The Epistle to the Galatians

THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS

Miami International Seminary

Rev. Donald F. Ritsman, Th.M.

Aquainting the Students with the Course and

What will be Expected of Them

A. Syllabus

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course is designed as an expository study of the Epistle to the Galatians. This course is composed of eight lessons.

A Note on Hebrew and Greek Fonts:

At certain points in the lessons Hebrew or Greek words are incorporated into the text. In order to retrieve these words it is necessary to download Teknia Hebrew and Teknia Greek. The student may contact MINTS for free downloads of these fonts by clicking Biblical Language Fonts.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Goals

1. The student will gain a greater comprehension of the biblical teaching contained in the Epistle to the Galatians.
2. The student will come to greater appreciation for the message that God communicates to us in the Epistle to the Galatians.
3. The student will apply the teaching gained from the Epistle to the Galatians to his own life for spiritual development.

Objectives

1. By means of the questions following the lessons, the student will identify the key teachings found in the Epistle to the Galatians.
2. By means of the reading assignments, the student will gain a greater appreciation for the teaching of the Epistle to the Galatians.
3. By means of the written essay, the student will express how the teaching of the Epistle to the Galatians has a practical impact on his life and the life of the church.

CREDIT

This course may be taken for credit towards either a Bachelor or Masters degree. The assignments will vary according to each program as explained below.

DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNMENTS

For credit toward a Bachelors Degree

1. Studying the Scripture text and the accompanying commentary:

The student will study a portion of the Epistle to the Galatians, guided by an expositional commentary on the text. The student will then be required to answer questions based on his study of the expository notes.

2. Extra reading:

The student will read an additional 300 pages, which he can choose from the list of suggested resources found below in the section entitled, "B. Reading Resources." He will write a report on each book or article, using the form, Guidelines for Writing a Book Report, provided by the facilitator.

3. Essay*:

After reading through the entire Epistle to the Galatians, the student will write an 8-10 page essay in which he lists and explains all the activities of the Holy Spirit that are mentioned in the Epistle; activities that the Spirit carries on in the Christian’s life and on the Christian’s behalf.

*See “Guidelines for Writing an Essay," to be distributed by the facilitator.

For credit toward a Masters Degree

1. Studying the Scripture text and the accompanying commentary:

2. Extra reading:

The student will read an additional 600 pages, which he can choose from the list of suggested resources found below in the section entitled, "B. Reading Resources." He will write a report on each book or article, using the form, Guidelines for Writing a Book Report, provided by the facilitator.

3.Essay*:

The student will read through the entire Epistles of Galatians and James. He will then write a 15-20 page essay in which he compares, contrasts, and seeks to harmonize the teaching contained in these two Epistles. (The student should make use of the commentaries listed under the section entitled, “General Resources.”)

*See “Guidelines for Writing an Essay," to be distributed by the facilitator.

WITHOUT CREDIT

The student will study a portion of the Epistle to the Galatians, guided by an expositional commentary on the text. The student may answer the questions that follow each lesson and take the final exam (to be administered by the facilitator) based on his study of the expository notes.

FINAL GRADE

For Bachelors or Masters credit:

If the student is taking the course for credit, we recommend the following percentages for the final grade. However, the MINTS center or institution that is giving credit for this course may modify these requirements.

60% Quizzes ("Evaluating Your Comprehension") and Final Exam

10% Report on additional reading

30% Essay

100% Total

Without credit:

The final grade for taking this course without credit will be calculated in the following manner:

80% Quizzes ("Evaluating Your Comprehension")

20% Final exam

100% Total

B. Reading Resources

INTERNET RESOURCES

Epistle to the Galatians (Wikipedia)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistle_to_the_Galatians

Epistle to the Galatians (Word IQ.com)

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Epistle_to_the_Galatians

The Epistle to the Galatians (Hamilton Smith)

http://www.stempublishing.com/authors/smith/Galatians.html

The Epistle to the Galatians (Arno Clement Gaebelein)

http://www.biblecentre.org/commentaries/acg_52_galatians.htm

Book of Galatians (Got Questions.org)

http://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Galatians.html

Galatians (Dr. Thomas L. Constable)

http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=epistle+to+the++Galatians&fr=yfp-t-701&fr2=sc-sb&pstart=1&b=11

The Epistle to the Galatians (William Kelly)

http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=epistle+to+the++Galatians&fr=yfp-t-701&fr2=sc-sb&pstart=1&b=11

Epistle of James (Wikipedia)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistle_of_James

Martin Luther’s View of the Epistle of James (Daniel W. Petty)

http://www.lessonsonline.info/LutherandJames.htm

The Unifying Theme of the Epistle of James (D. Edmond Hiebert)

http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=the+epistle+of+James&fr=yfp-t-701&fr2=sc-sb&pstart=1&b=11

The Epistle of James (Hamilton Smith)

http://www.stempublishing.com/authors/smith/JAMES.html

Notes on the Epistle of James (J.N. Darby)

http://www.stempublishing.com/authors/darby/EXPOSIT/28011E.html

The Epistle of James (Arno Clement Gaebelein)

http://www.biblecentre.org/commentaries/acg_63_james.htm

Faith Without Works Is Dead (Michael Streich)

http://biblestudies.suite101.com/article.cfm/faith_without_works_is_dead

Studies in the Epistle of James (Dr. John T. Stevenson)

http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=the+epistle+of+James&fr=yfp-t-701&fr2=sc-sb&pstart=1&b=41

BOOKS

Blomberg, L. Craig and Mariam J. Kamell; “James,” Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament; Zondervan Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 2008.

Bruce, F.F.; “The Epistle to the Galatians,” New International Greek Testament Commentary; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 1982.

Davids, Peter H.; “The Epistle of James,” New International Greek Testament Commentary; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 1982.

Doriani, Daniel M.; “James,” Reformed Expository Commentary; Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Co., Philipsburg NJ, (no date of publishing available.)

Eadie, John; Commentary on the Epistle of Paul to the Galatians; Zondervan Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, (Reprint of 1894 edition.)

George, Timothy, “Galatians,” New American Commentary, Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1994.

Guthrie, Donald; New Testament Introduction; Inter-Varsity Press, Downers Grove IL, Eighth American Printing, January 19790.

Harrison, Everett F.; Introduction to the New Testament; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 1964 (Third printing, October 1968.)

Luther, Martin; “Commentary on Galatians,” Kregel Classics; Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids MI, 1979.

Manton, Thomas; “James,” Crossway Classic Commentaries; 1995.

McClelland, Scott E.; “Galatians,” Evangelical Commentary on the Bible, edited by Walter A. Elwell; Baker Book House, Grand Rapids MI, 1989.

Moo, Douglas; “The Letter of James,” Pillar New Testament Commentary; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 2000.

Morris, Leon; Galatians: Paul’s Charter of Christian Freedom; Inter-Varsity Press, Downers Grove IL, 1996 (Reprinted, 2003.

Motyer, J.A.; “The Message of James,” The Bible Speaks Today, Inter-Varsity Press, Downers Grove IL, 1985.

Ridderbos, Herman N.; “The Epistle of Paul to the Churches of Galatia,” The New International Commentary on the New Testament; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 1953 (Sixth printing, December 1970.)

Ross, Alexander; “The Epistle to the Galatians,” The New Bible Commentary, edited by Prof. F. Davidson; Inter-Varsity Fellowship, London, Reprinted, October 1967.

Ryken, Philip Graham; “Galatians,” Reformed Expository Commentary; Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Co., Philipsburg NJ, 2005.

Tenney, Merrill C.; New Testament Survey; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids MI, 1961 (Eighth printing, February 1967.)

Note: The student may also consult the Ligonier Ministry website (http://www.bestcommentaries.com/reviewer/ligonier-ministries-keith-mathison/) for a listing of useful commentaries on the Epistle to the Galatians.

WELCOME TO THE COURSE ON

THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS

Lesson One: Introduction to The Epistle To The Galatians

Assignments:

1. The student will read the article entitled, "Background Information on the Epistle to the Galatians," and be prepared to answer the questions that appear at the conclusion of the article.

2. Extra Reading: For Bachelor's credit, the student should do at least 100 pages of additional reading (see "B. Reading Resources" listed in the Syllabus for suggested reading material.) For Master's credit, the student should do at least 200 pages of additional reading.

Background Information on the Epistle to the Galatians

TO WHOM WAS THE EPISTLE WRITTEN?

Two Possibilities

The Epistle is addressed to “the churches of Galatia” (1:2.) The term “Galatia,” however, is ambiguous. The name itself is due to the Gauls, a people of Celtic origin.

In the fourth century B.C. a considerable number of Gauls left their homeland, migrating southward and eastward. For a time they harassed Italy, but then moved on toward the Grecian peninsula. Repelled by the Greek armies at Delphi in 279 B.C., they once again moved on; a large number of them eventually settling in north central Asia Minor.

They were useful to the Romans as allies in local wars and thus were allowed to expand their territory, especially toward the south. Upon the death of their leader, Amyntas, their entire holdings were constituted by the Romans as the province of Galatia in 25 B.C. Thus, at the time Paul wrote, “Galatia” might mean North Galatia (the territory originally occupied by the Gauls,) or the term might be used as a reference to the whole Roman province, including the South Galatian cities of Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe—the region Paul evangelized on his first missionary journey and visited on his second (E. Harrison, p. 257.)

The View that the Epistle is Addressed to North Galatia

Those who hold to the view that Paul is addressing the ethnic Galatians located in north central Asia Minor maintain that the apostle founded the churches there during his second missionary journey (Acts 16:6) and re-visited them during his third journey (Acts 18:23.) In favor of their view they insist that it is very difficult to believe that Paul would refer to the people of the south as “Galatians” (Gal. 3:1) if they were not, indeed, ethnic Galatians, the descendants of the Gauls, since residence in Galatia did not make them Galatians in the ethnic sense (E. Harrison, p. 258.) In response to this point, however, Sir William Ramsay (back in 1899) maintained that it is difficult to think of any other name that could have applied all-inclusively to the various peoples of the southern district of the province of Galatia. He argued that the name of the province would be used to describe all the inhabitants of that province without implying any ethnical significance (D. Guthrie, pp. 454-455.)

Those who hold to the view that the Epistle was addressed to North Galatia point out that Luke (in writing Acts), in reporting Paul’s work in the cities of southern Galatia, makes no mention of the sickness to which the apostle himself refers in Galatians 4:13 as being the occasion for his initial visit to their region. Furthermore, it is noted that, whereas Luke records the severe persecution the apostle received while ministering in the south (even being stoned at Lystra), Paul makes no mention of this in his Epistle to the Galatians (E. Harrison, p. 258.) In response to these points, one must take into account Luke’s purpose in writing his account in Acts and Paul’s purpose in writing his Epistle to the Galatians. The fact that the one omits information cited by the other may well be an indication that each respectively did not consider the material cited by the other to be germane to his own particular purpose in writing.

The View that the Epistle is Addressed to South Galatia

A strong argument against the North Galatia view is the fact that little if any reference is made to the founding of any churches in the north. (Based on the passages of Acts 16:6 and 18:23, Paul may have visited, or merely passed through, a portion of the northern region on one of his journeys from Syrian Antioch to Ephesus. However, these passages in Acts make no mention of the founding of churches in this region.) As A. Ross remarks (p. 1002), “There is no direct mention anywhere in the New Testament of the founding of churches in north Galatia and it seems strange to seek the Galatians of the Epistle in the hypothetical churches of north Galatia, and to leave the well-known churches of south Galatia, which must have been dear to Paul’s heart as the sphere of his first missionary campaign, without any share in his correspondence.” In Acts 13-14 and 16 we are given a full account of the establishment of the churches in the south. Since Acts generally gives us a clear, if sometimes short, account of the founding of churches during Paul’s missionary journeys, it must be regarded as remarkable that not a word is said about the formation of churches in North Galatia (H. Ridderbos, p. 26), if, indeed, such churches had been founded by the apostle.

Once again, according to Gal. 4:13, Paul first visited the readers of this Epistle during a period of convalescence following a physical illness. But this episode would be highly improbable in the northern region; not only because that region would be off the beaten path (the South, being more populace, had a better system of roads), but would have necessitated a journey over difficult country (D. Guthrie, p. 453.) Ramsay conjectured that the apostle contracted fever in the lowlands of Pamphylia during his first missionary journey (Acts 13) and sought relief by proceeding to the higher ground around Pisidian Antioch (E. Harrison, p. 257.)

One other item in favor of the view that the Epistle was addressed to the churches in the south is the fact that Paul habitually used provincial names rather than geographical names. For instance, in 1 Corinthians 16:1 Paul speaks of “the churches of Galatia.” In the same passage he also refers to Macedonia (16:5), Achaia (16:15) and Asia (16:19.) Since these last three names refer to Roman provinces, it seems probable that “Galatia” should also be taken to mean the Roman province, rather than only the northern portion of that province inhabited by ethnic Gauls (M. Tenney, p. 265.)

Why the Question of Destination has Significance

As E. Harrison asks (p. 259), Why should the question of the destination of the Epistle receive so much attention? Partly for its own sake, he answers, as a means of accurately identifying the historical context that occasioned the writing of the Epistle. There is also another reason for considering the question of the destination of the Epistle; namely, the bearing that it has upon the date of composition. In accepting the hypothesis that the Epistle was written to the churches located in South Galatia, it means that the Epistle must have been written some time after Paul’s second visit to these churches (note Galatians 4:13 and Acts 16:1-4); but in all probability, shortly thereafter (judging from the apostle’s shock that the Galatians were so quickly departing from the gospel, Gal. 1:6.) The letter may have been written from Corinth, where the apostle stayed for awhile during his second missionary journey. If so, this Epistle would be among the first, if not actually the first, of the letters of Paul that the Holy Spirit has caused to be preserved for us (H. Ridderbos, p. 31.)