Paul had founded churches in Galatia on his second missionary journey. Sometime after 50 A.D. he received word that Judaizers, who insisted Gentile Christians must follow all Jewish laws, had infiltrated the churches. They said all believers had to be circumcised, had to eat certain foods, and had to celebrate all Jewish feast days. In addition, they raised questions about Paul’s authority. As a result, Paul wrote this letter to explain the freedom Christians now had and to defend his standing as an apostle. Galatians has been called the Christian declaration of independence; Martin Luther relied on it for his break with the Catholic church.

There is interesting biographical information about Paul in 1:10-2:14. What new material do you learn about Paul? He feels he has to defend his authority–see 1:1-5, 12, 15-17. You will notice this in several of his letters since he came late to the Christian faith and was viewed with suspicion for a long time. Paul’s theme in this letter, the issue of salvation through faith rather than through works, can be seen in 1:6, 3:3, 5:4. Then, if salvation is by faith, what purpose did the Mosaic law have? Paul deals with this in 3:10-11 and 3:19-25. Paul argues in a rabbinical fashion, in which arguments are backed up with Old Testament passages. Look for this as you read the letter. Abraham, Hagar, and Sarah are used as symbols throughout the book; what do they symbolize to Paul? As a typical letter of that time period, there is a division—the first part is theory and the second part is practical. Where is the break between the two here? Paul uses the teaching device of asking questions. Where does he do this? Is it effective? What makes an effective question for an argument? Take a look at Acts 15. How were the issues of Jewish law eventually decided?