Galatians 2
New King James Version
Defending the Gospel(A)
2 Then after fourteen years (B)I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and also took Titus with me. 2 And I went up [a]by revelation, and communicated to them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but (C)privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means (D)I might run, or had run, in vain. 3 Yet not even Titus who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. 4 And this occurred because of (E)false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our (F)liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, (G)that they might bring us into bondage), 5 to whom we did not yield submission even for an hour, that (H)the truth of the gospel might continue with you.
6 But from those (I)who seemed to be something—whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; (J)God [b]shows personal favoritism to no man—for those who seemed to be something (K)added nothing to me. 7 But on the contrary, (L)when they saw that the gospel for the uncircumcised (M)had been committed to me, as the gospel for the circumcised was to Peter 8 (for He who worked effectively in Peter for the apostleship to the (N)circumcised (O)also (P)worked effectively in me toward the Gentiles), 9 and when James, [c]Cephas, and John, who seemed to be (Q)pillars, perceived (R)the grace that had been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, (S)that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 They desired only that we should remember the poor, (T)the very thing which I also was eager to do.
No Return to the Law
11 (U)Now when [d]Peter had come to Antioch, I [e]withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; 12 for before certain men came from James, (V)he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing [f]those who were of the circumcision. 13 And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.
14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about (W)the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter (X)before them all, (Y)“If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, [g]why do you compel Gentiles to live as [h]Jews? 15 (Z)We who are Jews by nature, and not (AA)sinners of the Gentiles, 16 (AB)knowing that a man is not [i]justified by the works of the law but (AC)by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not (AD)by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
17 “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found (AE)sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. 19 For I (AF)through the law (AG)died to the law that I might (AH)live to God. 20 I have been (AI)crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh (AJ)I live by faith in the Son of God, (AK)who loved me and gave Himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for (AL)if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died [j]in vain.”
Footnotes
- Galatians 2:2 because of
- Galatians 2:6 Lit. does not receive the face of a man
- Galatians 2:9 Peter
- Galatians 2:11 NU Cephas
- Galatians 2:11 opposed
- Galatians 2:12 Jewish Christians
- Galatians 2:14 NU how can you
- Galatians 2:14 Some interpreters stop the quotation here.
- Galatians 2:16 declared righteous
- Galatians 2:21 for nothing
Galatians 2
Worldwide English (New Testament)
2 Fourteen years later I went to Jerusalem again. This time I went with Barnabas and I took Titus with me.
2 God showed me that I should go. And I told them about the good news which I tell to people who are not Jews. I told those who seemed to be church leaders when I was alone with them. I did not want my work to come to nothing - the work I had done or the work I was doing.
3 Titus was with me. He was not a Jew, but they did not force him to be circumcised [have the mark of a Jew made on his body].
4 But some men got in who were not true brothers. They came in secretly to spy on us to find out things about us. They did not want us to be free the way Christ Jesus has made us free. But they wanted to make us obey the old laws again [which were given to Moses by God].
5 But we did not let them tell us what to do, no, not even for one minute. In that way the real good news will be yours always.
6 Those men who seemed to be leaders did not teach me anything new. It does not matter to me who they were. God does not love some people more than others.
7 No, the leaders saw that God called me to take the good news to those who are not circumcised [not Jews], just as he called Peter to take the good news to those who are circumcised [Jews].
8 The same God who made Peter an apostle to the Jews made me an apostle to those who are not Jews.
9 The leaders saw that God had blessed me. James, Peter, and John seemed to be leaders in the church. They saw that God had blessed me. So they accepted Barnabas and me as fellow workers. They agreed that we should go to the people who were not Jews and they themselves would go to the Jews.
10 One thing they asked us to do was to help the poor Christians. I was very glad to do this.
11 One day Peter came to the city of Antioch. Then I had to tell him face to face that he had done wrong. He really was wrong!
12 Here is what happened. Peter ate with those who were not Jews. Then some men came whom James had sent. When they came he stopped eating with those who were not Jews. He was afraid of what the Jews might think.
13 All the other Jewish Christians did the same as Peter did. They acted as if it was not right to eat with those who were not Jews. Even Barnabas did the same.
14 But I saw they were not doing right. They were not obeying the true teaching of the good news. So I said to Peter in front of them all, `You are a Jew. But you live the way people do who are not Jews. How then can you force those who are not Jews to live the way the Jews do?'
15 We ourselves were born Jews. We are not of those who still follow wrong ways, those who are not Jews.
16 Yet we know that God does not call a man good because he tries to obey the law of the Jews. But we know that God puts a man right because he believes in Jesus Christ. So we also believed in Jesus Christ. And we are put right with God because we believe in Christ and not because we obey the law. No person will ever be called good by God just because he tries to obey the law of the Jews.
17 We came to Christ to be put right with God. That showed us how much we had been bad men. Was it Christ who made us bad men? No, surely not!
18 If I build up again what I once broke down, I do wrong.
19 Through the law I died. Now the law has no power over me so that I may live for God.
20 I died when Christ died on a cross. I do not live now, but Christ lives in me. Now while I still live in my body, I live by believing in the Son of God. He loved me and gave himself for me.
21 So I do not make the love of God useless. But if a person can be made good by the law, then Christ died for nothing.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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