expedients of ex- to the verb (,rl\oiiv, though disallowed by plane.tiun which have been proposed a.re Alford and Bishops Ellicott and Lightfoot, intolerably harsh e.nd improbable. appears to be that recognized by the Greek Ver. 18.-But it is good to be 1ealously commentators Chrysostom and Theophylact. a.ft'eoted always in e. good thing, and not only Ver. 19.-My little children, of whom I when I a.m present with you (,ca.l\ov 6~ (,rl\ov- travail in birth again lllltil Chri&t be formed a-Ba, [Receptus, -rb (,rl\ova-Ba.,] iv 1<a.1'<i> ,rav- in you (-re,cvla µou [ or, orl,cva. µov] o6s ,rd>.,v -ro-r•, 1<ul µ11 µ&vov ,v -r,;; ,rapewal µe ,rpbr C:.6lvo,, lfxpis oi µop,po,Bji Xp11T-rbs iv ~µiv); my bµiir); but good it is t-0 be admired, in what little children (or, my children) of whom I is good, at all times and not only when I am am again in tra-r,ail, until Christ be foormecl present with you. That is, but as to being in you. It has been above remarked to be admired and felicitated, the good kind of doubtful whether this verse shonld be con- admiring felicit1:1tion is that which, being joined with the preceding verse or with tendered on e. good account, is enjoyed at all that which follows. The objection to the times, and not only, my little children, when latter arrangement, presented by the 6, at I am with you, as on that first occasion when the commencement of ver. 20, is thought by you were so full of mutual felicitation e.nd me.ny to be obviated by a number of in- joy in the newly found sense of God's adop- stBnces which have beeu alleged in which tion and love in Christ Jesus. In signifi- this conjunction is used with a sentence cation, this (111\ov<TBa.1, to be admired, is following 11, vocative compellation (see equivalent to µa1<apl(,a-8a,, to be congratu- Alford, Ellicott). But such cases appear lated, and was illustrated in the fir.t note marked by a tone of vivacity BDd surprise on ver. 17, especially by the reference to which is not present here. On the other Aristophanes,' Nu bes,' 1188. Z71l\ova-B,u ~v or,;; hand, the tone of loving affectionate anxiety 71'1lp•wal µe ,rpJs ~µa.r, ''to be objects ofe.clmira.- breathing in this verse links it more closely tion when I am present with you," is mani- with the preceding than with the following festly e. recital of the µa.1<a.p1a-µ,h ~µwv, " the oue, in which such pathos is no longer dis- gmtulation of yourselves," of ver. 15. The cernible, but is replaced by e. clelibero.tive vivid rnmembrance of the simple-hearted joy attitude of mind. The word -re,cvia occurs e.nd frank sympathy with each other's happi- as e. compellation here only in St. Paul's ne~s of those days oomes back to the apostle's writings, though repeatedly in St. John's mind with fresh foroe, after his. brief men- Epistle and once in his Gospel (John xiii. tion and rebuke of the false-hearted gratu- 33), where it appears as usell by our Lord lations and compliments by which they were in e.n access of deeply moved 11,ffectionate- now in dangor of being ensnared. With a ness. St. Paul addresses Timothy as " his gentle reprehension of their levity, in that child" (-r/,cvov) in 2 Tim. ii. l e.nd I Tim. i. they wi:re uow bartering that former well- IS, not ouly as a term of cndeo.rment, but n~  198 THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [cu. 1v. 1-31.