GAL 3:1-9

Faith and Belief

1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed crucified — Jesus Christ crucified?

2This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit out of works of the law, or out of the hearing of faith?

3Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being perfected in the flesh?

4So many things did you suffer in vain — if indeed in vain?

5Therefore, the one supplying to you the Spirit and working works of power among you — out of works of the law, or out of the hearing of faith?

6Just as Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness;

7know therefore that those of faith — these are the sons of Abraham.

8And the scripture, foreseeing that out of faith God justifies the Gentiles, proclaimed the good news beforehand to Abraham, that: "In you all the nations will be blessed."

9So those out of faith are blessed together with the believing Abraham.

In the world it was spoken into

In the 1st-century Greco-Roman world, the Galatians would have understood Paul’s rebuke through the lens of their cultural and religious context. The accusation of being 'bewitched' evoked the widespread fear of the 'evil eye,' a malevolent force believed to cause harm or deception. Paul’s question about receiving the Spirit 'by works of the Law or by hearing of faith' challenged the Galatians’ reliance on Jewish legal practices, which some had adopted under pressure from Judaizers. The mention of Abraham’s faith being 'reckoned as righteousness' (Genesis 15:6) would have resonated with Jewish listeners familiar with this foundational narrative, while Gentile converts would have understood it as a critique of ritualistic observance. The lavish 'supplying' of the Spirit and miracles pointed to divine generosity, contrasting with the transactional nature of works-based righteousness. Paul’s rhetorical questions underscored the folly of abandoning faith for legalism, a shift that would have been seen as regressing from spiritual maturity to fleshly reliance.

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How other translations render this

GAL 3:1

KJV: O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
BSB: O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
Koinōnos: O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed crucified — Jesus Christ crucified?

GAL 3:2

KJV: This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
BSB: I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?
Koinōnos: This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit out of works of the law, or out of the hearing of faith?

GAL 3:3

KJV: Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?
BSB: Are you so foolish? After starting in the Spirit, are you now finishing in the flesh?
Koinōnos: Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being perfected in the flesh?

GAL 3:4

KJV: Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain.
BSB: Have you suffered so much for nothing, if it really was for nothing?
Koinōnos: So many things did you suffer in vain — if indeed in vain?

GAL 3:5

KJV: He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
BSB: Does God lavish His Spirit on you and work miracles among you because you practice the law, or because you hear and believe?
Koinōnos: Therefore, the one supplying to you the Spirit and working works of power among you — out of works of the law, or out of the hearing of faith?

GAL 3:6

KJV: Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
BSB: So also, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
Koinōnos: Just as Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness;

GAL 3:7

KJV: Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
BSB: Understand, then, that those who have faith are sons of Abraham.
Koinōnos: know therefore that those of faith — these are the sons of Abraham.

GAL 3:8

KJV: And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.
BSB: The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and foretold the gospel to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”
Koinōnos: And the scripture, foreseeing that out of faith God justifies the Gentiles, proclaimed the good news beforehand to Abraham, that: "In you all the nations will be blessed.

GAL 3:9

KJV: So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.
BSB: So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Koinōnos: So those out of faith are blessed together with the believing Abraham.

Only verses where the wording diverges meaningfully are shown. Identical phrasings are suppressed.

Translator's notes

GAL 3:1

has bewitched:The word translated 'has bewitched' refers to the ancient belief in the 'evil eye,' where a malevolent gaze could inflict harm or misfortune upon someone.

GAL 3:3

are you being perfected?:The phrase 'are you being perfected' uses a word that means to complete or bring to a finished state, often implying a process of development or accomplishment.

GAL 3:5

supplying:The word translated 'supplying' originally referred to the generous provision of resources for a chorus or public spectacle, implying abundant and lavish support.

GAL 3:8

justifies:The word translated 'justifies' means to declare or show to be righteous, or to treat as righteous, rather than to make someone righteous in an internal sense.