Introduction

¹ Paul, an apostle (not [sent] from men nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead),

² and all the brethren who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:

³ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,

⁴ who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

Perversion of the Gospel

⁵ to whom [be] the glory forevermore. Amen.

⁶ I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel;

⁷ which is [really] not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

⁸ But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!

⁹ As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!

Paul Defends His Ministry

¹⁰ For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.

¹¹ For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.

¹² For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but [I received it] through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

¹³ For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it;

¹⁴ and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.

¹⁵ But when God, who had set me apart [even] from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, was pleased

¹⁶ to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood,

¹⁷ nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus.

¹⁸ Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days.

¹⁹ But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord's brother.

²⁰ (Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you before God that I am not lying.)

²¹ Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.

²² I was [still] unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which were in Christ;

²³ but only, they kept hearing, "He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tried to destroy."

²⁴ And they were glorifying God because of me.