Justified by Faith

15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not (A)Gentile sinners; 16 yet we know that (B)a person is not justified[a] by works of the law (C)but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, (D)because by works of the law no one will be justified.

17 But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found (E)to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through the law I (F)died to the law, so that I might (G)live to God. 20 I have been (H)crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives (I)in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, (J)who loved me and (K)gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for (L)if righteousness[b] were through the law, (M)then Christ died for no purpose.

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Footnotes

  1. Galatians 2:16 Or counted righteous (three times in verse 16); also verse 17
  2. Galatians 2:21 Or justification

15 We are born Jews—we’re not Gentile sinners. 16 However, we know that a person isn’t made righteous by the works of the Law but rather through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. We ourselves believed in Christ Jesus so that we could be made righteous by the faithfulness of Christ and not by the works of the Law—because no one will be made righteous by the works of the Law. 17 But if it is discovered that we ourselves are sinners while we are trying to be made righteous in Christ, then is Christ a servant of sin? Absolutely not! 18 If I rebuild the very things that I tore down, I show that I myself am breaking the Law. 19 I died to the Law through the Law, so that I could live for God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. And the life that I now live in my body, I live by faith, indeed, by the faithfulness of God’s Son, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I don’t ignore the grace of God, because if we become righteous through the Law, then Christ died for no purpose.

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