Down an Unfamiliar Road

IN HIS TIME

Decades ago, whenever world-renown infidel Colonel Robert G. Ingersoll would deliver one of his lectures against religion and the Bible, his fame and oratorical ability always assured him of large crowds of both admirers and skeptics.  Although he was the son of a Congregational minister, his father’s own liberal thinking clashed with those of the conservative congregation and this ignited the flame of doubt in young Ingersol’s mind. Even though he was a civil war veteran and trained as a lawyer, he found his most popular forum was that of bashing politics, the clergy, and the Bible.

Sometimes he attracted crowds numbering over 50,000. After one very inflammatory speech in which he severely attacked people’s faith in God, he dramatically took out his pocket watch and said loudly, “I’ll give God a chance to prove that He exists and is almighty; I challenge Him to strike me dead within 5 minutes!” A dead silence came over the stunned audience; as the time ticked away people began to grow uneasy. Some left the hall, unable to take the nervous strain, and the increasing suspense caused one woman to faint. At the end of the allotted time, the atheist exclaimed derisively, “See!  There is no God. Look, I’m still alive!” After the lecture, a young fellow saw a Christian lady he knew and said to her, “Well, Ingersoll certainly proved something tonight!” Her reply was memorable. “Yes, he did,” she said. “He proved God isn’t taking orders from atheists.”

When my father told this story as part of a sermon, he ended it this way, “The Christian lady replied, ‘Yes, he did.  He proved you cannot exhaust God’s patience in 5 minutes.’”  Either way, God’s patience proves to be more powerful than any weapon the enemy might throw at His people. Miracles may happen in a second, but that moment has been in preparation for years before the hand of God brings it into reality. Some consider childbirth to be a miracle, but it takes as much as nine months before it comes to pass.

So often believers want God to act or react within seconds after the ungodly make their threat. But it helps to remember how God chose to wait over 400 years before bringing His children out of Egypt; Moses had to herd sheep in Midian before God sent him back down into Egypt to lead them out. He allowed David to run for years from Saul before letting him become king; He caused Hezekiah to experience tremendous fear and anxiety before bringing the threat of invasion against him to an end. It all worked out according to God’s will and purpose, and that’s what counts in the long run.

We all may become frustrated with God’s method of dealing with our enemies, but never make the mistake of trying to outguess our Heavenly Father. He only acts at His own appointed time as part of His plan for this world, its inhabitants, and His children. So, if something doesn’t happen as you want it to when you want it to, don’t get discouraged, it wasn’t part of His plan. Remember, all things work together for good to those who love God, and are called according to His purpose.[1] – Dr. Robert R Seyda

[1] Romans 8:28

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXX)

The Contextual Bible goes on to say that the way of Faith is very different from the way of the Law. The Law does not require faith or dependence on God, and in fact, does not involve faith. It requires total human strength and conscientious effort, for it says in Leviticus that a person will be given life forever if they obey every single law of God, without one slip. This, of course, is a humanly impossible task. But the Anointed One brought us out from under the doom of that impossible system, by taking God’s curse against lawbreakers upon Himself. He could never be cursed of God because He kept the Law perfectly and earned the life and blessings that come from the Law – and yet God’s curse did come upon Him when He was hung upon the wooden torture stake.

This should not be surprising because in the same Law in Deuteronomy it says: “Anyone who is hanged on a tree is under God’s curse.”[1] The purpose was to pacify the Law’s demand for the curse to be lifted from off the heads of lawbreakers and to pay its penalty, to pay for all its claims against lawbreakers and give the bill to the Anointed One so He could pay the ransom for those who put their faith in Him, to remove the distinction of being God’s chosen people that the Jewish nation alone possessed, so that God can now bless the non-Jews too with the blessing He promised to Abraham. And because of their faith in the Anointed One Jesus, therefore, all of us, Jews and non-Jews, can now receive God’s powerful life-giving Spirit which He promised for all those having faith.[2]

3:15 My dear brothers and sisters let me draw an analogy from everyday life in everyday language. Once someone signs a binding contract with another person, they cannot individually amend it or void it. The same is true in this case. God made a promise to Abraham and to his child.

Paul now takes an example from everyday life and applies it to the Galatians’ spiritual life. He points out that a signed contract between two entities cannot be altered or amended by any one of them without the other party’s approval. Then the Apostle Paul points out that since God gave a promise to Abraham and Isaac, God was not going to change anything without Abraham’s approval and vice versâ. Paul was not questioning this principle, he was only using it as an example for the Galatians to understand that God stands by His word.

The term: “language of men,” a compound phrase of the Greek verb legō (“to speak”), the preposition kata (“according to”), and the noun anthrōpos (“ordinary people”). Putting something this way was not new to Jewish Rabbis (Masters) and Ravs (Teachers). When Paul was taught the oral teachings of Judaism, he no doubt heard this phrase, “The Torah uses the language of men.”[3] And in another place, Rabbis were talking about contracts between owners and those hiring animals for farming, milking, etc. When trying to explain certain policies, one listener to the Rabbi asked: “Now, if what you say agrees with our view, we do not say that the Torah employs human phraseology; but, on the other hand, when we do agree that the Torah is employing human phraseology, what do you say”?[4]

Then again, Rabbis were discussing the resurrection and that the Holy One, blessed be He, knows the future of those whom He resurrects. The Rabbi points out that it was taught by Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Jose, that resurrection cannot be reasoned as a fact from reading the Torah. In fact, Rabbi Eliezer misinterpreted his Torah and that his theory got no closer to finding the truth by maintaining that resurrection is not a Biblical doctrine. However, it is written that any individual who does something wrong intentionally, that person will be cut off from this world and the world-to-come because of their contempt for the Word of Adonai.[5] That’s when Rabbi Papa inquired if they really understood whether or not individuals cut off from this world were also cut off from the world-to-come? They might then reply that “The Torah employs human phraseology.”[6]

And on one other occasion, the Rabbis were discussing where murderers should be caught and executed in the city where they went for refuge or when they purposely or accidentally left the city of refuge? The delineation was between those who committed murder and those who were guilty of manslaughter. One of the Rabbis said that he didn’t find any difficulty here. For him, the statute applied equally except for the fact that slaying the murderer was in order but not for someone banishment from their country as punishment for being found guilty of manslaughter. That’s because the view found in the Torah occasionally used popular “figures of speech.”[7]

When put all together, I get the impression that what the terms language of men, human phraseology, and popular figures of speech – terms that the English translators of the Babylonian Talmud used, might be phrased as “street language” today in the Modern American English vernacular. In other words, how people on the street would say something in everyday lingo to ordinary people. That, of course, opens the door to any listener to understand it the way they perceive it.

This would not be the first or last time Paul would use this phrase when it came to explaining or drawing an analogy of every life explained in everyday language to make a spiritual point. In fact, he would write to the Roman believers about how they were freed from the bondage of sin, and he told them, “I speak with words easy to understand because your human thinking is shallow.”[8] The Complete Jewish Bible renders it: “I am using popular language because your human nature is so weak.” I would prefer the following, based on Paul’s use of the Greek noun asthenia: “Because it’s hard for you to understand,” even though Thayer in his Greek lexicon chose the “weakness of human nature.”

And on the subject of the resurrection, Paul told the Corinthians. It’s a fact that every day I feel like dying just as much as I’m thrilled at your growth in the Lord. And what value was there in fighting wild beasts – those people in Ephesus – if it was only for what I gain in this life down here? If we will never live again after we die, then we might as well go and give ourselves a good time: let us eat, drink, and be merry. What’s the difference? Who knows, tomorrow it might all come to an end and they are right we’ll find out that living right all this time meant nothing![9] Paul’s reference to those people in Ephesus was a backhanded compliment to people who were so carnally-minded they didn’t understand a thing when he spoke to them about spiritual matters. That was not a language they were familiar with. Believe me, things have not changed in the 21st century.

Martin Luther shares his thoughts on verse fifteen. He notes that after what Paul said in the previous verses of a well-accepted argument, Paul now offers another based on the similarity between a person’s testament and God’s Testament. Luther admits that a human’s testament seems too weak a premise for the Apostle to argue from in confirmation of so important a matter as justification. I believe, says Luther, we ought to prove earthly things by heavenly things, and not heavenly things by earthly things. However, where the earthly thing is a regulation of God, we may use it to prove divine matters. For instance, in Matthew the Anointed One Himself argued from earthly to heavenly things when He said: “If you who are earthly know how to give good things to your children. How much more will your Heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him?”[10] [11] Today, this practice of using everyday occurrences in making a frame fitted for the word-picture being painted from Scripture for the listeners is well documented. Illustrations have become part of many sermons and teachings.

John Trapp (1601-1669), an English Anglican Bible commentator who became identified with the Puritan movement, tells us a story about an incident that illustrated what Paul said about how no one on their own can change a contract sign by another. There was an attorney named William Tracy, Esquire, high sheriff of Gloucestershire, England, during the 22^nd and 23^rd years King Henry VI’s reign, who wrote in his will, that neither his funeral or interment was to be the cause of making a spectacle out of the situation. He also says he would forego any Mass at the Church. And further, that he trusted in God only, and hoped by Him to be saved, and not by any saint. When this gentleman died, his son as executor brought the will to the Bishop of Canterbury to be validated, which was then shown to the Assembly. Upon reading the will, they declared that he be taken out of the ground and be burned as a heretic.[12] That was ridiculous! Even Williams’ son knew that he possessed no such authority to change his father’s will. The same is true of our heavenly Father’s will in which we are included.

George B. Stevens (1854-1906) comments on Paul claiming no divine inspiration in verse fifteen as he tries to define how people enter into a covenant with each other. Apparently, it was a commonplace occurrence in Paul’s day, otherwise, he would not have said it came from everyday life.[13] Paul is intending to show the superiority of the covenant of promise with Abraham to which the Law was subordinate. This would be what is called an “a fortiori” argument, meaning that if a covenant made between two people is so binding, then how much more will a covenant between God and people be even more binding.

Then Stevens notes that the Greek noun diathēkē is a proper translation of the Hebrew noun bĕriyth which both signify a solemn compact or agreement. Only twice in the King James Version is diathēkē translated as “testament.”[14] This came about because, in the Latin Vulgate, it was translated as “Testamentum” and thereby passed into common usage as an English equivalent. But the Revised Standard Version corrects this by translating it “will” as in “Living Will” or “Last Will.” The New American Standard Bible renders it, “covenant.” But Dr. Stevens, with whom I agree, calls this an inaccuracy when applied to what is now called “The New Testament.” This Final Covenant is more than just a will or testament, it is a binding, unchangeable, agreement that neither time, conditions, religion, mankind, or God will ever change. Furthermore, a last will or testament can only be probated by the executor when the testator of the will dies. As far as we know, God is not dead.[15]

[1] Deuteronomy 21:23 – NIV

[2] Aiyer, Ramsey. On Galatians, Kindle Locations 252-264

[3] Babylonian Talmud: Seder Kodashim, Masekhet Kerithoth, folio 11a

[4] Ibid. Seder Nezikin, Masekhet Baba Mezi’s, folio 94b

[5] Numbers 15:30-31

[6] Ibid. Masekhet Sanhedrin, folio 90b

[7] Ibid. Masekhet Makkoth, folio 12a

[8] Romans 6:19

[9] 1 Corinthians 15:31-32

[10] Matthew 7:11

[11] Martin Luther: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., p. 78

[12] John Trapp: On Galatians, op. cit., p. 581

[13] Translated as such by the New International Version (NIV), New Living Translation (NLT), New Century Version (NCV), New English Translation (NET), and Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

[14] Hebrews 9:16,17

[15] George B. Stevens: Shorter Exposition of Galatians, op. cit., pp. 132-133

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXIX)

Therefore, the blessings received by the redeemed are found in partaking of the Anointed One’s fullness, which results in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The power of the indwelling Spirit is measured according to one’s faith. That is to say, even though much spiritual oil is available, it depends on the size of the container one has that will determine the amount to be received for use. This is the oil that was poured upon the head of the church – His Body, which ran down to the members of His body; to the skirts of His garment.[1] That’s why we should develop equal understanding and dependence upon each of the persons of the Trinity: Upon the Father, as He provided the Redeemer, and upon the Son, who paid the price of redemption, and upon the Holy Spirit who made the purchase of the redeemed.[2]

Having stated in verse eight above that the Holy Scriptures said long ago that God would also save the people who are not Jews from the punishment of sin, the Scriptures said that Abraham already received the Good News that through him all nations would be blessed. Now here in verse fourteen, the Apostle Paul gives the final outcome of that promise by declaring that because of the price the Anointed One Jesus paid, the good things that came to Abraham might come to the people who are not Jews. And by putting their trust in the Anointed One, they would receive the Holy Spirit He promised to them.

Alfred Edersheim (1825-1889 AD), examines these promises more closely, and believes they formed yet another trial of Abram’s faith; since he was not only going as a stranger into a foreign land but was at the time, childless. The promise that he was to “be a blessing,” implied that blessing would, so to speak, be identified with him through his offspring. Therefore, happiness or unhappiness would flow from the relationship that people would develop with Abram. On the other hand, from the peculiar terms “them that bless you,” in the plural, and “curse him who curses you,” in the singular,[3] we conclude that the Divine purpose of mercy embraced many, “of all nations, races, and languages,” says Edersheim”

Then Edersheim looks at the great promise, “In you will all families of the earth be blessed,” as something that went far beyond the personal assurance, “I will make your name great.”[4] It resumed and made more definite the previous promises of final deliverance, by identifying Abram as the spring from which the blessing was to flow. Viewed in this light, all mankind appears as many families with the same father. As a result, they would be united in a common blessing in and through Abram. Repeated again and again in the history of Abram, this promise was contained already at the outset the whole fullness of the Divine purpose of mercy in the salvation of men. That was the prediction to be fulfilled: “May God make Japheth great. Let him live in the tents of Shem. And let Canaan be his servants.”[5] And that’s exactly where the Israelites ended up after their deliverance from Egypt. It was important enough for Peter to mention it in his sermon after healing the man at Gate Beautiful,[6] and for Paul to refer to it here in Galatians.[7]

Aaron M. Hills (1847-1935), in commenting on what was the evangelical perspective in his day of what is called the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, mentions that the great evangelist Dwight L. Moody stated that it starts by asking God to forgive us our sins and anoint us with power from on high. This will not happen until we are emptied of self, pride, and worldly thoughts.[8] And in the same book, Moody believes firmly that the moment our hearts get rid of pride, selfishness, ambition, self-seeking, and everything that is contrary to God’s law, the Holy Spirit will come and fill every corner of our hearts; but if we are full of pride and conceit and ambition and self-seeking and pleasures of the world, there is no room for the Spirit of God.[9] This, says Hill, is why, if you desire for the Holy Spirit to come with power, your will must crown Jesus Lord of all, and our all must be laid upon His altar.

Hill continues by teaching that after you did all the things suggested, you may still miss the blessing unless you take one more step. Five times the Holy Word tells us that we receive the sanctifying blessing by “faith.” That’s what Paul is saying here in verse fourteen. In other words, when you were a sinner, you were finally able to comprehend and accept the Anointed One as your Savior for Salvation by faith. Likewise, now you are to receive the Holy Spirit by faith as your Sanctifier for Sanctification. By that same simple faith, you can count yourself dead to sin, but alive to God.[10] Not only will God approve of your actions but consider them valid and rewarding.

Hill goes on to say that we cannot believe until we first take the necessary steps just mentioned. But if you really took them, then you are planted on higher believing ground. God will slay the “old self” within you, and make you “dead to sin.” Believe that from now on you are “alive to holiness and God.” The simplicity of all of this causes some people to stagger, stumble, and fall before they receive the blessing of the indwelling Holy Spirit to be spiritually alive, but also the empowering Holy Spirit to serve your Lord and Master, the Anointed One.[11] This should make us all wonder why then the Galatians were so quick to forsake this higher ground of Grace and return to the Valley of Despair under the Law.

American Methodist minister and leading evangelist for the holiness movement, Mr. Beverly Carradine (1848-1931), agrees that it is through faith we are converted. It is through faith we received a pardon of our sins and made right with God. And it is through faith we come into the blessing and enjoyment of sanctification. He offers as proof what Paul says here in verses 2, 3, 11, and 14. It is based on the question of whether the Galatians received the Holy Spirit by the works of the Law, or by faith after hearing the Gospel preached by Paul? This sets up the next question of why were they being so foolish after having begun in the Spirit, they were now trying to become perfect by good deeds done in accordance with the Law. Didn’t they remember Paul’s message, “The just shall live by faith?”

But that leads to another question, why should they live by faith? The answer, Paul tells them, is so that the blessings of Abraham might be shared with them as Gentiles through Jesus the Anointed One. But even more, that they might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. In other words, being in the possession of the Holy Spirit is not something you can buy at the local Christian bookstore. It is not a liquid that you drink. In fact, it is not even visible to the naked eye for you to examine before allowing it to enter your life. Your reception of the Holy Spirit can only be by Faith. And what is Faith? It is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things unseen.[12]

For Carradine, this whole passage is remarkable. But his attention is caught by the last line. What is this promise of the Spirit that was to be received through faith? It could be nothing less than the blessing of sanctification which the Anointed One told His disciples to tarry for at Jerusalem after His ascension! The key was that they were to “wait” for the “promise of the Father.” In the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, it tells us that they received it, and it came as a promise through faith.[13] So not only were the Galatians turning their backs on the gift of Grace that set them free from the burden of the Law, but they were also throwing away the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit which was the sanctifying part of the promise.

Leading American prophecy professor J. Dwight Pentecost presents an interesting commentary on how, when, or if the church is not fulfilling Israel’s new covenant in order to inherit the blessings promised to Abraham, as Paul says here in verse fourteen. First, we see that the term Israel is not used anywhere in Scriptures for any but the physical descendants of Abraham. Now, since the church today is composed both of Jews and Gentiles, it would be impossible for the church to fulfill these promises made to an earthly nation. The second thing is, in the Anointed One’s Final Covenant, there are spiritual blessings and promises as well as earthly blessings. While the Church, like Israel, is promised salvation, the forgiveness of sin, the ministry of the Holy Spirit, yet, the Church is never promised an inheritance of a physical piece of land in the Middle East or anywhere else, in addition to material wealth or rest from persecution and repression. Those were promises made to Israel, not the church.[14]

The third factor is that the blessing of the Abrahamic covenant is by faith without being under any obligation to adhere to the First Covenant. Then there is the time element contained within the covenant with Israel that cannot be fulfilled and realized until after the period of Israel’s tribulation and her deliverance by the advent of the Messiah. While the Church certainly went through periods of persecution and hardships, it never passed through the great tribulation of prophecy. There is no doubt that the Church is not in the millennial age.[15] This clearly indicates that this covenant can only be realized after the second coming of the Messiah to set us His millennial kingdom. Therefore, says Pentecost, the promises made to Israel are yet in the future, so how can the Church now be fulfilling this covenant of which Paul speaks?[16]

In one commentary on Galatians, the writers make an outstanding point by saying that when justification is obtained by good works, then people judge whether or not it is real and effective. But when justification is received by faith in the Anointed One, then God is the Judge who validates it as approved by Him. But God left a side-door open for anyone who thinks they can keep every statue in the Law to perfection. Of course, that never happened and will never happen, except in one case. God incarnated as Yeshua of Nazareth went through that door and successfully completed the task. That’s when He became the door to justify anyone being able to enjoy a right standing with God. So, our fellowship with God is not based on our being accepted by the church, but being accepted by God.[17]

I like the way the Contextual Bible puts verses 10-14 into clear focus. It begins by saying that those who depend on their conscientious obedience to God’s Law to be guiltless and righteous, are under God’s condemnation, cursed to be cut off from God, because the Scriptures point out very clearly, “God’s curse is upon anyone, who at any time, breaks a single one of these rules that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” Moreover, it is clear that no one can ever be righteous in God’s sight by trying to keep His Law, because the prophet Habakkuk says, “The righteous person is one who will receive eternal life, the life from God, flow into him because of his faith.”

[1] Cf. Psalm 133:2

[2] Jonathan Edwards: Wisdom of God, pp. 1059-1060

[3] Genesis 12:3In

[4] Ibid. 12:2

[5] Ibid. 9:27

[6] Acts of the Apostles 3:25

[7] Alfred Edersheim, The Bible History, Old Testament, Vol. 1, Part 1, Ch. 11, p. 71

[8] Dwight L. Moody: Secret Power,  Published by Fleming H. Revell Company, New York, 1881, p. 29

[9] Ibid. p. 20

[10] Romans 6:11

[11] Aaron Merritt (A. M.) Hills, Pentecostal Light, Ch. 2, pp. 21-22

[12] Hebrews 11:1

[13] Beverly Carradine: Sanctification, Ch. 11, p. 51

[14] See Deuteronomy 28:1-8

[15] Romans 11:26-27

[16] Pentecost, J. Dwight. Things to Come: A Study in Biblical Eschatology (Kindle Location 2403-2418). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

[17] Martin, Ralph P.; Lane, William L.; Morris, Leon. The Shorter Letters of Paul: Galatians to Philemon (Open Your Bible Commentary, New Testament Book 8) (Kindle Location 608-618). Creative 4 International. Kindle Edition.

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXVIII)

So, how could anyone think they could add any worth to God’s salvation for which the highest price was paid? Paul states emphatically: The Anointed One redeemed us, meaning: “Paid the ransom,” or paid the “price of recovery” so we were no longer held hostage under the curse of Mosaic Law. Did He do it with money?  Did He do it with good deeds? Did He do it by bargaining with God? No! He traded places with us; then suffered the consequences of the death sentence meant for us. He paid with His life. There is no higher price.

In making his point Paul again quotes from the Scriptures by citing Deuteronomy: “If someone committed a crime worthy of death and is executed and hung on a tree, the body must not remain hanging from the tree overnight. You must bury the body that same day, for anyone who is hung is under condemnation from God.”[1] I can hear the Apostle Paul saying under his breath as he writes, Don’t you realize that God already planned the death of His Son on the cross when He inspired Moses to write these words?  Did Jesus’ body not come down off the cross before the day was over and buried? Yes! What crimes did Jesus commit? None! They all belonged to you and me! How in the world do you expect to add anything to make that better? Good Lord! If you Galatians don’t get it now, you never will! What Jesus did for us is priceless!

I’m sure the Jews picked up on the hidden truth existing in Paul’s use of the word “redeemed.”  This word owes its origin to the practices of ancient warfare. After a battle, the victors took captives from the defeated foe. From among the defeated, they sold the poorer ones to their own people as slaves, but those privileged members of society who were captured; those who mattered most to their home country, they held for ransom. After people in their homeland raised the required price, they paid it to the victors and freed the captives. They called the process “redemption” and called the price “ransom.”

But just in case the misled Gentiles didn’t get it, Paul points out that God included them in His redemption, so that the blessing of Abraham extended to Gentiles as well. So, both the poor (Gentiles) and privileged (Jews) received identical treatment. That’s why in Paul’s letter to the believers in Colossæ he said: “In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. the Anointed One is all that matters and He lives in all of us”[2]

But that’s not all, you hardheaded Galatians, while there exists no way to improve on nor add value to the Anointed One’s ransom for our redemption – something no other heavenly or earthly being was qualified to pay, it opened the door for an added promise. Paul describes it as something God promised to Abraham, which is only available from Him through His Holy Spirit.

This portion of verse fourteen gave rise to many different interpretations by translators and theologians.  But to save time and a lot of head-scratching, putting it in context and tuning in to Paul’s streaming thought up to this point, it appears that Paul repeats the same concept he shared here later in chapter three, verses two and three. Mosaic Law offered them nothing but slavery and an impossible task trying to avoid the inevitable sentence of death. But through Jesus the Anointed One alone, the Spirit brings them everything God promised to Abraham and all those who follow his example of faithful obedience to God’s Word.

Since we cannot add anything to the price the Anointed One paid for our salvation, that means it is paid in full; and since we cannot improve on the work of salvation to make ourselves more presentable and of higher value to God; and since everything we are, and everything we do, and everything we accomplish, and everything we bring to Him He receives through the Anointed One, what motivates us then to live for Him? Why should we let our light shine for Him? What good does it do to be the salt of the earth for Him? And what do we accomplish by glorifying Him before the world around us to give Him honor? We do it all in love and out of love for His Love in gratitude for His loving redemption that freed us from the prison of sin.

John Calvin touches on a point that confuses some people but not on purpose. He raises the first question by asking, how could the spotless Lamb of God take our sins upon Himself and become a sinner so that He could pay the price for our redemption? Not only that but how could God’s beloved Son be cursed by His Heavenly Father? Calvin believes there are two things to consider when we examine His divine nature and His human nature. How could the Anointed One the Son of God take our place as sinners on the cross and yet remain the spotless Lamb of God who was dying so that His blood could remove the stains of all the things, we did wrong? Furthermore, how could He reconcile His Father with us since He endured God’s wrath and displeasure because of sin?

These are tough questions to answer, but Calvin believes the answer can be found in that the Anointed One did all the things that pleased His Father in heaven.[3] It was necessary for Him to redirect the wrath of God meant for us to be focused on Him instead. If He failed to do this, there would be no shield to protect us from God’s wrath. It needed to be Him, none of us would survive such a test. That’s why Isaiah the prophet proclaimed that He was wounded for our transgressions.[4] Only the Anointed One could deal with an angry Judge who felt no urge to show us any mercy. It doesn’t seem to make sense. That’s why Paul said that to the world the Anointed One’s death on the cross was “foolishness” [an absurdity],”[5] but admired by the angels.[6] Not only does this exceed, but it swallows up all the wisdom of the world.[7]

William Burkitt (1650-1703) makes a very outstanding point here about the Messiah taking sin’s curse meant for us upon Himself, and paying the full price for our release. Once the Messiah completed His task of redeeming us, He didn’t just walk away and tell us to go and sin no more. He not only intended to appease the wrath of God and tell us to then enjoy life. No! Because of what Jesus the Anointed One did the blessing God promised to Abraham was given to all people. The Messiah died so that by believing in Him we could receive the Spirit that God promised. And, furthermore, that Spirit was not just on-call but took up residence in our hearts to be with us constantly to guide, promote, provide, and protect us as we travel through the minefield of sin. So, we not only must thank Jesus for what He did for us on the cross and by coming out of the grave, but what He does for us each and every day we live for Him.[8]

British theologian John Owen wrote on May 30, 1677, that he just finished writing his work on the doctrine of justification being by faith. He talks about how the Anointed One took our sins upon Himself so that He might be our sacrifice. Owen is quick to point out that we should not understand this as the Anointed One becoming a sinner like us. How can a sinner save a sinner? Owen believes we should interpret this as the Anointed One willing taking responsibility for paying the debt owed to God for your sins. So, the Anointed One did two things by taking such responsibility. First, He met the ransom price the Law required, so the Law’s demands were met. Not for just one time, but paid in full for all time. Secondly, He was able then to reconcile us with God. No, we were no longer His enemies, but His friends. But when God declared us a righteous in His sight, He wasn’t looking at us; it is by His righteousness through the Anointed One that we are saved and sanctified as holy to the Lord.

The Apostle Peter also saw it this way when he quoted from the Torah that we are to be holy because He is holy.[9] This provides that blessed assurance we need to comfort us on our difficult Christian journey. It is derived from the fact that a convicted sinner became a convinced sinner who then was transformed into a converted sinner. Jesus said we would find peace and rest for our souls.[10] It was all possible because as Paul says here in verses thirteen and fourteen, God’s Son redeemed us from the curse of the Law by being a curse for us. Our joy also comes from the fact that we are heirs to God’s promises to Abraham’s and joint-heirs with the Anointed One and His eternal riches. Remember, all those sins and the penalty of death belonged to us. We were helpless to pay our debt to God. Then Jesus came, not only did He pay our debt, but the debt of every sinner on earth. With that responsibility in His possession, He was then ordered to pay the debt which He did on the cross of Calvary. Peter was there when it happened and this is why he said Jesus carried our sins in His own body when He died on a cross.[11] Now we can stand right before God because of Jesus.[12]

Jonathan Edwards sees in verses thirteen and fourteen an important factor for all Christians to be aware of. He starts by saying that each person of the Trinity is exceedingly glorified in this work of redemption. That’s why this work is distinguished from all the other works of the triune God. The attributes of our triune God are glorious in other works, the three persons of the Trinity are distinctly glorified in no other work as in redemption. In this work, each distinct person of the triune God performs their distinct part and office assigned to them. Each one shows their particular and distinct concern as part of it, in harmony with their distinct personal characteristics, inter-Trinity relationships, and ministries. The redeemed express an equal concern with and dependence upon each Person of the triune Godhead in this redemption and we owe equal honor and praise to each of them.

The Father appoints and provides the Redeemer, and accepts the price of redemption. The Son is the Redeemer and the One who pays the price. He redeems us by offering up Himself in our place. The Holy Spirit immediately communicates to us that we were purchased. So, the sum of what the Anointed One purchased for us is holiness and joy. But the Holy Spirit is the essential principle in holiness and joy. The Holy Spirit is the sum of all that the Anointed One purchased for humanity. That’s why Paul says that the Anointed One bought us with His blood and made us free from the Law. In that way, the Law could not punish us. the Anointed One did this by carrying the load and by being punished instead of us. And because of the price the Anointed One Jesus paid, the good things that came to Abraham might come to the people who are not Jews. And by putting our trust in the Anointed One, we receive the Holy Spirit He promised as our divine Comforter, Counselor, and Companion.

[1] Deuteronomy21:22-23

[2] Colossians 3:11

[3] John 8:29

[4] Isaiah 53:5

[5] 1 Corinthians 1:18

[6] 1 Peter 1:12

[7] John Calvin: Biblical Cabinet, op. cit., loc. cit., pp. 71-72

[8] William Burkitt: On Galatians, op. cit., p. 316

[9] 1 Peter 1:16; See Leviticus 11:44, 45; 19:2; 20:7

[10] Matthew 11:28-30

[11] 1 Peter 2:24

[12] John Owen: The Doctrine of Justification by Faith, Vol. 1, p. 72

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXVII)

Kenneth Wuest shares with us the three Greek words translated by the words “bought” or “redeemed.” These three tell the story of redemption. The first is agorazo, which means to buy in the slave market.[1] We all were born in slavery to sin. Our ransom price was paid by the precious blood of the Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. Peter says that we were not redeemed with mere silver and gold coins used to buy a slave out of slavery, but with precious blood, highly honored, as of a lamb without spot or blemish.[2] Thus, believers become willing bondslaves of the Lord Jesus by “right of purchase.” The word doulos (bondslave), translated “servants,” refers to one born in slavery but was purchased to become a slave.[3]

The second word is the one Paul uses in the verse we are studying, exagorazo (to buy a slave out of the market-place.) The bondslave of the Lord Jesus is bought not only to be His bondslave but is bought out of the slave market, never to be put up for sale in any slave market again. The bondslave of the Lord Jesus belongs to Him for time and for eternity. It is only through foolishness like the Galatians that a person would go back into slavery by adopting the Law instead of the LORD as their master. And since you cannot serve two masters, you must choose. Some make their choice and then stick with it, while others make that same choice on a daily basis.

The third word is lutroo. The noun has the same root and means “ransom money” used to liberate a slave.[4] The verb means “to set free by the payment of a ransom.” The bondslave of the Lord Jesus is set free from the former slave master of sin, to realize in the bondslave’s life that for which God created him or her, to glorify Him and to enjoy His fellowship forever.[5] There is no fellowship in sin, just misery. Satan tries to fool us by saying it won’t hurt, just try a little of it. But just like narcotics, once tasted, it gets a hold on the person who tries it. On the other hand, as King David said, “Taste and see that the LORD is good,”[6] to which we can add Paul’s recommendation that we not become drunk on the world’s wine, but be filled with the Spirit,[7] Be addicted to the Spirit of God rather than to the spirits of this world and sin.

Ronald Y. K. Fung says that the foolish conduct of the Galatians was the more culpable in that Jesus the Anointed One was publicly proclaimed before their very eyes as crucified. The word rendered “openly displayed” (prographō) refers not to some document or letter previously written by Paul,[8] nor to a depiction of the suffering and dying Jesus, but to the public and official character of the apostolic kerygma (proclamation) which was displayed like a metaphorical billboard for all to see, “Jesus the Anointed One … crucified.”[9] The perfect participle estaurōmenos (“crucified”) in this phrase does not merely fasten attention upon the death of the Anointed One as the culmination and, therefore, summary of his life as that of “one who took the form of a servant,” nor does it characterize Jesus as one hanging on the cross and to be considered as such even now; rather it describes Him in His character as the crucified (and risen) One. The phrase “Jesus the Anointed One crucified” concisely summarizes the decisive event in salvation history and, as such, the fundamental content of the Pauline kerygma. If only the Galatians had fixed their eyes on that billboard, it would have enabled them to escape the fascination of the false teachers; for that one phrase, had it been truly understood, would have removed the ground from the Judaizers’ argument.[10]

J. L. Nye (c. 1851-1899), collector of anecdotes to be used in sermons tells of a young man living in Pennsylvania whose father was a well-to-do businessman, who gave in to the temptation of buying expensive goods and forging his father’s name on the bill. Once it was discovered, the boy ran away from home. He was able to live off of the money he got from pawning his goods but eventually became penniless. The boy remembered a minister who was a friend to his father. So, after living a life of sin he showed up at the minister’s house. He was full of remorse but also is the last stage of cancer.

The minister knew there were three things needed for the boy and his father to be reconciled. First, the boy must be repentant and ask forgiveness. Second, the law must be satisfied by paying back all the money he embezzled. And third, the father must be willing to forgive him and receive him back into the family. The father confirmed that the first part was taken care of because he paid all the bills. The second point was also met in that the boy was deeply repentant. But the third point was not provided. As the boy neared death, the minister sent a telegram to the father saying, “Your son is dying; for God’s sake read Luke 15 and come before it is too late.” The reply from the father was: “When he is dead, send his body here at my expense.” That was all – the father was unwilling to forgive.

How different is the case with our Heavenly Father, says Nye. He also has provided for the satisfaction of the broken law by His Son’s death on the cross. He is longing to receive us. Did He not say, “Those that comes to Me, I will never turn away?”[11] He invited us – will we come? If we fail to come, did He also not say, “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me?”[12] He has provided all that is required; we need only to accept His gift, leave ourselves in His hands, and be prepared to meet our God with joy.[13]

American Baptist minister, missionary, and writer Stanley L. Derickson (b. 1940) points to what Paul says here in verse thirteen as sufficient evidence that we are not freed from the curse of the Law based on our good works or self-effort in changing our character. We are freed by the Anointed One’s work on the cross to live our lives as saints and not sinners.[14] That’s why anyone’s efforts to be holy on their own end up with large holes in their claims of holiness.

My oldest brother, when he was in his teens, cut himself on his arm. But when the wound began to heal, my brother kept removing the scab and the wound became reinfected. My father tried to explain to him that he needed to let the wound heal and the scab would fall off all by itself. However, my brother could not resist and continued to pick at the scab and the infection set in again, only this time worse than before. My father used the method of punishment common back in those days by taking off his belt and applying it to my bother’s bottom.

But sorry, my brother wanted to help the wound to heal so he would unconsciously pick at the scab until it came off, only to have the wound get red with infection again. My father took my brother into the living room where he removed his belt again. My brother was sure this whipping would be more severe than the one before. But strangely, my Dad took off his shirt, handed my brother the belt, got down on his knees and told my brother that he would take the deserved beating for him. My Dad was sure my brother would take out his frustration to pay him back for previous lashings. Instead, my brother began to cry and sob. He asked my father for forgiveness; he just couldn’t bring himself to lay the whip on my father’s back. From that moment on, my brother never touched the scab again and the wound healed quickly.

So, it is with Jesus the Anointed One. We deserved the punishment He received for our constant disobedience by constantly picking at the wounds that sin opened in our hearts and minds. Jesus knew they would never heal on their own so He took the beating on our behalf. That’s why we are drawn to the cross out of love, not fear. We don’t resent that God gave such laws that made sin so attractive to our rebellious spirit. We now understand why it was necessary to show that the wounds of sin will constantly be infected unless they are cleansed by the healing blood of the Lamb. O what a wonderful Savior we have!

3:14 Therefore, God is able to bless the Gentiles with the same blessing He promised to Abraham because of the work of Jesus the Anointed One, allowing us to come alive in the Spirit through faith.

If the Judaizers and their wayward Galatians followers entertained any idea that they should get some credit for their attempt at increasing the value of their salvation by adding their own efforts to the Anointed One’s faithfulness, they proved sorely and embarrassingly wrong. Paul was quick to tell them that God’s promise to Abraham was not limited to Israelis or Jews. His descendants were to be a light to the whole world, not just their race.[15] That’s why he told him to leave Chaldea and to the land that God would show him. Later on, God would speak to Abraham again and tell him good will come to all the nations of the earth through your children and their children’s children. Because you obeyed My voice.[16]

Why couldn’t the Jewish converts in Galatia see that they were part of that chosen group who would witness to the world? Isaiah posed questions about the big task God assigned to him. But the Lord spoke to Isaiah and told him that he was marked to be His servant before he was born. His aim was to bring the children of Israel back to their senses and recognize who their God really was. Not only that, But God shared with Isaiah that there was a group among the Israelites whom He protected because they would be His witnesses to the whole world. So, God’s word to Isaiah was, “I will also make You a light to the Gentiles so that people over all the earth can be saved from the punishment of their sins.”[17]

But God’s plans didn’t require Isaiah to do this all by himself, God kept a select few for this very purpose. He cheers Isaiah up by telling him I will also make You a light to the nations so that men over all the earth can be saved from the punishment of their sins. How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who tells of peace and brings good news of happiness, who tells of saving power, and says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Not only that, but the Lord will show His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations, that all the ends of the earth may see that our God saves.[18]

[1] 1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23

[2] 1 Peter 1:18; cf., 2 Peter 2:1

[3] See Romans 618

[4] See 1 Peter 1:18; Titus 2:14, cf. Luke 24:21

[5] Kenneth Wuest: Word Studies on Galatians, op. cit., loc., cit.

[6] Psalm 34:8

[7] Ephesians 5:18

[8] Cf. the use of the word in Romans 15:4; Ephesians 3:3; Jude 4

[9] So rendered in the Revised Standard Version (RSV); the New American Standard Bible (NASB); and the New International Version (NIV)

[10] Ronald Y. K. Fung: On Galatians, op. cit., pp. 129-129

[11] John 6:37

[12] Revelation 3:20

[13] J. L. Nye: Anecdotes, op. cit., p 114

[14] Stanley L. Derickson: Notes on Theology, Redemption, New Testament Terms, 1962, p. 913

[15] Genesis 12:2-3

[16] Ibid. 22:18

[17] Isaiah 49:6

[18] Ibid. 52:7-8, 10

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXVI)

American Puritan preacher Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) preached that Grace is the seed of glory; a foretaste of the future inheritance for believers. So, what is the beginning or foretaste of eternal life in the soul but spiritual life through the Holy Spirit? And what is that but Grace? The inheritance that the Anointed One purchased for God’s chosen ones is the Spirit of God; not in any extraordinary gifts, but in His vital indwelling the heart, exerting and communicating Himself in His own proper, holy, and divine nature. Our heavenly Father provided a Savior, and the purchase is made by Him; the Son is the purchaser and the price; and the Holy Spirit is the great blessing or inheritance purchased, as Paul indicates here in verses thirteen and fourteen. That’s why the Spirit is often spoken of as the sum of the blessings promised in the Gospel.[1] [2]

Church historian and theologian Philip Schaff (1819-1893) considers this thirteenth verse one of the strongest passages for the doctrine of a vicarious (in our place) atonement. The Messiah, out of infinite love and in full agreement with the Father’s eternal plan of redemption, voluntarily took it upon Himself to abolished the whole curse of the outraged Law on behalf of sinners, by His death on the cross. The efficiency of His voluntary sacrifice for someone else’s sins lies not so much in the preposition “made a curse for us,” as in the whole sentence “The Messiah redeemed us from the curse of the Law by being made a curse for us.”

What He did and suffered for mankind, says Schaff, He did by enduring their suffering for them, and what He suffered was for their benefit. We must be careful not to say “He took our place,” because if we were made to go through the suffering that the Law demanded for our sins, none of us would have survived because God demanded that the sacrifice be perfect and without sin. And since all have sinned and come short of the glory God expected of us, there was no other person so righteous as He that could have taken His place. Furthermore, He did not die just for one of us, but for the whole world. He came to pay the ransom for every soul, those were living at the time and those who would come later such as you and I, since only He could stand before God as the perfect Lamb.[3] We may have died for our own sins, but none of us would have qualified to die for the sins of others.

The Messiah not only suffered pain and agony getting to Calvary but immense pain and agony on the cross. But still, that was not enough. He must give His life to satisfy the death sentence pronounced on all sinners. Schaff says that by becoming a “curse,” it was worse than being “accursed.” First of all, “cursed” is a verb while “accursed” is an adjective. To be cursed means receiving some divine punishment, while being accursed means being hated and considered detestable. The fact is, the Messiah was both. He voluntarily picked up the entire load of guilt for the whole race, yet without any personal guilt. The curse is transferred from the guilty sinner to the innocent victim.[4] As odd as it may sound,  He [Messiah] who knew no sin He [God] was made to be sin [stronger than sinner] for us (on our behalf); that we might become right before God with Him because He [Messiah] lives in us.[5]

In a sermon on how the curse for sin was removed by the Anointed One’s redemption, the great preacher Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) tells all who will listen that here in verse thirteen we find, although the Law is glorious it could not be more misapplied than when it is used as a means of salvation. God never intended people to be saved by the Law. When He proclaimed it on Mount Sinai, it was with thunder, fire, and smoke; as if He were trying to say, “Everyone, hear my law; but you shake and tremble as you hear it. Hear it well!” It is a Law that goes out like a loud trumpet blast, just like it will on the Day of Destruction of which it is but the messenger. If you offend it, you’ll find no one to take the punishment for you. It was written on stone; as if to teach us that it is a hard, cold, stony Law that shows no mercy to anyone. Like a huge stone handing over our heads, if we break the Law the stone of condemnation will crash down upon our heads and smash us into a thousand pieces.

After this frightening presentation, Spurgeon then calls out to everyone who is still trusting in the Law for their salvation! He tells them that they all strayed away from the faith; they do not understand God’s designs; they are ignorant of every one of God’s truths. The law was given by Moses to make people feel uncomfortable with their sins, but not to save them; its very intention was to show how all mankind is imprisoned by unbelief, and all condemned to die. Why? So, He might show mercy to all of us. It intended by its thunders to crush every hope of self-righteousness, by its lightnings to destroy every tower of our own good works that we might be brought humbly and simply to the cross to accept a finished salvation through the one mighty Mediator who completely satisfied the Law’s demands and made it possible of us to regain honor by His grace to stand right before God with everlasting righteousness. That’s why the veil that hid the Holy of Holies was ripped in two so the mercy seat could be accessed by everyone.

There we will stand complete before our Maker at last because we are now in union with the Anointed One, and those in the Anointed One He cannot refuse. As we see, all that the Law could do was place a curse on us as sinners; it cannot save us or offer a pardon. In all the pages of Scriptural revelation, you will find no blessings that the Law ever gave to one that offended it. The only blessing promised was for those who might be able to keep it to perfection, but no such blessing was ever offered because no one, not even one was able to pass that test. Therefore, blessings are found in the Gospel; curses are found in the Law.[6]

Marvin Vincent (1834-1922) points out that Paul quotes from the Torah, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole,” which differs from the Septuagint (LXX), “…every one that is hanged on a tree is cursed of God,”[7] in that Paul leaves out “of God.” J. B. Lightfoot, says Vincent, justly and instinctively omits these words, since the Anointed One was in no sense accursed by God in His crucifixion. It is necessary to understand that it was not the Anointed One who was cursed because He was enduring our curse on our behalf. That’s why the Law placed the Anointed One as deserving the curse since He was dying as on behalf of criminals – you and I. That way, the Law satisfied its demand for all sinners to die by subjecting Him to such punishment He didn’t deserve. By dying on our behalf as a criminal, the Anointed one took away the curse from those who believe in Him. That’s why our union with Him likewise removes us from the curse of the Law.[8]

Then, Messianic writer David Stein points out that many misunderstanding of verses ten through thirteen here in Galatians is the result of a misinterpretation of the Greek noun nomos, (the Law) which means “God’s Torah.” The reader must know the difference between the legalistic proclamation of the Torah and the legalistic perversion of it. For the sake of seeing this difference, Stein offers the following expanded rendering of these verses to show the mistakes that are made.

Stern then goes on to note the errors that are made in verse ten, since the Jewish people depend on the Torah, but no one is capable of doing everything written in it, the entire Jewish people live under God’s curse on those who fail. And according to the first half of verse eleven, by trying to obey the Torah, Jews are condemned to the impossibility of being considered right with God. Then when putting the second half of verse eleven and twelve together. The Torah is found to be defective because it is not based on faith, but on legalism, on “doing these things,” as proved by quoting one of the Torah’s own verses. (Stern warns that by questioning the Torah, people are in danger of disputing God Himself who inspired its writing. Such illogical reasoning arrives at the conclusion that if Jews obey a defective Torah, then the Jew themselves must be defective.) Then in verse thirteen, Jews are cursed already just by having to live under the Torah.

To counter this misunderstanding and help in gaining a better understanding, Stern offers his own translation:

The whole point of Stern’s argument is that Christians should not discard the Torah with its Ten Commandments and Levitical standards of conduct. Jesus didn’t so why should we.[9] It’s only when a person becomes convinced that by following all the rules in the Torah, that alone will earn them salvation and a right standing with God shows they are mistaken. Furthermore, once a person becomes a believer in Yeshua the Messiah as their LORD and Savior, it is foolish to add the Torah’s rites, rules, and regulations thinking it will make one’s salvation more authentic. Nevertheless, a genuine Christian will find that by doing out of love what the Torah says in order to honor and please God is a compliment to God for the Torah.

August H. Strong (1836-1921) was struck by how God’s care is shown in the small things as well as in big things. For instance, in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Anointed One tells the Father that while He was with His disciples that He kept them safe in the power of His name. “I have kept watch over those You gave Me,” said Jesus, “not one of them was lost except the one who is going to be destroyed, which is the son of death.”[10] Then here in verse thirteen the Anointed One gives Himself up as a prisoner that His disciples may go free, even as He redeems us from the curse of the law by being made a curse for us. This is the same unseen force that made the planets into spheres, also molded dew into drops. So, no matter how small or insignificant a person may feel they are in God’s kingdom when in His hands they are a transformed instrument by which great things can be done.[11]

[1] See Luke 24:49; Acts of the Apostles 1:4; 2:38, 39; Ephesians 1:13

[2] Jonathan Edwards: A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections (1834), Part III, Sect. I, (Kindle Location 13011)

[3] Cf. Matthew 20:28; (He “gave his life a ransom for many”); 1 Timidity 2:6; 1 Corinthians 5:20; 7:23; Titus 2:14; Revelation 5:9; 14:4

[4] As in the case of the typical scapegoat. Leviticus 16ff:  cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21

[5] Philip Schaff: On Galatians, op. cit., loc., cit., p. 318

[6] Charles Spurgeon Sermon Collection, Vol. 4, Sermon No. 3254, June 15, 1911, pp. 415-416

[7] Deuteronomy 21:23

[8] Marvin Vincent: Word Studies in Galatians, op. cit., (Kindle Location 642)

[9] See Matthew 22:36-40

[10] John 17:12, See 18:9

[11] August H. Strong: Systematic Theology, op. cit., Vol. 2, Ch. 4, Sec. 3, p. 108

You can find it in almost any grocery store or supermarket. If you polled the shoppers you would find out that most, if not all, have heard of it; many of them have it in their pantries, and most of them have used it often. Today it is one of the most popular products on the market. In 1957 when a patent was issued to the inventor of a new cooking spray, a decision had to be made on how to market it. Should it be named after the company that owned it, as products from Johnson & Johnson? Or would it sell better if they just gave it a generic name such as, “New Cooking Spray.”

After much discussion, they decided to name it “PAM” – PAM Cooking Spray.  But why PAM? Was that an ingredient or some new substance? No, they named it PAM because that is an acronym for the name of the inventor: Product of Arthur Meyerhoff. Amazing what you can learn when you discover what the name of something stands for!

The same is true of the word GRACE. It signifies unmerited favor; getting something one does not deserve freely or can earn by working. We see GRACE exemplified when instead of doing away with Adam and Eve after they sinned in the garden, God allowed them to go on living. We see it when God allowed Noah to escape the flood so his family could continue to expand. God’s GRACE was extended to David after his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah. Peter was the recipient of God’s GRACE after he denied Jesus three times. The GRACE of God was offered to Paul even though he was responsible for killing a number of believers. The list goes on and on.

The list of acronyms for GRACE is long, such as God’s Righteousness And Corresponding Enablement. But one that I love is God’s Redemption At Christ’s Expense. When you know more about how something came into being, it gives you a greater appreciation for the work that was done to bring it about and how fortunate you are in having it available to you. This is so true of God’s GRACE. It is more than just a word; it is a willful act of undeserved love, compassion, and mercy. So, every morning it wouldn’t be a bad idea to start each day by thanking God for His GRACE. – Dr. Robert R Seyda

LUNCH IN A PAPER BAG

 With this coming Monday being Veteran’s Day, and as a retired Army veteran, I couldn’t help but smile when I read this story. While I couldn’t empathize with all the circumstances in this particular story, I certainly could appreciate a freely offered gesture of appreciation by others for having served both in the USA and overseas. I thought you might like what happened in this story as well.

 A minister told how he put his carry-on bag in the overhead luggage compartment and sat down in his assigned aisle seat. It was going to be a long flight home. He was glad he brought along a good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap, he thought. He noticed a lot of empty seats around him. But just before take-off, ten soldiers came down the aisle and filled all the vacant seats across the aisle and directly behind him.

After everyone got settled, he decided to start a conversation with a young soldier seated across the aisle from him. “Where are you headed?” he asked? “Great Lakes Air Base. We’ll be there for two weeks for special training, and then we’re being deployed to Iraq.”

After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours before we reached Chicago, so he quickly decided a lunch would help pass the time. As he reached for his wallet, he overheard a soldier behind him ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch. “No, I’ll save my money for something else. Besides, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. It probably isn’t worth five bucks anyhow. I’ll wait till we get to Chicago.  His friend agreed.

The minister knew this would be a long trip with one stop in between Miami and Chicago. He looked around at the other soldiers. None of them were buying either. So, he walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a fifty-dollar bill. “Take a lunch to all those soldiers,” he whispered. She grabbed his arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. “My son served in Iraq; it’s almost like you are doing it for him.”

Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers were seated. She stopped at each row and told each soldier here is a complimentary lunch paid for by a grateful passenger, “Which would you like, beef or chicken?” They all shook their heads in disbelief as smiles spread across their faces. The minister took the chicken. As soon as she finished, she turned and went to the front of the plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class. “This is our thank you for your generosity, she said quietly.

After he finished eating, he went to the back of the plane, heading for the restroom. A man stopped him and said, “I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this.” He handed me twenty-five dollars. The minister looked up and said, “Thank you, Lord, you knew I needed that fifty dollars for my meals up ahead. Soon after he returned to his seat, he saw the Flight Captain coming down the aisle, looking up at the aisle numbers as he walked, he hoped he stopped. Bending down, the Captain smiled, held out his hand, and said quietly, “I want to shake your hand.” With a booming voice, he said, ‘I was an Air Force pilot. Once, someone bought me lunch. It was an act of kindness I’ll never forget.

Later the minister decided to walk to the front of the plane and back so he could stretch his legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of him reached out wanting to shake his hand, he wasn’t sure why, but after he shook the man’s hand, he opened it to find a twenty-dollar bill in his palm. Again, he looked up and whispered, “Lord, You’re amazing! Now maybe I can buy a book I’ve been looking for in a used book store.

After they landed in Chicago, he gathered his belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside by the airplane exit door was a man who stopped him, reached over and put something in his shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word.  Another twenty-dollar bill! Now things were getting embarrassing. The Lord was filling his wallet with overflowing blessings.

Upon entering the terminal, he saw the soldiers gathering for their trip over to the base. He walked over to them and handed them seventy dollars. “You may have a long wait for the bus, so why don’t you get a bite to eat before you go, God Bless you for your service. Again, they shook their heads, they couldn’t believe what was happening.

These ten young men finally got on the bus to the base feeling loved and respected by their fellow travelers. The minister walked briskly to his car in the parking building. As he did, he whispered a prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for their country. he could only give them a couple of meals. To him, it seemed so little.

As I read this, a song sung by the Gaither Vocal Band came to mind, “Little Is Much When God Is in it.”

Sometimes when we are motivated to do little things for others when no one will know about it, we may be reluctant to go through with it because being recognized for being kind is a reward. But never forget that God and His angels are watching and they are in charge of such blessings. When God looks at your heart and knows that you were generous out of love and kindness, looking for a smile as your only reward, He will find a way to bless you and you won’t even see it coming. – Dr. Robert R Seyda

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXV)

In commenting here on verse thirteen where Paul says, “the Anointed One redeemed us from the curse of the Law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every man that hangs on a tree,”[1] ben Abraham came to the conclusion it was an extraordinary thing that the humiliating death suffered by Yeshua of Nazareth was selected as the only means of releasing His followers from their adherence to the ancient Law of God, in order not to be subjected to the curse of the Law. Surely, thought Rabbi Abraham, submission to, and not an abandonment of, the Law should have been recommended. So, the Apostle Paul, as a teacher, whose object it was to establish a new faith, it appears unbecoming to mention humans first as witnesses, and secondly, God. Any open and honest study of the writings of Paul reveals this peculiarity in arranging his ideas. The Rabbi felt that Paul impresses on the reader the suspicion that he was guided by his religious feelings to call for a speedy understanding of what the Torah and Prophets said, instead of by the influence of higher assurances in being right.[2]

With all due respect to the Rabbi, Paul, by his own admission, was a fanatic Pharisee in his efforts to stamp out the very religion he later became a convert too. He probably understood the Torah and Prophets, as well as Rabbi Abraham, did. They were equal in many ways. But one thing that Rabbi Abraham never experienced that Paul gave as the reason for his sudden change from a persecutor of the Gospel to the preacher of the Gospel was his personal encounter with Yeshua on the road to Damascus. In the many writings that I have read by today’s Messianic Jewish Rabbis, they all say that it was their encounter with Yeshua and the awakening in their hearts by the Holy Spirit that caused them to become converts of Christianity instead of critics of Christianity.

Haimo of Auxerre understands Paul’s use of the term “curse” is what God said to Adam and Eve that on the day they eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they would die.[3] So this was a double punishment, because we read where God not only expelled them from the Garden of Eden and block any attempted return on their own, and told them that for women, childbirth would be accompanied by great pain, and for men, work would be so hard it would make them sweat profusely to provide food for their families and deal with thorns and thistles during harvest them. It was only when the Messiah came to pay the ransom price so humankind could be freed from a promised death that the curse was lifted off those who believed in Him.[4] [5]

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) adds some historical perspective to this quote by Paul from the Torah. Here in verse thirteen, Paul gives the testimony of Scripture when he says, for it is written: “Cursed is every one that hangs on a tree.”[6] Here it should be noted, says Aquinas, that according to a footnote in the Hebrew version and the Vetus Latina version[7] he was using, it says, ”Cursed by God is every one that hangs on a tree.” However, the phrase “by God” is not found in the ancient Hebrew scrolls. Therefore, it is believed “God” was added to Deuteronomy by the Jews after the passion of the Anointed One in order to defame Him.[8]

Jakob Arminius (1560-1609) proposes that God’s Will is either “commanding” precise obedience or with “conditions” that are allowed. First, he points out that God’s Commanding Will is that which strictly and rigidly applies, such as the words of the Gospel which contain the last revelation of God: “The wrath of God abides on him who does not believe;”[9] “He that believes will be saved;”[10] also the words of Samuel to Saul: “The Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”[11] Then secondly, Arminius explains that God’s Commanding Will comes with conditions. That is, that to which conditions are fixed, whether it be an implicit one, such as, “In forty days Nineveh will be overthrown.”[12] “Cursed is every one that continues not do all things which are written in the book of the law to be done,”[13] that is unless they are delivered from this curse as expressed here in verse thirteen.[14] [15]

Cornelius à Lápide (1567-1637) shares St. Jerome’s remarks on this passage: “The Lord’s shame is our glory. He died that we might live. He descended into hell that we might ascend into heaven. He was made foolishness that we might become wise. He emptied Himself of His fulness, and put off the form of God, and put on the form of a servant, that the fulness of the Godhead might dwell in us, and that we might be changed from slaves into sons. He hung on the Cross, that the tree of shame might destroy the sin which we committed through the tree of knowledge. His Cross made the bitter waters sweet and made the lost axe swim in Jordan. Finally, He was made a curse – made, not born – that the blessings which were promised to Abraham, with Him as author and herald, might be transferred to the Gentiles, and the promise of His Spirit might by faith be fulfilled in us.”[16]

John Owen (1616-1683) has a very graphic way of describing the fact that God “laid on the Anointed One the iniquities of us all,” that “by His stripes we might be healed,”[17] Our iniquity was laid on Him, and He carried it, see verse eleven; and by His carrying it we are freed from it. His stripes are our healing. Our sin became His when transferred to Him; His merit is ours, transferred to us. “He was made sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”[18] This is where He was made sin for us; we are made right before God in Him. God no longer attributes sin to us, see verse nineteen, but accredits righteousness to us on this basis alone that “He was made sin for us.”[19]

And if by His being made sin for us, says Owen, His being made a sacrifice for our sin is intended. The official reason for Him being made an atonement sacrifice was the imputation of our sin by a divine act. The same is expressed by the Apostle to the Romans when he wrote, “God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh; that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us.”[20] Our sin was made His, He answered for it, and the righteousness which God required by the Law is made ours: the righteousness of the Law is fulfilled in us, not by our doing it, but by His. This is that blessed exchange wherein alone the soul of a convicted sinner can find rest and peace. So, He “redeemed us from the curse of the Law, being made a curse for us, that the blessing of Abraham might come on us,”

Owen goes on to point out that the curse of the Law contained all that was due to sin. This belonged to us, but it was transferred to Him. He was made a curse for which His hanging on a tree was the sign and token of His payment. That’s why He is said to “bear our sins in His own body on the tree,”[21] because His hanging on the tree was the symbol of His bearing the curse: “For he that is hanged is the curse of God,”[22] And in the blessing of faithful Abraham all righteousness and acceptation with God is included; for Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness.[23]

John Bunyan (1628-1688) sees the spiritual side of what Paul is saying here. Since the Anointed One did all the work needed to redeem and save us, He is not only our Savior from sin but also our Advocate before God.[24] So it is not necessary when our Advocate pleads against our Adversary – Satan – to appeal to the Law for mercy because His pleading is with His Father in heaven. The saint by sinning owes Satan nothing; no law of his was been broken; why then should the Anointed One beg for mercy for those who follow Him because they’ve met the requirements of the Law, the Anointed One did all that, so He bases His plan on His own righteousness. The Anointed One, when He died, died not to satisfy Satan but His Father in heaven. There was no need to appease the devil, but to answer the demands of the justice of God: nor did He designed when He hung on the tree, to triumph over His Father’s will but over Satan’s intent. As Paul says here in verse thirteen, He redeemed us from the curse of the Law by His blood, and from the power of Satan by His resurrection.[25] He thereby delivered us from God’s righteous judgment by commitment and contract, and from the rage of hell by courage and conquest.[26]

Then Bunyan uses an illustration from everyday life to make his point. He asks us to imagine there is a widow, that owes a sum of money to a creditor, and she is threatened to be sued for the debt. So, what does she do, she gets remarried? So, when the lawsuit is initiated against her as a widow, the law finds her now to be a married woman. What can be done? Nothing to her; she is not what she was; she is delivered from that state by her marriage. So, if anything can be done, it must be done to her dead husband. In the same manner, if Satan were to sue the Anointed One for my debt, He owes him nothing; and as for what the Law can claim from us while we were under it, the Anointed One delivered us by redemption from that curse, “being made a curse for us.”[27]

[1] Deuteronomy 21:23

[2] Ch. 89, Chizzuk Emunah (Faith Strengthened): by Isaac Ben Abraham of Troki, Formatted by Vaughn Seward, 2007, Ch. 89, pp. 111-112

[3] Genesis 2:15-17

[4] Ibid 3:16-19

[5] Haimo of Auxerre: Commentary on Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., Kindle location 1316, Kindle Edition

[6] Deuteronomy 21:23

[7] Usage of the Vetus Latina as the backbone of the Roman Catholic church and liturgy continued well into the Twelfth Century AD. As Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire in the first centuries after the Anointed One, it became necessary to produce Latin versions of the Bible for those not able to understand the Greek of the New Testament or Septuagint. The first translations were made by individual Christians for use within their own community. These are known as the Old Latin or Vetus Latina. Towards the end of the fourth century, Pope Damasus asked the scholar Hieronymus (St. Jerome) to produce a revised version of the Gospels. Along with Jerome’s translation of the Old Testament, an anonymous revision of the rest of the New Testament, and a handful of books from other sources, these later became the standard version, the Latin Vulgate. The Vulgate took many years to become established as the principal Latin Bible. In the meanwhile, the Old Latin versions continued to be used. Some of these translations are preserved in Bible manuscripts, in the writings of the Church Fathers and in early Christian liturgies. This was also in the text of Deuteronomy 21:23 in the Catholic Douay-Rheims English Version of 1899.

[8] Thomas Aquinas: Commentary on Galatians, loc. cit.

[9] John 3:36

[10] Mark 16:16

[11] 1 Samuel 15:26

[12] Jonah 3:4

[13] Deuteronomy 27:26

[14] See also Jeremiah 18:7-10

[15] Jakob Arminius: op. cit., Vol. 2, p. 41

[16] Cornelius à Lápide: On Galatians, op. cit., pp. 270-271

[17] Isaiah 53, 5-6

[18] 2 Corinthians 5:21

[19] Ibid.

[20] Romans 8:3-4

[21] 1 Peter 2:24

[22] Deuteronomy 21:23

[23] John Owens: Doctrine of Justification by Faith, Vol. 1, op. cit., p. 72

[24] 1 Timothy 2:5

[25] Hebrews 2:14

[26] John Bunyan: Israel’s Hope Encouraged, The Work of Jesus the Anointed One as an Advocate Explained, Ch. 3, p. 129

[27] John Bunyan: The Reason of Hope Fruitful in Results, Ch. 5, p. 165-166

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS

CHAPTER THREE (Lesson XXIV)

Catholic scholar Cornelius à Lápide is clear when he says that the Law is not faith. As he sees it, the Law neither teaches nor gives the grace by which we fulfill its demands to live righteously. But, as is said in Ezekiel, “I gave them my decrees and made known to them my laws, by which the person who obeys them will live.”[1] In other words, they will not be punished with the death sentence threatened by the Law for transgressors, but they will enjoy life and an abundance of temporal goods, as the Law promises to those who keep it. Paul mentioned the same thing when he told the Romans that Moses wrote about the righteousness that is by the Law: “The person who does these things will live by them.”[2] Observe the antithesis between “Faith” and “Law.” On the Faith, it is said that the just because they are just, will live by it, namely, will enjoy a life of grace and glory here on earth, which is the contented and blissful life. But as to the Law, it is not said absolutely that they who keep the Law will live by it, but only in it, namely, they will live the life and enjoy the goods promised by the Law, for example, the abundance of corn, wine, and oil.[3]

Joseph Benson (1749-1821) notes that no matter how people may look at this, it is obvious that in the words of Habakkuk, who said nothing about being justified by works, declared, “The just will live by faith.” That means, the person who is accounted as just or right before God, will be made alive and continue to live a spiritual life here and receive eternal life hereafter, by faith. This is the way God chose believers to live.[4] Besides that, the law, strictly speaking, is not of faith, nor does it allow or imagine seeking salvation in such a manner. In other words, seeking justification by keeping the law, whether moral or ceremonial, is quite a different thing from seeking it by faith. For the Law does not say, Believe and live, but Do and Live; its language is, the person that does them — namely, the things commanded; will live in, or by them — that is, they who perfectly and constantly conforms themselves to these precepts, will have a right to life and everlasting happiness as a result. But those who break them must bear the penalty, without any further assistance from the Law, which, being in one instance violated, must forever condemn the transgressor.[5] [6]

John Edmunds (1800-1874) emphasizes that Paul says here in verse twelve that the Law is not the result of faith. This is clear from the fact that long before the Law was given to Moses, Abraham was justified as being right with God through faith. It would be ridiculous for someone to say that the Gospel was lying when it said justification was available through the Law.[7] So why was the Law given? Because the children of Israel wandered away from the truth there was no one and nothing to lead them back. But this was not a “cover your mistake” action on God’s part. This was predestined before the world was created. It was in His plans from the beginning. So, it was absolutely unbelievable that the Judaizers were telling the Galatians that faith does not derive its origin from the Law.[8]

Levy HaNaviy says something about what Paul appears is saying in the first line verse twelve, “The Law does not use faith.”[9] The Complete Jewish Bible reads, “Furthermore, legalism is not based on trusting and being faithful.” At first blush, says HaNaviy, a surface reading of this first clause seems to show Paul’s statement is short and sweet and to the point: The Torah has nothing to do with faith, this is essentially how the first clause is interpreted and translated in a few well-known Bible versions. However, does Paul truly believe that God’s written Torah is unrelated to genuine faith? Are Law and Faith mutually exclusive concepts? Do Law and Faith – as many Christian commentators regularly teach – belong to two distinctly different historical eras? We already know Paul believes that a primary function of the Law is to point people to the Anointed One for justification and salvation – for, in fact, he is going to explicitly say so verse twenty-four below. What is more, he told the Romans in plain terms that faith does not “overthrow” the Law.[10]

HaNaviy feels it seemed somewhat antiquated for Paul to be setting up a Christian-like dichotomy between Law and Faith since, as both he and the Judaizers of his day would affirm, clearly the TaNaKH demonstrates that God expects genuine faith to be a vital component of the fabric of the social communities of his Law-keeping children. To be sure, faithlessness, which always leads to law-breaking, is what got Israel in hot water time and time again, prompting God to punish and eventually exile them from their Land. To say that “the Torah is not based on faith…,” implicating that Law (as properly understood as God’s revelation to humanity) and Faith (properly understood as humanity’s response to God’s revelation) are mutually exclusive concepts, is simply not what the Apostle Paul is conveying here. We must look beyond a surface reading and let context dictate the proper interpretations of Law and Faith in this verse.[11]

I agree with HaNaviy in that we cannot divorce faithfulness from God’s standard of living and performing as His children, and being a light in this dark world. But what I get from these various English translations is that the Law does not require any Jewish adherent to exercise Faith in order to do what the Law requires. It is all done out of obligation and fear of retribution. In other words, they do not refrain from stealing as the Law demands because it will make them better, but to keep them from becoming worse than they already are. Faithfulness to what the Gospel teaches isn’t to be complied with so the believer will look better in God’s eyes, but will help them become even more pleasing to God as His devoted children who do everything out of love for Him and their Savior Jesus the Anointed One.

3:13 That’s why the Anointed One rescued us from certain extinction by following religious rituals and regulations. When they hung Him on the cross, He willingly accepted the condemnation meant for us because of our wrongdoing. The Scriptures clearly state, “Everyone who is hung on a tree is doomed.”

 One way to really get the full impact of this verse is to rearrange it somewhat: Everyone who depended on religious rituals and regulations to save them will be hung on a tree and doomed to die. That’s why the Anointed One rescued us from certain extinction when they hung Him on the cross and He willingly accepted the condemnation meant for us because of our wrongdoing. Perhaps Paul heard in his spirit the call of Isaiah, Seek Adonai while He is available, call on Him while He is still nearby. Let the wicked person abandon their way and the evil person their thoughts; let them return to Adonai, and He will have mercy on them; let them return to our God, for He will freely forgive them.[12]

It is quite possible that Paul was emboldened to take this stand by the words of Jesus Himself, who said, “For this is my blood, which ratifies the Final Covenant, my blood shed on behalf of many, so that they may have their sins forgiven.”[13] That clearly was Paul’s message to the Roman believers.[14] Stop thinking that you can do anything to open the door to the Father in heaven so you can stand before Him as being right with Him, all the credit goes to what the Anointed One did for us to open that door to forgiveness and salvation, not the Law.[15] This is the encouraging truth that Paul shared with Titus.[16] And the writer of Hebrews concurs fully with this point of view.[17]

And the Apostle Peter joins in with his words to the Jewish members of the flock: “You know you were not bought and made free from sin by paying gold or silver which comes to an end. And you know you were not saved from the punishment of sin by the way of life that you were given from your early fathers. That way of life was worth nothing. The blood of the Anointed One saved you. This blood is of great worth and no amount of money can buy it, the Anointed One was given as a lamb without sin and without spot. Long before the world was made, God chose the Anointed One to be given to you in these last days. Because of the Anointed One, you have put your trust in God. He raised the Anointed One from the dead and gave Him great honor. So now your faith and hope are in God.”[18]

So, Paul is on solid footing here in putting the Law in its proper place so that the Cross can become the object of faith and obedience. The curse of death upon sin and sinners was real and not preventable by even the most dedicated follower.[19] It was the Anointed One who took that curse upon Himself because He was given the power to survive the penalty. The Jews should know this because of what the Prophet Jeremiah said.[20] But this is not where Paul’s message ends, the same God who told the Israelites about the curse, also told them about the remedy.

Jewish Karaite scholar, Isaac ben Abraham (1533-1594) who lived in Troki, (known today as Trakai, Lithuania), believed that all the divine commandments handed by God to Moses are in the Torah without the need for any additional Oral Law or explanation. In other words, no need for the Midrash or Talmud. Around that same time as the Protestant Reformation was able to pursue an amicable relationship with Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Greek Orthodox clergymen, the Rabbi became an avid reader of the New Testament and Christian theological literature. But after reading anti-Jewish literature that was prevalent in that day, he felt the need to defend Judaism and so he wrote “The Strengthening of Faith,” known in Hebrew as Chizzuk Emunah.

[1] Ezekiel 20:11

[2] Romans 10:5

[3] Cornelius à Lápide, On Galatians, op. cit., pp. 267-268

[4] See Romans 1:17

[5] See Leviticus 18:5

[6] Joseph Benson: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit.

[7] See 1 John 2:21

[8] John Edmund: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., p. 47

[9] The New Life Version; The NIV reads “The law is not based on faith.”

[10] Romans 3:31

[11] Ariel HaNaviy: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., p. 117

[12] Isaiah 55:6-7

[13] Matthew 26:28 – Complete Jewish Bible

[14] Romans 3:24-26. Cf. 4:25; 8:3-4

[15] 2 Corinthians 5;21

[16] Titus 2:14

[17] Hebrews 7:26, 27; 9:12, 15, 26, 28; 10:4-10

[18] 1 Peter 1:18-21. Cf. 2:24; 3:18

[19] See Deuteronomy: 21:22-23

[20] Jeremiah 44:20-23