'6 Thus Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” 7 Realize then that it is those who have faith who are children of Abraham. 8 Scripture, which saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, foretold the good news to Abraham, saying, “Through you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 Consequently, those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham who had faith. 10 For all who depend on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not persevere in doing all the things written in the book of the law.”11 And that no one is justified before God by the law is clear, for “the one who is righteous by faith will live.” 12But the law does not depend on faith; rather, “the one who does these things will live by them.” 13 Christ ransomed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who hangs on a tree,” 14 that the blessing of Abraham might be extended to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith (Gal. 3:6-14)
Abraham is a key figure in Judaism in that he was the father of Israel’s faith, the first of the Patriarchs with whom God made a covenant. Abraham is also considered the father of faith for Christianity and Islam. The covenant with Abraham was sealed by male circumcision (Gen. 17:11), an outward sign, and this was at the heart of the issue with the Galatians. Circumcision was repulsive to the Greeks, so Paul sternly addressed the Galatians who had somehow been convinced that they needed to be circumcised to receive the gifts promised to Abraham and his descendants. The fact that Abraham was circumcised may have been used to convince the Christians of Galatia that circumcision was necessary. Paul used the Abraham story to show that Abraham trusted God and his faith was credited as righteousness (Gen. 15:6) before he was circumcised (Gen. 17:11). Thus, people of faith are the real children of Abraham, and it was not necessary for the Galatians to be circumcised. Paul argued that it was Abraham’s belief in God that was credited to him as righteousness not the act of circumcision so all who believe are descendants of Abraham and are heirs of the promises made to Abraham by God. If the Galatians wanted to practice circumcision, then they would be obligated to observe every word of the law. Paul also quoted Deuteronomy, “Cursed be anyone whose actions do not uphold the words of this law (Deut. 27:26)!” Christ removed the curse of the law by himself becoming a curse for our salvation by being crucified (Deut. 21:23). He did this so that the blessings of Abraham would flow through to the Gentiles fulfilling God’s promise that they would receive the gift of the Spirit.
Almighty God, by the faith we profess and live your adopted sons and daughters are the true children of Abraham. Strengthen our desire to live in accordance with your will and give us the courage to always do what is right in your eyes regardless of the opposition we face. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Expanded Edition, Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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