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Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian.
But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.
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This is the Epistle reading selection to be read aloud on the first Sunday after Christmas, Year C, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will follow an Old Testament reading from Isaiah, where the prophet wrote, “and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of Yahweh will give.” That reading will be followed by a singing of Psalm 147, where David wrote: “For he has strengthened the bars of your gates; he has blessed your children within you. He has established peace on your borders; he satisfies you with the finest wheat.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from John, where the saint wrote: “To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.”
This reading can be called ‘cherry picking,’ because only a clump of words from one chapter (a branch of the ‘Galatians tree’) is placed in a basket with a clump from another one. In this case, the two selected sets of verses mesh well together, as one sets up the other, while the other explains the first. Still, to read the above translation into English, it is easy for a pew-sitter to hear orated: “blah blah law blah blah faith blah blah Jesus, God, Father.” Every Epistle reading is written in a divine language that is designed to put the lazy to sleep; so, only the true Christians will lean forward and say, “Wait a minute. Did I just hear what I think I heard? I need to look at this closer.”
The above translation is a paraphrase, based on a translation service having no clue how to read divine texts. Because the Bibles printed in English are the only versions all mono-linguistic American Christians have ever heard read aloud to them (most do not own Bibles, thus they rarely read it themselves), they go to church and leave church thinking all the Biblical figures spoke English, believing Jesus of Nazareth’s whole name was Jesus Christ. American Episcopalians avoid pre-church Bible Studies classes in droves, attending church to politely let all the reading and singing be over with, attending only there for the ten-minute priest confirmation that sins are okay, because everything is forgiven by Jesus. For that affirmation they drop a twenty in the basket, eat a wafer and sip some wine. Then they go on their lives as they had before, with nothing changed.
Because these seven verses come from two chapters, it is important to realize what is said in each chapter, before connecting the two together. In my effort to discern what is written, I have to read the Greek text in segments, based on marks of punctuation. Each segment of words makes an important statement that must be discerned separately. In that endeavor, I have looked up each word to carefully place English translations that are not only viable, but also closer to the truth of the form in which the Greek words are written.
In the following, I will list the segments by verse in the Greek, to be followed by my English translations. I recommend the reader here to compare the NRSV translations above with what I have translated. The point is to see if the reader can discern what Paul intended, writing by divine inspiration. If Paul were writing as just a man who knew Greek, he would have written under the name Saul; and, he would not have changed from his opinion that Saul had [kill the Christian Jews]. In this regard, the first word is capitalized, which translates as “Before,” and that word should be read as a divinely elevated reference to a Spiritual transformation that Paul knew, as Saul. The capitalization acts as a “Before” and after series of verses.
23
Pro tou de elthein tēn pistin ,
hypo nomon ephrouroumetha ,
synkleiomenoi eis tēn mellousan pistin apokalyphthēnai ,
24
hōste ho nomos paidagōgos hēmōn geogonen ,
eis Christon ,
hina ek pisteōs dikaiōthōmen .
25
elthousēs de tēs pisteōs ,
ouketi hypo paidagōgon semen .
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23
Before of what now came this trust ,
under custom we are held prisoner ,
having been enclosed together towards this future belief to be disclosed ,
24
so that this law guide of us has become a new state of being ,
union Anointed one ,
in order that from out of faith we might be acquitted .
25
of having come now of this faith ,
no more under a tutor we exist this .
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[skipping over the final four verses of chapter three and the first three verses of chapter four]
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4
Hote de ēlthen to plērōma tou chronou ,
exapesteilen ho Theos ton Huion autou ,
genomenon ek gynaikos ,
genomenon hypo nomon ,
5
hina tous hypo nomon exagorasē ,
hina tēn huiothesian apolabōmen .
6
Hoti de este huioi ,
exapesteilen ho Theos to Pneuma tou Huiou autou eis tas kardias hēmōn ,
krazon ,
Abba ,
ho Patēr !
7
hōste ouketi ei doulos ,
alla huios ;
ei de huios ,
kai klēronomos dia Theou .
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4
When now it had come this that which fills of this of opportune time ,
sent forth this God this Son of him ,
having become out from within of wife ,
having come into being under an influence compelling action ,
5
so that those under an influence compelling action he might rescue from loss ,
in order that this adoption we might have received
6
That now you exist sons ,
sent forth this God this Spirit of this Son of him in union these inner selves of us souls ,
urgently screaming ,
Abba ,
this Father !
7
so then no more you exist a slave ,
except a son ;
forasmuch as now a son ,
kai heir on account of of God .
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To interpret what Paul stated in these specific verses, look first at 3:23, which fully says, “Before of what now came this trust , under custom we are held prisoner , having been enclosed together towards this future belief to be disclosed ,” In this, the Greek word “pistin” is stated twice, translated first as “trust” and second as “belief.” This should be seen as a theme for all three verses selected, as another form of this word is found in the next two verses (3:24 and 3:25), with “pisteōs” found written once in each verse. In both of those uses the translation is shown as “faith.” All are valid translations for the root word “pistis,” which can mean “faith, belief, trust, confidence; fidelity, faithfulness.” (Strong’s Usage)
Because verse 23 begins with the capitalized word that means “Before,” with that being specific to Paul’s life prior to taking on that name, he considered himself a devout Jew, to the point that he placed great “trust” is that religion being the best of all on earth. Paul was an example, by projection, of the Jews who had Jesus crucified, such that he was zealous in hunting down and punishing all Jews who believed Jesus was the ‘King of the Jews.’ It was not “faith” that led Saul to act that way, as it was “trust” in what he had been told to “believe.”
In the second segment, I have translated the word that can also say “law” as “custom.” Because Saul (et al) misunderstood the Law of Moses, making up interpretations to suit their needs, as the exclusive religion of Yahweh, they had made those misinterpretations become their “custom” to follow. Because they did not have any way of fully explaining the flaws in their misunderstandings, they and all Jews were “held prisoner” by those misconceptions. Nobody could live up to the “do as I say, not as I do’ reasoning.
The third segment of words is then Paul concluding this element of “trust” in Judaism, where all Jews were “prisoners” of a flawed way of life, that he said all Jews were “together” in being steadfast “believers,” who “trusted” that somewhere down the line – when the Messiah came – everything they “believed” to be true would be “disclosed,” so the truth would finally be known.
Verse 3:24 then fully says, “so that this law guide of us has become a new state of being , union Anointed one , in order that from out of faith we might be acquitted .” In the one capitalized word in this verse (“Christos”), the Greek word for the Hebrew “Messiah” is written. This says the Jews then were like Christians today, in the fact that Paul had explained their “trust” was all dependent on a “future” when all their ”beliefs” would be “discovered” to be a judgment that says, “You did the right thing by not doing anything right.”
Just as the Jews were (forever) waiting for the promised Messiah to come and save them from having lost lands, having sinned, having become impoverished souls, becoming people projecting evils through illnesses, and everything else wrong with them, the Christians today are absolutely no different. People like Saul then are just as pedestalized as heroes today. If a modern Pilate were to offer up Jesus (resurrected in new flesh that looked nothing like the character Christians hang on their wall-crosses at home) and a modern version of the ”notorious prisoner” (remember Paul writing about being prisoners?) Barabbas, modern Christians would also scream out, “Crucify the one saying he is Jesus reborn!!!”
With that understood, verse 3:24 begins by saying “the law” was only a “guide” or “trainer” (with a whip and chair), because (after all) wild lions will be wild lions. The expectation was for “a new state of being” to come … not from everyone personally changing and becoming new beings, but from a “new being” – the Messiah – coming to be that enforcer of the Law. This was the expectation of an external one – a KING – who would solve all the problems the Jews had. Thus, the second segment of words sets apart as important – “upon Messiah.”
Now, in the second segment I have taken the word translating as “upon” or “into” and used the essence of its meaning, as stated by HELPS Word-studies. They write: “eis (a preposition) – properly, into (unto) – literally, "motion into which" implying penetration ("unto," "union") to a particular purpose or result.” [I added the bold type and underline.] This segment is then Paul (not Saul) speaking from personal experience of “the Messiah” having come, because Paul had become “Anointed,” from being “in union” with Yahweh’s promise having been delivered.
Rather than stand around not following the Law, without one person in the flesh to be one’s “guide” or “trainer” in what to do, when, and maybe tell why, that person (named Jesus of Nazareth) had already come. By the time Paul was writing this letter (and Paul never met the man Jesus), he had “become a new state of being,” because he himself had come “in union” with the soul of Jesus, making Paul be “Anointed” by Yahweh, so his soul and flesh could become a reborn Jesus. Rather than have a “trust” in “customs” that left one dirty with the stench of sins, receiving the presence of Yahweh and His Son within his being meant Paul’s soul was “acquitted” of all past sins, with a complete personal experience of “the Christ” elevating “belief” to true “faith.”
Seeing that, Paul then wrote verse 3:25, which can be read fully as: “of having come now of this faith , no more under a tutor we exist this .” The first segment of words is Paul now saying that this change, coming about by the Anointment by Yahweh (“Theos,” as only “God” can “Anoint” – humans “anoint” with physical oil) is how the truth of “faith” comes to be. In the second segment he returns to the “trainer, guide, tutor” analogy of what an external set of documents (scrolls or a Holy Bible) can be expected to do to one’s soul. The use of “esmen,” which is the plural statement of “eimi” – meaning “I am,” as “we are” – should be seen as Paul making a statement about ALL who are like Paul (Christs in union) “are” that “new being” that the “Law” made them expect to come. They were no longer “under a tutor,” as they had each and all been reborn as the trainer, guide, tutor – Jesus reborn into new bodies that were Anointed by Yahweh.
These three verses must be read as Paul telling Christians today (through an eternal letter written to Galatians then) that there is no written law or custom that can ever make a soul in a body of flesh be good and do everything exactly as the Law allows. That is a false understanding of what Yahweh sent Moses down from the mountain with. It is like reading a book that is entitled “How to be married,” and after reading that book coming away with the misconception that reading a book about marriage makes one married. It does not because it cannot. The promise of “the Messiah” (in Greek “the Christ”) is all about when one’s soul falls in love with Yahweh and actually becomes “in union” with Him, so one becomes “the Messiah." These three verses say, “What you thought you knew was wrong; but when you realize the truth, then you will be what you expect to come in somebody else.”
In the leap forward to verse 4:4 we can now read that fully as saying: “When now it had come this that which fills of this of opportune time , sent forth this God this Son of him , having become out from within of wife , having come into being under an influence compelling action ,” These four segments are taking the statements about true “faith,” relative to the “Law” as a “trainer” and making this be clearer as one becoming “in union the Christ” as relative to one having received “the Son” into one’s soul, so one and “the Son” are “in union” in the same body of flesh. In these four verses, words will be found repeating about that “sent forth” from “God,” through His “Spirit,” involving “the Son” a “wife” (thus mother) and “the Father.” All of this must be read as statements of marriage and the purpose of such being to “bring forth” a child.
In the first segment of words in verse four, focus needs to be placed on “comes this which fills,” where the Greek word “plērōma” means, “(a) a fill, fullness; full complement; supply, patch, supplement, (b) fullness, filling, fulfillment, completion.” (Strong’s Usage) This not only says a “time” of “filling” but also “an opportune time” when “fullness” (compared to emptiness or only being partially “filled”) has “come.” The capitalization of “Hote” must be read as divinely elevated to a statement of a timing that is not one’s choosing, but “When” Yahweh deems one is ready. The “filling” is then of His "Spirit."
With that being understood, the second segment then progresses this state of “completeness” “in union” as “a Christ” of Yahweh, to the realization that the purpose of marriage is to bring forth a child, most importantly a “Son.” When the Greek word “autou” is seen to mean “of him,” the root word “autos” means “(1) self (emphatic) (2) he, she, it (used for the third person pronoun) (3) the same.” (Strong’s Definition) This says that one’s soul has been “filled” so one’s “self” (a “self” equates to a “soul”) is “the same” as Yahweh, which means “the Son the same” becomes oneself. Rather than thinking this is a separate person that is sent to stand beside, in front of, or anywhere external to oneself is then missing the point of oneself being “filled” by “God” so one becomes “the Son” reborn, as “the same” soul of Jesus reborn into one’s own soul. That makes one also (“the same, the self”) Jesus, “the Son.”
Now, the third segment of words is translated by the NRSV as saying, “born of a woman,” which makes ears stand up and think, “That’s Mary!” They then automatically leap to the conclusion that “the Son” coming “from God” is the one we all know as “Jesus.” That is not what Paul wrote, as nowhere is the name Jesus of Nazareth to be found, as that was what the Jews called “the Son” born in Bethlehem, roughly forty years or so earlier (since dead, risen, and ascended). When one looks at what Paul wrote and sees it as, “having become out from within of wife,” well – by golly gee! – the one to whom “God” sent forth a “Son” was the soul of the Saint (all like Paul), who married Yahweh (soul to Spirit “in union”), making that soul become His “wife” (the Greek word “gynaikos” means “wife”), which is then the mother of “the Son” created by “God.” This says one’s soul is a “wife,” which by definition says a spouse for the purpose of bearing children. The truth of marriage is propagation, not to have sex and legally be able to get one’s jollies out.
When one realizes Paul was not just throwing out superfluous stuff, as everything he wrote came from his Christ Mind, as the Word of Yahweh spoken to him by Jesus “the Son,” to understand how Paul was a reflection of all who will be “a wife” and mother from divine marriage to Yahweh, this makes sense of Jesus telling his disciples, while inside a house with Mary and his siblings outside, unable to enter the house because of the crowd, “Here is my mother” and “Here are my brothers.” Each disciple would be reborn in the name of Jesus after he returned on Pentecost Sunday, making each a “wife” of Yahweh; and, also the mother of “the Son” sent back by “God.”
The fourth segment of words in verse four is translated by the NRSV as saying, “born under the law,” but that creates confusion that causes one to seek where all this is said scripturally. The word translated as “law” is “nomon,” which means “usage, custom, law.” Still, the intent of “law” can be defined as being “an influence compelling action.” When one is then said to be “under” such a “compelling influence,” this becomes how Jesus said Yahweh would write the law on the walls of one’s heart (where “heart” means “soul,” or “inner self”). Thus, Paul did not say that Jesus would return in the flesh again, according to what is said in the “law.” He said “the law” will come when one is “under the influence that compels one to act” according to the Will of Yahweh, as commanded by “the Son.” The Book of Acts can then be seen as those done by Saints who had come “under the law,” as Jesuses reborn.
This then led Paul to write verse 4:5, which can be fully seen as saying, “so that those under an influence compelling action he might rescue from loss , in order that this adoption we might have received .” Here, the same word “nomon” is repeated, where the same “influence compelling action” means the failure to comply with the written “law.” That is what leads a soul to become lost in judgment – either total condemnation (the outer darkness) or punishment (reincarnation). The “loss” that offers one’s soul the opportunity to be “rescued” (it is a conditional [subjunctive] “might”] is the presence of an “influence” – “the Son of God” – that is no longer external (in scrolls or a Holy Bible), but internal, “in union” with one’s soul.
In the second segment of words, the focus lands on “adoption” (“huiothesian”), which means “the Son of God” is a separate soul that has been created by Yahweh [call him Adam if you want], whose sole purpose has always be to “save” [call it “rescue”] souls. This is why the angel Gabriel told Mary, “You will name him Jesus,” which is a name that means “Yahweh Will Save.” Because that soul of salvation is separate, when it is “sent forth by God” into the soul of His “wife” [call that divine intercourse to make a baby], the soul of the “wife” and its body of flesh on the earthly plane must be “Anointed.” This makes a soul in the flesh become a “brother” to every other soul likewise married to Yahweh and "Anointed," with each being a new resurrection of Jesus, making each be “the Son” resurrected within a “wife” of Yahweh, making Yahweh be both the Husband and the Father. Because His “Son” is in new flesh, that flesh becomes “a Christ” reborn, and the soul-body is “adopted” as another “Son of God.”
Paul then wrote verse 4:6, which can be fully read as stating, “That now you exist sons , sent forth this God this Spirit of this Son of him in union these inner selves of us souls , urgently screaming , Abba , this Father !” In this, the Greek word “este” is a repeat of the previous plural form “esmen,” used in verse 3:25. The intent is the same, only now in the singular number, where the second person (“you”) is used to denote one’s new “existence” (“you are”). That singularity is then applied globally to the many, so that all like Paul “are sons” ["adopted"]. This must not be seen as exclusive of females, as all humanity (males and females alike) are deemed “wives.” This means souls in flesh take on a feminine essence; but when a soul is married to Yahweh and receives His “Son,” all souls that are “wives” also become “sons,” as Jesus reborn into the souls of males and females alike.
The second segment of words then explains this as a distinction “sent forth” by Yahweh, which comes through His “Spirit.” The “Spirit” is when one is “Anointed” (“a Christ”) meaning it is not the last name of Jesus, but instead a description of one being “in the name of Yahweh.” When that marriage produces “this Son of him in union with these inner selves of us souls,” then one is “in the name of Jesus,” because that means “Yahweh Saves.” That is when both names can be combined, as “of Jesus,” and “of Christ,” or vice versa.
It is this presence of Jesus – “the Son of him” (remembering “of him” means “of self, of same”) – then one’s soul rejoices loudly, “urgently screaming” (a viable translation of “krazon”) what “the Son” tells one to say. This is the truth of the Gospel or “Good news.” It is too good to keep in and not scream out urgently, so others can hear. It is this voice that leads one to speak that then identifies Yahweh as “Abba,” the Aramaic word for the following words written, “this Father.” This is spoken because “the Son” is within one’s soul AND one’s soul has been “adopted” by Yahweh as His “son.” The exclamation point confirms the translation “urgently screams.”
This then led Paul to write verse 4:7, which can now be read fully as: “so then no more you exist a slave , except a son ; forasmuch as now a son , kai heir on account of of God .” Once again we find a word that is rooted in “I am” (“eimi”), which needs to be seen as “one being” (“you are”) “in union” with Yahweh (the Big “I AM”). The transformation is relative to being “a slave” to the world, of which one’s body of flesh is inclined to join and to which it will return upon one’s death. By becoming Jesus reborn, the lures of the material realm no longer draw one away from the ways of righteousness, which is the true meaning of the “Law,” and being a ”wife” of Yahweh. Diving "union" with Yahweh brings His "Spirit" that is cleansing righteousness, along with His "Son" Jesus within, being one's brother who becomes one's "guide" in righteousness. This is because one has become an “exception” to the “custom” that “death and taxes are the only certainties of life.” As “a son” divinely married and reborn in "adoption," one is “except” the norm and the typical.
Following a semi-colon mark, separating the first two segment’s statement with a new relative but different statement, Paul said this change in one’s being, as holding the importance of “now a son,” brings on the great importance of inheritance. Here, the only use of the word “kai” is found in these selected verses. The word's placement, at the beginning of the last segment of words in verse seven, says being an ”heir” is very significant. When the young, rich man asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life,” the answer is more than simply being Jewish. It is more than being proficient in what the “Law” says (being able to quote English mistranslations and speak the gibberish of making people think you have a clue what Scripture means). It is more than having more things than one needs, simply to say one is wealthy because God or Jesus made me rich … because I am so good. Paul said, "To be an “heir,” one has to serve “God” (Yahweh)." One must be a "Son" of Yahweh to be on the "inheritance" list. Yahweh will read from that list on one's Judgment Day. The Greek word “dia” means “through, on account of, because of,” which is a word that makes it clear that there can be no “inheriting eternal life” without doing as this selection of seven verses from Paul's letter to the Galatians say. One can only find salvation through marriage to Yahweh (“Theos”) and giving birth to His “Son.” That is why this is selected for the first Sunday after Christmas.
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