Galatians Through the Centuries

This commentary on Paul’s highly autobiographical letter to the Galations traces the history of the book’s reception through the ages.

• Explores the influence and history of this important New Testament book
• Demonstrates the crucial role that Galatians has played in the development of very diverse forms of Christian spirituality
• Considers the influence of Galatians on a wide range of theological figures, including Chrysostom, Augustine, and Luther
• Examines the ways in which Galatians has influenced images of Paul, suggesting that it is the indeterminacy and complexity of his text that cause it to be interpreted in such widely differing ways
• Focuses on verses, themes or arguments that have been the subject of particularly influential readings
• Published in the innovative and stimulating Wiley-Blackwell Bible Commentaries reception history series, which focuses on the broad spectrum of interpretations rather than the traditional verse by verse analysis typically found in commentaries.

Series Editors' Preface ix

Preface xi

List of Abbreviations xv

Introduction: Aims and Method, Summary of Findings, Galatians as a 'World- Building' Text 1

Galatians 1:1-9: The Beginning of Paul's Argument 66

Galatians 1:10-24: Paul Argues for His Independence as an Apostle (I); The 'Conversion' of Paul the Jew 83

Galatians 2:1-10: Paul Argues for His Independence as an Apostle (II); The Conference at Jerusalem 96

Galatians 2:11-21: Justifi cation by Faith: The New Life in Christ 105

Galatians 3:1-14: Life in the Spirit Contrasted with Living under the Curse of the Law 144

Galatians 3:15-29: The Purpose of the Law and the New Life of Sonship of God 188

Galatians 4:1-20: Paul Contrasts the Galatians' Present State as Christians with Their Former Lives 214

Galatians 4:21-31: A Concluding Allegory 227

Galatians 5: The New Life of Faith 245

Galatians 6: New Creation: Life Beyond the Law 284

Glossary 302

Works Cited 309

Illustrations 319

Index 320

“John Riches’ contribution to this excellent series is a well-focused, rich collection of work from key writers on Galatians from Marcion to the present day.” Journal for the Study of the New Testament

“An invaluable treasure trove of carefully selected interpretations, but more important is the overall picture that it paints of the extensive dialogue about Galatians, and the questions the book raises about the relationship between the text and its readers.” Ecclesiastical History

“This book is such a useful and admirable work of scholarship that I hesitate to find any fault with it.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly

John Riches was until his retirement in 2003 Professor of Divinity and Biblical Criticism at Glasgow University. Among his books on the New Testament are Jesus and the Transformation of Judaism (1980), A Century of New Testament Study (1993) and Conflicting Mythologies (2000). Paul’s letter to the Galatians is one of the most creative and subversive of the New Testament writings, drawing its energy from the fierce controversy which, to his great distress, was disturbing the congregation recently founded by Paul. One of the major sources of inspiration for the Reformation, it was also one of the writings most frequently turned to by the Fathers, as the Church sought to establish itself as the Church of the Empire.

This commentary looks at some of the major commentators on the letter – Chrysostom, Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Perkins, Lightfoot – and at the very different worlds which sprang from their readings.

The volume opens with an extended essay, setting the commentators in their historical setting and showing the close dialogue which exists among them. It then looks more closely at how they interrogate Paul’s text and at the way the text shapes their understanding of their worlds.