The Pulpit Commentary — Galatians — Section 330

xv. 10.) And 10 fulfil the law of Christ ,Tvti, µ.1/lifv lfv-ru, .lv<11il(,1"f ab'ro,r . , , 11-r, (J<al 06-r .. , a.va.w"-T/P~ITrt:r< [or, cl.vaw"-T/p~o-,.-,] . . • ofov.-al .-, ,Tva, lfVTu obo,vbs 1!(101, -rov voµ.ov .-oii Xpurroii); and so fulfil ( or, ye " Something " is, by a common meiosis, put· ,hall f"~fil) the law of Christ. The sense for "something considerable" (cf. eh. ii. 6), comes to much the same, whether in the The especial form of eminence, the claim Greek we read the future indicative or to which is here referred to, is eminence in tbe wrist imperative. If the imperative be spiritnality and consistency as a serv1mt of retained, it yet ,adds no new element of Christ. Possibly the apostle has in his precept to the foregoing; the clause so read eye certain individuals among tho Go.latians preseribe,s the fulfilment of Christ's Jaw in that he had heard of, who, professing much, the po.rticular form of bearing one another's were, however, self-complacently bitter and burdens. If we read the future, the clause contemptuous towo.rds brethren who had affirms that in so doing we shall fulfil his gone wrong in moral conduct or who dif- law; whieh in the other case is implied. fered from themselves in the disputes then Many have supposed the word" Jaw" to be rife in those Churches. The phrase, µ.T/ofv here used for a specific commandment; as 11w, "being nothing," is a part of the hypo- for example Christ's new commandment that thesis relo.tive to the individual case spoken we should lo,•e one another. So St. James of, not a sto.teruent putting forth the aphor- (ii. 8) writes of the "royal law." St. Paul, ism that no one is really anything. The pas- however, never uses the term in this sense sage quoted above from Plato shows, that in his own writing, though in the Epistle in the latter case we should have bad ,oi,ofv to the Hebrews (viii. 10; x. 16), the plural and not µ.11li,v. Some men, by the grace of "laws" occurs in citation from Jeremiah. God, are " something ; " but these persons It seems better to take it of the whole moral only fancy themselves to be so. Whether institution of Christ, whether conveyed in any man is really " something" or not is <lli!tinct precept or in his example and determined by his practical. conduct-his tipirit of action. Compare with the present "work" as the apostle expresses ·it in the passage the advice which St. l'aul gives the next verse. The verb, ,Pp•va•,ra,-~v occurs in "strong" (Rom. xv. 1-4), that they should the New Testament only here, though we bear (f3a,r,-c/.(.,.,, as here, "carry") the in- have the substantive ,pp,va1rd.TT/S, deceivers, firmities of the weak, and not wish to please in Titus i. 10. St. James (i. 26) speaks of themselves; after Christ's pattern set forth a man " deceiving his heart " in seemingly in prophetical Scripture, of old time written just the same sense. In both pasaages it in order to instruct us bow we should act. appears to be meant that a man palms oil It has been often observed that the phrase, upon hie own mind fancies as if they were " the law of Chxiet," was selected with just apprehensions of real facts; in both nllusion to the stir now being made among also these fancies are but illusive notions tJie Galatians respecting the Law of Moses. of one's own religious cbo.racter-here, as "Satisfy ye the requirements of the Law- being " spiritual ; " in Ja.mes, as being not of Jlfoses which some are prating about, " religious" or " devout" (6p?j,ricor)-the lint the law of Christ, a more perfect law activity of practical benevolence being in thun that other, and more our proper con- both cases wanting; for "the briclHng not cern." Possibly the words -ruii Xpunoii his tongue" in ver. 26 is proved by tbe were added us a pointed surprise of style- contrasted behaviour spoken of in the next ,rap' ;,,,&vouw, as the scholiasts on Aristo- verse to refer to those sins of the tongue phanes are wont to express it-" and thus which are implicitly condemned in vers. fulfil the law-of Chxist I" 19-21. Ver. 3.-For if a man think himself to be Ver. 4.-But let every man prove his something, when he is nothing, he deoeiveth own work (-rb Ii~ tnov ,auToii oo,c1µ.a(fr,,, himself ( ., 'l'"P lloic•• TU rlval 'TI µ.11o•v oicao-Tos) ; but his own work l.et eaeh man be11 6'v, ct,peva,ra-rti, Ea.v-r&v (Receptue, Ea.11-rOv bringing to the proof. " His own work ; ,PpEVara-r~]) ; for if a ,nan u "'?thing an~ hie own actual conduct. Both "work" and thinketh him~elf to be something, he u "hie own II nre weighted with emphasis; dkcei.mng his own soul. The_ conj?nct~on " work," as practical behaviour contrasted "for" points back to tl..ie practical directmn with professions or self-illusions ( comp. just given to the "_Epiritual ; " meaning 1 Pet. i. 17, "Who without respect ot per- that for those who wished to be, and also sons j udgeth according to each man's work"); perhaps to be thought to be, fulfilling " his own," as con tru.sted with those others Christ's law, this was the behaviour which with whom one is comparing himself to find they were to carry out, and without which matter for self-commende.tion. "Be bring- their claim was mere self-delusion. The ing to the proof; " the.t is, testing hie actual phrase, lloK<< .:lval TI µ.T/o•v fiw, is well ill1111- life by the touchstone of God's law, espe- trated by the passage cited by critics from cially of "Christ's law," with the honest Pllito'~ ' A.pologia.' p. 41, E: 'Ecz,, 5oicwul ,,., purpose of bringing it into ncoordance  'l'HE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. 297