Galatians 2:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me.

NIV: As for those who were held in high esteem--whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism--they added nothing to my message.

NASB: But from those who were of considerable repute (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no favoritism)—well, those who were of repute contributed nothing to me.

CSB: Now from those recognized as important (what they once were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism )--they added nothing to me.

NLT: And the leaders of the church had nothing to add to what I was preaching. (By the way, their reputation as great leaders made no difference to me, for God has no favorites.)

KJV: But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:

NKJV: But from those who seemed to be something—whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God shows personal favoritism to no man—for those who seemed to be something added nothing to me.

Paul has described a meeting with the influential leaders of the Christian movement in Jerusalem. At that time, Paul asked for a private meeting, with the other apostles, to describe what he had been preaching to non-Jewish people. He wanted to hear from these leaders that they were preaching the gospel of God's grace through faith in Christ, too.

His friend Titus, who was with him and not Jewish, became a test case. Would they insist that Titus be circumcised, following the law of Moses for the Jewish people, in order to be acceptable to God and included in the church? Or was Titus' faith in Jesus' death on the cross for Titus' sins enough for Him to welcome Titus into the family of God? The other apostles—the leaders of the Christian movement in Jerusalem—"added nothing" to Paul's message. In other words, they agreed with him completely. They stood with him on the all-important fact that salvation for everyone who trusts in Christ comes only by God's grace and not by following the Law.

Though the leaders and apostles themselves agreed with Paul's message of salvation by God's grace alone, there was a group in the movement who disagreed. This sect was referred to as the "Judaizers," and they claimed that Titus had to be circumcised in order to be saved (Acts 15:1). Paul called these men "false brothers." This is not a term to be taken lightly; Paul is saying that, by the definition of the gospel, they were not even Christians.

This is a detail on which Scripture is exceedingly distinct: salvation is by grace alone through faith alone, without even the slightest hint of rituals, works, or other requirements. Attempting to add any other conditions to salvation—such as circumcision or baptism—is to preach a false gospel.

Galatians 2:1–10 describes an important meeting in Jerusalem between Paul and the other apostles. Paul is pleased to learn they preach the same gospel of God's grace through faith in Christ that he does. They agree that Gentiles should not be made to follow the law, and they endorse Paul's God-given calling to preach to the Gentiles. Peter, James, and John offer to him and Barnabas, his partner in ministry, the right hand of fellowship, a symbol of their support, approval, and unity with them.

Paul holds a crucial meeting with the other apostles. Do they preach, as he does, that salvation can only be found through faith in Christ and not by following the law? He learns that they do, though ''false brothers'' in their midst are opposed to this gospel of God's grace. After receiving official approval from Peter and the others, Paul later opposes Peter for publicly trying to distance himself from Gentile Christians out of fear of how others might respond. Paul declares that justification comes only through faith in Christ and not by the works of the law.

In Galatians 1, Paul defended himself in order to defend the trustworthiness of his message. He made the case that he was a legitimate apostle. He shows in Galatians 2 that the other apostles stand with him in teaching the gospel of salvation through faith in Christ. He describes a moment in which he rebuked Peter for hypocrisy and then makes the case that only faith in Christ can bring justification for any person in the eyes of God. The works of the law can never make anyone righteous, or Christ would not have had to die.

Galatians is sometimes called “a short Romans” for its similar themes of justification and sanctification through faith. A group of Christians known as “Judaizers” were preaching a gospel of legalism, rather than grace. Paul’s main purpose in writing the letter to the Galatians was to reiterate the true nature of the gospel: we are justified (made righteous) and sanctified (made more Christlike) through our faith in Jesus Christ alone. This letter was probably written shortly before the church elders in Jerusalem issued their official refutation of the Judaizers, commonly called the Jerusalem Council.