The Pulpit Commentary — Galatians — Section 343

po.rty." Bishop Lightfoot is in f11vour of oe.lled upon to check, on the part or weak or this view, referring to "the e.pt quot11tion" insincere brethren, a tendency to dre.w to- from e.n o.pooryphe.l book, in which the wards Judo.ism at the cost of not merely phrase 11ppe11ra used in this very sense (see unseemly but even fundamento.lly fatal his note). It is o. sense grammo.tico.lly diffl.- compliances. The peril was e.lwa.ys very oult to sustain from the ue&ge of the New nee.r, 11nd had to be constantly we.tchod and Testo.ment; for 6 3,,:,,,.,., of eh. i, 23, which guarded &go.inst. has been cited on its behalf, does not bear it Ver. 14.-But God forbid that I should out, But the passion of scorn with which glory, 111ve in the cross of our Lord J'elllLI the 11postle writes make the supposed stre.in Christ ( lµ.ol II~ µ.'I, -,•vo,-ro "®Xatr9a.,, ,i µ.'I, 111 upon strict gro.mmatic11l propriety not o.lto- .,,,, cr-ra.upip TOV Kupfo11 ,;,,,..,., 'l11uov Xp11T-rov); gether improbe.ble. "Themselves;" this is but 1J11 JM me, God /Mbid, etc. For the insert.ed with 111lusion to the ze11l shown by construction of the dative lµ.al with -,,vo,-ro, those men, both the ftrst promoters o.nd Alford cites Acts xx. 16, •o,,-.,, µ.:/, -,,,,.,,.,,a.:. those drawn in by them, in urging upon «/rr'f xpovo-rp,BfJcra.,, e.nd Meyer Xenophon, other, the observe.nee, not indeed of the 'Cyrop.' vi. 3. 11, ~ n. Zev µ.l-,,cr-r,, Aaf',iiv µ.o, whole Law, but of certain of its prescrip- -,•110,-ro aln-611. But neitber passage matches tions. The verb 4>uAucro, is used similarly the tone of abhonence which attaches to in Rom. ii. 26; Acts xxi. 24. The sense the phrase, µ.'I, -,,vo,-ro, on which see note on seems founded upon the notion of watching eh. ii. 17. Here- only in the New Testa- the Law to see wh11t it requires, as one is ment does it form e. syntactical part of e. endeavouring to co.rry it out. The 11rticle sentence. But in the Septuagint this con- is wanting before 110µ.011, though specifically struction is of repeated occurrence, following denoting the Law of Moses, as in Bom. ii. the Hebrew construction of cho.li'/,ah with e. 25, 27, and often. But desire to have you de.tive e.nd e.n infinitive verb with min. oiroumcised, that they m&y glory in your flesh Thus Gen. xliv. 7, M17 -yfvo,:ro -roir 11"(1.U:Tf o-ou (iiAAca 6lAoucr111 bµ.a, .,,,p,-r•µ.11,cr6m1, Yva iv -rji .,,.,:;,era,, ,c.-rA.; id., 17. So Josh. mv. 16. 6µ.,-r•p'f crap1<I 1taux-ficro,11-ra,); but they desire The pronoun lµ.ol is strongly emphasized you to receive circumcision, that in your flesh both in this first clause of the verse and in they may have whereof to glo-ry. The con- that which follows. The apostle is vividly junction «A.A<& is used in its proper original contrasting his own feeling e.nd behaviour sense, " instead of that." All that they in relation to the cross of Christ with those wo.nt is that in their intercourse with the of the leaders of the circumcision party Jews they mo.y have your circumcision to whom he he.s been denouncing. They would refer to as evidence of the high respect fa.in put the cross e.s fe.r e.s possible out of which they e.nd you as influenced by them sight, not to offend the Jews they wera ho.ve for the Law. "See I so far from tram• so anxious to conciliate-that "obnoxious pling upon the Law, wee.nd these our brethren object" (cr1tdvoaA011, 1 Cor. i. 25) itself~ e..< too a.re o.dopting the very badge of the ser- well e.s the inferences which the e.postle vants of the Law." The word "flesh" is in taught them to draw from it in relation to this clause used in its strictly litero.l sig- the ceremonie.l law: their 1<a6x11µ.a, that nification. The account which the apostle whereof they would glory, should be in here gives of the motives actuating this pa.r- preference the mntila.ted flesh of their mis- ticulo.r section of Jude.izing ree.ctione.ries led Ge.latia.n brethren; his boe.st, rejoicing, was no doubt grounded on specific informn.• glory, was, and God helping him should tion which he had just received. But such ever be, the cross of Christ-that, and that information, both in respect to its general e.lone. It quite emasculates the energy of probability 11nd to its grave importance, was his utterance to po.re.phrase "the cross" u • doubtless corroborated to hie own mind by being " the doctrine of the cross or of large experience which he he.d had elsewhere Christ's atonement.'' Rather, it is the e.mong the Gentile Ohurches of the behaviour oross itself which rivets his admiring view; of unsteady o.nd imperfectly instructed Gen- sneered at by Gentile, abhorred by Jew, tile converts. In almost every important ple.ce but to his eye resplendent with a. multiplicity where Gentiles were won to the fe.ith, there of truths radio.ting from it to his soul of were previously existing communities of infinite preciousness. Among those truth8, J ewe (Acts xv. 21); 1md contact with these one group, which to ns is a.pt to e.ppee.r or must he.ve given rise to 11n endless diversity but sme.11 interest, we.a to the apostle's hen.rt of rele.tious both of nttre.ction e.nd of repul- and oonscieuce productive of profoundest sion. Everywhere, from the very first, the relief. In former de.ys he had experienced contaot of Christianity with Jude.ism gave the bnrden o.nd the chafing or benumbing birth to varying phoses or J udaico-Christie.n- effeot of the Le. w, both e.s a. ceremonial in- ism euoh e.s e.rterwa.rds developed into mon- stitute o.nd as a." letter" of merely impera- strous forms of error. It was no new thing tive command. n was the cross which with the opostle the.t he should find himself releaaed him, e.s from the guilt o.nd lielVitude 310 THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. lerr. VI. 1-1a.