Galatians (Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching | INT)

Paul's letter to the Galatians has had an impact on the life and thought of the Christian church far exceeding its modest length. Though less than 150 verses (compared to more than 1000 in Acts, nearly 870 in the Gospel of John, and 303 in Hebrews), it has exercised a profound influence on theologians struggling with the issues of freedom and faith, gospel and law, the Spirit and ethics. In the second century when Marcion developed his controversial canon of NT books, he divided it into two sections: Gospel and Apostle. Galatians, for theological reasons, headed the list in the latter section. During the patristic period commentaries on Galatians seem to have been more numerous than on any other of Paul's letters. The influence of the epistle on Martin Luther is well known. He found it immediately relevant to the situation of the church in the sixteenth century and wrote unquestionably the most influential commentary on the letter. John Calvin took an interest in Galatians, too, but his commentary is less a theological treatise and more a practical exposition of the text.